Chapter 1

Five years ago,  

Inside an office, sat Damian Tucker, a 28-year-old dark-skinned man with blue eyes and jet-black hair. His hair is shaped in an afro style, he has an eagle tattoo on his right arm and the cross symbol on his left arm.  

His chest has a star-shaped symbol on his right side. He is a mafia boss and is respected and feared in his territory. He rules the secret mafia world and underground cartel in North Wind Town.  

Inside his office, Damian wears a black suit and sits across from his desk, going through his laptop to check his other coded businesses.  

His office is painted in an off-white hue, and a knock on his office door interrupts him.  

"Boss, Mr. Max Dawson is here to see you," Damian's assistant, Jeff Brody, informs him, and he sighs.  

His father has just handed over the head position to him, and he looks over at Jeff and replies, "Let him in."  

Mr. Max Dawson, a businessman involved in illegal dealings, enters Damian's office, and the latter makes no attempt to stand up and shake hands with him.  

"What do you want?" Damian asks, still seated on his chair and continues clicking on his laptop.  

Mr. Max swallows the hard lump that has formed in his throat, knowing that doing business with Damian is more difficult than it was with Damian's father, Mr. Mark Tucker. His name alone instills fear in the other groups.  

"It's business, Damian. It's a deal worth 10 billion dollars." Mr. Max is pleased when he sees Damian look away from his laptop and shift his gaze to him.  

"Sit," Damian gestures to the middle-aged man. "Go on." He orders, and Mr. Max goes into detail about what the business is all about.  

Damian listens with keen interest. "So, what do you need my assistance for?" He asks Mr. Max.  

"As the mafia lord, I don't want the other groups to interfere in this business, and I will need your assistance to loan me the money to proceed with it," Mr. Max explains.  

Damian is interested in this business; however, he has other ulterior motives. With deals like this, he would personally hijack it instead of handing it over to his group to take care of.  

"I will lend you the money, but you must promise to pay back with interest. I don't care if the business works out or not. All I care about is my money," Damian tells Mr. Max, and the latter nods.  

"You have nothing to worry about, Damian. I will pay you back, but I will need your assistance with it," Mr. Max says, sitting across from Damian, who is looking at him.  

"Don't worry, I will have Jeff assist you. First, sign the deal," Damian offers the document to Mr. Max to sign and to loan him the money. His mind works in mysterious ways as he focuses his attention on the man, who reaches for a pen and signs the deal.  

"Done," Mr. Max says with a broad smile on his face as he rises to leave Damian's office.  

"I will be looking forward to the date." Mr. Max leaves Damian's office after the deal ends, and Damian keeps thinking about the deal worth billions of dollars.  

"I cannot allow Mr. Max to have that kind of money. It will invoke the higher authorities' knowledge of us, so I have to take care of it." A smirk plays its way up Damian's lips, and he calls Jeff back into his office.  

"Take care of Mr. Max's business and ensure that the money gets transferred to my offshore accounts."  

"Okay, Boss," Jeff's eyes widen in surprise, but he dares not question Damian's orders. He looks up to him as his older brother and is only two years younger.  

He goes to do as told.  

*****  

A few months later, Mr. Max is heartbroken to see that the business didn't go as planned. After loaning money from the ruthless mafia lord, he now has only a year to pay off the 10 million dollars that he borrowed.  

"Honey, what's the problem?" Mrs. Jennifer Dawson comes into the room. She is a middle-aged woman, 45 years old, and she looks at her husband, who paces about worriedly.  

"I am finished!" is all he says, placing his hands on his head.  

"You cannot be finished, honey. Talk to me," Lady Jennifer tries to beg her husband, but he says, "I shouldn't have trusted that son of a devil. Doing business with his father wasn’t this bad. Our dealings weren’t hijacked by the government, and now, I have lost everything I worked hard for."  

Mr. Max is on the brink of tears. He shouldn't have trusted Damian to handle the business for him. The man is still young and new as a mafia group leader.  

"Calm down, honey. Talk to me," Lady Jennifer tries to talk her husband out of his misery, but he smacks her hand away and shouts at her, "Don't touch me! Where do I get 10 million dollars to pay the T-Group?"  

"The T-Group? Who are they? Calm down, honey. We can raise the money. Where did you borrow such money from? Why would you even borrow such a huge amount? For what?" Mrs. Jennifer asks, shocked to hear the huge amount her husband mentions. But he tells her, "Get out of my room. I don't have time to explain anything to you. Just leave me alone. If I don't raise that money in a year, they will come for us—all of them—and you need to leave with our children. They shouldn't return here. I am finished."  

Mrs. Jennifer Dawson stubbornly shakes her head and tells her husband, "I cannot leave you to die alone, honey. You cannot turn me into a widow at this young age. You shouldn't have borrowed the money in the first place. Calm down; we can see how to raise the money."  

Mr. Max goes to his office, leaving his wife alone in their bedroom, and she paces around, wondering what is wrong with her husband.  

It is nighttime when Mrs. Jennifer comes out and sees her youngest daughter, Alicia, in the living room.  

"What's going on, Mom? I heard you and Dad arguing?" Alicia, a 19-year-old girl, asks. She is a nursing student and hasn't graduated yet. Her skin is as fair as the sun, and she is blonde, looking like her mother.  

"It's your father. He borrowed 10 million dollars, and now, he has lost everything." Mrs. Jennifer cries, and Alicia falls on the couch.  

"What?! 10 million dollars? Where do we start paying off such a huge amount? Oh no! We are doomed, Mom. If Dad can't pay that off—" Alicia joins her mother in crying in the living room. They are rich, so why would her father borrow such a huge amount?  

Meaning, they would have to sell all their properties. But would it be enough to pay off such a huge debt? Alicia cries.