Cartel Experience-Chapter 52: The Offer and the Decline.

She couldn’t stop herself touching César’s back, tracing the tattoo.

It was a simple, almost mindless act, but it pulled her in, made her lose herself for a moment.

Maybe it was the way it reminded her of her life, that long, suffering life she had lived with Daisy, the beatings, the threats from those gangsters. And now, somehow, all that pain had changed into something else, something darker, something more dangerous. But maybe, just maybe, it also offered the protection they needed the most, a shield in a world that had never given them any... and that shield is far more dangerous.

"Uhm, are you good?" César’s voice came as he felt Clara’s hand on his back.

"Oh– I’m sorry." Clara’s voice was quiet, almost embarrassed, as she stepped back. "I was just... admiring the tattoo on your back." She continued, forcing a smile and asked a question that made no sense to ask when she already knew it. "Why did you get it?"

"I don’t know." César answered Clara as he turned to her. "I just needed something to cover my back." As he said it immediately Clara knew that it was a lie.

She had seen many tattoos in the court room, each one a symbol of loyalty, of the evil they had done and were still doing. Each tattoo told a story of a life shaped by violence, aggression, and survival. She knew, just by looking, that César’s tattoo was meant to be the same. Of course, it had meaning, or at least it looked like it did. And it was him, the man himself, a cartel leader with power written across his back.

Three grim reapers covered his whole back, with words written under them, sentences that seemed to carry so much meaning, so much weight, that it felt impossible to think he had gotten it just to cover his back... but César told the truth.

Not just that, he had almost forgotten about the tattoo.

It had been made long before he had ever been trapped in Sandria. Not even really made by hand, it was a cosmetic one he had bought in the store with real money and placed on his character because it looked cool. He had wanted to show off to other players. Yeah, the grim reapers didn’t really have any meaning nor the words under them... at least to him.

He had just picked it because it was the best-looking design and it had only cost five bucks.

Basically, he had just seen the grim reaper, liked the way it looked, thought, "This is cool," and bought it. Nothing more, nothing deeper, no hidden story, just a tattoo he thought was neat, and still thinks is neat now, as he remembers that he has it... yeah, the tattoo.

How could he have forgotten it... the same tattoo that was once skinned off his back.

[System: She fears you more right now than she did when you saved her. You need to please her.]

What?

[System: Have sex with her. She already offered her body to you. Not out of desperation, but because she knows this is the way you can connect with her and don’t look at her like a piece on the cheese board. This is how she will feel safer.]

César knew exactly what the System was referring to. Back on Earth, it happened all the time in the worst, most cartel-ridden countries. Women, especially those who had family, children, anyone they cared about, were forced into a choice of survival. They offered their bodies to the cartel leaders in exchange for protection. They did it willingly, knowing it was the only way to keep the people they cared about alive, the only way to survive under a world ruled by cruelty and fear.

That was exactly what the System had been talking about, and César understood it completely. It was the same thing Clara had tried to do back when he saved her. She had tried to offer her body as a shield to protect Daisy, which César, of course, had denied.

I am not here to fuck her. César thought as looked at Clara.

"After you get me some clothes, can we talk privately?" He asked, and Clara nodded.

She went to get the clothes, which fit César well, a gray, baggy t-shirt with blue pants. Once he was dressed, they walked off to talk while Daisy ate the food Clara had prepared.

And exactly what the System had said was happening.

First, they went into one of the bedrooms of the suite, but then Clara went to the bathroom. When she came back... it was a little embarrassing for César.

"Uh... Clara?"

She was completely naked, every part of her visible and surprisingly for her age her figure was a perfect hourglass, her boobs full, and everything else was just perfect.

She looked... tempting, but no was a no.

"We are not going to do this. I already said that back then." César’s voice was calm as he looked at her. "You don’t need to offer your body. I don’t want to get you into trouble or anything. I only came to ask advice, nothing more."

"But–"

"Please, don’t embarrass yourself." César interrupted her, grabbing the bed sheet and holding it out to her. "You are worth more than being a sex slave."

[System: What you just said contradicts what you did in your first life. You treated women as sex slaves. You slept with fifteen in a single day. Back on Earth, you didn’t even have a girlfriend. Your best friend was your right hand.]

I didn’t understand the word of Sandria and prostitutes are not sex slaves, so shut the fuck up.

"Worth more?" Clara asked back as she wrapped herself in the white sheet, looking at César with a gaze that said more than words ever could.

Who knows what they did to her, what horrors she survived. She is a judge, yet the very people meant to protect her stood and still stand on the side of the gangsters. But now what César said to her made her a bit calmer.

What did he mean by "worth more"?

The question raced through her mind, because having sex with him in her mind was better than being on his side as a member of his cartel, but César quickly broke through her worries. 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

"I only want you to help me understand this political shit that’s going on. You are a judge, probably know one or two things."

"Political?"

"Why does this mayoral election matter so much to the agencies? It has to be connected to the people you sent to prison, doesn’t it? I also want to know where those gangsters are hiding, how many of them there are, and whether they have warehouses or bases. I want to know how many gangs are active, what kind of influence they have, and which parts of the city are safe for me to operate in. Most importantly, I need to know how to avoid getting dragged into more political bullshit. I want to know everything you know, and then... "A smile appeared on his face. "I will introduce myself."

"I-Introduce yourself?" She asked confused as she gripped the sheet tighter, but that smile said a lot to her.

"Yeah, if you help with your knowledge as payment, I will kill those who did terrible things to you, but moreover..." His smile grew wider. "I will introduce the Sierra Cartel to the city."