Chapter 131 I'm Just Having a Drink

Throughout the night, the heads of the three major families stayed in the Freton City Hall's meeting room without leaving.

But by sunrise, there was still no stir from Freton City, entirely beyond their expectation.

Logically, whether the plan had succeeded or failed, there should have been news from one side or the other.

If Kenny and Marcus won, it would be cause for celebration, and they could rejoice. However, if they lost, Beckett would have to go into Freton City Hall to capture them. Their decision to stay together rather than leave highlighted their concern about exactly this situation.

Beckett had his men, after all. Returning to their families would mean certain capture. However, in the grand courtyard of the Freton City Hall, even Beckett would have to tread carefully.

This was the heart of Freton City, the symbol of the official Diony Country government.

Any aggressive move by Beckett in this place would carry a heavy sentence, no matter what.

“Still no word from Kenny and Marcus?” Jasper asked as daylight began to seep into the sky. It was getting late enough that he figured things should have wrapped up on the other end. He had tried calling them both, but got no answer, so he fired off some texts.

As the sun rose higher, Giulio, tired from the long night, encouraged Jasper to attempt calling once more.

They had been up all night.

“I'll give it another shot,” Jasper replied, his face pale from a mix of sleep deprivation and fear.

No answer from Kenny, but this time, Marcus's line connected.

“General Marcus, what's the situation there?” Jasper quickly inquired, the long-absent tension creeping into his voice.

He put the call on speaker, and the other two family heads moved in to listen.

First, a jarring belch came through, followed by Marcus's slurred speech. “Huh? We... we... had too much to drink, man. Celebrated the whole night through!”

The three men nearly snorted in frustration. While they were worried sick, this guy was out boozing and having a grand old time.

“Weren't you supposed to be rounding up Beckett? If there was a success, shouldn't you have called us for a victory drink?”

Marcus, being able to take the call, suggested that, at least, no disaster had occurred—no total obliteration of their forces as they had feared.

“Victory drink? This was a brotherhood toast!” Marcus stuttered, “I’ve sworn brotherhood with Beckett. From now on, anyone who messes with my brother will answer to me first.”

A loud thud followed as the phone dropped onto the table. Jasper didn’t bother picking it up. Leaning forward, he asked in astonishment, “General Marcus, what did you just say?”

“Hey, last night, you didn’t see who we met. A real big shot, he…”

“Marcus, you’re drunk!” a somewhat familiar voice cut in, “Go take a walk, let me greet them.”

“Mayor Jasper, this is Beckett. I hear you spent the whole night at the city hall without sleep? Got a little scared, did you?”

‘Beckett?!’

Jasper’s face turned ashen. He couldn’t fathom where the plan had gone wrong, but one thing was clear, the Tiger Gang was unscathed, and even Marcus had switched sides.

"Beckett, where's General Kenny? Don't tell me he's over there drinking with you too?!" Jasper's heart clung to a thread of hope. He couldn't count on the third division, but Kenny from the second surely wouldn't betray him. Kenny despised Beckett.

"I've got some unfortunate news for you, Mayor Jasper. General Thomas had one too many last night and drank himself to death, sadly. A grave loss for Freton City indeed," Beckett said with a sneer in his voice that somehow even the phone couldn't hide.

"The general's men are stricken with grief, but they've come to terms with the fact. They're all with us at Tiger Gang now, safe and sound. Rest assured, Mayor Jasper, we're getting along famously. Had a grand old time last night."

Jasper, Giulio, and Enrico were floored by what Beckett said, but given the situation, it seemed exactly as he had described.

"Are the heads of the Costa and the Lewis families with you as well? Mayor Jasper, please give them my regards and tell them they can go back to bed. There's nothing to worry about now."

Beckett's cold laugh came through the phone. "You all are the pillars of Freton City, so stay put and keep it interesting for me, otherwise... I'd be very disappointed."

With that, the call ended. The three family heads sank back into their chairs with a sense of foreboding.

It seemed Beckett had no immediate aggressive plans. Still, common sense dictated that with not just Tiger Gang but potentially the second and third divisions on his side, if Beckett decided one day to disrespect them totally, they'd be powerless to retaliate.

In fact, it felt like Beckett had already disrespected the Lewis family quite enough. The late patriarch's body was still hanging as a macabre reminder.

"We can't just sit here and wait for our doom," Jasper said, taking a deep breath. "Our only option now is to recruit Harold by any means necessary. His first division is powerful. While they might not take down Beckett, they could easily shield us and keep us alive."

"Giulio, you have a good relationship with Harold. You'll have to handle this."

"Leave it to me," Giulio confidently asserted.

The previous time Harold had to rescue his daughter, he rallied the entire first division of Freton City, only to discover later that his son Elijah was the one causing trouble. Unwilling to compromise on justice, he didn't hesitate to take action against even his own son.

It was clear to see just how much importance Harold placed on the Costa family in his heart.

“I’ll make a quick call to feel things out,” Giulio said, fishing his phone from his pocket and dialing.

As soon as the call connected, Giulio cleared his throat softly and greeted warmly, “Hey, is this Harold? Haha, it’s Giulio here. Where you at?”

“I’m drinking,” came Harold's jarred and evidently tipsy response.

Drinking, again?

Giulio frowned but then considered that perhaps Harold was drowning his sorrows after Elijah’s death.

With that thought, Giulio felt a twinge of guilt. After all, the other man had killed his own son for the sake of Giulio’s daughter.

“Are you drinking at the base? If it’s cool with you, I’ll come over and join you for a couple,” Giulio offered.

Though he had been up all night, this matter seemed more pressing. He had to secure Harold’s stance first and foremost.

“Yeah, sure, come on over. I’m at Tiger Hill waiting for you.”

‘Tiger Hill? That didn't sound like the First Freton City Division’s location. It was Tiger Gang's turf!’

The three family heads were staggered, overhearing Harold on the other end of the line shouting, “Hurry up, I can’t talk right now. That jerk Beckett is pushing drinks on me; I’m going to get him wasted!”

Beep, beep, Beep.

The phone went silent, replaced by the busy tone. In the conference room, the three family heads remained motionless, resembling statues.