# CHAPTER 34:
THE FIRST TARGET'S
"Alright, kid. I've laid my cards on the table," Ray said, leaning forward into his webcam, his bloodshot eyes locking onto Krist. "What do you have for me?" Ray leaned back in his chair and folded his arms.
Krist nodded.
"Fair enough."
Krist sat up straight, adjusting his posture. "The two immediate targets I'm clearing off the board are Adams and Bellatrix."
Ray raised his dark brows in surprise. "Adams? Your father's lead estate attorney? And Bellatrix... as in the Director of the Stark Institute?"
"The very same," Krist replied, a wave of cold disdain passing over his features. "Two miserable freeloaders."
Ray studied him for a moment, his eyes narrowing.
"What exactly have those two done to provoke you this much?" he asked. "Because judging by the expression on your face, this goes beyond their involvement in your parents' deaths."
Krist's expression hardened.
"Isn't aiding in my parents' assassination enough to earn my eternal hatred?" Krist countered cleanly. "Finding out how they've been cannibalizing my family's legacy in the aftermath just makes them pathetic."
"Ray leaned back, giving Krist a piercing, analytical gaze. "What did they do to trigger this level of hostility? Because I know you, Krist—that look on your face isn't just about what happened two years ago.There's a direct, active reason you want them locked away *right now*.This is personal."
"No it's not."
"No, boy. There's something else."
Krist raised an eyebrow.
"Something else?"
"Yes. I can tell when you're holding something back. You might be good at keeping a straight face, but I've known you long enough to recognize when something is personal."
Krist let out a short, dry laugh. "Alright, fine. I need them out of the picture because they are actively interfering with my immediate plans."
"Interfering how?"
Krist gave a small, humorless smile.
"What's with the interrogation, Uncle Ray?" Krist asked, narrowing his eyes in mock suspicion. "Are you feeling sentimental about Adams? Last I checked, you two worked together on a few Stark Tech legal compliance files. Did you two form a soft spot for each other?"
Ray recoiled as if he'd just swallowed a lemon. "Hell no! I despise that arrogant suit! I wouldn't be friends with that man if he were the last person on earth. If he weren't a lawyer who knew the law almost as well as I do, I would have found some perfectly legal excuse to keep him locked up for two to five days just to wipe that smug expression off his face."
Ray looked toward the ceiling, a dreamlike grin washing over his tired face. "God... just to wipe that smug, untouchable smirk off his face I would pay good money to see someone punch that ugly face of his. The man walks around as though he's God's gift to humanity. Can you believe he once implied that he was more handsome than me?.Me! Have you looked at him? Have you looked at me?" The sheer disrespect... Can you even believe the nerve of that guy?"
Krist facepalmed, muttering under his breath, "Unbelievable. So this entire investigation has somehow turned into a competition over who looks better?"
Krist rubbed his forehead, wondering how a conversation about his parents' murder had somehow become a debate about his uncle's appearance.
He decided to change the subject before Ray could launch into a detailed comparison of their facial features.
"What about Bellatrix?"
Ray's attention immediately shifted.
"Oh, her?" Ray snapped back to reality, waving a dismissive hand. "No formal connection. Though... strictly speaking, she's not terrible on the eyes. I might have given her a shot a few years back if your mother hadn't constantly acted as my cockblock."
Krist's eyebrows rose.
"My mother?"
"Yes, your mother!"
"That woman ruined more opportunities for me than I care to count. She was always telling me to stop being a playboy, find a nice woman, and settle down. Apparently, according to her, a man couldn't spend his entire life enjoying himself."
He shook his head sadly.
"Well, look at me now. I barely have time to eat, let alone date anyone. I'm practically married to my job."
His expression fell.
"Looks like I wait till she pass before I lose my playboy title. Although, knowing your mother, she'd probably still find something to complain about."
The heavy silence returned to the feed. Krist looked down at his desk, his own eyes stinging as the grief hit him like a physical blow. "Yeah... I miss them."
Ray lowered his eyes.
"So do I, kid. More than you know."
For once, there was no joke to soften the words.
Just grief.
Ray quickly caught himself, sitting up straight and clearing his throat to regain his professional composure. "Right. So... how exactly are Adams and Bellatrix tied directly to your parents' flight?"
Krist blinked, then nodded.
"Right. Where was I?"
He wiped his eyes, only then realizing that a few tears had escaped. He quickly composed himself.
"All right, Uncle Ray. I'll do you one better. I'll tell you why this has become personal."
Ray said nothing, waiting for him to continue.
Krist reached up and removed one of his earbuds, placing it in his other ear before reconnecting it to his laptop. He checked the connection, then pushed his chair back and stood.
"First, you need to understand something. We could have taken down everyone involved at once. With the right evidence and enough resources, I might have been able to bring the whole operation crashing down before they realized what was happening."
keeping the conversation going through his earbud his phone in hand, krist began walking heading down the hallway toward the kitchen.
"But that would require more money, more connections, and access to resources I don't currently have."
Ray frowned.
"Where are you going with this?"
"That's where Adams comes in," Krist continued over the mic. "As the court-appointed trustee of the Stark estate, he's leveraging a clause in my father's will, claiming he won't release corporate control to me until my eighteenth birthday."
Krist walked out of the living room,
Krist stepped into the kitchen. He stopped directly in front of the paralyzed, bound mercenary tied to the dining chair.
"On top of that," Krist said softly, stepping into the man's line of sight, "he and Bellatrix have been moonlighting for Vane Industries. They've been using my family's private, off-grid research vaults to host illegal black-market exchanges."
Krist crouched down, yanked the duct tape clean off the mercenary's mouth, and held his phone camera inches from the man's face to snap a high-resolution facial scan.
*"What was that noise?"* Ray asked over the line.
"Nothing," Krist lied smoothly, peeling a fresh strip of tape to seal the mercenary's mouth shut again. "What really gets under my skin is how Adams' wife has been spending my trust dividends. At the rate she's burning through the reserve funds, by the time Adams is legally forced to hand over the keys on my birthday, Stark Tech won't even rank in the top hundred enterprises in the city—let alone hold my parents' number-one spot. And I don't have time to wait until my birthday. They're getting restless."
"Actually, I might have an idea why they're becoming more active." Ray offered, leaning into his camera."The situation in the city has deteriorated considerably. The City Defense forces have gone to war with several gangs, and those gangs are actively targeting Vane Industries' supply lines after that highway shootout today. The streets has turned into a warzone."
"Speaking of that highway battle," Krist murmured, walking back to the living room, "has the precinct made any actual progress? Or are they still running in circles?"
"I'm not on the task force," Ray admitted, "but from what I hear, they have zero leads on who ordered the highway strike. If you happen to have anything that links the players from that road battle, now would be a great time to drop it."
Krist set his phone down on the desk, looking at Ray's tired reflection on his monitor. "Isn't it obvious? Why else would the syndicates suddenly launch a suicidal blitz against Vane Industries right after a highway chase?"
Ray blinked, a spark of realization hitting his detective brain. "One of the primary vehicles involved in that exchange belonged directly to Vane's internal black-ops unit... But I need physical proof before a judge will sign a warrant."
"Proof won't be a problem," Krist said calmly. "Though... you're not getting a single byte of it today."
Ray's jaw dropped. "What?! Why?!"
"You look terrible, so I'm not handing you anything important until you've had enough rest to examine it properly."
Ray looked genuinely offended.
"Krist, you can't just tell me you have information that could help an investigation and then refuse to share it!"
"Of course I can. I just did."
Ray pushed his chair back."Don't play games with me, boy!"
Krist remained perfectly calm."You need sleep."
"I am perfectly capable of doing my job!"
"Then prove it by getting some sleep."
"Krist!"
"Good night, Uncle Ray."
"Don't you dare cut this feed, you little—!" Ray roared, slamming his hands on his desk as he stood up.
"Oh, wait," Krist added, his finger hovering over the disconnect key. "Does the name *Kifo Jinx* mean anything to you?"
Ray froze mid-sentence. All the color instantly drained from his face. "Where... where did you hear that name?"
"What's wrong with the name? I'm "Just curious, since That's the name on the bio-metric profile of the hitman that Adams sent after me today." Krist shrugged
Ray's eyes bulged in absolute terror. *"ADAMS SENT KIFO JINX AFTER YOU?! WHY AM I JUST HEARING THIS NOW?! KRIST, DO NOT LET THAT MAN OUT OF YOUR SIGHT!"*
"Relax, Ray. He's ziptied, wire-locked, paralyzed, and sealed inside a house under total automated lockdown," Krist said smoothly. "Now go get some sleep. You look terrible."
*CLICK.*
Krist severed the feed, shutting down his terminal in one swift motion. He let out a long, satisfying stretch, feeling the exhaustion of the last forty-eight hours settling into his bones.
"Time for bed," he muttered to himself, turning off the living room lights and heading upstairs.
---
Miles away in his cluttered office, Ray stared at his blacked-out monitor, his heart hammering against his ribs. He let out a massive, bone-deep yawn, rubbing his face with both hands.
"Dammit..." Ray muttered into the quiet room. "I'm heading to the Stark Estate first thing in the morning to wring that kid's neck."
His eyelids fluttered shut, his body finally giving in to exhaustion. "Guess... I'm sleeping tonight..."