The man was frantically pacing up and down in his office. His brow contorted and sweaty. It was evident that he was under immense stress. His only grand daughter had undergone another assassination attempt on her life. The last he had heard from her bodyguard was that they were going by the New York subway to reach the Grand Central. The ride should have taken at most 10 minutes. Why hadn't the bodyguard reported till now?
His phone rang.
"Give me good news Matthew." he said picking up.
"Sir, Miss Stone just called me. I am on my way to pick her up right now, she reached the station safely I believe. I will secure her first." he assured.
"What do you mean her? Where is the god damn bodyguard of hers?" he asked.
"I haven't heard from him." replied Matthew.
'Did he abandon her or something?' he thought to himself.
He imagined his poor grand daughter running through the Grand Central, chased by her assailants, trying to save herself just because she was connected to him.
He suppressed the ugly thought.
He knew it was all because of him. He was never a clean man. His empire and fortune built on crime and sins of his past. His own son and daughter-in-law had paid the price, but his enemies were relentless. They wanted to break him completely. Take the only person away of what's left of his family. He shuddered at the thought.
He had done heinous things too. To others. But now when his own were at stake he felt nothing but hopelessness. Was this the feeling his victims felt over the years? He felt horrible. If need be, he was even ready to give up everything, all his wealth, his work, his own life, just so his grand daughter's life could be guaranteed, but that wasn't the case. His enemies were not interested in his money. They wanted to break him. The only way was through his loved ones.
His phone rang again.
"I have secured Miss Stone. She is unhurt." said Matthew on the line.
He breathed a sigh of relief and fell to his chair.
"Give her the phone. I need to talk to her." he said impatiently.
"Dear are you alright?" he asked.
"Yes, I am. I am completely fine." said Sylvia.
"Oh thank God. Just come here to Turin. US isn't safe anymore. I am such an idiot I should never have sent you there." he said pinching his brow.
"What about the bodyguard?" she asked nervously.
"The guy is alive?" he asked.
"Yes, he did his job perfectly. He is the reason I am still alive." she said.
"Why isn't he with you then?" he asked.
"He held up the assailants and distracted the cops, I think he is arrested by now." she said.
She then went on to tell him everything that 001 did in the last two hours. Killing the attackers at the party. Taking her to the subway. Fighting there.
"I will see what I can do." he said as he hung up.
'The lad was worth it' he thought to himself. He was worth every penny. He started making another phone call.
"I need you to free a man, no reports." he said.
"Mr. Stone I am already fucked here. The shootout at this party your grand daughter attended, reporters are flooding the department with questions. Some guy killed all the original instigators according to the witnesses. These witnesses are big people mind you. The city officials are screaming at me to make solid arrests. And you want me to free a man?" asked the Chief of NYPD.
"Listen here officer. I need this man freed. He is a big asset for me." said Eduard understanding the man's frustration at the outrageous request.
"And pray tell who is this man?" he asked.
"The man who is possibly responsibly for those bodies. And if my intel is correct, fought later on, in the New York subway. I bet your boys booked him from there." he said.
"Mr. Stone with all due respect what the actual fuck? Are you asking me to release such a dangerous criminal who is now in my custody possibly?" asked the Chief.
"He is not a criminal. He is a bodyguard. My grand daughter's. He needed to use lethal force to save her." he said.
"If he is a bodyguard. I would need you to fight the case in court then. Justify his actions." he said.
"You know it's gonna take a shitload of paper work and time. Plus, it's not like I hired him from an authorised organization either." said Eduard.
"What do you mean?" he asked.
"It's like a shady underworld organization. I am not sure if he is on the records of any country either. Besides he killed scums, can't you overlook it?" said Eduard.
"In the name of God Mr. Stone, this shit is too dirty. Way too fucking dirty." said the Chief.
"Any help would be highly appreciated." said Eduard.
There was a long pause on the phone.
"Alright. I will frame one of them. You talk to the witnesses. I will give you the names and contact info. They are all big people themselves. I advise you to do the talking personally. I will get him out of the lock-up. But promise me Mr. Stone. You will get him out of the States immediately." he said.
"Yes. That goes without saying." said Eduard as he hung up.
He spent the next eight hours talking to each and every single one of those witnesses, convincing them to overlook this, the guy saved their life too after all. Promised investments to some of them in return for testifying falsely for him.
Meanwhile the police chief immediately started planning. He got his boys to handle the bodyguard and set him up in an area so the detectives could be misled and be presented with a guy he will frame. He quickly looked into the recent arrests made in the New York subway and found the guy Stone had told him about. Quickly choosing one of the other assailants as the main perp he sent him for questioning. He then proceeded to delete all the records of the bodyguard and finally made his way to the detainment area.
Flinging the door open to find 001, his hair askew, the right side of his face, just beside his eye, swollen. Handcuffed to the table.
The Chief locked the door behind him and sat down.
"I got a call from your client. I am here to help." he said.
"I don't know what you are talking about." said 001 calmly.
The Chief was impressed. He was still so professional about it. Still not admitting to anything and feigning innocence.
"It's ok. I just had a talk with Mr. Eduard Stone." he assured as he showed him his private cellphone with the personal number of the man as proof.
"What should I call you?" he asked.
"Sunny." replied 001.
The Chief looked at him with a slightly annoyed look, this guy was still playing with him.
"I showed you the proof that I am an ally. Drop this shit and at least talk to me." he said.
"Why do you think it's a fake name?" asked 001.
The Chief scoffed, but time was of the essence and he needed to ship this trouble out of his jurisdiction as soon as possible.
"Alright. Sunny. I will free you now" he said as he fished for the handcuff's keys in his pocket.
"Don't sweat it Chief." said 001 placing the handcuffs on the table.
The Chief stared at him dumbstruck until he found his voice again.
"Just see yourself to the airport then. I will leave the doors open." he said, impressed and annoyed at the same time.
"Oh and just for future reference, how much dough did you made, doing this?" asked 001.
"500G." he replied.
001 smiled, got up and left the room.