That night, Jay and Capone Bege held a lengthy, private discussion.
It wasn't until just before dawn that they finally reached a consensus and laid out the preliminary structure of their plan.
During the day, Jay returned to his base of operations and continued visiting merchant associations with Buck and the others, investigating the identity of the killer.
Naturally, they found nothing.
Come evening, after a few subtle hints from Jay, the head of the merchants' association tactfully sent over a lavish spread of food and wine.
There were even women included, but Jay turned them away.
Tonight, people were bound to die, there was no need to involve the innocent.
Jay had brought quite a few men with him this time. Besides Buck and his regular team, there were also a few bullies who usually enjoyed picking on the weak.
Tonight was the perfect chance to put them to use, at least it would help avenge Porter and the others.
At first, everyone held back a little. But when they saw Jay eating and drinking without interfering, their inhibitions vanished.
One by one, they got drunk and started partying hard.
Someone staggered and fell to the floor with a thud.
Then suddenly, Jay shouted, "Stop! There's something wrong with the wine!"
Everyone was startled. They immediately dropped their glasses and scrambled to their feet.
The moment they stood up, they realized something was off.
Their heads were foggy, their eyelids heavy, they were about to pass out at any moment.
"It's sleeping pills! A heavy dose was mixed into the wine!"
"Damn it! Who did this?!"
"Where the hell is that bastard from the merchants' association?!"
"No wonder we couldn't find anything before, there was a traitor among us!"
Clap, clap, clap!
"Right answer. Your prize? A one-way ticket to hell."
"Blame your greedy Colonel Hammond. Took our Capone family's money, but turned around and sold weapons to our enemies."
"Don't worry, we'll be sending that bastard to join you soon. Then you can take your revenge in the afterlife."
A man dressed like a textbook mobster stepped in, holding a katana. His expression was full of mockery.
Whoa!
After he finished his little speech, Buck and the others were all stunned. They hadn't expected the mastermind behind this to be the infamous Capone family.
It was over.
If they hadn't been drugged, maybe they could've fought back.
But now, they didn't even have the strength to lift their guns, they were doomed.
The enemy probably knew that too; otherwise, he wouldn't have revealed his identity so openly.
After all, the dead can't snitch.
"Brother Jay, run! Get out of here and avenge us!"
At the critical moment, Buck forced himself to his feet, panting heavily.
In his eyes, Jay was the only one who still had a chance to escape.
Better for one to survive than for everyone to die.
Even Jay was surprised by Buck's sudden show of bravery.
But there was no way he was going to run. If he fled now, how would this show go on?
So he shoved Buck aside. "Abandoning my comrades isn't my style. As long as I kill this guy before the drug takes full effect, I can still get us all out of here!"
With that, he drew his gun and aimed at the enemy.
Bang! Bang!
But whether it was due to the drug's effects or something else, both shots missed their mark.
The mobster pounced, swinging his blade and slitting two marine officers' throats in one fluid motion. Then he charged straight at Jay.
"Brave, but you still have to die!"
He was fast. Jay didn't have time to shoot again and had to block with his gun, which was immediately knocked aside.
What followed was a series of close calls and frantic dodges.
Jay carefully controlled his movement, deliberately steering away from Buck and the others and drawing the fight toward the more expendable men nearby.
Using the time the enemy took to kill them, he finally managed to draw the nunchaku strapped to his waist and landed a blow that forced the attacker back.
"Didn't expect to find someone so skilled with a blade among the mafia."
Jay praised him seriously.
The man twirled his blade a few times. "Guns would've been easier, but we didn't want to draw suspicion. So yeah, more hassle, but worth it."
That explanation, of course, was meant for the others present to hear.
Buck and the others cursed him in their hearts, what a scheming bastard!
But they were too weak to get up. Only sheer willpower kept them conscious.
"Even if it costs me my life tonight, I'll expose your conspiracy!"
Jay shouted as he charged with his nunchaku, fighting like a man with nothing to lose.
The attacker didn't expect Jay's sudden all-out assault and was caught off guard, momentarily pushed onto the defensive.
But as the sleeping drug took hold, Jay's strength faltered, and his movements began to show flaws.
The enemy seized the chance to counterattack. His sharp blade slashed Jay multiple times, blood quickly soaking him from head to toe.
Still, Jay refused to give up. He kept fighting with everything he had.
Buck and the others, watching from the ground, had tears in their eyes, furious at their own helplessness.
"To this extent… it should be enough."
In the midst of the battle, Jay took a quick look around at the situation, then suddenly dropped his guard completely, allowing the enemy's blade to pierce straight into his chest.
"It's over."
The blade went clean through him, right where the heart was, undeniably a fatal blow!
But in the very next moment, Jay adjusted his strength and swung his nunchaku with all his might, delivering a crushing blow to his opponent's head.
Blood splattered instantly!
The man's eyes widened in disbelief as he collapsed, wearing an expression that seemed to say:
"This wasn't in the script I was given!"
Jay's gaze was ice-cold. In a performance like this, only a dead villain is a good villain.
Now, with both physical evidence and eyewitnesses, and no one left alive to dispute the truth, it was perfect.
Perfect!
"J-Jay, bro… are you alright…"
At that moment, the only person in the room who hadn't touched the wine, Porter, finally crawled out from under the table, trembling, his face pale as he hurried over to Jay's side.
"Porter, don't be afraid. Be brave."
"I need you now. We all need you."
Under Jay's calm, reassuring tone, Porter's trembling finally stopped. Following Jay's instructions, he picked up a gun from the floor and rushed out to find a doctor.
Then, gritting his teeth, he took a boat in the middle of the night and raced back to the base, reporting everything he had personally seen and heard to Colonel Hammond in full detail.
Good news: The killer had been caught!
Bad news: The culprit was from the Capone family!
Colonel Hammond looked at Porter's pale face and didn't doubt a single word.
After all, according to Porter, quite a few people were still alive and had witnessed everything. It would be easy to verify.
And he'd already had his suspicions about the Capone family before.
Now, he was completely convinced.
"No… I can't keep wavering any longer!"
Colonel Hammond's face shifted between pale and ashen, clearly struggling with a difficult decision.