Brad nodded to Billy and Billy went into the house to tell the staff to take the rest of the day off and brought back a cutting board for Brad. Brad laid the knife on top of the board and looked at each one who stared back wondering what was next. Sweat ran down each face except George who sat with a smirk on his face knowing he was too old to worry about threats coming from this young man.
Brad said to the man sitting closest to him, “Take this like the man you portend to be,” as he grabbed his right hand in a grip that felt like a vise. Brad then spread the man’s little finger out from the rest and in a flash, the little finger separated from his hand. The men with open mouths gasped as the hand that was now spurting blood missing a finger. Brad then said, “This will forever remind you that I let you live and to never forget what I said,” as he stood and took the next man’s hand and did the same until four little fingers lay on the cutting board. Billy had gone back and brought the old man servant and some towels for the men’s hands. Brad continued talking saying, “None of you will die from missing a finger which is too bad. Remember what I said. We will be watching every day until fully divested. Now get the hell out of here. I have one more thing to do and then I will go home to my family.”
The four men ran to their cars and one after the other left driving to the nearest hospital for help. Meanwhile back at the table, fingers lying on the cutting board Brad looked at the old man in front of him. He felt both disgust and pity for him, but most of all contempt with his abuse of power. Then he said, “George Williams your use of blood money of gold is over. I see by the smirk on your face that if I looked for it I would never find it. That maybe is true, but I don’t think I will need to go looking for it. I doubt you have the strength to lift and carry such heavy things at your age, so through reasoning I believe your man servant knows where it is located.” Brad noticed he hit pay dirt when he guessed right. Brad said to Billy “Go get the man servant.”
A few minutes later an old black gray haired man came out the door scared to death when he saw the four fingers lying on the cutting board with a knife that looked two feet long he told his friends and family later. Brad asked what his name was and he told them his name was Charlie and that he’d worked for George all his life and his pappy before him and on the downs the line. Brad told Charlie he wasn’t going to hurt him and that all he wanted was to tell him where the gold was hidden. Also that he need not worry as he was a free man now with enough money to live on for the rest of his life. George was going for a ride that didn’t have a return ticket. Charlie smiled and said, “Follow me sir and I will show you where it is.” George thought about saying something, but then thought he’d best keep his mouth shut and maybe he could talk his way out of this.
Billy followed Charlie and came back to report that in a safe under the house through a secret door stacks of gold bars and gold coins were indeed there. Rocky was instructed to watch George as Brad followed Billy down to the gold. The coins were worth a fortune and he gave them all to Charlie and to the rest of the staff. The remainder both he and Billy along with the man servant and staff carried the gold to the helicopter.
After that Billy, Brad and Mr. George Williams on his birthday went for a helicopter ride out over the Atlantic Ocean. Coming back to base in Maryland, one passenger short, Brad had the gold transferred to his private jet with the president’s full knowledge. The president never questioned his need for it but guessed it had something to do with China. And he guessed right.
Systematic Attrition Page 21
