BIA Ch. 5

Meanwhile, he had just watched his lover go to a club alone to pick up men. Was Chester surprisingly open-minded about such things? Judging by his eyes alone, he would think Chester was a patient with severe obsessive jealousy.

“I know what you’re thinking, but I wouldn’t normally care about this kind of thing. I’m not free enough to keep tabs on your every single fuck-buddy, let alone wife.”

Chester seemed to notice Isaiah’s puzzled expression and sneered. He then added arrogantly that Isaiah should consider himself lucky to have such a generous lover as him. But even if he said such a thing with a look in his eyes that could kill someone, there was no way anyone would take him seriously. He just seemed like a possessive man pretending to be generous.

If he was going to be like that, wouldn’t it be better to just honestly tell him not to meet other men? Was this some useless mafia pride?…No, if he had any pride, he should have quit being a mafia boss in the first place. Anyway, he was a ridiculous person.

Isaiah, who had been thinking of it as someone else’s business, was startled and cried out when he saw Chester suddenly crumple up the receipt and throw it on the floor.

“What are you doing? Why are you throwing that away?”

“What if I wouldn’t throw it away?”

Chester retorted coldly.

“You wouldn’t be planning on screwing around two or three times, would you?”

Chester snapped, his eyes blazing with jealousy, almost rolling back in his head. Even his hands were trembling. If he were lenient twice, it seemed like he would kill someone.

“It’s not that. It’s evidence for later, when the police investigate—”

“Why would the police investigate that?”

Chester laughed as if it were ridiculous.

“Just by looking at it, the three of you came here for a threesome, but you passed out, and the two dogs chasing the chicken started a dogfight. If either of them had been sober, this wouldn’t have happened, but of course, that’s impossible. Nine out of ten of the homos who frequent Mountain Dog are druggies.”

After saying that, Chester put both hands in his Burberry coat pockets and looked at Isaiah.

“Do you think the police would even care if one druggie homo dies? No problem. Just get rid of the body and that’s it. The police would prefer that anyway.”

Chester’s tone was so nonchalant that Isaiah felt his head spinning. Actually, it was already in a strange state.

“…Ha…That’s ridiculous.”

Isaiah no longer had the energy to be excited. The entire situation was so far beyond common sense that he now doubted whether this was even real. It felt like he was having a dream. An incredibly terrible nightmare.

“Chester. This is a murder case.”

Isaiah stumbled and collapsed into a chair at the dining table.

“Someone died.”

“It’s a common occurrence.”

He spoke as if it were nothing special.

“It might be for you, but—”

“Only for me?”

A smile reappeared on Chester’s lips. It was a different kind of smile, a clearly derisive one. The moment Isaiah saw it, he closed his mouth.

“It seems like you’re out of your mind and can’t calculate properly. Try calculating again after you’ve come to your senses. There are far more people who have died from being shot by you than from the drugs I’ve sold.”

He didn’t feel wronged by being blamed for something he couldn’t even remember. He was just scared. He was scared of the corpse by the front door, and he was scared of Chester’s changed expression. But what was even more frightening was himself. Just what kind of person had he, Isaiah Cole, been? Just how vicious and reckless had he been to have killed more people than the mafia boss in front of him?

“Anyway, don’t worry about the body anymore. I’ll take care of it. If anyone sees it before I get rid of it, just say it was our organization’s doing. Then everything will be resolved.”

“…Okay.”

Just as Isaiah mumbled softly, Manny came into the kitchen. As if he had heard everything Chester was saying, he picked up the receipt that had been thrown on the floor and said,

“But for something written while high on drugs, isn’t the writing too coherent? There aren’t even any spelling mistakes.”

“What do I know?”

Chester snapped back sharply. Manny, as if he didn’t care about Chester’s reaction, simply continued.

“The handwriting is really pretty too. Like it’s printed. Oh, come to think of it, I heard someone say that someone’s handwriting was really beautiful. A long time ago, I briefly entrusted someone with organizing the ledgers, and the handwriting was so pretty that I thought a woman had written it and I was misunderstood for giving the ledgers to an outsider…Who was it…?”

Manny furrowed his brow, searching his memory, then suddenly muttered, “Ah.”

“Wiseman.”

“Is he crazy?”

Chester yelled as soon as the name left Manny’s mouth.

“That bastard came here yesterday and messed around with this guy?”

“No, that’s not it. Wiseman’s handwriting is as pretty as a stamp. Yes, that’s all. There’s no way Wiseman would come here, of course.”

Manny desperately tried to soothe Chester, who looked as if he would have a seizure at any moment.

“Of course, Wiseman. What nonsense. My father would be more likely.”

“Oh, that’s not true. The boss can’t get it up anymore.”

Manny, who had been giggling, only shut his mouth after receiving a slap on the cheek from Chester.

“Wiseman? Who is that?”

“There is. A fucking bastard.”

Chester spat out angrily. Beside him, Manny quietly held up two fingers. Then he pointed once at Chester and held up three fingers.

Isaiah understood immediately. Wiseman was probably second-in-command in this organization. Surprisingly, Chester, the boss’s son, was third.

“Is he a smart person? Is that why he’s called Wiseman?”

“Wiseman is his last name. Bran Wiseman.”

Chester said, still annoyed.

“And, well, he must be smart. He’s Ivy League. Was it Cornell?”

“Columbia.”

Manny quickly interjected.

“What does it matter? He was expelled anyway.”

Chester scoffed.

“He got into such a great school, but was expelled? Why?”

“Why? Because he did something that warranted expulsion.”

Chester said, snatching the receipt from Manny’s hand. That bastard’s father was a gangster.

“He was originally a dockworker, loading and unloading, but somehow he caught my father’s eye and came into this line of work. They say he was a big, strong guy who just used his fists brutally, no guns or knives. Then he eventually got shot and died. But, like a proper father, it seems he poured all the money he earned into his son’s education. But where would that blood go? He got into a little argument at a bar and beat two people nearly to death right there. One guy’s eye popped out, and the other will be in a wheelchair for life. So, he was expelled from school and about to go to prison, but my father bailed him out. His father took a bullet for my father.”

“I see…”

Life could be so twisted. Isaiah felt sympathy for Wiseman, whom he had never met. But seeing how he had reached the position of second-in-command, perhaps he was the type who was destined for this path one way or another.

“But why him? Does he not like me?”

“Not like you?”

Chester laughed as if he had heard a funny story. Then, crumpling the receipt in his hand more firmly, he said,

“There’s no other way to put it. Bran treats you like an insect.”

“That much…?”

Seeing Isaiah’s hurt expression, Chester shrugged.

“It can’t be helped. You killed his girlfriend.”

“What? Why? How?”

Isaiah yelled in shock.

“Well, if I had to say, it was just bad luck for both of you.”

Manny quietly nodded at Chester’s words.

“She just happened to be near your target.”

“So, you’re saying it happened while I was working? I shot the wrong person while aiming for the target?”

“Correct.”

“Oh my god.”

Isaiah clutched his head in his hands. Seeing him in distress, Chester offered comfort.

“Well, Bran knows you killed her by mistake.”

“But he can’t forgive me…?”

“That’s right.”

Chester nodded and patted Isaiah’s shoulder.

“It’s fine, don’t worry about it. Why worry about him? He wouldn’t have forgiven you even if you hadn’t made a mistake.”

“If I hadn’t made a mistake, why…?”

“Because the original target was Bran.”

“..…”

Isaiah was speechless.

After a while, he regained his composure and haltingly began to explain to Chester his understanding of the situation.

“Wait, so… this is how it happened? I was trying to eliminate Wiseman, the second-in-command of the organization, to help you, my lover,”

“What? Why is that fucking bastard the second-in-command!”

Chester exploded in anger.

“Oh, sorry. I misspoke. You are the second-in-command, Chester. Of course, you, the boss’s son and overflowing with talent, are second-in-command, right?”

Isaiah quickly corrected himself. Manny nodded eagerly beside him.