Never Judge

An eerie silence took hold of the room as Cedric felt goosebumps crawl up his arms. The old office made things feel more sinister, more dangerous.

Knowing that his office once belonged to someone so deeply involved with the Rajas did not make things any better.

Cedric couldn't help but wonder how many plans that shaped their country for the worse had been thought up here?

He couldn't help but sigh at the thought that Ian and he were trying to undo the very effects of those plans in the same office.

Cedric cursed at his active imagination for making things seem worse than they actually were. It wasn't that bad, his mind just exaggerated things sometimes.

"They want to meet, they said they are now willing to discuss things properly with me." Ian explained to Cedric.

"Did you agree?" Cedric asked, knowing that Ian could be playing a longer and much more dangerous game.

"No." Ian's answer was what Cedric had expected. He knew his friend was not one to jump on the first opportunity that presented itself, rather he was willing to wait.

"What do you need?" Cedric asked his friend. "I will give you whatever support you need. You call the shots on this one."

"Why?" Ian asked, giving Cedric a confused look. "Why let me call the shots this time? Aren't you worried that I'll miss something or mess something up?"

Cedric grinned and shook his head.

"You won't, and if you do, we will be here to help." Cedric told Ian as he gave him a nod.

"I want to make them beg." Ian said as a devious smile crossed his face. "I want them to be so desperate for my help that they will give us anything and everything."

"A counter attack then?" Cedric asked as he considered the situation.

"I could send them a warning, they lie to me and I could send all of their companies down the drain." Ian said as he carefully thought of what to do next.

"Won't they think you are working for me?" Cedric asked as he considered the repercussions of their plan.

"Not if we play it right. I could act as the puppet master in their eyes." A mischievous grin played on Ian's lips, making Cedric roll his eyes at his friend.

As much as he didn't want to admit it, Ian's plan was good.

Not only would it strike fear among the Rajas, but it would also send them a message that his friend was much more powerful than they initially thought.

"Of course, they will think you are an idiot, but at this point that's nothing." Ian added as he laughed at Cedric's annoyed expression.

"The question now is which should we take down first?" Cedric asked as Ian pulled out some documents from his drawer and spread them on the desk.

"These are the companies, both big and small, that their false leaders own." Ian pointed at each document that had a company name, the name of the owners, and some details on the company.

"You did thorough research, as always." Cedric nodded as he looked at each of the documents, creating three piles.

"I knew you wouldn't want to enter this battle at an information disadvantage." Ian said with a grin. Having worked for both Cedric and his father, Ian knew exactly how both of them wanted things done.

The common factor between father and son, they always wanted to be prepared. It was a habit that every head of the Reyes Family carried, it was probably the reason why they had survived so long.

"These companies are too small to make an impact." Cedric explained as he pushed the pile aside.

"These are too big, they will retaliate." Cedric pointed to the pile on the left.

"Don't we want them to be shaken by what we are about to do?" Ian asked as he picked up the document at the top of the pile. "These are easy to take down."

"Not unless absolutely necessary. We are just sending a message, not ending them, not yet. We want them to have something to hold on to. A promise that if you side with us you can avoid something worse." Cedric said as he took the document from Ian and placed it back on the pile.

Ian picked up the document at the top of a smaller pile that was at the center.

"These?" He asked Cedric as he raised an eyebrow at his friend.

"Big enough to cause them to worry, but small enough that they won't turn against you." Cedric nodded as Ian read through each document.

He had studied them before, but he had never perceived them in the way that Cedric did. Unlike Cedric, Ian liked a more brutal and straightforward technique.

"I guess they will do." Ian said with a nod as he placed the documents back.

"The Reyes Group will bankrupt them in a week, send them a message a day before. They will wake up to their world turned upside down." Cedric instructed Ian.

"And what if they question if I am truly calling the shots, manipulating you?" Ian asked his friend.

"Then we move to this pile." Cedric pointed at the pile that had the smaller companies. "I expect that some may have some sentimental value to them or to members of their family. You don't hold on to these for nothing."

"I think we should get the others involved." Ian added as he thought of their plan and how he was going to execute it.

"Yes, that will work. That is a good idea." Cedric nodded in agreement. "It will show them that you control far more than they think, they will not underestimate you again."

"And if they do, we go with my usual tactics." Ian said with a smile as he looked at the ring his grandfather had given him, a symbol of their family's dark past, one that he would not deny or erase.