C468 I Don't Care What You Decide

Chris looked around the training hall. “You guys can decide what you want to do.” Everyone looked at him. “But I can't let my brother go through this alone.” Sarah lowered her eyes. Chris continued. “If Mike wants revenge for my nephew, then I will stand beside him. Emmanuel was only three months old. He didn't deserve any of this.” His voice became heavier. “I can't accept that an innocent child was killed simply because someone wanted something from her family.” He shook his head. “This cannot go unanswered.” Chris turned toward Sarah. “Wife, I can see that you want to quit. I understand why. But tell me something.” Sarah looked at him. “What did Emmanuel do to deserve this?” She remained silent. “He was a three-month-old baby, Sarah.” Chris's eyes filled with tears. “He couldn't even understand what was happening. He couldn't defend himself. He couldn't choose what family he was born into.” His voice cracked. “He was killed because of someone's personal gain.” Chris wiped his face. “I really can't make sense of that.” He looked at Sarah one last time. “And I cannot forgive Hanna for what she did.” He turned around and began walking toward the exit. “Chris, wait!” Sarah called. He didn't stop. “I didn't mean it like that.” Chris continued walking. “Chris, wait!” He reached the doorway. “Husband!” Still, he didn't turn around. The door closed behind him.

The training hall became silent. Sarah stood there, staring at the doorway. Faith eventually broke the silence. “Alicia once told us that when she and Mike were not around, you and Chris were in charge.” She looked at Sarah. “We as the Lions will listen to your decision.” Everyone nodded. Sarah took a deep breath. She looked around the room before speaking. “From what I can see, Alicia and Mike need time to heal.” Nobody disagreed. “They've just lost their child. They need to grieve without worrying about another mission or another enemy.” Sarah paused. “And we cannot go into danger by ourselves.” She looked at the others. “We trained together as a team. We fought together as a team. The Lions were never meant to operate without Alicia and Mike.” She shook her head. “The team is incomplete without them.” Sarah took another breath. “That is why I think we should dismantle the Lions for now.” Samantha looked down. “What will happen to Faith and me?”

Sarah looked at her. “Sister, you cannot allow your relationship to depend on everyone else.” Samantha looked confused. Sarah glanced toward Faith. “I can't advise you on this because you're still married to my brother.” Samantha's eyes lowered. “But perhaps this is the time for you to decide who you really want to be with.” She looked directly at Samantha. “And when you've made that decision, be with that person.” Samantha remained quiet for a moment. Then she looked at Faith. “I want to be with you.” Faith smiled softly. “I love you, Samantha.” The two women looked at each other. Laura suddenly coughed. “Guys…” Everyone turned toward her. “We're still grieving.” Samantha immediately looked down. Laura then turned toward Sarah. “If we dismantle the Lions, how do we show Alicia and Mike that we still support them?” Sarah thought about the question. “We visit them.” Laura nodded. “We don't need to be a team to be their friends.” Sarah continued. “We can check on them. We can make sure they aren't alone. And when they're ready, they can tell us what they want to do with the future of the Lions.” Everyone nodded. They had reached an understanding. The Lions would not continue operating without Alicia and Mike. But they would not abandon them either. They would simply wait.

Several kilometres away, Hanna sat inside one of the rooms at Willy's Estate. Charlie sat nearby. Hanna had been unusually quiet. She stared ahead, clearly lost in thought. Then she frowned. “Why isn't Alicia fighting back?” Charlie looked at her. “I don't understand.” “I killed her heir.” Hanna's expression hardened. “I took away the person she was supposed to protect above everyone else.” “And she's doing nothing.” Hanna leaned back. “She hasn't come after me.” Charlie hesitated before asking, “You wanted her to fight back?” Hanna slowly turned toward her. A grin appeared on her face. “You don't get it.” Charlie frowned. “What don't I get?” Hanna's eyes narrowed. “Alicia is a very dangerous enemy.” She paused. “You can't tell me she accepted the death of her son just like that without wanting revenge." Charlie didn't know what to say. Before she could respond, the door opened. A tall man walked into the room. He was known as Tiger. He approached Hanna. “Boss.” Hanna looked at him. “What is it?” “A group of men has been searching for you.”

A smile slowly appeared on Hanna's face. “So she is fighting back after all.” Tiger looked confused. “What do we do?” He hesitated. “We only have fifteen men here at the moment.” Hanna stood up. “Then we move.” “Where?” “Somewhere they won't find us.” Tiger nodded. “But before we leave, there's something else.” Hanna looked at him. “Alvaro contacted me earlier.” Charlie immediately looked toward her. “Our shipment is ready.” Tiger's expression changed. “When are we collecting it?” “Today.” Charlie looked between them. “We're going to collect it ourselves?” Hanna laughed. “We're not that stupid.” She turned toward Tiger. “Tiger.” “Yes, Boss?” “Gather your men.” Tiger waited for the instructions. “Take a ship and head toward the eastern border.” Tiger nodded. “When the army stops you, tell them you want to see Stacy.” Tiger frowned. “Boss, who's Stacy?” Hanna smiled. “You don't need to worry about that.” Tiger remained silent. “I'll inform Stacy what she needs to do.” Tiger nodded. “Understood.” He turned around and left the room.

Charlie watched him disappear. Then she looked at Hanna. “Where are we moving?” Hanna walked toward the window. “Somewhere near the ocean.” “Why?” “So we can receive our shipment easily.” Charlie nodded. “That makes sense.” Hanna turned toward her. “You should start looking for a place.” Charlie hesitated. “What kind of place?” “Something isolated. Somewhere where we can operate without attracting attention.” Charlie nodded. “Should I buy it?” “Yes.” “Under what name?” Hanna stared at her for several seconds. “Don't use your real name.” Charlie frowned. “Then whose name should I use?” Hanna sighed. “Are you stupid, or are you pretending to be stupid?” Charlie lowered her eyes. Hanna shook her head. “You know exactly what I mean.” Charlie remained silent. Hanna walked back toward the table. “You'll figure it out.” She paused. “But there's something else I want you to do.” Charlie looked at her. “What?” “I want you to prepare something that will remind the other organizations that the Harris Cartel is still in the game.” Charlie frowned. “What do you mean?” Hanna smiled. “You'll understand soon enough.” She picked up her phone. “I'll tell you later.” Charlie nodded. Hanna looked at her. “Leave me for a moment. I need to make a phone call.” Charlie nodded and walked out of the room. The door closed behind her. Hanna was finally alone. She looked down at her phone. Then she smiled. She called a number.