The world ran on mutual benefit, and as long as Karim could show that he would benefit the youths more than the Wolf Gang or whoever else they were working under, they'd be willing to work for him.
And with that in mind, Karim made many promises that he was starting to doubt that he could keep, but would do everything possible to do so.
Through that, he was preparing well, and when the time came, he seemed sure that he'd be able to stop the Wolf Gang's distribution and all those he was in contact with would go into hiding.
When that happened, the Wolf Gang couldn't afford to go after all the youths and wouldn't benefit from doing so, which would leave them holding a large amount of goods that they were unable to distribute.
Leaving them with such goods for a while and cutting off as many of their other money streams simultaneously, including the Wild Dog Fight Club, Xavier could deal them a large blow.
That would also force them to spread their manpower and seek other ways of procuring funds, which would be when the Outlaw Gang would start their takeover.
However, their plan was far from foolproof, and they all knew that, which was why they were working as hard as they could to prepare.
And in order for a lot of Xavier's future plans to succeed, he needed a strong team around Zack, which was why he had been thorough when recruiting and sought out the best possible people to work with him.
But whether or not he would be able to handle them, especially Rachel, was another question...
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A short while passed and Xavier had gotten a detailed report from Karim, who was starting to show his capabilities.
From how meticulous he was while informing Xavier of everything so far, it was clear he was being very careful and preparing well, and even his friends had started to change.
Through training with the rest of the Outlaw Gang, their physiques had improved slightly, but the biggest effect it had was giving them a large confidence boost.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtSeeing just how capable everyone Xavier had recruited so far was compared to those that they had previously considered strong was like night and day.
It made them realise that they had a long way to go, and the ambitious youths led by the determined Karim were excited by that.
Everyone in the Outlaw Gang was experiencing a similar excitement, which also came with anxiety and anticipation, as they continued working hard and preparing for what was to come.
And after thanking Karim and his friends for their hard work and promising them money in a few days to fund what they were doing and also for themselves, Xavier headed upstairs.
-
Xavier had managed to gain the absolute trust of all those he recruited to the point they believed he was capable of almost anything, but he vowed internally to never let them down.
So far he had successfully tripled his money 2 nights in a row and was prepared to do the same on the 3rd night, to not only successfully complete his mission, but also accumulate a large amount of money.
And he had managed to recruit Eddie and Rachel at the right time, as they would be a big help when it came to handling that money.
But whether or not they could actually get things done with their varying personalities was what Xavier was uneasy about, and he was worried about Zack not being able to stand his ground.
To be a leader it was important to be compassionate and caring, but also to demand respect, and if it came to it, have the charisma and authority to give instructions that their subordinates would do their all to follow.
And that was something that Xavier doubted Zack was capable of.
However, so far everyone had been able to surpass his expectations, so he was hoping that Zack could do the same.
Despite being younger, smaller and less experienced, he had to distinguish himself as their senior.
But since he hadn't heard much noise from upstairs for a while, Xavier feared that Zack hadn't even spoken to Rachel and Eddie.
In his head he imaged them all just sitting in different corners of the room and not even speaking to each other, waiting for him to show up.
However, upon entering the makeshift office that Zack had started working out of, he was pleasantly surprised by what he found.
-
While he was downstairs with Karim and his friends, Eddie and Rachel had gone upstairs as per Xavier's instruction, but they were unsure what to expect.
So far Xavier had shown to be very mysterious, but the 2 of them couldn't help but doubt whether there was actually any substance to the Outlaw Gang that he had formed.
And after asking Xavier some questions about the Outlaw Gang on the way there, they doubted that there would be any interesting work for them to do even more.
In their minds, a newly formed gang run by a youth they had met not long ago couldn't be capable of much, and despite Karim and his friends being intimidating, they were far from looking like gangsters.
And that thought was reinforced when they reached upstairs and found a single youth, that appeared to be even younger than Xavier.
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Since Xavier had told them that the one that would be leading them and working with them was there, they couldn't help but feel slightly disrespected that it was someone so young.
And he didn't even greet them upon arriving as he typed away at his keyboard.
Zack's eyes were glued to his monitors and he was so focused he hadn't even realised that 2 people had shown up at the office until Rachel flipped out at him and started shouting.
"Hey, kid! Are you not going to fucking say anything?!"
Jumping up slightly, startled by her sudden yelling, he quickly regained composure and called them over to sit down nonchalantly.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmLooking at them, compared to Xavier and the other leaders in the Outlaw Gang, they were far from being intimidating, and Zack had also experienced a major confidence boost.
Backed up by the fact that he knew almost everything about the 2 of them and was their senior, as per the ranking model that Xavier had set up, Zack was relaxed as they sat near him.
Rachel was glaring at him, while Eddie sat down calmly and didn't show what he was thinking, but it was clear that they were both sizing Zack up and were trying to gauge what kind of person he was.
As 2 people that were quite prideful, which came with being extremely skilled and knowing their worth, it was hard for them to work under anybody, so when Xavier said that the one that would lead them was upstairs, they weren't expecting a kid.
However, the way he looked at them caused a chill to run down their spine.
-
Unlike Xavier, Zack was far from being charismatic, intimidating or captivating, but for some reason his gaze made them feel uncomfortable.
"Rachel Boyle and Eddie Roft, nice to meet you. I am Zack and I'm looking forward to working with the 2 of you," he stated simply.
"Is that it? Is that all you have to say?" asked Rachel aggressively as she stood up and started to storm off.
However, what Zack had to say next caused her to freeze and her heart to sink.
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"Mathew Boyle. A great financial figure that fell down from heaven and ended up killing himself after being charged with committing fraud and embezzling money. After his bail and funeral were paid for, as well as you being raised, your mother and grandparents were left with extreme debt. That left you to become addicted to working with money and also caused you to have the personality you currently have."
"Seeing your father in his suit leave for work every morning and tell you stories about what he was working on must have been nice. But based on your psychiatric reports, your emotions are very unstable and you act without thinking. However, that's only when it comes to dealing with people right?"
"When it comes to money, nobody is better at handling it than Rachel Boyle. With any accountancy and financial qualification you can think of, you're a smart one, aren't you? But if you keep acting the way you do, you'll only hurt yourself and your loved ones even more."
"So why don't you sit back down and calm down?"
Rachel was lost for words and was clearly trying her best not to break out into tears, while Eddie was gobsmacked by just how much Zack knew, and it seemed as though all of Xavier's information about them had come from the youth before them.
However, Zack wasn't finished yet as he turned towards Eddie, who struggled to remain calm after he did so...