Falling in Love : I love you, Today and Forever

Luis Truman, the man who had dealt with a lot of problems, some extremely serious, some barely considered to be serious in his entire life, especially after he became the President, was in disbelief the moment he heard the two names. Luis was familiar with the two men, and to think that they were involved in such crimes made him feel disgusted. 

Even though he had already seen Jared's involvement in this matter, he was yet to come to terms with it. Now with Charles' involvement only added more to his fury, and he sat still for a long time. Ivy, Noah and Cedric just watched him silently, waiting for him to speak up regarding this matter. But they had not missed his abnormal reaction. He was shocked beyond belief, making them suspicious about it. But the President masked his expression before anyone could question it.

"Mr. Carter, I have already seen videos pertaining to Jared's involvement in these crimes. But do you have any proofs that point to Charles association in this too?" Luis already knew and understood that without any evidence supporting their claims, Ivy and Noah would not have come to him. This was a big matter, one that threatened the security of the country as well as the people, and they had to handle it carefully.

"Yes, Sir. We have all the proofs with us, and all we need is your suggestion as to what our next step would be. We cannot decide on our own as there are matters related to the military as well as the nation. Even though we would like to broadcast the news for the people to know what kind of monsters Jared and this Charles are, I would like to take your permission before doing so. Your opinion matters to us, and we do not want to do anything that might bring troubles to the government or the military."

"I understand your concerns and I am glad you did not reveal anything another major news. I am yet to digest what I saw yesterday. And knowing all that you have with you against Jared and Charles, I am sure I will be having sleepless nights for a long time." Luis commented as he pressed his forehead.

Ivy had completely given up on speaking to the President, and Cedric was staring at the two men dumbly, too stunned to speak a word. It was only Noah who held the conversation with the President. And being the observant man he was, he had seen the way the President had addressed Jared and Charles with familiarity, and he could not help but wonder to himself about it.

"Sir, I presume you are quite familiar with Jared and Charles for your tone says so. Am I right?" Noah did not beat around the bush and asked him directly. Though surprised by his directness, Luis was more impressed. His lips arched up sarcastically, and Noah raised his eyebrows at him, waiting for his reply.

Even Ivy who had been bored out of her mind was intrigued by the topic, and she subconsciously leaned forward. She had never expected such a turn of events. But it was given how Luis Truman was the President. He would be well versed with a lot of people and businessmen like Jared and Charles. Even though Charles was a small-time businessman, he could have used Jared's influence to be acquainted with the President.

"Let's just say I know Charles from a long time back even before I became the President. He used to fund my campaigns during the elections." Luis had a solemn look on his face, and both Ivy and Noah realized that there was more to his story and it was anything but good. With a disgusting man like Charles around, how could any story be good?

"He was a small-time businessman. Yet he was smart enough to run a local mob and was involved in illegal activities, which I had no idea about. Before the elections, he visited me regularly. At first, it seemed normal as many other businessmen too visited me since I was certain to be the President. I had the public's favor. But it became too much when he started visiting me regularly, almost daily, in fact."

Ivy and Noah were no fools, and Cedric too could more or less guess what was happening. Why would Charles visit Luis Truman if he did not have any work from him, which could be deemed to be illegal and needed coverup from the government?

"Charles wanted me to allow his gang to operate peacefully without any intervention from the government. And that was when I lost it. Even though his gang was yet to flourish, they were already notorious and well known for their inhuman crimes, one among them being the smuggling of drugs. I had a fallout with him at that point, and he withdrew all his funds immediately."

"Sir, why didn't you inform the police about it? They might have caught him?" Ivy queried, her forehead narrowing in a frown.

"I did. I did complain to the police the moment I found out about his illegal activities. But they did not take any action against him for many reasons. He had the backing of a powerful man who was in power at that time and I do not know who it was exactly. And all his crimes were just word of the mouth. There was no substantial evidence to prove it. It was impossible to convict him in court, and the case was closed."

Luis closed his eyes and leaned back before he let out a deep sigh. "Fortunately enough, I became the President, making it impossible for him to come for me for filing a complaint against him. And I don't think he even knows that it was I who did it. I never knew he and his gang would grow up to become this brutal. He had completely disappeared for some time and I could not track him until eventually, I gave up. Moreover, I never knew that Jared and Charles are even together in this."

Luis pressed his forehead and removed his glasses. "How are they related?"

"Sir," Noah took a look at Ivy, who nodded at him in return, an action that did not go unnoticed by the other three men in the room. "Fredrick Clarke is Charles's friend or that is what we think, and Jared is Fredrick's son. Charles was the one who trained Jared to be the heir to his gang after him." Noah felt disgusted to even speak about the two men. But he had to reveal the truth to the President. So, he swallowed his resentment, forcing his hate to the back of his mind.

"This makes Charles his Godfather, and that is how he is addressed in his gang." Noah continued and Luis nodded at him. "Sir, are you well acquainted with Jared too?"

"Not at all. I have only met him at some social events, and I believed him to be an honest and smart businessman. Who knew that it was not his hard work and his achievements were a result of his crimes, one that still gives me shivers?"

Luis stared at Noah whose face remained impassive since the time the meeting had started. Not once had he given away what he was thinking and what he was planning to do next. Yet he had an inkling about what Noah wanted of him and what he would ask him next.. And that was what he too wanted to do.