Chapter 6 - Blood Never Lies
The sight of the boy caused an audible gasp from Chairman Kang. Silas, dressed in a sharp miniature navy suit, stared down the line of old, dangerous men with the exact same unyielding scowl as Daniel Seo. There wasn't a single person in the room who could deny the boy's heritage; he looked like Daniel’s mirror image from thirty years prior.
“This is an outrage!” Victor shouted, panic finally bleeding into his arrogance. “Children are forbidden in the Hall of Cranes! This is sacrilege!”
“The only sacrilege here is a traitor attempting to murder the legitimate heirs of the Seo bloodline,” Rachel spoke, her voice ringing clear and steady through the hall.
She opened an embossed folder bearing the golden seal of the Los Angeles Superior Court and Johns Hopkins DNA Diagnostics. She laid three copies directly in front of Chairman Kang.
“A 99.98% direct genetic match between Daniel Seo and Silas Seo. A 99.98% direct genetic match between Daniel Seo and Hazel Seo,” Rachel announced. “Under the 1974 Charter of the Silver Crane Syndicate, any direct descendant born to the ruling bloodline holds immediate immunity, and any attempt on their life by a council member is classified as high treason, punishable by exile and forfeiture of all assets.”
Victor backed away from the table, his eyes darting toward the two guards stationed by the side doors. “Kang, don’t listen to this fabricated garbage! Daniel orchestrated this whole theater to take total control of the docks!”
Chairman Kang adjusted his wire-rimmed glasses, reading through the notarized documents with agonizing slowness. He looked up, his ancient eyes fixing Victor with utter disgust. “The documents bear the official seal of the state and our own independent medical examiners, Victor. The children are Daniel’s. Which means your unsanctioned raid in Vernon was an assassination attempt against our blood.”
“He has no proof I gave those orders!” Victor snarled.
From behind Rachel, Silas suddenly raised his small hand, just like he did in his kindergarten class. “Excuse me.”
The entire council of hardened criminals froze, staring at the five-year-old boy.
Silas reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a small black object with a flashing red light. “Aunt Louise put this under the car seat when your gray car followed us from school. Mom told me to keep it safe until we met the boss. It has the man in the green tie talking about drowning us.”
Silas set the digital audio recorder onto the mahogany table.
May you like
A heavy, suffocating silence fell over the room. Victor’s hands began to shake uncontrollably. He had underestimated a mother’s instinct and an observant child’s memory.
Daniel stepped down from the lectern, closing the distance between himself and his uncle. “You have five minutes to leave this city, Victor. If you are still in California when the sun sets, no charter will save you.”
