Chapter 116 Double Cross

(Maximus POV)

"Maximus, delighted to see you. Where is Fang?", asked a Conseiller before he entered the venue of the meeting. Fang was basically my shadow, so it was a surprise for all of them to see me without him.

"He has gone to see his relatives. I know this meeting is important, but unfortunately, an emergency arose. He will try and make an appearance, however I think that is highly unlikely now. It is already night and a helicopter ride to Paris is out of the question." I smile at the Conseiller and he smiles back nodding in understanding.

"Is he with Celeste?"

"Yes. They made the trip together to their relatives." He smiles again and turns to take his seat in the penthouse bar of the Caïd.

All of them were all smiles, not having to undergo the burdensome security checks that the Caïd insisted among the members when they all came to see him. I purposely disregarded the security checks hoping whatever I had planned would go accordingly. I knew all of them had contacts within the Caïd's circle so I assumed all of them were hoping to rise in rank. Maybe even become Caïd.

It was almost time to start the meeting, but I had to stall making them all think I was waiting for the Haut Conseiller to make his entrance. Jean Luc would not miss a meeting as critical as this one and if I started without him present, they might think I had something to do with his absence. That was something I did not want to happen. I needed them to believe I did not know of anything about Jean Luc's nonappearance. As much as possible, none of them should suspect me.

"Where is the Haut Conseiller? He is usually here early." Another Conseiller loudly asked the group. He seemed to appear already intoxicated from alcohol from the bar even when the meeting had not started.

"I have been waiting for him. Does anyone know how to contact him? The meeting is about to start." I had told them the Caïd would address all of them through video. I asked the Caïd to record a video discussing the need for a better French Mafia and to end it with an announcement of the new Caïd. It was a lengthy video and it would create the distraction I needed.

"No. He usually contacts many of us through his right hand man. Wait. Let me see if I can contact his right hand man. Perhaps he has some information regarding the Haut Conseiller's location," volunteered a young Conseiller. He rose in rank quite fast just like I did because of his ability to collect protection money for the Caïd swiftly and timely. He dials a number on his phone and puts his phone close to his ear. He shakes his head. "The phone number can not be contacted."

Suddenly the Smart TV turns on signaling the start of the meeting. The Caïd shows up on the screen.

"Is everyone present?" A resounding "no" echoes among those present. "Let us wait for another 5 minutes." I had him say that, too. He asked me why and I told him some of the ranking officials may come late. He agreed with me.

While everyone waited, they took the liberty to empty the bar of the Caïd. Some already were behind the bar looking at the stock of alcoholic beverages there. It was a self-serve party. I had instructed them to drink whatever they wanted just as long as it was there. Well, now they decided to take bottles. Such criminals.

"The 5 minutes is over. Let us start. I have much to say. Maximus, close the doors." I nodded and closed the doors and took my seat next to the Smart TV. I looked at my watch. I just needed to wait for fifteen more minutes before my plan takes effect.

"I do hope everyone is comfortable. Drink, drink, drink! There are many things to be happy about.  Life , family and money. What is not there to be happy about, eh? "The Caïd gave a small smile and took his glass of scotch that was infront of him. "Let us first make a toast to new beginnings."

"To new beginnings!" Everyone laughed and raised their glass to the Caïd and drank. Seems like everyone was in good spirits. Good. They won't expect what I have planned. After drinking from his glass, the Caïd put back his glass on the table and ran his fingers through his hair in frustration.

"Andre has gone missing. I do not know where he is. I have tried to locate him, but it seems my once closest friend has betrayed me. He no longer operates his businesses, his mansion is empty, and so is his accounts and safety deposits in the bank."

"I was a fool to trust Andre with all the secrets of the mafia. For all I know, he may have struck a deal with Interpol, which I'm afraid, puts us all at risk."

"I am old. Gone was the young man who was ruthless and cunning. I have become a liability to the organization. Thus, today I announce my retirement as Caïd." Murmurs started buzzing from all around us. The other ranking officials whispering among themselves.

"We need a young and strong leader to head the Mafia. Someone who has a good vision on what a Mafia should be about. Brotherhood, equality, and cooperation. Without these things, the organization will crumble within. Yes, we need to be fair. Although their are ranks within the organization to manifest the worth of each individual, we should not think those lower than us in rank are not as important as us, because without them we at the top can not function." The Caïd again takes a sip of his scotch and clear his throat. I look at my watch and I smile. It's going to happen any minute now.

"So today, I would like to declare a new Caïd. He is a true visionary, fair, reliable, someone I can trust. If I can trust him, you also can definitely trust him. He has gone far and beyond to make this syndicate what it is today. He is no other than..." The Caïd suddenly disappears from the screen and static appears, loud static. The others in the room groan. Someone comes to the TV and starts to check what has happened to the reception.

The doors suddenly open and the police come barging in. There were so many of them, with their protective gear on and armed with their guns. "Do not move. You are all under arrest. Place your hands behind your head," said an officer. It is time to make my exit before all hell breaks loose. I know some of them will be doing life imprisonment so, they will not allow the police to take them in alive. They will go down, guns blazing.

I also knew some of the police officers were on the Caïd's payroll. I read the evidence which Andre had hidden in his safety deposit boxes. They were in charge of tracking the mob. I saw some of them come in the bar. The other police officers who were clean, I placed a protection charm on them so they may live to tell the tale of the biggest bust or gun fight in history.

I had already turned myself invisible while they were all engrossed with what the Caïd had to say. They did not notice the door move nor hear the shuffle of feet behind the doors.

I noticed the loud, drunk Conseiller open his jacket to take out his gun. I wriggle my fingers and move the bottle closest to him so it could fall on the floor beside him. The loud noise startled everyone and so began the shoot out between the mafia and the police.

I inched away through the open doors as bullets started flying everywhere. I saw many of the ranking officials of the mafia fall to the ground. I heard someone cry out my name, "Maximus, where is Maximus?" I locate the voice. It was the young Conseiller, crawling on the floor, trying to dodge the bullets. For a moment, I felt pity for him. Yet, if he remained alive, he would declare himself Caïd and the mafia will continue with new men. I could not allow that to happen. So many innocent lives have perished because of these bastards. They all needed to die.

The young Conseiller took his gun and shot a police officer in the foot. The police officer fell down and aimed his gun at the young Conseiller and pulled the trigger. The bullet hit the young Conseiller in between the eyes, blood oozing down his nose from the bullet hole.

One by one the members of the mafia fell, their blood splattering all around. The bullets went through the chairs, the glasses, the bottles, the Smart TV and through the bar, leaving everything broken and shattered. The screams, shouts and yells all drowned by the loud continous noise of weapons being fired until finally an officer told the men to cease fire. All the ranking officials of the mafia were lying dead on the floor of the penthouse bar, the carpet red with all their blood.

I turned around and made my exit through the stairs. It was a long flight of stairs to the ground, but it was nothing compared to the gun fight I had just witnessed.

As I went down the stairs I decided to revert back to myself. Maximus was no longer needed. After 3 years of disguising myself as him, I am finally free. To celebrate my freedom, when I arrived in the lobby, I spun around in the center, enjoying myself, while people ran past me, fleeing from the hotel. Outside was chaos: the police were barricading the hotel, reporters and journalists were pushing, trying to get any information from the police officers who were in turn trying to quiet the crowd. Some of the onlookers were looking up, pointing at the floor of the penthouse bar, chatting wildly, figuring out what had happened.

A police officer opened the door of the entrance of the hotel and I sneaked outside as the doors closed behind me. I looked up at the beautiful lights of the Eiffel Tower and breathed in Paris. Finally, I get to enjoy Paris as myself.