Traitor

Knock! Knock! Knock!

Tales grimaced as he heard loud knocks coming from his door and opened his eyes. He had dozed off to sleep in the middle of planning his escape from this hellish situation. He immediately got out of bed and opened the door, not minding his bed hair and unkempt appearance.

One of Raja's stern-looking men greeted him, holding a black box.

"What?" he asked.

"Get changed," the man said, handing him the box. "Boss is waiting outside. He ordered that you should be there by 7:30!" Then he left.

'What?'

Tales didn't ask further questions and closed the door. He immediately looked at the wall clock and saw that it was already 7:25. He only had 5 minutes to prepare? Raja must think he has superpowers or something. Nonetheless, he shouldn't complain unless he has a perfect plan to kill that bastard. For now, he just needed to get on his good side.

He was asked to get changed, so it must be clothes. He opened the box and saw a black suit, a gun, and a knife beside it.

"What's with this attire?" he murmured. Nevertheless, he immediately got dressed. He didn't even comb his hair, wash his face, or brush his teeth. He just went straight outside to the car of the asshole.

A Ferrari GTC4Lusso, color black.

'This asshole has so much money that I doubt it's the only car he has. He probably has a collection of cars and he can't let go of 3B!' he muttered in his mind before knocking on the passenger window. The door opened with Raja in the passenger seat, sitting comfortably.

"No greetings?! And you're a minute late," he sternly stated as he looked at his watch, a Patek Philippe Nautilus. "This is a warning."

'Just how much money does this person have?!'

Nevermind that, Tales noticed that the Raja he encountered yesterday was gone. Right now, he was screaming authority. His face was stern and emotionless. He didn't even glance at Tales when the door opened. He just kept his eyes straight ahead. He had one of his men driving the luxury car.

"I am sorry, sir," Tales responded and sat on the left side of the seat. Upon seating and gazing at the interior of the vehicle, he was in awe. The car screamed luxury! It featured fine leather, Alcantara, and carbon fiber trim. The dashboard had a large touchscreen for the infotainment system, like navigation, media, and connectivity features.

Tales and Raja immediately departed. He didn't ask any questions about where they were going since he could read the room, and Tales doubted that Raja would answer his questions when he looked so focused.

A phone rang, breaking the eerie atmosphere. Raja answered it.

"Speak," he ordered in a cold voice.

Tales couldn't hear what the former was saying, but he knew it was serious when the latter listened thoroughly. He got chills when Raja's expression changed. From being expressionless to a demon ready to devour its prey, his eyes glinted with a crazed light, and an unsettling grin spread across his face as if he had found the prey he had been looking for. The call ended.

"That bastard really thinks he can toy with me like this?" he murmured. His emotions changed in a split second. His pupils were shaking as he thought of something fearful. "How dare he embarrass me to Father?" he whispered again with such fear, doubt, and a blaming tone. "Father will not love me anymore because of what he did."

Tales was perplexed by what he saw. He was scared of how Raja behaved in front of him. It was as if he was a lunatic. He had no brains.

"No." Raja exclaimed even more frightened but trying to convince himself of something that even Tales couldn't understand who he was referring to. "Father loves me. As long as I do it right, Father ---"

"You have a screw loose ---" Before Tales knew it, he commented. What he should have said in his head, he said out loud. That's when Raja stopped murmuring and looked at him with a glare that made him think he was a goner.

"What?" He immediately asked and touched the gun on his vest in case Raja attacked him, but to his surprise, he didn't. Instead, Raja calmed down and sighed.

"Drive faster. I need to fxck that old man," he stated and smirked.

'What is with him?' Tales muttered in his mind.

They arrived at a tall building. When they got out of the car, he saw the logo: 'Almarino.' One of the biggest companies operating in the Philippines, it was famous for its sardines and tuna. Tales couldn't even imagine how big the organization he was in was because of Raja's connections with big companies.

They entered, and the guard didn't even check them. It seemed like Raja and his men were often here. They didn't even bother to ask at the reception desk. They went straight to the elevator, and Raja picked up the metal tube that had a sign to not overload the elevator, hinting to Tales that the psychopath would do something crazy. They went in and pressed the top floor of the company.

Ting!

As the elevator signaled, Raja immediately walked out, and in front of the CEO's office, he wedged the metal tube against the glass door. The glass shattered, and the sound of glass breaking echoed throughout the hallway.

"Who's there?! How dare---" a voice filled with rage asked but was cut off by Raja.

"Old man, how have you been?"

An old man in his 50s was seen sitting on his swivel chair with a table in front of him. There were lots of documents on the table. His laptop was also there. The room was well-ventilated, with a couch, a tea table, and a glass wall facing the highway.

"It's you!" he exclaimed. His expression changed from being mad to being confused. "What is the meaning of this, Raja?"

"I am just checking what you've been doing these days. Nothing much, I see."

"What?"

"But I've heard some rumors circulating, old man," he slowly walked towards the old man as he put the metal tube on his shoulder and pounded it slowly as if he was massaging it. "you've been coveting what's mine recently." He leaned towards the person with an intimidating expression, like a predator ready to kill with one wrong move of the prey.

The old man started to sweat buckets. He knew he was guilty. He immediately avoided his gaze. "I can't follow what you've been saying, Raja."

"Do I have to break that skull of yours for you to remember?"

"What?" The old man's face became pale, and horror resurfaced.

"My pets," Raja murmured. "You've been buying them for a higher price to work in your lousy bar, haven't you?"

Tales couldn't fathom what Raja was saying. He knew that the asshole only treated people like pets, but what was with the coveting?

The old man seemed to remember, as his eyes widened for a moment.

"You might think your operations are elusive, but there's no way I wouldn't find a rat that's been acting against his master. Right, Calder?"

Calder was the name of the old man.

"Let me explain. It's not that---"

"Lie again, and I will cut your tongue," Raja cut him off with a warning tone and a glare.

"Now, tell me," Raja finally spoke. "Who is the one selling those bxtches to you?!"

Silence.

The old man couldn't speak or blink his eyes. He was so afraid that he was sweating buckets.

"Cat got your tongue?" Raja tauntingly asked and looked at Tales, who was standing a meter beside him. "Cut one of his fingers." The old man's jaw dropped.

"What?"

Tales was surprised by the sudden order and didn't move for a second. He saw how Raja's face became so annoyed that he closed his eyes and sighed deeply.

"Do I have to repeat myself every time?"

Tales pressed his lips. "No, I'm sorry." He immediately pulled out his knife from his vest and went straight to Calder. He forcibly placed the old man's hand on the table, but Calder struggled.

"No, Raja."

"Raja, you can't do this to me."

"I will never do it again."

"No---"

*Twack!

"Arghhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!"

A shout echoed on the whole floor when Raja struck Calder's free hand with the tube. Tales' eyes widened.

"Arghhhhhhhh!!! Help!!!" the old man shouted, and in a brief moment, footsteps running towards their direction could be heard. It was probably the company's security.

"Van, get out and take care of them. Leave none alive!" Raja ordered the supposed driver. The man just nodded and went straight to the people.

"Nooo!! Don't!"

"Argh. You're so noisy. Want me to cut your tongue?" he hissed.

The man breathed rapidly in pain and horror. He was trying his best to suppress his groans and cries.

"Just know that biting your owner will have consequences. Don't forget that Father will surely not like a business partner that dares to toy with him," Raja stated and nodded at Tales. "Cut."

Tales was dumbfounded by how heartless this man was, but he couldn't care less. He also needed to survive. The man, who was trembling, didn't even struggle anymore. He severed Calder's little finger. Blood spurted from the wound, painting Tales' hand and the floor with droplets of blood. The man didn't scream, but his face showed immense pain. His eyes were bloodshot.

"I will give you 2 hours to deliver the snake or your little finger won't be the only thing you lose." Raja eyed the man before turning his back on him. "Let's go."

Tales immediately followed him without questions. When they got out, blood was everywhere in the hallway. There were splashes of blood on the wall, and more than ten security guards were lying down, bathing in their own blood. Van was standing at the center, holding a gun with a silencer.

'Just how powerful is this man to be able to do things as he pleases?' Tales muttered in his mind.

Raja walked towards the elevator and pressed the button for the 1st floor, the lobby.

"What about the corpses?" Tales couldn't help but ask. Will they just leave them there?!

Raja looked at him and smiled. "That old man will take care of that."

"What?"

"He'll either clean the mess up or I'll just kxll him. He'll choose the former."

"Just... who are you?" Tales asked in a low, curious voice with a sense of wariness.

Raja just grinned. "Forget about that." He leaned in slightly so their faces were aligned. Raja put his forefinger under Tales' jaw and smiled as if he was proud of something. "Congratulations, Tales. You've become quite obedient. And for that, I applaud you."

Tales immediately moved backwards. "You!"

"But we still have a long way to go, I see." Raja eyed him from head to toe. "Go on, keep resisting. It will only be more fun to tame you. I'll be sure to add you to my collection."