Chapter 5: Plan in Motion
982 Words
"What's up? After becoming so powerful, you've forgotten about me?" the old voice chuckled softly, devoid of mockery.
It was the old prisoner in the same cell as him. Despite being once gloomy and difficult to talk to, this old prisoner had been fairly kind to him. Thus, Tyler harbored no hatred.
Yet, what he had just seen in this old prisoner's memories truly stunned him. Indeed, there was no human without significant secrets.
"I don't think so," Tyler replied. "It's just that my mind has been a bit elsewhere."
"You've suddenly changed, like you've been reborn, attracting many eyes," remarked another inmate.
Only then did Tyler look around, indeed, he was being observed with various gazes, but he didn't mind.
He sat calmly and finished his meal, overhearing the conversations among those at his table. His mind was elsewhere, especially on what he had just glimpsed through the old prisoner's memories.
He had made a decision: if he wanted to get out of this place sooner, he needed to find someone powerful to assist him. And to secure that help, he required a bargaining tool of equal value.
Thus, the secret he had just uncovered seemed perfectly suited for that purpose.
Throughout that day and the days that followed, Tyler rarely left the old prisoner's side, gathering information discreetly. In his heart, he silently apologized to the old prisoner.
Feeling sufficiently prepared, he went to meet the chief guard.
Upon seeing Tyler, the civilian head's expression of happiness immediately turned sour. Last time, because of Tyler's actions, the Big Boss had cut this month's pay.
As a lover of money, how could he be happy seeing the cause of his diminished earnings? Not to mention, Tyler hadn't benefited him in the slightest.
"Why are you here?" the chief guard asked, not even inviting Tyler to sit down.
Tyler didn't care about his attitude. He sat on the couch, running his fingers across the table's surface as if inspecting dust, and said, "Sit down first, this is something important."
The chief guard clicked his tongue at his demeanor but didn't want to provoke him. Over the past few days, he had heard stories of Tyler, the coward reborn, stirring rebellion everywhere.
"Alright, say what you want then. Oh, most importantly... do you have money?"
Tyler's eyes showed disgust, and a smirk of annoyance flashed across the chief guard's face.
Calmly, he replied, "No."
"In that case, forget about discussing anything important with me," the chief guard began to move away, but Tyler's hand quickly gripped his shoulder.
Without uttering a word, just the stare from Tyler sent shivers down the chief guard's spine. He involuntarily swallowed his spit.
"W-What... What are you going to do? Don't forget, I am the ruler around here."
"I know," Tyler responded nonchalantly, knowing better than to provoke the chief guard.
Tyler withdrew his hand from the chief guard's shoulder, reclining comfortably. His gaze shifted to various directions—sometimes probing, sometimes displaying disdain, and occasionally showing condescension.
After a moment of silence, he spoke again, "Actually, I just want your help."
"If there's money involved..." The chief guard clamped his mouth shut tightly after another sharp glare from Tyler. He cursed inwardly, who said this man was a coward? Clearly, he was venomous!
Reluctantly, he revised his words, "Alright, tell me what you want, but I can't promise to help if it hurts me."
"Don't worry, this won't hurt you," Tyler assured him.
Once sure the chief guard was listening, Tyler disclosed his main objective, "I want you to contact the commissioner general and tell him I want to discuss something important."
"Are you out of your mind? Who do you think that the commissioner general would spare time to talk to you?" The chief guard sneered, "Besides, I don't have the authority to speak directly with him."
"If that's the case, ask for help from Mr. Derek, he should be able to contact the commissioner general, right?"
"How... How do you know?" The chief guard's expression turned startled. Mr. Derek was his uncle, and not many people knew that. Yet, Tyler knew, which was quite surprising.
Instead of answering truthfully, Tyler casually remarked, "Don't forget that I am a member of the De Leon family."
The De Leon family was not just wealthy but also wielded power in the city of Pueblo.
Ah, the chief guard finally remembered. Tyler wasn't just any coward, he was the youngest son of the De Leon family patriarch. He had almost forgotten this fact because, in two years of imprisonment, not a single member of the De Leon family had come to visit Tyler.
In truth, if they wanted to, Tyler could easily be set free. Unfortunately, the chief guard also knew another significant secret.
"What do you want to tell the commissioner general? I need to hear it before making a decision."
"This concerns the search for the leader of the Vortex Cartel-"
Tyler stated it briefly and left it somewhat hanging.
After hearing Tyler's words, the chief guard furrowed his brows deeply. He had heard of this case before, but knew little about it because it was highly classified.
If even he didn't know much about it, how could Tyler explain how he knew?
"Don't talk nonsense, you-"
"This is my business with the commissioner general, you just need to convey it," the chief guard's words were cut off by Tyler.
"If what I say is true, wouldn't this also affect your promotion? Mr. Jorge, haven't you longed for a promotion?"
The chief guard stared at him for a moment before finally giving in. He was tempted by the promise of the promotion he had long desired. Although he made quite a bit of money in this prison, it didn't fulfill his self-esteem and ambitions.
"Fine, I'll do it, but I can't promise the outcome," he conceded.
- Writer
