Chapter 281: Meeting With Alfredo.

Ella and Kyle went their separate ways, but Kyle handed her a key so she could come whenever she decided was appropriate.

However, he had let Ella in even though he didn’t need to—because in truth, Kyle needed someone to talk to.

He couldn’t carry all the burden alone, and even though he had offloaded some of it to Cassandra,

He was curious to see how Ella would handle it—and she handled it better than he imagined.

Kyle got a call shortly after, and it was from Alfredo. Kyle didn’t want to communicate constantly with these people because he didn’t want them to get the idea that they were friends.

However, there was suspicion that his involvement with them was what put a target on his back.

He couldn’t be careless, and this was why he decided to get security—not just any security, but the best of the best: ex-military soldiers.

But Kyle knew he had to be careful because while they were loyal to their duties, they often came back broken.

Kyle couldn’t afford someone crashing out and doing something that could end up costing him.

This was the one thing Kyle couldn’t afford right now, and he didn’t need such extreme backgrounds to protect the mansion he had bought.

He had no contacts here, but there was someone he could ask—and that person was Ella.

He noticed she got along with one of the security men stationed at her parents’ mansion and asked if she could get him to thoroughly check their background.

However, this was a conversation he would have with Ella later in the day.

Kyle had to go see Alfredo because they had made progress in their interrogation, and he could only imagine the state the poor man was in.

However, he knew they must have done the unspeakable to him to pass a message, and Kyle knew better than to ask about it.

Kyle didn’t need to find out how they extracted the information—as long as they made headway, that was enough.

Kyle met Alfredo, but it wasn’t at the usual spot in the warehouse.

They chose a neutral venue, out in the open, but they weren’t alone.

Alfredo had men stationed around the place where he met Kyle. Kyle had been moving around a lot these past couple of days, despite not having much to do himself.

If he hadn’t taken up working out, there was no way his body would have been able to keep up.

"Alfredo, it’s good to see you again," Kyle said, to which Alfredo returned the gesture.

"I’m glad you’re in one piece as well, sir," Alfredo replied, showing Kyle the respect he had garnered.

"Do you have something for me?" Kyle asked, getting straight to the point.

"We’ve made some progress. I have no idea who that man is working for, but he must be a powerful man," Alfredo confessed, prompting Kyle to lean back in his chair and sigh.

"It sounds like you have nothing for me, Alfredo," Kyle said, disappointed that this man wasted his time with something that could have been said over the phone.

"Not quite. We know he is associated with one of the other four powers of the underworld," Alfredo added, but Kyle had no idea what he was talking about.

"I think I’ll need a little explanation," Kyle said, and Alfredo had no problem educating him on how this world worked—since Kyle was now part of it.

"The Mafia, Gangs, Yakuza, and other criminal organizations make up the four powers," Alfredo explained. But the moment Kyle heard "Yakuza,"

There was only one name that came to mind—

Nakamura

.

Kyle knew this man was dangerous and would do anything to reach his goals, so it made sense that he would attempt something so brazen.

But what would he gain if Kyle died?

Kyle tried to connect the dots. Why would a trained killer be so sloppy?

There was no way a professional assassin wouldn’t have killed him before he even perceived the threat.

Kyle trusted his fighting abilities, but there was only so much he could do against a gun.

He wasn’t arrogant enough to believe he could disarm a top-tier assassin.

"It was a message?"

Kyle thought to himself.

"Are you okay?" Alfredo asked, noticing that Kyle had gone somewhere in his head.

"I’m fine. Just a little tired," Kyle replied, before refocusing his attention on the man in front of him.

Kyle couldn’t shake the feeling that Nakamura was behind this the moment he heard "Yakuza," because it was the only logical explanation for why a random person would try to take his life.

He wasn’t funding the Mafia—he was just helping them distribute. And he wasn’t the only one they had in mind for such a task.

The other studio that attempted to buy them out was a good alternative. Kyle knew they wanted to use his agency because it was still relatively small, even though it was gaining popularity.

"Thank you, Alfredo," Kyle said, showing his gratitude. But Alfredo was surprised he didn’t ask what had happened to the man they had interrogated.

However, he understood why Kyle wouldn’t be interested in the small details and let it be.

"Tell me about the goal of this drug," Kyle asked, trying to understand their motive.

"It’ll be the next cocaine, man," Alfredo said with a smile. But Kyle knew there had to be a mastermind behind such an abomination.

Alfredo paused and looked at Kyle with a raised brow.

"You’re interested in this," he said.

But Kyle didn’t hesitate or panic. He simply looked him straight in the eyes.

"Do you plan on withholding information from me?" Kyle asked, his tone threatening. He knew he had to play the part to get results—and remind Alfredo that he was below him in the pecking order.

"N-No, I wouldn’t do such a thing. But I’ve already told you what it does," Alfredo replied, confused.

"Then tell me why it hasn’t hit the market despite it being more addictive than cocaine.

If such a drug existed, the public would gobble it up—unless..." Kyle paused.

"...The negatives outweigh the positives. And like a crook, you need me to package and sell a defective product to the public," Kyle pointed out.

And judging by Alfredo’s reaction, he hit the nail right on the head.