Echo, still eating while listening to the conversation, raised an eyebrow and said, “Aren’t you supposed to be the boss?”
The pleading tone in Adolph’s voice was so pathetic it made her lose her appetite. If people heard that this was the head of the Italian mafia, they’d probably laugh themselves silly.
“I’m not the boss? What, you think you are? Move aside. Ryan, hurry up. I’m already in Central Asia, about to reach the Middle Eastern border, and no one’s responding to my calls,” Adolph grumbled through clenched teeth at Echo’s questioning. If he didn’t need Ryan’s help right now, he’d show her who’s really in charge.
Ryan’s expression grew even darker as he listened to Adolph.
Cobra raised an eyebrow and added, “Boss, those goods do belong to us.”
Ryan shot Cobra a cold glare. If it weren’t for the fact that this shipment was his, he wouldn’t care if Adolph dropped dead. He already helped him get the goods back, and now Adolph expected him to resolve the air route issue, too? If Adolph were standing in front of him right now, Ryan would have punched him out on the spot.
“Useless,” Ryan muttered, his voice ice cold.
But on the other end of the phone, Adolph let out a long sigh of relief. This meant Ryan had agreed. Without daring to say another word, Adolph quickly hung up, not giving Ryan the chance to scold him.
Truthfully, Adolph hated having to beg Ryan like this, but he had no other choice.
In the chaotic Middle East, his name didn’t carry as much weight as Ryan’s. The demand for arms was massive, and no matter which group it was, they had to show Ryan respect.
But not for him. Even though the Italian mafia had a worldwide reputation and a long, powerful history, it didn’t matter there.
That region was too insular for him to gain influence. So, while he might walk tall in Europe and America, in the Middle East, he had to tread carefully, keeping his head down.
Cobra, Tiger, Bill, and the others couldn’t help but smirk when they heard Ryan scolding Adolph and saw how Adolph responded.
Since they weren’t following the original route and were using air transport, there was no rush now. As soon as the airways opened up, the shipment would arrive quickly without needing to take any detours, so no one felt any urgency anymore.
“Get in touch with the chieftain. Tell him I need passage,” Ryan ordered coldly, thinking he’d have to give Adolph a good lesson once this was all over.
“Got it,” Cobra nodded and left to handle it.
In the Middle East, Ryan’s name carried a lot of weight. As long as they didn’t mention who the shipment was for, just saying Ryan needed passage was enough to open any available airspace.
After giving those few orders, Tiger, seeing that everything was mostly handled, pulled out a ruby earring he’d been holding and handed it to Ryan. “It’s a bit complicated. The pieces are interlocked, and if we try to force our way into it, we’ll destroy the internal structure. We won’t be able to figure out its design or functions.”
Hearing this, Ryan turned to Echo, who was staring wide-eyed at the ruby earring. When she noticed Ryan looking at her, she quickly lowered her head, pretending she hadn’t been paying attention. She had already told him that no one but her could figure this thing out. It was a unique family heirloom, and without the matching piece on her ear, even someone like Tiger had no chance of unlocking its secrets.
“Make another one,” Ryan said casually, holding the interlinked ruby earrings between his fingers and directing his words at Echo.
Echo immediately looked up and asked, “For what?”
Ryan glanced at the one she was wearing and replied indifferently, “The color’s ugly.”
Echo raised an eyebrow.
Ugly color?
These ruby earrings were anything but ugly; she thought they looked great on her.
She met Ryan’s gaze and retorted, “Boss, if you don’t know how to appreciate colors, maybe keep your opinions to yourself. What’s so ugly about these earrings?”
Ryan’s brows furrowed at her words, and he shot her a cold look.
Echo immediately felt a chill in the air around her and quickly put on a sheepish grin. “Heh, okay, Boss. My bad, my bad. But seriously, this thing works in combination with the one I’m wearing. What’s the point of making another one? Besides, this is my craftsmanship. It took me ten years to tweak and perfect these earrings, adjusting them as I saw fit. Asking me to make a new one now? That’s a pretty big ask.”
She wasn’t exaggerating either. She didn’t study this kind of craft professionally. It was all trial and error. She learned through hands-on experience, constantly modifying and refining the design until she got it right. If she had to make another one from scratch, she’d probably have to start all over with research.
Ryan’s frown deepened as he listened to her, and he tossed the earring in his hand onto the table in front of Echo, saying coldly, “Just change the design. Too many pieces-looks ugly.”
Echo raised an eyebrow at Ryan’s pickiness. She picked up the earring he tossed and said, “Boss, what exactly do you want? If I change it, it won’t match the one I’m wearing anymore. And each piece has its own function. How am I supposed to modify that?”
Ryan’s expression darkened even more. He suddenly said in a low voice, “Come here.”
Echo glanced at Ryan, noticing his cold expression and the lack of any other feelings on his face. She couldn’t figure out what he wanted, so she obediently moved closer to him.
“Put it on,” Ryan said, slightly turning away.
Echo’s eyes widened at his tone. “Boss, you want me to-?”
“Do it fast,” Ryan replied impatiently.
She fell silent, staring at the feminine earrings in her hand that she had to put on Ryan. What would that even look like? Frustrated by his demanding and bossy behavior, she felt deep resentment. This was her earring, and somehow it felt like it was no longer hers.
But no matter how annoyed she was, it wouldn’t help. Echo reluctantly clipped the earrings onto Ryan’s ear. His golden hair partially covered the ruby earrings, giving off a unique vibe-a mix of red and golden that created a fierce, edgy look.
Watching her earrings on Ryan, Echo noticed they didn’t seem feminine or soft at all. Instead, they exuded a bloodthirsty vibe, emphasizing Ryan’s cold and hard demeanor. It was the only splash of red on him, not adding any fashion but rather enhancing his brutal, ruthless aura.
Echo couldn’t help but feel speechless. Why was it that everything Ryan wore didn’t diminish his intensity? Instead, it was like he absorbed their beauty and turned it into something fierce. She touched her earrings, feeling frustrated.
“How do you use this?” Ryan asked, staring coldly at Echo while touching the earrings.
“Really know your stuff,” Echo mumbled to herself.
She managed a weak smile in response to his icy gaze. She felt like a helpless victim-robbed not just of her belongings but now also forced to explain how to use them.
“Boss, Chieftain Adam won’t agree,” Cobra suddenly interrupted.
“Not that guy again. Why’s he such a hassle?” Bill, who had been hovering nearby, frowned at the mention of the chieftain, clearly unimpressed.
“He’s troublesome, but he controls the main air route. If he doesn’t allow us through, it’s going to be a problem for us,” Tiger added.
Ryan’s expression remained cold as he asked, “What does he want?”
Cobra replied, “He wants to meet with you in person.”
Ryan frowned slightly at that.
Bill muttered, “What an ego, trying to shake us down.”
Tiger said coldly, “Well, he is the biggest player in the Middle East. We need to use his airspace, so we have no choice but to deal with him.”
Cobra shook his head slightly and said, “I don’t think it’s like that. From his tone, he sounded really anxious. When he heard I was calling and that it was the Boss asking to use his airspace, it was like he breathed a sigh of relief. But he’s dead set on seeing Boss in person. The moment he meets Boss, that’s when he’ll open the airspace and let our shipment through.”
Ryan paused for a moment, then said coldly, “Prepare the plane.”