After dealing with matters in Paris, William sent Carlos off and headed to Switzerland to meet with like-minded members of the Assassin Brotherhood to take on Sloan in New York.
While having breakfast and reading today's Paris newspaper, William smiled as he turned to the third page. It reported a sniper incident by the Seine River last night where three Albanians, who were also father and sons, were killed.
Finally, the Murad family was sent to meet Satan. With all the adult males dead, William believed this family would soon be devoured by other forces. They no longer had the strength or time to cause trouble for William and Brian.
However, the real surprise came later. When William turned on the TV, he saw many Parisian channels reporting a sensational piece of news. An anonymous insider had revealed information on the human trafficking issue, which most Europeans were deeply concerned about.
This anonymous individual not only exposed the Albanians' rampant kidnapping of young, single female travelers in Europe but also revealed that their protector was a high-ranking official in the French Security Committee, Claude's superior.
The TV hosts subtly mentioned the underground auction markets in Europe and stated that the annual value of women's trafficking in Europe was in the tens of billions of dollars. Each year, tens of thousands of young women were reported missing, with even more unreported cases or women registered missing in other countries while in Europe, possibly reaching into the hundreds of thousands.
The female TV host, tears streaming down her face, called on society to pay attention to the missing persons cases in Europe and demanded a thorough investigation from the authorities.
William quickly deduced that this must have been revealed by Claude's wife. She must have known something about Claude's disappearance and was seeking revenge, disregarding her own safety.
Claude's wife's actions benefited William as well. With Claude's superior in trouble, the underground auction houses were now busy covering up and destroying evidence, focusing their efforts on finding the whistleblower.
Sure enough, within hours, the TV reported that Claude's superior had been taken into custody. Police also raided 7 Berwick Street, discovering an underground auction venue on the third floor with dozens of girls awaiting auction and a large quantity of contraband.
This news enraged all of France, leading to protests across the country.
Seeing this, William knew Paris would soon descend into chaos. For his safety, he immediately had the hotel book him a private jet to New York. He didn't want to stay in Paris, which had become a powder keg.
Having arranged the flight, William asked the hotel to send a car to bring his cousin Amanda, who was recuperating, to the hotel to stay with Ginny.
While waiting for Amanda, William saw the suite butler knock on the open door. Upon William's nod, the butler walked in and said, "Mr. Devonshire, there's a gentleman who wishes to meet you without revealing his name. He says he has a message for you. What should I tell him?"
Someone wanting to see him just as he was about to leave? Who could it be and what message did they have? After a brief thought, William said, "Please invite the gentleman up."
Soon, the butler returned with a thin, elderly man who looked to be in his seventies, with a kind face, wearing a black hat and a light jacket.
After the butler bowed and left the suite, the old man smiled, removed his hat, and said, "Hello, Mr. Devonshire. My name is Charlie."
"Hello, Mr. Charlie. What brings you here?"
"I'm here to deliver a message and give you our card, so you can contact us directly in the future without needing to go through other Continental Hotel members," Charlie said, handing William a silver metal card.
Hearing "Continental Hotel," William immediately understood Charlie's profession. This old man was a cleaner. But how had they found him so quickly? "Thank you, but I'm not sure why you're here. We haven't had any dealings before, have we, Charlie?"
Charlie, smiling calmly, replied, "Rest assured, Mr. Devonshire. We don't care who you are or what you've done. We only care about whether we'll intersect, whether you'll take action, when you might need our services, and if you can pay our fees.
"As compensation for this unexpected visit and to show our sincerity to a valuable client like yourself, we've already taken care of the aftermath of the dozens of bodies that suddenly appeared in Paris over the past few days.
"I must say, it's a pity we met you so late. If we had known you sooner, we wouldn't have missed out on nearly a hundred gold coin business opportunities in Montenegro and Paris. Capable individuals like you are rare.
"Please call me if you need anything in the future, lest some old friends mock me for losing my touch in client development."
William felt a chill looking at the elderly man before him, whose peaceful demeanor contrasted with his cold, bloody words. "Alright, Charlie. I accept your goodwill. I know you're the best in certain areas. But can you tell me who wants to send me a message? I have other matters to attend to and little time."
Charlie, understanding William's sudden detachment, continued with a smile, "Thank you for your praise. Mr. Winston, the manager of the New York Continental Hotel, asked me to inform you that he sincerely invites you to meet at 175 Fifth Avenue, New York. He believes you'll agree once you hear his surname is Winston. He has much to discuss with you."
"Winston?" William thought. Winston was his grandfather's middle name. His grandfather's full name was Henry Winston Devonshire. Could it be that he had a relative who was a head of an assassin organization? If it was family, it must be from Henry's mother's side, which would be several generations removed. Why would they seek him out? Meeting could do no harm.
The Continental Hotel must have known about William's actions in Montenegro. William hadn't concealed his identity there. Those with the means and connections could trace it back to him.
Thinking back, William realized he had been naive to think killing a few dozen people would instill fear.
Truly powerful individuals wouldn't confront William directly but would watch him from the shadows. Fortunately, William had made a fortune in Switzerland, freeing him from financial worries. With money, much could be done.
Perhaps investing a hundred million pounds in the Continental Hotel for a revenge fund or paying to ensure the organization wouldn't take contracts against him was wise.
Suddenly hearing from the world's largest assassin organization intrigued William. What could be so important that it warranted such a formal invitation to New York?
After considering, William nodded. "Alright, I'll see him if I get the chance."
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