8 The H-Brothers

It was early June, three months after Carl moved in with Kim. He had stopped working at the carwash and got a job as a manager in a local firm. The pay was good enough that he would be able to rent out a house in the Upper province.

Part of his salary was given to Kim and then he invested the rest in the stock market as he earlier decided. He had enough money from buying and selling shares that he could buy his own car. Nonetheless, he was waiting, he hadn't noticed anyone following him for the past few months, but that did not mean that there weren't people watching him so he decided to play it safe. He did not want his parents to get any ideas.

He just got off work and was about to take a taxi home when he saw two men talking less than twenty metres away from him. They could pass off as brothers, they might be brothers too. They looked like thugs even. One had black long hair, it suited him but his hair did not hide the edge. The one next to him was muscular, he was wearing a tank top, joggers and military boots. There were visible scars on his money, it was evident he lived a rough life. Though, they appeared clean, it couldn't hide the fact that they were both thugs. Their aura and sharpness would make normal people stir clear of them.

"The police are coming down hard on us, if they find our connection to the other businesses, the FCB will get involved, it'll get messy and we might be talking jail terms here. I think we should sell off the businesses and lay low for a while, maybe go to the next City." The muscular man said.

When Carl heard "sell off the businesses," he became interested, he waited to hear what the other man would say.

"I know we need to sell them off tonight, if possible but we would loose a lot." The man with long hair said, with frustration written all over him.

"Is now the time to think about losses? We may have to go to jail! I like my freedom. Besides we can always rebuild." The muscular man reasoned.

The two men speaking where Hugo and Hunter, known as the "H brothers". They grew up by themselves in the red district, they were orphans, the only thing their parents left them were their names. They are the leaders of a local gang called Dragon Claw, they formed it themselves.

They were still talking about how to save themselves and their subordinate when Carl interrupted them.

"Excuse me, I overheard you talking about selling off your business. I'm interested."

They were angered when Carl interrupted, but their expression quickly turned when they heard he was interested. The first man looked at the second, they quickly came to an agreement. The second man wasn't really happy about the move but their hands were tied.

"We should talk somewhere else." The man with long hair said. Carl followed them, they got into a car and drove to a quiet place.

Carl was perplexed at first. It wasn't safe to enter into a car with strangers. They could be human traffickers or organ harvesters. However, he had to take the risk to achieve his goal so he calmed down.

"We're here." The muscular man spoke up, breaking the silence.

"What kind of business are you offering? Why do you want to sell it off? I heard you mention the FCB, is it evasion of tax?" Carl bombarded them with questions.

"Slow down, you ask a lot of questions, you know." The man with long hair said.

"I think I have the right to know what I'm getting myself into." Carl retorted.

All three men were each contemplating, there was an ensuing silence.

"I and my brother own a loan shark and we increased the interest more than what is stipulated by law, a lot of people lost their properties to us, we also have a few businesses that are not duly registered." The man with long hair spoke up while his brother remained silent.

"I'm guessing this is not the bulk of the problem." Carl said in reply.

The man with long hair gave a bitter smile. "You're right, we dabbled in drugs too so we're wanted."

"And I take it there are others." Carl continued.

The man with long hair didn't give a direct answer, "You seem like a smart person." Carl assumed he was right nonetheless.

"So tell me about the businesses, I'm guessing they are around the area, I'd like to see them all tonight."

With that, they drove off, from one company to another with the two men briefing him about them.

"Work for me." Carl said.

The two men were surprised. "We're on the run, in case you missed that." Said the muscular man.

"I'll buy all your businesses for D500,000 and give you new identities, what do you think?" Carl offered.

When they heard him say new identities, they forgot they were at the loosing end of the bargain but did it even matter? They were bound to lose to whomever bought their businesses.

"Boss! I'm Hugo."

"Boss! I'm Hunter." They said in unison.

"Give me your contact number, we'll meet at xx hotel by 12 noon tomorrow. Come with all the documents, we'll properly discuss." Carl instructed.

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A/N

The FCB is the Financial Crime Bureau.