THE MASTER'S GAME PLAN

CHAPTER 5 - THE SYNDICATE

The Syndicate

ZC POLICE STATION...

Camera flashes cracked like gunfire outside the building, a wall of reporters. Gian stood beside the chief, who fielded their questions.

"All I can say is that we're doing our duty. These parasites of society deserve to disappear."

"Sir, why didn't you confiscate the products? Why blow them up instead?"

The chief turned to Gian, which meant he'd have to answer the reporter himself. This was exactly why the PDEA had called in the S.E.S for this province. Syndicates had overrun nearly the entire city. They were powerful, and they had the government in their pocket.

"We have to change how things have always been done. Every product we intercept, we answer with fire!"

They were keeping only what the case file needed.

It couldn't work this way anywhere else. In Davao, where he'd first met Vince, they had handed every piece of evidence over to the authorities. But here the rot ran so deep that the syndicates might as well cook shabu in front of the officers.

His gut told him the powerful, the authorities, the politicians, and the influential were all in it together, manipulating and ruling the whole city.

He trusted the PDEA. But he knew someone stronger could hold them in their grip.

His eyes cut past the lenses to the entrance, where Mondragon was being marched out, bandages peeking above his collar, wrists cuffed, spine still iron straight. Treated first. Charged after. No bail while the case sat open in front of a judge.

Gian had already turned over everything: the video records from the hideout, the factory, the transactions he'd sat in on, and the footage of the biggest deal at the warehouse, where Mondragon was caught.

Around thirty of Mondragon's men filed out and into five patrol cars, the ones taken in yesterday's raid on their factory, carried out with the PDEA and the police.

The reporters pressed in harder.

Then more than fifty civilians arrived, carrying placards, and shouted as one.

"THANK YOU, PDEA!"

"JUSTICE FROM THE ADDICTS WHO TURNED CRIMINAL!"

"CRUSH THE DRUG LORDS!"

The cameras swung toward them.

He hadn't expected such conviction from people who were surely the victims of drug-fueled violence.

His eyes hardened on the syndicate members. Then he walked to the car.

"Feels good to land a big fish!" Vince said, and drove toward headquarters.

Gian nodded. "Bro, Mondragon has influence, right?"

"Yeah, bro. He owns plenty of businesses. Big pharmacies, hospitals, and who knows what else."

"Vince what if every influential person in this place is part of the syndicate? Who's the most powerful, the most influential, around here?"

Vince went quiet, as if searching his memory. "As far as I know... Don Jaime."

"The one whose granddaughter is looking for a husband?"

"Yeah! But, there's been no news about that. Did she ever find one?"

"Tsk. Who cares about her?"

---

MEDC MINE SITE...

Even from far away, the roar of rushing water was unmistakable.

Outside, mud-brown water ran straight down the road instead of through the pipe and into the canal. Workers scattered to deal with the sudden flood.

In front of the office stood the operations manager, John Malvar, a broken pipe in his fist, looking ready to hurl it at the man facing him.

"Is this Grade A?" He nearly jammed the jagged edge into Mr. Delgado, their construction supplier. "Look how thin it is. No wonder it kept leaking. The water pressure was never the problem. It's your pipes!"

"That pipe is sturdy!" Delgado shot back, but his eyes were on the workers watching them. His voice dropped. "Maybe your men made a mistake, or maybe the soil shifted..."

"The soil didn't shift. The pipe collapsed!" Malvar snapped it over his knee. "Cheap quality, expensive price. You cheats."

"That's a serious accusation to make-Ms.-" The man stopped short. Ellah was walking toward them, her heeled sandals sinking into the water.

"Go on," she said. "Say it in front of me."

The workers gathered at once, suddenly very interested.

Malvar handed her the broken piece. She ran her fingers along it to the edge.

"This isn't the same product listed on your invoice." Her tone was calm. "You charged us for sturdy HDPE. This wouldn't survive as a garden hose."

"Ms. Lopez, I assure you, our warehouse pulled from the correct-"

"Then your warehouse can explain that to whoever prepared it, because I'm sending this sample to your office." Her voice was firm, and Delgado fell silent. "Now there's water flooding the road that should be in the drainage. That's fraud with a receipt attached."

"We can replace the batch-"

She smiled, but it never reached her eyes. "You will. Someone has to inspect your products before they're installed." She held up the broken pipe. "You'll also pay to clear the mud from the road, and refund what we overpaid. If there's a problem, our lawyer will talk to your company."

"Tomorrow I'll deliver the replacement, with my men."

"Good." She dropped the pipe near his feet. "Mr. Malvar will handle everything."

She turned away before he could answer. The manager fell into step beside her.

"I wanted to throw that pipe at his head," he muttered.

"Have you talked to the LGU?"

"Yes, ma'am. The barangay captain understands, as long as we hurry."

"Okay, I trust you, Mr. Malvar. I'm not blaming you for not checking those items earlier, but please ensure it gets done now."

"I will. Thank you, Ms. Ellah!"

"Gather all the evidence on this. I don't believe this is just negligence. There might be a syndicate behind this."

---

PHOENIX HEAD QUARTERS...

Gian was stepping out of the car at the office when Vince called after him.

"Bro, throw a farewell party! Mission accomplished, and you're leaving soon!"

Gian turned and stared at him, unblinking.

"Whoa! If you don't want to, it's fine!" Vince threw up his hands.

Gian stepped closer and lowered his voice. " I know he's not the only leader."

"How can you tell?"

"Mondragon's phone contacts were all numbers. There was a 2, 3, 5, 6, and number 1. I called number 1, but it never connected because of what happened."

Vince said nothing for a moment. "What a waste."

"I'm sure of it. That number 1 is the mastermind of the whole syndicate."

His eyes drifted toward the street outside the agency.

"If only we had evidence..." he said, half to himself.

Then they looked at each other.

And spoke at the same time.

"THE CELLPHONE!"