Love Slave to the Mafia Boss's Passion

Chapter 304: Disastrous Negotiations

"You still don’t get it, do you? You can continue asking her whatever that you want but she won’t reply to you. It’s useless, Ethan. Malissa isn’t going to say anything unless she has my permission, so I suggest that you quickly explain your business proposal," Hayden said monotonously.

"I see. Well, I don’t mind doing this the strictly business way. You do remind me of your older brother now…" Ethan said after having laughed for a little while.

Hayden did not say anything as he waited to hear more details about the proposal which Ethan had in mind. My attention was also focused on Ethan. This was the moment that I had been waiting for, I’m finally going to learn something about what was going on. If this proposal works out, there could be peace between the gang and perhaps that would mean that Hayden’s life would be a little easier.

"For the partnership, I want Torex to consider allowing Silva to conduct some businesses inside selected territories that are currently under Torex’s control. This would put a stop to the ongoing disputes between us right now.

If you are open to it, I will send over some documents and proposals on other businesses that I would like Silva and Torex to work on together, for example, the black-market auction business. Being a duopoly is good but since there are no laws limiting us, we might as well partner up and run it as a monopoly…" Ethan began explaining.

"And in exchange? What will Torex gain from this?" Hayden asked pointedly.

Ethan paused before he smiled as if he had already anticipated this question.

"Peace. As simple as that. Our gangs have been at each other’s throats for a long time now and even I’m getting sick and tired of it. With this partnership we can put the conflicts between the gang aside and focus more on business," Ethan said calmly.

What Ethan said seemed to make sense to my untrained ears. Peace was supposed to be a good thing and the business proposal didn’t sound bad. However, I wasn’t sure if Hayden felt the same way.

"Peace? Interesting…" Hayden said, but contrary to his words, it was clear that he wasn’t anywhere near convinced.

"Jack wanted peace and so did dear Amelia…" Ethan said softly.

"And look where they ended up…" Hayden said before he chuckled as if the idea amused him beyond measure.

Jack was dead. Amelia is as close to dead as can be. I recalled the sight of Amelia in a comatose state in her bed with multiple machines beeping around her as they kept her ’alive’.

"I don’t mind if you need time to think about it. I understand that this isn’t a decision that you can make on a whim. You can also consult your father about it…" Ethan suggested with a smile.

"I once believed in peace and perhaps the fool deep inside of me still does. Time has gone by, and I’ve learnt and came to appreciate many harsh realities of this world that we live in. Unfortunately, I see more men driven and motivated by greed rather than the idea of peace…" Hayden said calmly before he smiled regretfully at his old friend.

Ethan’s eyes narrowed dangerously and the air around him darkened evidently. I could feel it even though I was seated far away and that meant that Hayden could probably sense it as well. Regardless, Hayden still continued on with what he wanted to say.

"If we form a partnership and it goes well, Silva will get richer and then what? If I concede a part of our business to Silva today, won’t you ask me for even more in the future? Isn’t Silva’s greed endless?" Hayden asked rhetorically.

"Hayden…" Ethan hissed in between his clenched teeth.

"I do not agree to your proposal. I don’t believe in peace, and even if I did, I don’t believe that it can ever be achieved through a partnership driven by greed. Silva will never be satisfied and will continue asking for more in the future. There is no need to consult my old man about this.

Honestly, he isn’t a big fan of writing apology letters and so he’d not been in the best of moods…" Hayden said passively.

"Are you serious?" Ethan asked with a small laugh as if he couldn’t understand the rejection that he’s facing.

I had to say that I was also surprised. Hayden seemed too rush to make his decision on this. Won’t there be negative repercussions from his decision to turn down the partnership? Won’t the situation between the gang just get worst from here on out?

"Of course. As the representative of Torex, I’m always serious. If that is all, then we’ll be taking our leave. Send my regards to your dead father," Hayden said as he got up from his seat and pulled me up along wit him.

Still stunned from Hayden’s decision, I almost lost my balance when my arm and body was suddenly pulled up. The chair made a loud sound as it scrapped against the floor when I hastily got up from my seat. The stressful meeting was quickly coming to an end, and I had yet to learn very much about the situation.

However, it was clear that any peace talks between the two gang was already over and that made the future seem more unstable than ever.

"Do you fully understand the implications of your decision?" Ethan asked, his tone cold.

"Of course. I am a Torex while you will always be a Silva. That’s all there is to it. You can do whatever you want, and I’ll do the same," Hayden replied as he stared back at Ethan.

This is a disaster as far as I could tell. It was like the two are declaring war on each other. Why did Hayden choose to end the conversation like this. Couldn’t he just turn the deal down politely and then perhaps we could all move on with our lives like everything was normal?

"I see. It’s unfortunate but I hope you see that I’ve tried my best," Ethan said, sounding truly regretful.

--To be continued…