The room was quiet except for the slow hum of an old ceiling fan.
Marcus leaned against the wall, arms folded.
Darius sat at the metal table in the center of the storage unit, watching Malik carefully.
No one had spoken for almost a minute.
Malik had called them both here for a reason.
And they could both feel it wasn't a small conversation.
Marcus finally broke the silence.
"So talk."
Malik exhaled slowly.
"I've been working with the strategist."
Darius's eyebrows tightened immediately.
Marcus didn't react.
He had already suspected it.
"How long?" Darius asked.
"Since before the supply freeze," Malik replied.
Darius leaned back in his chair.
"You could've told us."
"I couldn't risk it spreading," Malik said calmly.
Marcus tilted his head slightly.
"Or you weren't sure we'd go along with it."
Malik didn't deny that.
Instead he said,
"He's the one who froze Reed's supply."
Darius rubbed his chin slowly.
"That explains a lot."
Marcus spoke again.
"And now?"
Malik stepped closer to the table.
"Now things are moving faster."
Marcus nodded slightly.
"They are."
Malik looked between them.
"You both deserve the full truth."
Darius crossed his arms.
"Then start with who this strategist actually is."
Malik hesitated for half a second.
Then he said the name.
"Victor Salazar."
The room went quiet.
Darius looked up sharply.
"You're serious?"
Marcus's expression darkened slightly.
Victor Salazar wasn't just some corporate manipulator.
He was a financial architect.
A man who built influence through businesses, logistics networks, and political connections.
He rarely appeared in street matters directly.
But when he did...
Cities shifted.
"You're telling me Salazar is behind all this?" Darius asked.
Malik nodded.
"He's been monitoring the city for years."
Marcus pushed himself off the wall.
"Why step in now?"
"Because Reed is consolidating too fast," Malik replied.
"He thinks Reed's structure will create instability long term."
Marcus gave a quiet laugh.
"So his solution is to destabilize Reed first."
"Exactly."
Darius shook his head slowly.
"That's a dangerous game."
Malik leaned forward slightly.
"It's already in motion."
Marcus looked at him carefully.
"What's the deal?"
Malik didn't hesitate this time.
"He provides information."
Marcus's eyes narrowed.
"What kind?"
"Reed's movements. Meetings. Supply routes. Security patterns."
Darius leaned forward now.
"That's serious intelligence."
"Yes," Malik said.
"And the price?" Marcus asked.
Malik's voice lowered slightly.
"He wants the territory after Reed falls."
Silence.
Heavy silence.
Darius finally spoke.
"All of it?"
"No," Malik said.
"The main logistics corridors."
Marcus nodded slowly.
"That's not surprising."
Victor Salazar wasn't interested in street reputation.
He was interested in infrastructure.
Control the corridors. Control the money.
Darius looked at Marcus.
"You're seriously considering this?"
Marcus didn't answer immediately.
He walked slowly around the room, thinking.
Finally he stopped.
"Reed won't stop expanding."
Malik stayed quiet.
Marcus continued.
"And now Salazar is applying pressure from above."
He looked directly at Malik.
"That means Reed is surrounded."
Darius still looked uncertain.
"You really want to go to war with him?"
Marcus shook his head slightly.
"It's already war."
He turned back toward Malik.
"When do we get the first information?"
Malik pulled out his phone.
"Soon."
Almost immediately, the device buzzed in his hand.
A message.
Marcus noticed.
"Already?"
Malik checked the screen.
Then looked up.
"Yes."
Darius leaned forward.
"Well?"
Malik read the message silently first.
Then spoke.
"Reed has a meeting tomorrow night."
Marcus's posture straightened.
"Where?"
"North industrial yard."
Darius frowned.
"That's one of his private spots."
Marcus nodded.
"Which means he feels safe there."
Malik continued reading.
"Minimal security. Just two vehicles."
Marcus's mind was already moving.
"This is good."
Darius looked between them.
"You're talking like this is already decided."
Marcus answered calmly.
"It is."
Darius sighed.
"You really want to kill him."
Marcus's eyes hardened slightly.
"I want him out of the picture."
Malik watched the exchange carefully.
There was no anger in Marcus's voice.
Just resolution.
That made it even more dangerous.
Across the city, Reed was finishing a late meeting at the warehouse.
He stood over the city map on the wall.
His expansion wasn't stopping.
Even with supply pressure.
Street loyalty was strengthening.
Three more crews had aligned with him earlier that day.
But something still bothered him.
The strategist's interference.
Marcus's presence at the parking lot.
Malik showing up unexpectedly.
Too many pieces moving.
Reed tapped the map slowly.
Then he said quietly to one of his men,
"Schedule the industrial yard meeting tomorrow."
The man nodded.
"Yes boss."
Reed didn't know it yet.
But the information had already left the room.
Back in the storage unit, Marcus was studying the message on Malik's phone.
"North industrial yard," he repeated.
Darius shook his head.
"This is getting real."
Marcus nodded once.
"Yes."
Malik looked at him carefully.
"You sure about this?"
Marcus met his eyes.
"You told me yourself... Reed doesn't bend."
Malik didn't argue.
Marcus stepped back from the table.
"Then we make sure he breaks."
The words settled heavily in the room.
Because now this wasn't planning anymore.
This was preparation.
And somewhere in the city, Victor Salazar was watching everything unfold.
Patient.
Strategic.
Waiting for the moment Reed finally fell-
So he could claim what remained.