Chapter 8: Ransom for a Life

Words : 1968 Updated : Nov 27th, 2025

"I never imagined your brother would think you're only worth ten grand." Miller Cutmore watched as Cairo Juggins gasped like a fish out of water, then flicked the severed finger in his hand onto the floor. He had ripped it off himself, so there was no chance of stitching it back on in any ER. "Forget it. Save that pocket change for your kid brother's funeral," Miller said. "Cairo Juggins, remember this. It's not that I wouldn't let you live-it's that your brother thinks you're not worth it." He knew a dozen ways to kill a man and leave no trace of foul play-ways to make it look like an accident. "Bro, help! He's really going to kill me! He's a monster, he's lost it! Stop provoking him! I'm about to die!" Cairo broke down and sobbed, voice cracking. He had already tasted Miller's methods. More than that, the flat chill in Miller's eyes told him the man wasn't bluffing. He meant to take his life. Cooper Juggins roared over the phone. "Stop! You win! Miller Cutmore, I'll wire you five hundred grand right now! Let Cairo go. Whatever this is, wait till I get back to Xavon, we'll talk face to face!" Miller released his grip and stood. "Fine. Five hundred grand buys his life. Cooper Juggins, I'll wait for you to come back." The ground shivered. Outside on the road, sedans barreled in, one after another, streaming through the funeral home gates. Car doors slammed in rapid succession. Flat on the floor, Cairo burst into wild laughter and let out a long breath, then snarled through clenched teeth, "Miller Cutmore, you're screwed! Bro, your men are here. Keep your money!" Cooper's voice over the line snapped. "You idiot, Miller Cutmore! You think I'd really be scared of you? You're still green! Five years ago I took you for everything. Five years later you still can't beat me! I set this up long ago. Sit tight and die." A dozen cars stormed the funeral home and boxed Miller in. Doors banged again, and a wave of machete-wielding muscle surged forward. Miller didn't tense. His expression stayed cool, unruffled; he kept his eyes locked on the mob. He'd seen this scene in prison more times than he could count. As the years went on, it only got easier. By his fourth year inside, no one dared challenge him. Numbers meant nothing to a man who lived by his fists. More bodies just meant more to drop. The more, the merrier. "Ricardo! That's the punk, kill him!" Cairo howled until his voice broke. "I don't care what my brother promised you. I'll add ten grand for one of his hands! Chop it off and toss it in front of me. I'll feed it to a dog while he watches!" "Miller Cutmore, go on, strut! The Juggins family got your brother killed and drove your mother to suicide. We can do you the same way!" Miller spun on his heel and stared down at Cairo. "What did you say?" Until that moment, he had thought his mother and elder brother had died by cruel chance. In Cairo's gloating, he heard something else. Cairo saw it dawn on him and cackled. "You think my Juggins family killed your mom and your brother with our own hands? Do you take us for fools? No need to dirty ourselves. A little trick, and the Cutmore family goes mad and does itself in." Cooper's laugh crackled through the phone, smug and bright. "I'm a lawyer by training. Why would I break the law? I don't do killing. But push someone to despair until their mind shatters and they take their own lives-that's easy as pie." Crack! Miller ground his heel into Cairo Juggins's right elbow. A twist of his toes turned bone to gravel. Cairo's scream echoed off the walls. "Ricardo, kill him!" The thugs charged. The first man raised his blade for Miller's skull, then got a clear look at his face. His color drained. "Hold it!" he barked. Everyone froze, glancing around in confusion. Cairo shrieked, livid and desperate, "Ricardo, move! You think I can't pay you?" "Shut up!" their leader snapped at him. He turned back to Miller, swallowed hard, and said, "Mr. Cutmore?" Miller's gaze slid over him, cold as steel. "Ricardo Lyall, is it? Since when did the Lyall family become the Juggins family's lapdogs?" He finally placed him. The man was the elder of the Lyall brothers he'd seen that morning, when Roberto Hoez came to pick him up from prison. The face stuck with him. Ricardo blanched. "Mr. Cutmore, don't get me wrong. We take the money, do the job, no strings. Now that I know these punks have offended you, we're out. The Lyall family won't touch this." There was no need to say more. A Kento kingpin had traveled all the way to Xavon to personally escort this man out of prison-a man so far above that not even Zerton's big shot, Brock Thubron, rated standing next to him. That was not someone the Lyall family could afford to cross. Add to that what he'd seen with his own eyes that morning-his little brother's guys, Dawson and Xiao Liang, both got put on the ground by this man-and the conclusion was obvious. The man's skill was no joke. A glance now at the wreckage on the floor and Cairo's mangled arm sealed it. "Ricardo, what the hell are you doing?" Cairo stared in disbelief. His brother had paid for muscle, and now the muscle was chatting up the enemy. From the sound of it, Ricardo Lyall-a name everyone on Xavon's streets knew-actually feared the Cutmore heir fresh out of prison? What in God's name was going on? "Shut it!" Ricardo barked at Cairo. "If you want to die, don't drag me down with you. You dare provoke Mr. Cutmore? You got a death wish? Mr. Cutmore, say the word. Want me to take this idiot off your hands?" Miller shook his head. "The Cutmore-Juggins feud doesn't need outsiders. If you're not taking the job, leave. This has nothing to do with you." "Yes, Mr. Cutmore." Ricardo didn't argue. He gave Miller a quick bow, turned, and snapped at his men, "Move!" They had swept in like a storm and were gone in a heartbeat, back into their cars and gone in a blink. Cairo stared, stupefied. Even on the phone, Cooper Juggins went silent for a long moment. When Miller turned back, his eyes on Cairo again, Cairo broke into fresh sobs. "I'm begging you, let me go! I won't play games with you again! Bro, send the money! If you wait, I'm dead!" "Miller Cutmore, I'll wire the five hundred grand right now. Let Cairo go. I'll take the loss this time." Cooper didn't know why Ricardo Lyall seemed so spooked by Miller, but he understood one thing. He was no longer facing the gullible, soft-handed rich boy from five years ago. Miller's expression didn't change. "Who said five hundred grand? It's one million now." "If you can't pay, come collect Cairo Juggins's body." "And remember this. He's only the first. Your daughter Julie Juggins. Your son Marcus Juggins. Your wife Emmy Duffus. Your brother-in-law Uriel Duffus." "And of course, Cooper Juggins-your own life." "You'd better have their ransom money ready." "Miller. Cutmore." Cooper ground his teeth over the line. Miller spoke into the phone, voice flat. "Starting now, I'll keep your Juggins family on pins and needles, and you won't sleep at night." "What you took from the Cutmore family back then only made you our hired help for five years. Now you'll pay back every last penny with interest." "One more thing. The rest can live or die-I don't care. You, Cooper Juggins-I'm going to kill you."

Chapter 8: Ransom for a Life

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