The bad/good boss

puppet master

"You mean someone was attempting to assassinate me again?" Kelvin exclaimed, bloated. Scarlet didn't bother to answer, she just nodded in acknowledgment. "Do you know who ordered the hit on me?" Kelvin asked again. Scarlet didn't seem fazed by Kelvin's attitude; she just kept staring at him, thinking to herself, "How am I supposed to know? It's not like all assassins have the same area code." After a brief pause, she replied, "It seemed local, so I'm guessing the person who sent him is local." Kelvin did a double take before saying, "I see," trying to understand who would have the nerve to send an assassin after him. His first thought was Mark Foley, but he dismissed it easily. Then he thought it could be Fletcher, the man with the beaming face.

At the mention of Fletcher Durrell's name, Kelvin seemed to have noticed the breadcrumbs. However, because he still needed proof, he calmly spoke to the Scarlet assassin, "I need you to do something for me," he said. "I need you to look into Fletcher Durrell and see if he has any connection to the Assassin guild." Scarlet seemed to understand what Kelvin was trying to say and do. She immediately protested, saying, "Me looking into the Assassin guild would raise an eyebrow," she suggested. Kelvin paused for a moment, trying to digest what Scarlet had said. Deciding to act differently, he spoke with a calm demeanor, "You just watch my back and leave the rest to me."

Before long, Kelvin was in another undisclosed factory when he heard an explosion. The blast created dense smoke, and debris was scattered everywhere. Thanking his lucky stars that he arrived later than expected, he realized that his body would have been among the piles of debris if he had arrived on time.

It was becoming a pattern now. Someone was deliberately trying to cause trouble and bring down Don Chavez and his organization. Looking at the men around him, he spoke with a calm demeanor despite all the commotion. "We are under attack and our enemies are bent on causing trouble. We have to be vigilant from now on." Turning to face one of his subordinates, he quickly gave him a thumbs up before saying, "Your quick action just saved all our business and lives. We owe you a great debt." The subordinate smiled at Kelvin before bowing to acknowledge himself before everyone. Kelvin saw the confusion on some of his men's faces, so he decided to explain what had happened earlier. Noland had informed Kelvin days earlier that the factory was being watched by some mysterious people. He had suggested that the goods in the factory warehouse be secretly transported to another location since the place had been compromised. Most people at that time thought he was being paranoid for suggesting it, but Kelvin, trusting his gut, believed in Noland.

He immediately instructed his men to secretly transport the goods by midnight. Kelvin patted Noland on the back and whispered in his ear, "Don Chavez will be pleased with what you have done here today." Noland didn't dwell long on Kelvin's praises, as he spoke out to get Kelvin's attention. "Boss, we captured some of the men who were snooping around and have held them captive for some time, as instructed by Don Chavez. Would you like to question them, boss?" concluded Noland. Kelvin was surprised by his actions but remained impassive to not show it. Staring straight into Noland's eyes, as if trying to decipher some clue, he nodded before saying, "Take me to where they are being kept."

In another secret location, an underground cellar, four men were being chained by their hands and legs. Their faces were covered in blood and bruises, evidence of the torture they had endured. It was clear to anyone that they were being tortured.

When Kelvin and Noland entered the cellar, the guards were surprised as they were not expecting anyone and no one had informed them of Kelvin's arrival. Kelvin didn't bother with pleasantries and immediately walked up to the chained men, asking who among them was willing to talk. He promised to set them free.

The men were confused by Kelvin's words and looked at each other, unsure of what to do or say. They knew Kelvin was not to be trusted and feared the consequences of talking to the enemy. Seeing their hesitation, Kelvin added that not only would he spare their lives, but he would also guarantee their protection from then on. However, his offer was only for one of them.

The four men looked at each other once again, as if in a competition, trying to figure out who would be the first to talk. Kelvin chuckled inwardly, knowing that it was only a matter of time before one of them confessed. This was a trick he had used countless times before, as no man truly wants to die. Soon enough, one of the captives summoned the courage to speak, begging Kelvin to spare his life as he didn't want to die like this.

Kelvin raised an eyebrow and replied that it would depend on the information the man provided. If it was useful, he promised not to kill him, but if he wasted Kelvin's time, he would face even more pain and certain death.

The man tried his best to compose himself before saying, "Mark Foley ordered us to spy on the factory and report everything we see to him." "Mark Foley again," Kelvin said to himself, but he became even more hesitant to believe this was Mark Foley's doing. He asked the man with a straight face, "Are you sure that it was Mark Foley who ordered you?" The man, sensing something was amiss, hesitated for a moment before saying, "We were given the order by another man who claimed to be working for Mark Foley." Kelvin did a double take, trying to decipher who this mysterious person was and why they were trying so hard to implicate Mark Foley.

Noland chimed in, "Boss, it seems like Mark Foley is up to no good. Why don't you give us the order to take him down?" Kelvin took a deep breath before responding to Noland, "I don't think Mark is involved in what is happening, and I think someone is deliberately trying to set him up." "It seems like there is a puppet master at work, hiding in the shadows and causing mischief," he added. "What we need to do is find out who this puppet master is."