The Marvelous Elijah's Return novel Chapter 73

You will do as I command

The glass door pushed open, and Elijah walked into the restaurant along with Matt, his hands stuck in his pockets as he advanced toward the front desk. 

Like a celebrity with bad publicity, he immediately grabbed the attention of the famous faces in the restaurant, giving him many stares, which he ignored. “Hey, I’m here to meet Clyde Fangio,” Elijah told the lady sitting behind the desk as he looked down at her, a blank and uninterested look plastered on his face. Looking up to meet his eyes, she gave a small smile, and mumbled, “Right, Elijah-” “Darius,” Elijah answered simply. 

Her gaze darted nervously from Elijah to Matt and back to Elijah, mumbling, “Okay, the second floor, room three.” 

Nodding slightly, Elijah pulled away from the counter with Matt right behind him, ignoring the conversation between the two receptionists. “He really is good-looking… Sadly, he is that way…” The lady with the long brown hair commented. “Yeah… It’s disturbing that he is still showing his face around here, carrying himself as if he doesn’t have such a reputation.” The other receptionist added. 

Frowning, Matt stared at his boss’s back, wondering what was going through his mind as they walked further away from the conversation of the two ladies behind him. A moment later, Elijah stood at a door with Matt, staring at the number three printed on it, his eyes narrowing slightly. Feeling reluctant, Elijah raised his hand to knock, but Matt grabbed his wrist, and whispered,” Let me do it,” 

Without arguing, Elijah dropped his hand from the door and nodded as he glanced sideways at Matt, stepping back Quietly, Matt approached the door and knocked, listening for sounds inside, and then he heard Clyde’s voice, “Enter!” 

After looking back at his boss for a moment, Matt sighed and then grabbed the door’s handle, turning it as he gently nudged it open, slipping inside the room, getting a frown from the old man. 

“Who the heck are you?!” Mr. Fangio asked sternly, his eyebrows furrowed together angrily. “He’s with me,” Elijah casually uttered as he stepped in after Matt, shutting the door. “Ahh… Elijah. It’s good that you agree to my request.” Mr. Fangio murmured with a grin.” Please sit, you and your…” “He’s a friend…” Elijah uttered, pulling a chair forward and sitting down across from Mr. Fangio, crossing his legs over the other. 

“I ser that you don’t trust me that much for a one-on-one meeting.” 

“I don’t trust you in total.” 

A tense silence filled the air and neither Elijah nor Mr. Fangio was willing to break it first. But finally, Mr. Fangio spoke up, “Would you like to order anything?” 

Staring at the waiter in the room with them, Elijah hesitated, and then he picked up the menu. 

With a smile, Mr. Fangio turned his head slightly, staring at Matt, saying calmly, “You should order also. The bill is on me, so make sure to ask for whatever you guys want, alright?” Not answering, Matt stared at Elijah with an unsure expression, and then picked up the menu. A moment later, their tables were filled with food and drinks, but no one had made a move yet as they all sat there silently 

“Why am I here?” Elijah questioned, breaking the awkward silence, folding his hands together in front of his chest. “Everyone of my men is in the hospital, and you are the reason they are there… ” Mr. Fangio replied, keeping his gaze on Elijah’s eyes. 

“The question was, ‘why am I here,’ and I don’t see your statement as an answer,” Elijah said, raising an eyebrow curiously. 

For a moment, Mr. Fangio looked confused, and then he let out a quiet sigh and leaned slightly towards Elijah. 

“You’re a smart guy, aren’t you? Just listen to me.” Mr. Fangio said, lowering his voice slightly. “After what happened to my men, I should be trying to end you, but I am not going to because I am an open-minded me.” “Thank… you?” Elijah uttered, his words dripping with sarcasm. 

But Mr. Fangio only chuckled lightly before reaching over and grabbing a drink from the table, and then he sipped the alcohol quietly, his brow furrowing once more. “I want you to work for me, Elijah… I am willing to hire you, and also, I want to meet the leader of the…” Mr. Fangio paused, glancing at Matt briefly before continuing, “the gang you are in… I want to hire them all, but you are what I need now.” 

Holding in his laugh at Clyde’s arrogance, Matt stared at Elijah and then at the Lobster 

Frittata, a two thousand dollars breakfast that includes ounces of Sevruga caviar, an entire lobster, six fresh eggs, cream, chives, and lobster sauce, served over a bed of Yukon gold potatoes… even Clyde looked shocked when Elijah ordered them like his wallet had gotten hurt a little. 

“You want to own me… Hmmm, I am listening.” Elijah stated slowly, placing both hands on the table, watching Mr. Fangio closely, waiting for his response. “What’s your price?” “I know how awful your status has been in this country and how people treat you, and I want to change things…” Mr. Fangio stated firmly, his deep dark eyes boring into Elijah’s. “If you carry the title of my man, that will immediately change people’s mindset about you and give you a status that most people will respect…”