Chapter 196: You Fool
"No!" Ben’s voice cracked as it rose in disbelief. "I gave you everything you asked for—every detail, every whisper, every damn thing! But now you want this? You expect me to be part of a murder plan?" He shook his head violently, backing away as if distance could separate him from the weight of Spencer’s demand. "I won’t do that. I can’t. No. In fact you want me to become the killer! I cannot do that, please."
Spencer Collins sat calmly on the worn leather couch in Ben’s modest living room, his expression unreadable, his presence suffocating. He had just laid it out plainly—Ben was to go to Maniwa, track down Adam, eliminate him, and then turn witness against Melanie. As if it were that simple.
Ben’s chest heaved with shallow breaths. He stared at Spencer, his voice barely above a whisper now, raw and trembling. "You told me you needed a spy. That was it. You said if I fed you information, you’d pay for my mother’s medicine. That was the deal. And I did it. I listened. I watched. I betrayed Melanie who trusted me. I, even went ahead and did the search on her laptop that would implicate her! I am going to go and become a witness against her as well! But I will not become a murderer!"
Ben fell down to his knees and said slowly," Don’t ask me to kill someone... Please, I’m not a killer. I was never supposed to be a killer."
Spencer leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees, his calm exterior slowly giving way to something darker. "You’re already in this, Ben," his voice like ice. "You think you can draw a line now? After everything you’ve done? After what you know? The first thing I will do is make sure the police know you are an accessory to the murder. You understand?"
Ben looked up, still kneeling, and shook his head in terror.
Spencer stood and loomed over him,"If you had any sense, you’d pray the man I already sent finishes the job. Because if he doesn’t, it’ll fall on you. That’s not a request." His tone dropped into something deadly. "It’s your turn in the game now. And I don’t care if you cry, beg, or piss yourself—you’ll go to Maniwa, find Adam, and clean up the mess. You understand? Whether you stand before the Maniwa police as a witness or an accomplice is upto you."
Spencer didn’t wait for an answer. He turned away sharply, his hand already reaching for the phone buzzing in his coat pocket.
The screen lit up with a name that made his jaw clench. He rolled his eyes and hit ’decline.’ The phone went dark—only to buzz again almost immediately.