New Arrangements

Carl and Allan were working on Glass. He wasn't satisfied with how things were going presently. There was no high-end property under Glass. He knew if he continued this way, they would expand but it would take longer than five years, except he starts doing shady deals.

He didn't want to dabble in drugs or sell weapons. Selling information was enough work in the black market. He only realized now that it would take long to expand. So, he called for a meeting with Allan; two heads, they say, are better than one.

They've been debating for over 30 minutes and are yet to come to a conclusion. Allan's face brightened as he got an idea.

"Boss, how about we make the gang a bodyguard company, you know there's always need for bodyguards, we can also use them to gather information. We just need to train them, register it under our memo, that will be it for the legalities and we won't have to worry about the police, thus, killing two birds with one stone."

They recently hired a few persons and they are being trained under Allen. Carl could see that the idea was feasible and it was an added advantage, so he quickly nodded in agreement. "With the way things are going and the upcoming elections, there will be a need for bodyguards, we can use this opportunity to enter the market." Carl posited.

It was a good plan, during elections in the country, politicians double the security in fear of a hostile situation. The two major political parties are always in constant brawl, looking for ways to take the other down. "Make arrangements. Turn one of the buildings into Glass Security, Allen will be in charge of the security department." He paused for a bit, he remembered the problem with the spies. He quickly asked, "How's the investigation coming up?"

Allen quickly passed him a file that contained the needed information. He took a glance at it then kept it aside. "I found a few of them, some are from rival gangs, nothing too serious." Allan said with a stoic expression.

Carl smirked, he really wanted to literally smack Allen's face with the documents but chose the easier path, after all he couldn't afford to get into a fight he would surely loose. "Pass the information to your brother, ask him to deal with them." He passively said.

"See if you can hire some computer experts to work under Glass Security. I want Glass Security up and running before the year ends." Carl said solemnly.

Allan replied flatly, "Yes boss." The conversation between two people who did not like to talk would be both boring and straight to the point, it was expected.

"Then for the apartments, lands and supermarkets, they are just cheap, it won't be beneficial to keep them, sell them off for the highest price you can."

Carl reasoned that the price of land and apartments increase with time, however, this was still in the lower district,the prices could also plummet, it would take years before prices would go up, unlike the other districts and provinces. He could always buy them back, but for now, they were liabilities rather than assets.

"Let's settle on expanding the hotels and acquiring more hotels, we could then run a chain of hotels. Later, we can branch into real estate development." He made another decision. He did not want supermarkets, what he wanted was malls. He also did not want the run down houses, the hotels was a good starting point. Even if he really wanted to go into real estate, he made up his mind to wait until they went public.

"I think so too, boss."

"Then start implementing our plans. Remember to include Glass Security in our memo. That would be all." Carl concluded.

Allan quickly left the restaurant to implement their plans. As Carl watched him leave, he realized the need for an office, they still did not have an HQ. It was not really nice meeting in public places.

He placed the documents in his bag and headed home. When he got home, Kim was preparing dinner. As always, she looked beautiful and it was mesmerizing.

"You're back. Hurry up! Go take a shower and come eat." She said smiling at him.

Carl felt at peace with the world right now. To be sincere, he didn't feel anything towards his stepmother, not anger, not hatred, just nothing. He only feels obligated towards his mother, that is why he wants revenge. He presumed this was the way to take away the guilt he was feeling towards his mother. He questioned himself sometimes, he was supposed to hate them, but he couldn't bring himself to. This only made him feel more guilty.

He took a shower, dressed up he sat on the bed, as he was exhausted, soon he fell asleep. Kim who got tired of waiting came into the room, she stared at him for a few minutes. His under eyes were dark, his lips were chapped. Recently he had been very busy, she wondered if he was doing ok. From looking at him, she too fell asleep on the bed.

This was a first for both of them, the first of many firsts.