Darius needed three things to start: money, a location, and people.
The money was the easiest part. Jake had paid him well for years, and Darius had saved most of it because Darius didn't spend money on things he didn't need. The money sat in three accounts, enough to fund a small operation for six months if he was careful, and Darius was always careful.
The location was harder. Tito had pointed him northwest, toward Hialeah Gardens and Miami Lakes, the edges of Camila Rodriguez's territory, the gaps nobody wanted. Darius drove out there on a Tuesday morning and spent four hours walking streets and parking lots, reading the landscape the way he read a room. He was looking for a business front. Something that could hold product, process money, and look legitimate from the outside.
