Daniel walked out of the room and headed towards where Sean was sharpening his knives. "Are you still not done with that? You"ve been at it since I got here."Sean glanced at his friend and replied, "Nah, I have a lot to sharpen.", he gestured to the black bag beside him which was full of knives.
"Are you keeping someone else here to torture?", Daniel asked in curiosity.
Sean looked at him with a confused expression, "What are you talking about?"
"Knives are your favorite… as a weapon and as a method of torture."
"Are you crazy? You thought I was gonna… why would I use these for that? I use these babies for food, okay! They"re for my kitchen!", he exclaimed.
"You"re the crazy one. You look like a mad man sharpening his tools in his dungeon.", Daniel shook his head.
Sean just laughed at his comment, he missed his friend and today has been their most eventful one in years. Sean is actually called "Sharp Sean" within their organization. He is known to use knives as his weapon of choice; in which he is very skilled in, hence the name "Sharp"- for his skill and for his knives.
…
An hour later, Daniel and Sean were standing near the Maybach as they watched Sung Nan and Cole being escorted inside a van.
Sung Nan was given a set of basic clothing to change from because he had wet himself during confinement. Cole stole a glance at Daniel but s.h.i.+fted his gaze away when he saw Daniel looking back at him with a fierce expression on his face.
"Don"t worry, my men will escort them to the press conference.", Sean rea.s.sured.
Daniel nodded his head. He took a $5 bill from his wallet and gave it to Sean, "Here.", he said.
Sean raised a brow, "What is that?"
"Ghost pepper.", he replied briefly.
"I know. But you"re short! It"s $15.", he extended his hand as he asked for more.
Daniel placed the five dollar bill on Sean"s hand. "That"s for three peppers. But he only ate half of the one piece. Actually... he didn"t even eat it, he just bit and spat it out. I should be giving you only $2.50. You"re lucky I"m giving you a 100% tip.", he said as-matter-of-factly before he got inside his car and turned his engine on.
Sean was speechless. "What?! He"s paying only half of the piece and then the rest is a tip?!", he was in a daze as he thought about what Daniel had just said.
He snapped out of his trance when he heard the car starting. "Hey! Swift! You"re a bully!", Sean yelled but Daniel just laughed it off.
"I"ll send you a gift soon. See you later, Sharp!", Daniel bid farewell and then drove away.
…
At an underground parking lot of a hotel where the press conference is going to take place.
Daniel was already sitting at the backseat of his Maybach while a.s.sistant Ahn was on the driver"s seat. Ahn was the one who gathered the media and prepared the press conference while Daniel was at The Royal Rose.
The Maybach was parked in a corner and a van had just parked beside it.
The doors of the van opened and Sean"s men helped Sung Nan and Cole out. They brought the two over beside the Maybach and the window from the side where Daniel was sitting rolled down.
With a dark expression, Daniel spoke in a low voice, "Mr. Nan, I trust that you will not fail me with our little agreement. If… you are planning to pull something, I discourage you as early as now. Do remember, it was very easy for me to get to you. Despite being despicable, you do love your family right? I"m sure your wife and son-"
"Don"t you dare touch them!", Sung Nan gritted his teeth, he was both scared and mad.
"I didn"t say anything, Mr. Nan. As long as we"re clear about that."
Clenching his teeth, Sung Nan cursed Daniel Cho in his mind. "I will do as I promised."
"Good.", Daniel responded and glanced at Cole who was also scared stiff at what he had just heard.
He ordered for them to be brought up to the hotel and when they were out of sight, the Maybach drove out of the underground parking.
Ahn who was at the driver"s seat the whole time heard everything that his boss had said. He gulped at the image of Daniel giving Sung Nan a threat. He glanced at the rearview mirror and he saw Daniel looking back at him. He froze and the car swayed a little because of his fright.
"Do you have something to say?", Daniel asked as he closed his eyes to rest for a bit.
Ahn wiped the sweat from his forehead and braved himself to ask Daniel, "B-boss… just now, you don"t really mean the threat, right? You"re not going to harm his wife and son?". His heart raced after asking.
After a few seconds of silence, Daniel answered, "I"m not that evil to harm innocent people, Ahn."
His a.s.sistant exhaled a sigh of relief upon hearing his answer, but Daniel"s next words made him feel nervous again.
"However, I don"t mind harming those who aren"t."
In a.s.sistant Ahn"s mind, he thought, "So… you"re not completely an evil person? Just… half evil? I"m not sure if that makes me feel better."