Epilogue

                                        

                                                  


                              
EPILOGUE
                              
The shopping mall was filled with weekend visitors who were bustling and spending their hard-earned Erabi. It was the end of the month and paychecks were just being issued. Supermarket were filled with people buying groceries and the checkout lines were long with queues. The Department Stores were no different. Cinemas were crowded and restaurants were displaying their waiting list signs in front of their shops. 
                              
Cafes were overflown into sidewalk, where people were willing to take their place on the street despite the cold weather just to enjoy coffees and pastries over conversation with friends. Lee Jung-sung walked over to one of the benches they put along the hall in the middle of the mall. The benches were full of people who were sitting down, resting their sore feet before they began their shopping quest again, but he managed to find one that was still vacant. He took a seat on one side. He was reading news from his tablet. 
                              
5 minutes later, another man joined him and took a seat next to him on the same bench. He was shorter and very skinny. He was wearing a black woolen beanie, a dark blue coat and a pair of blue jeans. His dark skin was damped from the rain outside, but he didn't show any sign of being cold. His black eyes were sharp and fixed to the store in front of him. He held a paper bag filled with a cup of hot coffee and a cheese bagel. He pulled out the coffee cup and placed the paper bag next to him. He began to sip it slowly. Lee spoke to him. His voice was low but clear. 
                              
"Do we have an agreement?" he asked. 
                              
The other man didn't answer immediately. He slowly gulped his hot coffee and savored the taste of it. 
                              
"With the right price, I can agree with anything," He finally answered.
                              
One of his hand stretched to his right and he placed his hand on the bench. When he lifted his hand, a small data chip was there. Lee picked it up without looking at it.
                              
"Report twice a week. You'll find everything you need in the flat," Lee said.
                              
Then with a quick, smooth almost invisible gesture, he dropped something into the paper bag, and then he left. 
                              
The man with dark skin took out his bagel and bit it slowly. He chewed and swallowed until the bagel's gone. He finished his coffee and when he was done, he shoved the trash into the paper bag and slowly walking towards a trash bin nearby the bench. He threw the paper bag into it, after he flicked his fingers inside and retrieve a small key card from the paper bag. Then, he also walked away. 
                              
On the 3rd level of parking lot in the mall, Lee walked towards a car and entered it. Another man was already sat in the driver's seat.  
                              
"How was it?" Lucas Gisborne asked him.
                              
"Reed will handle it. So far, he never lets us down. He said that Anthony Salzburg used to be the C.O.O of Fidelis Fratres Inc. but then he resigned about four years ago. The company's business lines include mining, manufacturing and investment. Salzburg may have resigned from Fidelis Fratres but he is not retiring. He is an entrepreneur, owning a chain of hotels, bars, strip-joints, massage parlors and pubs. These are his money-laundering machines. His real business, however, include drugs, arms dealers, gambling and prostitutions. These are his pots of gold," Lee answered, while handling the Chief the data chip.
                              
"Excellent. We'll start with one pot. Then we'll snake our way into the rest. How do you like your new apartment by the way?" Lucas asked. 
                              
"Love it. Much better than my previous one. It is a Central's after all." Lee answered while brushing some crumbs on his sweater. "It's the least you could do. After suspecting me to be Leung's spy. I knew my feeling was correct when I spotted Welsh in that coffee shop I went to. I pretended not to see him, out of respect to you guys and I decided to let him do his job. At least he had the decency to say hi after hours of sitting there watching me typing," Lee scoffed.