Chapter 259 - Home In Molave 5

Madani, from the word 'madanihon', which means attractive in English, was one of the big islands that contributed to the country's economy through its abundant natural resources like minerals and oil. Whatever was beneath the seafloor, the place was a wonder of flowing minerals and oil. Long before the discovery of this natural wealth, Madani family solely but legally owned the island according to the ancient methods of acquiring properties.

Situated in a remote part of the country, the Madani's ruled the place for more than a hundred years. Its geological location where it sat above a fault line and facing a common typhoon path, great typhoons, and earthquakes were always its natural phenomena. With such worst conditions, other people refused to live on that island for fear of being buried alive or tossed to the open sea. 

However, the Mandanis learned to adapt to the situations and soon grew into a big family. When the local government imposed strict compliance to educate their children, the parents sent their children to town until many of them came back as professionals. Some of these offsprings who took interests related to biology and chemistry discovered the wealth of their place, and soon, trading of minerals like gold, diamond, and jade became the island's contribution to the region's economy. Politics was then formed, but it was a monopoly of the Mandanis.

The population grew big, and so did their treasury, that they began purchasing the surrounding islands. Schools, business establishments, trading platforms, and health care facilities rose from these places, making the Mandani Islands a vast community. Through intermarriages, several lineages mingled into the Mandani clan, and therefore, the beginning of chaos, envy, and l.u.s.t for wealth and power that tarnished the once harmonious community.

When the half-Mandanis came to rule, division of the people's interests and loyalty occurred and caused internal strifes. And these internal strifes created different kinds of a faction that ruled the Mandanis in alternative terms. Among those rebellious factions was led by Markus Mandani, who won seventy percent of the people's sympathy. When he became the leader of the entire Mandani Islands, he wrote a proposal to the country's president, asking for Mandani's independence as a separate entity.

The said proposal stayed throughout the rule of different presidents until their unheard request created threats through bombings and unjustified killings from various insurgencies. Drug distribution became rampant, and alliances with varying types of syndicates made Madani a modern Sodom and Gomorrah.

However, in a later generation, there was a silent group that worked underground to restore the peace and harmony of the Madani. The group composed of professionals who built and strengthened their organization away from the prying eyes of the Madani leaders. They expanded through the recruitment of supporters and volunteers with the mission to end up the corruption and the dirty government of Madani.

Through the leadership of the one called Mr. Blacksmith, they named their group, "The Velvet Fighters". The organization, however, made its name through its front goals and objectives, such as youth leadership training and community services, preparing its volunteers for the future responsibilities of becoming efficient leaders of the nation. They did not oppose any legislation but identified themselves as government supporters. Yet, somewhere beneath the deep ravines of Molave, Mr. Blacksmith, the great-great-grandson of the Madani's, carried out the real objective of the organization.

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One time, while attending a meeting of the most trouble-making faction of the Madani led by Markus Madani III, Charles Madani, who hid through a pen name, Mr. Blacksmith, seated himself at the back. None of them around knew that he ran an organization that would someday topple down this corrupt inc.u.mbent government. With a steaming coffee pot in front of him, he poured himself a cup, put some packs of creamer and sugar then leaned his back on the seat. He then opened his phone, and the beautiful smile of a woman on its wallpaper greeted him. A smile curved on his lips as he stared at her, his mind whispering his obsession to his heart.

"Someday soon, you'll be mine, Dr. Jane."

"Dr.Charles, are we ready?" the voice of Markus III addressing him, broke his reverie.

Charles glanced up and repositioned himself in an elegant poise, stopping the heartbeats of some ladies around who were long craving for his attention.

"Sure," Charles nodded and replied, his s.e.xy voice resonated within the closed space.

"Dr. Charles, Sir Nelson, and everyone here around," Markus started his agenda by greeting the potential leaders first, "we all know that with the incapacities of Mr. Te, our second hope crumbled down."

The heaving of stifled gasps filled the air as soon as they heard Mr. Te's name.

"First, our partnership with him ended through the collapse of Kamelyo Mega Lab, and now, the end of Myrtle Shade special formula. Speaking of Myrtle Shade, the formulation was a secret recipe of Mr. Te. We have also found out that Marco, his trustee, and his men took suicide during an encounter with police officers."

"Can we send samples for chemical identification?" Mr. Nelson Madani, one of the leaders, spoke out.

Markus cast his gaze on Dr. Charles, who was raising his cup to his mouth.

"Dr. Charles, our biological scientist, can give us the best answer."

Charles put down his cup and wiped his mouth with a table napkin before he stood up and explained.

"I tested the sample several times and identified a certain ingredient. However, what I cannot tell as of this moment, is the source."

With everyone's eyes in his direction, he continued. "I tried to reach out to Mr. Ryan Yu, thinking that he was Mr. Te's successor, but I learned that they have no blood relation at all. He was even finding pieces of evidence that could extend the sentence of Mr. Te. The man had so many sins against him for hiding his son away from him, stealing his parent's property, and keeping them inside a cave for many years. The only source of information that could have helped us was Marco."

Sighs of frustration erupted within the enclosed space, and Charles sat back on his chair after making an apology. His thoughts went back to the time when he tried to establish a connection with Ryan on the cruise to Japan. He was about to approach him on a coffee shop and introduce himself, but the epitome of beauty and intelligence, as how she was described on tabloids and magazines, came in to sit down across him.