More than a month since the police ambushed Nick and Tony, Tony was still in hospital. Nick had been sent in to try and eliminate him but had failed.
Nick sat on the cold cemented floor as he tried to take in what had just happened. He could not believe that he had just failed at accomplishing the plan as set out by Jack. He couldn't bring himself to agree that he was weak. Yet this was not a time of being weak, it wasn't the time of joking. One precious life depended on him to act as per the requirements of his boss. Caroline was still at a risk of being recaptured, tortured, molested or even killed. All these were happening following a failed delivery of Jack's drugs. He wanted them to take responsibility and he cared less if lives are lost or not.
Nick felt that Caroline had just been taken away from him in just that simple manner. He could not believe that Jack was now controlling his life. He controlled everything! He told him who to associate with and who not to. And now he was here telling him not even to talk to or meet with his own girlfriend. First of all he had held her captive, against her own wish and will. Then he had taken her to a secluded place where Nick didn't know. He had only allowed him one minute to speak to her. Then worst of all he had said he is taking her somewhere, then she would go home and they were not to be in touch until when Jack says so! This was humiliating enough to Nick!
He thought of what he would do concerning this matter. How can he just do nothing while he might be losing the one he love? How could he not fight back and save Caroline from the lion's paws? But then he reasoned and said, "I might endanger her life more if I try to fight back. After all, Jack is doing this because I failed him."
Nick took the blame of the failed delivery upon himself because he was the one in charge of that operation. Tony only came in as a subordinate to help him. Though he was not the one who had recruited Tony into the drug trafficking business, the two had worked together well and for quite some time that they started being like brothers. They each had rented a place where they were staying and each had a different set of friends. But the two visited one another more frequently and even confided to each other about their plans, their secrets, their fears and even their weaknesses.
It is this bond that made Nick unable to finish off Tony while at the hospital. Although he desired to be free from Jack's debt, Nick said he would not get his freedom by taking his friend's life. He decided that, even though he was not going to meet Caroline soon, he would find another way of getting to her. This would of course require careful planning and a lot of discrete support if he was to catch Jack unawares. But first, he realized, he needed to get a reason for Jack to trust him once more. So he went out to the gate to meet his agent, the one to whom he was to give the report. As he walked out of the hospital, he saw from the corner of his eyes his two accomplices, also walking out of the gate, intermingling with those who were coming into the hospital and those going out.
"What's the news?" the agent asked. Nick had walked up to him and pretended to buy biscuits from him. The other accomplices also came as buyers. Yet in reality they were there to get Nick's report if their mission was successful or not.
"I didn't kill him!" Nick said cutly. All the two accomplices looked at him, taken aback. But the agent snorted, it was as if this is what he had expected. He looked at Nick and shrugged his shoulders. Then Nick went ahead and explained, "There was no need to kill him, he is already useless to the cops!"
"And what does that supposed to mean?" the agent, now interested in the new development, asked. Nick took a packet of biscuits from him and started eating, he took his time before replying.
"I read his medical file by his bed. He has suffered permanent memory loss. Even if he wakes up today he won't know his name or where he came from!" Nick said this looking straight into the agent's eyes, so as to dispel from him any thoughts of suspicion, or disbelieving him.
The agent kept quiet for sometimes before asking, "Are you sure about this information?"
"Totally positive, he is as good as dead. Now if you don't mind excuse me." Nick started leaving but the man held him back. "Wait first for the boss's directions," he said to Nick as he took out a cellphone to call Jack.
Jack sat with his phone next to him. He was anxiously waiting for a specific call from the hospital. It had taken long than he had expected. Ever since Tony was captured by the police he had tried his best to have him eliminated so as to continue protecting his identity. Tony knew enough to bring him down in case he opened his mouth. Jack could not risk it. He saw the best way to deal with this problem was to send an assassin to take him out before he could recover from the comma he was in. Tony had sustained a bullet lodged in his head during the morning ambush on the day they were delivering drugs. The comma was as a result of the injuries he sustained.
Earlier before they went to the hospital Jack had suspected that Nick would not be able do as he was told. To ensure that he followed orders he got one of his other men to go with him. This guy would pose as a hawker within the hospital and would be the one to tell Jack how it all went down. He would be informed by Nick then he would call him through a specific number. Jack was eagerly waiting for this call from his agent. Only when Tony was out of the equation would he be able to be at peace.
As he paced up and down in his living room, the phone on his desk suddenly buzzed to life and he ran to it. He lifted up the receiver to his ears and asked, "Is it well?" The person on the other end was still explaining something when Jack suddenly banged the receiver down on the table. "Son of a b…tch!" he cursed. "How could he fail? How? He had all the support he needed! He had all the time in the world to plan, observe, change tactic, and get all the manpower he needed! How the hell does he fail?" Jack was truly and visibly angry to the core.
He paced around for some times fuming and crashing things then suddenly going back to the phone.
"Where is he?" he asked as soon as the other guy picked up the call.
"He's right here with me," he answered back, "And he says that our boy suffered permanent memory loss," he added. There was silence from the other end for a while. Jack who had begun giving an order over the phone suddenly stammered and went silent for some minutes. The new information evidently had an impact to him too. When he spoke again, his voice was different.
"Do you believe him? Have you confirmed this information?"
"There is no way to do so now, the room is already flooded!" the agent responded, also taking into account the change in the boss's voice. He took the phone from his ears and nodded to Nick.
Then Jack told the agent something which he passed it to Nick and the rest. "Sorry guys, no party yet. We all see the boss!" he added. With that, Nick knew he still had some explanations to do one on one with Jack. He would always find a way of convincing him, but first he had to relax a little bit knowing that he had finally given his boss some rays of hope. Nick hoped that for the time being at least, Jack would not pursue the Tony's matter. This would buy him more time as he contemplated on his next move. In all that he thought of, Caroline came up first. He had to get her back.
Jack sat back in his chair and heaved a sigh of relief and closed his eyes. But hardly had he drifted off than the ringing of the phone made him woke up with a start. He didn't recognize the caller at first.
"Jack of all trades?" the caller asked.
Jack cleared his throat before replying, "Speaking!"
"My heart is not beating." The other person on the line said, in response to Jack's. Jack suddenly sat upright. He now knew who he was talking to. And something big was on offer that is why he bolted up immediately he heard, "my heart is not beating." This was a coded message from Ngatilu, the merchant who was in need of supply of body organs and who also trafficked beautiful girls to another buyer. He had made Jack his contact person and deliverer of the commodities.