Chapter 9: The Strategist

Stacy lifted the quilt that lay on top of her all night and examined her bandaged wound. The pitch black surrounding lit up by a hint of first daylight. She had been resting in bed yesterday. Someone brought her some food and that’s all. Other than that, she didn’t have any contact with the men all day after the conversation with Chad. Today, she decided to go downstairs. She’s not sure if she’s allowed to do that but she decided to test the waters. She got out of bed, limped to the door and tried the knob.

Pulling open the door, she almost tripped in shock. Chad was right in front of her door. His expression mirrored hers, as though he wasn’t prepared to see the door open. His hand hung in the air, prepared to knock.

Steadying herself, Stacy cleared her throat. “Hey.”

“It’s great that you’re up. Let’s have breakfast,” Chad said.

“Sure,” with that simple one-word reply, she closed the door and followed Chad to the stairs. None has spoken a word. Chad descended the wooden staircase with ease. Stacy, however, paused to doubt the ability of her wounded limb.

Noticing her hesitation, Chad turned to face her. “Do you need help?” Stacy’s eyes alternated between Chad and the stairs. Some men were gathered around downstairs, having breakfast.

“I can manage, thanks,” she said. Chad gave her one last look of doubt before shrugging. “Sure, suit yourself,” saying that, he turned and proceeded without looking back. Their appearance attracted the attention of a few men downstairs. Curious eyes were on her. She could see the same skepticism in them, reflecting her own disbelief in her capability of reaching the ground floor without rolling down and dying.

Chad talked to a few people while waiting for her to finally appear behind him. He expected it to take forever but the sound of thumping soon reached his ears. Curious, he turned to see Stacy hopping down the stairs. Her hand on the railing gave her some footing while she hopped with one foot, coming down with a steady rhythm. Thump! Thump! Thump! The sound echoed in the space.

He didn’t know whether to laugh or to cry. What did she think she was, a Chinese vampire? The men in the common area observed with the same amusement, some were shaking their heads. She ignored them and continued with the same velocity until she reached level ground.

Socialising isn't her forte. Seeing so many people and knowing that she was in their territory made her restless. The way they had their attention on her, observing her like she’s an animal on the verge of extinction wasn’t helping with her unease.

She gave them a curt nod and moved to follow Chad into the kitchen.

They made breakfast in silence and for some unsaid reason, both of them had their meal in the kitchen. Chad didn’t bring his food out to the common area to eat with the rest of the men. She took it as a yes to isolate herself from the others and stayed in the kitchen with him. She had her poker face on but in her heart, she felt immensely thankful. They ate in silence and that was another reason for her to be grateful.

After breakfast, Chad brought her to the warehouse. She didn’t voice out any question but blindly followed him.

There were men guarding the warehouse. They nodded their greetings and let them in. The warehouse was full of racks, parts and boxes. Chad walked to a counter and pulled out a stool. “Have a seat,” he signalled her to come over before disappearing into the rows of racks.

She took her time to observe the inside of the warehouse. Some gun parts scattered across the counter and there was a shooting range at the far end. She touched the scattered parts, mindlessly picked up a few of them. Finally, she settled with flipping things on the table to pass time.

Soon, Chad appeared with a box. He opened it and pulled out a gun. Placing it on the counter, he said, “this is the latest batch. You said you’re an expert. What’d you think?”

Stacy picked the gun up and quickly examined it. She flipped it a few times, loaded and unloaded, and reassembled it in a quick motion. She was so fast and precise, it convinced Chad that she’s indeed skilled.

“Hmm, not bad,” she mumbled, “where’d they come from?” “We have a dealer. They provided for both us and the Vipers, whoever’s offer seems more appealing.”

Stacy nodded in apprehension, “It sucks, to share the same dealer.”

“True. They’re the best so we usually fight for them. Only if we fail will we look for a different dealer. We’re still trying to get these in. The Vipers are not backing down this time.”

“Have you ever considered getting different types of weapons? Or get different dealers for different parts and customize your very own weapons?” Stacy suggested, “judging by the current situation, how much do you estimate you’ll pay to get this batch?”

Chad grabbed a random piece of paper lying around the counter and scribbled some numbers on it. “For now, this number seems possible but it depends on how persistent the Vipers will be. We’ll meet with the dealer tomorrow so we have to decide as soon as possible.”

Stacy shook her head. “No, this won’t do. Give me that.” She took the pen and paper from Chad and wrote some numbers. Then, she pointed at the figures with the tip of the pen and stated matter-of-factly, “this, is the cost. It’s not worth it.” Chad squinted at the numbers and sighed. “I know, but we really need this batch.”

Stacy smiled mischievously. “Are the Vipers in the same situation? Are they desperate enough to exceed this number?” She held the paper up and pointed at the figures Chad initially wrote.

“From what we observe and the investigations, they are more or less in the same situation as us. Whoever won this round of the batch would have an upper hand. Our source said Hank, the leader, was desperate enough to personally meet up with the dealer with great “hospitality”.”

“I have an idea. Let’s bleed them dry this time,” she giggled at that thought, “here’s what we’ll do. You’ll raise the price and as desperate as they are, they’ll follow. They seem rich anyway, so I guess it won’t be a problem. As soon as they reach a damaging amount, we’ll drop out from bidding, giving them the impression that they’ve won. While they triumph, we look for another dealer. I’ll help you with the development and quality control. I’m confident that I can provide weapons better than this. What’d you say?”