Chapter four

CHAPTER 4

A suspenseful silence filled the air again and Berlin was so close to losing his temper as he stared at the man who was once his father-in-law with so much sizzling hatred.

Mr. Rhodes snapped his finger for his secretary to come closer and the young man obeyed immediately. Berlin watched his former father-in-law whisper something in the secretary’s ear and immediately, the secretary scampered off to the second floor.

More silence followed as Mr. Rhodes lit another cigarette and began to smoke and Berlin felt like he was on the last thread of his patience. It felt like the old man was teasing his patience because he knew he could do nothing and at a point, he considered punching him right in the face just to make himself feel better.

The secretary finally came down the stairs and returned to the living room with a huge black bag in hand this time and when he dropped it with a loud thump on the table that stood between Berlin and his former father-in-law, it was obvious that it was pretty heavy.

“What's the bag got to do with why you want to see me?” Berlin asked as he eyed the bag and Rhodes chuckled while leaning forward to open the bag, revealing crisp notes of a large amount of money that Berlin had never seen in his life.

He stared at Mr. Rhodes with wide eyes and the old man laughed when he saw his reaction.

*Why is there such an amount of money in this bag? And why are you showing it to me?” Berlin asked him and the man waved him off before leaning back in his chair.

“That's the reason why I called you here, Berlin” he replied and Berlin scoffed.

“To show me how much money you've got? I already gathered enough knowledge about that through the years that I was married to your daughter” he replied and the man shook his head because he was getting it all wrong.

“This money is for you, Berlin. All of it. I want you to take it” he said and Berlin shook his head in disbelief. It felt like he was dreaming and it didn't feel good because he knew the man before him would never give him such an amount of money for no reason. There had to be a reason.

“Why are you giving this to me? What do you want from me?” he asked and Mr. Rhodes snapped his fingers once Berlin asked that question.

“I have always known you were a smart one. I was expecting you to ask me that because anyone sensible enough would ask that question in such a situation”

All Berlin did was give him a blank stare because he knew the old man was just being sarcastic. Berlin graduated top of his class from the university so there was no way he wouldn't know he was smart.

“Can you hit the nail on the head already? It's getting late and I have to find a place to sleep… thanks to you and your daughter” he requested icily and his former father-in-law’s smile faltered.

“I'm giving you this money to keep my secret safe for me, Berlin. Think of it as a way of keeping each other safe. You can start afresh with this money and I'll keep on doing my business like I've always done without the risk of being found out”

“I don't understand what you mean. What secret are you talking about?” Berlin asked and Rhodes Walton growled as he was beginning to lose patience with Berlin who kept on acting clueless about everything.

“Do I have to spell it out for you?” he demanded and Berlin nodded.

“Yes you do, or I won't know what you mean and I'll walk out of here” Berlin insisted and his former father-in-law palmed his face before giving in to his cluelessness.

“I'm sure you know I don't run only an automobile business. You know I have a second business I do and even though it isn't legal, I don't plan on stopping anytime soon because it gets me the money I've always wanted” he explained and Berlin narrowed his eyes.

His heart was thumping hard, his plans were sweaty and his scalp itched due to how nervous he was but he didn't plan on giving his discomfort away. He wanted to make the old man think he didn't fear him anymore because that way, he would be able to walk away from the situation before him easily.

“You mean your drug pushing business?” Berlin asked abashedly and Rhodes smiled in response to confirm that he was right.

“Now that you know what I'm talking about, I want you to take this money and walk away. Never reveal it to anyone and we'll be cool but if you do, I'll be coming for you. Understood?”

“Does it matter if I take the money? You're obviously threatening me”

“Some measures have to be taken to protect your empire, Berlin, and I'll do anything it takes to protect mine. I'm sure you understand that” the man before Berlin, who seemed more like a stranger after threatening his life, said and Berlin scoffed for the second time before he turned the bag toward his former father-in-law and sprang to his feet.

“I don't want your money so keep it,” Berlin told him and the man looked utterly shocked to see Berlin reject such a huge amount of money when he assumed he was going to take it without a second thought.

“You're an ex-convict, Berlin. Do you think you're easily going to find a job anywhere? You'd better take what I'm offering for your own good and…”

“For my own good, I'll reject what you're giving me and be on my way because I don't want my life getting threatened by a drug lord after taking his money and also because I want nothing to do with your filthy money or your family anymore. So keep your money and continue with your life. I have no business with it any longer”

Berlin interrupted Rhodes as he spoke and with that, he spun on his heels and walked out of the mansion with a lighter conscience and the ability to breathe easily.

He felt so proud of himself because he never thought he would be able to stand up to his former father-in-law but he did and even aced it because he left the man speechless.

Thinking about the conversation they both had, he couldn't believe the man’s audacity in trying to bribe him so he could keep him shut about his dirty doings.

He and his money could go to hell because he wanted nothing to do with him or Genevieve anymore and if he took that money, memories of them would be imprinted in his head forever so it was best he didn't.

It was best if he started all over on his own because ex-convict or not, he wasn't going to give up on himself.