The Marvelous Elijah's Return

A danoureus game

A dangerous game The entire situation had Elijah deep in thought, and yet, alarmed, knowing that these

guys were trouble and dangerous, and two against seven in such a situation didn’t seem like a fair fight.

“You know I have been counting days for my injuries to fully heal so that I can find your ass and beat the

hell out of you...” Dice said, looking away from Jerome and staring at Elijah. Even though the tension in

the air was so murderous, Elijah’s eyes remained calm and his expression stayed neutral, looking

straight into Dice‘s eyes. “And then you do this shit… hospitalized my damn son by beating the hell outta

his sorry ass and trying to kill him...” Dice said in a dead tone as he tilted his head. “Do you have some

death wish, boy?!”

Such a threat made Matt’s anger spike, and he blurted out without a care, “If your son didn’t try to stab a

knife into my boss’s neck, I wouldn’t have lost my cool, and this conversation won’t be taking place in a

hospital room!” “So you are the one that did this to my boy?!” Dice barked at Matt with his fist clenching

tightly.

Knowing that seven to two was a disadvantage for Elijah and him, he wanted all the hate and attention

on him, using himself as a shield and a bait to make sure Elijah sustains less or no injury. “Yes,” Matt

answered, not moving an inch while staring down at Dice. Sensing the tension between these two men,

Elijah stepped between them when Dice moved for Matt and then pushed his palm against Dice and

Matt‘s chests as they stepped toward each other.

“Everyone, stay where you are, both of you,” Elijah firmly warned, his voice sounding cold and calm.

The dominance and aura he gave off intimidated both of the men, forcing them back a few feet, both

looking angry at the same time.

“Now, we can bite the heads off each other, or we can settle this shit like men and not wild animals. Do

we understand each other?” Elijah asked, looking back and forth between the two men who were glaring

daggers at him.

Eyeing his son, Dice hesitated before then glared at Elijah, locking his dark gaze with his. “You shit on

the Dusty storm gang after the assault on you and your men carried out on us that night and you expect

us to swallow this shit and just ignore everything?” Dice growled, clearly agitated.

“Oh really? From what I remember we could have done way worse than beat the crap out of you all, and

end your life... but just like I spared your son’s life, I also spared yours,” Elijah shot back angrily,

narrowing his eyes at Dice. “So, how about a, ‘Thank you?!”

A dangerous game

A sneer escaped from Dice’s lips and he gritted his teeth, “This guy, haha! You got balls, don’t

you?!”

“Hundred thousand!” Elijah abruptly spoke, not letting him finish. “I will pay you a hundred thousand

dollars to buy your gang and loyalty!”

One thing that spoke louder than words was money, and Elijah knew exactly what power he held with

those words, just how to get his grip on men like these.

“What?!” Dice asked, stretching his eyes wide, unable to believe Elijah was offering him this kind of deal.

“I got money to give in exchange for you guys swearing your allegiance and doing whatever I want, what

I ask, and keeping away from pity theft,” Elijah stated bluntly.

“Fuck yeah! This ain‘t bullshit... is it?!” One of the henchmen yelled out loud with a grin, obviously excited

by what they were hearing.

Glaring, Dice looked back at his men with his eyes darkened as jaw clenched and then he looked back at

Elijah, not losing his stone expression, saying, “You heard my man, right? This isn‘t bullshit, right, boy?!”

“No. It’s just an honest business transaction.” Elijah answered calmly, staring right back at Dice, not even

blinking an eye when the old man took a menacing step closer toward him.“ You answer to me, in

exchange you get a handsome reward.” When Elijah raised a brow, Dice felt a sense of hesitation, but he

didn‘t let it show and simply chuckled before mocking, “Right...”

VV

At that moment, the sound of the door opening drew every man in the room’s attention to it, and Dr.

Jones froze when she entered the room to see a bunch of robust men, looking at her.” “Ok-ey... What is

going on here!” Dr. Jones said in shock and surprise, stepping back “A very good business transaction,”

One of Dice‘s men mumbled with a pleasing smirk and his eyes glowing with excitement. Some of the

men chuckled, nodding in agreement with his words, thrilled by it. Even though Dr. Jones was

uncomfortable, she cleared her throat, wore a professional expression, and asked, “So, who is settling

the bills?” “What is the amount?!” Dice asked out of arrogance. Although the patient‘s documents should

be confidential and with all the people in the room, she didn‘t feel comfortable sharing Jerome‘s details

with them, she had also read the room, and knew these men were trouble, so she mumbled, “Umm...

Well, thirteen thousand six hundred dollars.”

A look of horror flashed across Dice’s face, knowing that he didn’t have that much money to pay off this

debt, and he cursed under his breath, turning to one of his men.

All of them avoided his eyes, nervously and guiltily looking away. None of them had such a large amount

of cash in hand. “Let’s talk outside, doctor,” Elijah spoke up quietly, making everyone turn around and

look at

Adangerous gone

him.

“Boss, these guys are crooks and thugs, you can‘t trust them,” Matt whispered, looking at Elijah with a

frown. “We don‘t have to do this –”

“I don‘t trust no one, Matt,” Elijah replied plainly, staring at Matt with an unimpressed expression. “Don‘t

try to fight anyone when I am gone.” His words broke Matt a bit because he thought he had earned

Elijah‘s trust, and he wasn’t prepared for the harsh rejection.

When Matt nodded his head, Elijah patted him on the shoulder and smiled weakly before walking off with

Dr. Jones.

When they left, Dice looked at Matt hesitantly, second–guessing his thoughts, and then let out, “He’s

your boss for real?”

Even though Matt didn‘t like Dice, Elijah warned him to keep the peace, so he clenched his jaw before

mumbling, “Yes,”

“Can he afford a hundred thousand?” Dice asked, feeling hesitant as if he wanted to check whether

Elijah was truly capable of paying such a high price. “If he said he will, he‘s gonna,”

“Huh!”

The other six men seemed dubious as their boss, and one of them mumbled, “If he can casually pay

Jerome‘s hospital bill, then I can trust him... I mean, a hundred thousand bucks are damn good money.”

“I trust him,” Jerome finally spoke up, breaking the silence, looking at the group with an intense glare

before continuing, “He seems like a calculative, smart, and straightforward man… I don‘t think he would

make such an offer without thinking about all the consequences beforehand...”

Once Jerome said those words, Dice‘s expression softened, and he looked back to see his men

agreeing, all nodding their heads.

Finally, after a prolonged silence, Elijah and Dr. Ben suddenly walked into the room, her shutting the

door and then turning to the group with a smile. “Well, Jerome, all you have to do is rest now, and once

you fully heal, you are a free man to walk out of here without any issues.” Dr. Jones declared, grinning

kindly at Jerome, who returned it with a small nod and gentle smile before closing his eyes again and

leaning his head against his pillow, a soft sigh escaping from him.

Those words left the seven men, including Jerome‘s jaw hanging loose and their faces showing surprise

and disbelief.

“That‘s it?” One of them asked skeptically.

“Yeah, that‘s it.” Dr. Jones confirmed, still smiling as she stared at the men, and then she turned away

and left the room.

Now, all six of his men’s eyes were on Dice, waiting to see what he would say next.

But when he suddenly dropped to his knees, placing his head on the ground as tears started streaming

down his cheeks, all his men couldn‘t believe what they were seeing.

“You could have dumped my boy on the side of the road… It was not your job to take care of him... I

have seen so much evil and violence in my lifetime, but an act of kindness to the one that attacks you is

beyond anything I‘ve ever experienced,” Dice sobbed, sounding broken and devastated

Seeing their boss on the floor, the six men exchanged looks between themselves, unsure what to do or

say, and then a tall, burly man fell to his knees, and the rest immediately followed. “You honor me with

such dignity and even a lowlife thug like me knows to repay such kindness with loyalty... I am indebted to

accept your offer if you will have my men and me.” Dice announced loudly with a shaky voice while

wiping off some of his tears.

The six men were startled, speechless, and completely lost for words, not sure whether to react and yet,

they all nodded in agreement with their boss‘ word.

‘No one man can be an island, you need all the help you can get, even if that means surrounding

yourself with vicious snakes that share their skin when you least expect it.‘ Elijah thought, knowing he

was playing a dangerous game. But masking his worry with a faint smile, wearing a casual expression,

and nodding in approval, Elijah agreed, “Well, this transaction is completed then.”