The door closed behind Benjamin, and he nodded at his bodyguards who had been waiting not far away. Those two were Benjamin's most trusted subordinates by now. He bought their loyalty with a hefty sum, but as he needed to visit the exhaust district regularly he couldn't do without some security.
Shadows were wriggling as rats scurried about. On the way back to his car Benjamin could feel that many eyes were following him. Really, why was the Café of Dreams placed in such a location? Benjamin cursed inwardly. He contemplated whether he could ask the barista to move the café.
Well, perhaps in the future. For now, he stepped into the flying car and one of his bodyguards drove it back to the manor. Margaret, Benjamin's housekeeper, welcomed her master home and Benjamin felt his nerves relax. He put on some comfortable clothes and went to the study, contemplating his plans.
The barista had given Benjamin a valuable suggestion. He was too focused on the charity organization. But what was the purpose for setting up the organization? Wasn't it originally William's idea, supposed to make it easier for them to break into the Mecutis market? Benjamin rejected the idea from the beginning, so why was he so stubborn now? It was time to cut losses…
Of course, burying the charity organization had one major disadvantage. He would displease presidential candidate Marlene Garner. However, with the café and its red beans as support he would be able to accomplish many things even without her support. At least conquering other markets shouldn't be difficult.
The more he thought about it, the more Benjamin found the idea feasible. He even scolded himself. Why would he grovel before someone like Marlene when he had a stronger and more mysterious organisation as backer. The red beans were not only able to influence one or two people…
Benjamin shivered. He had to shelve the thought. He wouldn't be able to pay the price. After all, leading his company to success was nice but he had to be alive to enjoy it. He was not so altruistic as to give his life only for his son to harvest everything.
By the way, thinking about his son Sebastian, Bejamin suddenly had another idea. Could he use the red beans to improve the relationship with his family? This might not be impossible. His wife left because Benjamin always prioritized the company over her. Sebastian was similarly unhappy but none of them really hated him. Perhaps the red beans could really help him. Compared to the efforts necessary to mend this broken relationship the normal way, the red beans would save him a lot of time, and he could focus on work…
Benjamin remained in the study for a while, formulating plans. He felt free and easy. The red beans opened so many possibilities. Life suddenly appeared so much less difficult. Benjamin took a deep breath and all his worries left together with the air. That night he slept comfortably and with a smile on his face.
The next day when Benjamin arrived at the office, he immediately scheduled a meeting. No one was surprised by that. Over the last few weeks, the company has held meetings almost daily. The back and forth concerning the charity organization wasted so much time it even slowed down other projects. Many shareholders were already disgruntled, hoping to finally be done with it. And they were about to get their wish fulfilled…
"… and this is why I decided to end project charity!"
As Benjamin stopped his speech the meeting room turned so silent one could hear a pin drop. Honestly, Benjamin, keeping the existence of the red beans secret, didn't really have a good reason to end the project. He tried to place the blame on Mister Grey and revived the idea that they would be able to break into the Mecutis Market even without the charity organization. However, even those who usually agreed with him were now skeptical.
Mister Haifield, shareholder and Benjamin's alley, wore a heavy frown, speaking up first:
"Mister Bender, I can't agree to this. We invested too much in the project to drop it now. Isn't it just about Mister Grey wanting more control? Maybe we should concede. In turn, we demand more concrete help from their side."
Benjamin barely suppressed a snort. Haifield was just a shareholder. It wouldn't be him who would be under Mister Grey's thumb. The man simply didn't want to see his investments go to waste. However, out of the people in this room Haifield was the one who was usually closest to Benjamin. If even he disagreed one could imagine what other people were thinking. If it wasn't for Benjamin using the red beans before to solidify his position in the company, he might have drawn strong protest this time.
Yet even the red beans were not invincible. If someone strongly disagreed, their effect would be greatly diminished. Thus, the meeting erupted into an argument. The strongest opposing voice was undoubtedly Miss Fenrich, head of the marketing department and a big fan of William. The woman was fearless as she criticized Benjamin, who found it difficult to find sound arguments in support of his ideas.
Honestly, Benjamin had considered firing Miss Fenrich before. But he didn't know how close her relationship with William really was. What if Benjamin fired her and she complained to William, causing his brother to return? Thus, Benjamin forced himself to remain calm as the woman became increasingly arrogant.
After some back and forth the meeting ended without a clear decision. However, Benjamin wasn't disappointed. This was exactly what he had expected. The real convincing work came next. Benjamin one by one invited the participants of the meeting into his office, starting from Mister Haifield.
The man with a protruding belly and greying hair entered the office and sat down on the other side of the desk, letting out a sigh:
"Mister Bender. I am sorry, but this time I really can't agree with you. I don't understand why you suddenly changed your opinion again. Are you not afraid of offending Miss Garner with this?"
"No. I have thought it through. What can she realistically do to us? Honestly, compared to her we are just a small fry. I don't think she would waste time to make life difficult for us. And don't we still have William?"
Although Benjamin sounded confident, even he found it difficult to come up with good arguments. His confidence stemmed from the red beans, but this was not something he would share with others. Realizing that after a while of talking Mister Haifield still didn't appear to be convinced, Benjamin could only once again play his secret weapon.
"I feel like we are arguing into a dead end here. We don't we relax for a moment and drink a cup of coffee?"
"Haa, alright…"
Haifield agreed with a sigh. Although he found it strange that Benjamin had taken such a liking to coffee, he welcomed the change. Especially since Benjamin somehow got his hands on an exotic brew. As a coffee connoisseur Haifield looked forward to feeling the bitter taste on his tongue. What was infuriating though was that Benjamin wouldn't reveal the origin of this coffee to him. He would neither gift nor sell it no matter the price Haifield offered…
While Haifield contemplated how to take at least a few beans home, Benjamin asked his assistant to bring them two cups of his best coffee. Of course, the assistant didn't know where the beans came from. There was no label on the package, nor any description. Benjamin simply handed it to her one day, stating that these were special beans which could only be used with his permission. With constant access to all the cameras Benjamin wasn't afraid that something could happen to his beans.
A short while later Benjamin's assistant arrived with two cups of steaming hot coffee. The smell spread in the office, prompting Haifield to take a deep whiff.
"Bender, do you really not want to sell me some of this coffee? I would owe you a favor."
Benjamin was almost tempted. Mister Haifield's favor shouldn't be underestimated. However, the red beans were invaluable. Benjamin could only decline. Haifield sighed again, thinking that this was really a pity. He had no choice but to slowly savor the coffee as long as he had the chance.
Meanwhile Benjamin began discussing his ideas again. After only a few sentences he could already see it in Haifield's eyes. The beans were taking effect. Deep down he felt a twinge of fear, but he had already crossed the line. It was too late to stop. And as Benjamin continued to talk and noticed how Haifield gradually got convinced, the fear was more and more suppressed. A feeling of power and control took over. With the red beans in hand, why did he need to bow before anyone? Marlene Garner? Presidential candidate? Wasn't she also just a single cup away from becoming his faithful supporter?