Chapter 206 He Twisted the Ends of His Hair and Played With It...
"Thalia, don't say I didn't warn you."
William, a man who'd been celibate for nearly thirty years in the first half of his life, was like a wolf used to eating grass suddenly tasting raw meat—completely unstoppable.
Sex-for-favors deals had always been a big thing in the entertainment industry. Some people were into it, playing around in groups of three or five with all kinds of variations. Others stayed away from those temptations. But whether you were the former or the latter, you always had to be on guard. In power transactions, even if you didn't participate, you still had to understand how things worked. If you wanted to fit into their circle, you had to at least brush up against it.
William's career took off fast. He had tons of cash and didn't answer to anyone—that was one thing. But mutual respect and knowing the rules of the game was another.
Once you'd seen enough, even if you didn't play, you knew all the tricks.
Thalia was often surprised by William. She really couldn't figure him out.
..........
"Who... who are you?" In the overgrown field, Alfonso had been dumped between the crops, stripped naked and tied to an electric pole. In the wheat field, the waist-high wheat hid their bodies.
The route from Emerald City downtown to the film studio wasn't all glamorous.
Taking one of the highway exits along the way led to villages, and in these villages, it was wheat harvest season.
Finn plucked a wheat stalk and played with it in his hand. "You don't need to know that. Someone asked me to tell you—you pissed off the wrong person."
"Who? Who sent you?"
"Really don't know? Think about it."
Could it be Thalia?
No, no way. How could a girl without the strength to tie up a chicken do something like this?
"I can give you however much money you want, just let me go."
Finn let out a cold laugh. Was this about money?
He looked up at the sky. "Weather forecast says there's going to be a huge thunderstorm tonight. Guess why I tied you to an electric pole?"
Alfonso's face changed. "...Murder is illegal."
"I'm not killing you!"
"Indirect murder is also illegal."
Finn smiled. "Then guess—is smashing someone's car window illegal?"
Alfonso froze. "Thalia sent you?"
Finn sat on the grass without answering his question. Instead, he took out his phone and called Rainey. "Mr. Ward, this is Finn, Mr. Brown's guy. Is Alfonso one of yours?"
In the middle of the night, Rainey had just left a drinking table and was currently having sex with some unknown actress.
Hearing William's name, he couldn't care about anything else and pulled out. "Does Mr. Brown have any instructions?"
"Sent you a location. Come over."
At 3 AM, torrential rain poured down, accompanied by thunder and lightning. Finn sat in his car, sipping instant coffee leisurely, enjoying the wheat stalks swaying left and right in the wind under the lightning, and Alfonso sitting in the field, trembling with fear.
Messing with Thalia? Wasn't that crossing William's line?
If Thalia went back and acted cute, she could destroy years of your hard work in an instant.
When Rainey arrived at the scene with his people, furious, a bolt of lightning struck right above Alfonso's head—deafening.
"Mr. Ward."
Rainey's secretary untied the ropes on Alfonso. "Mr. Carr, get in the car first."
As soon as the three got in the car, they smelled a faint stench of urine. Rainey was so angry he held his forehead, not wanting to speak.
It wasn't until they drove to a nearby hotel and Alfonso came out after a hot shower.
"I'm going to get revenge. I'm going to make whoever did this today pay. I want to see who's so tough they dared to take my life."
Rainey's cigar stopped in mid-air as he stared at Alfonso. "Think things aren't bad enough already?"
"I can't just take this lying down, can I?"
"Know Matthew?"
"Why bring him up?" Alfonso's face changed. He and Matthew were both people Rainey had brought up. They had some family money back in the day. They happened to know Rainey, and seeing they were sensible, plus they all ran in the same circles, he brought them into the entertainment industry. After several rounds of investment, their assets were pretty substantial.
Matthew was the most successful among them.
But apparently, he'd offended someone and now couldn't even stand up.
He could only get around in a wheelchair.
"You and him offended the same person."
"Thalia? Does she have that kind of power? The Smith family isn't what it used to be." Alfonso snorted. "She's just an actress. Wouldn't it be easy for me to destroy her if I wanted?"
Just as Rainey was about to say something, his phone rang. He answered respectfully. "Mr. Brown."
"Mr. Ward, I'm returning the favor. If there's a next time..."
"Yes, yes, yes. Thank you for your mercy, Mr. Brown." As soon as Rainey finished speaking, William hung up on the other end.
He threw down his phone and kicked Alfonso in the stomach. "I worked so hard to finally get William to owe me a favor, and you just used it up like that. Alfonso, how much is your life worth?"
"Rainey, what do you mean?"
"What do I mean? You offended Mr. Brown from the Celestia Group. He could take your life in a heartbeat. Think having some money makes you a big deal?"
The money Alfonso had, while a decent sum in the investment world, was only about 2 billion dollars. Compared to William's business empire, it was a drop in the ocean—nothing.
First there was Matthew, now Alfonso.
And William specifically called him to say he was returning the favor. Rainey was pissed. He'd rather William just kill Alfonso like he dealt with Matthew. William's favor was way more valuable than Alfonso's life.
"No... impossible. I didn't even see Mr. Brown today."
...........
"That tickles, stop touching me." Thalia whined and pushed away the hand on her waist.
William turned to look at the person lying on the bed. Her long hair was messily scattered across the bed. He twisted the ends and played with them. "Do you need me to give it as an investor or directly?"
"You can give it to me directly?" Thalia turned her head, resting it on her arm as she asked him.
"Yes."
Hearing this, Thalia reached out to fumble around the nightstand.
"Looking for what?"
"Bank card."
"Can't do super large transfers that way. I'll give you a check. Come back here." William hooked Thalia's waist and pulled her to his chest.
"Mr. Brown, you know when you shine with divine light?"
"When giving money," William answered naturally.
"Pretty self-aware, huh? Your ex-girlfriend teach you that?"
William glanced at her. "Brain not working right? Have Amara check you out."
"You..." Thalia propped herself up, about to get up. Just as she was about to say something, there was violent knocking at the door.......