William White was not planning to play anymore, but he also wouldn't show weakness. It clearly didn't fit soone's character to leave without so kind of nto.
A battle of such scale was a big deal anywhere, yet in Africa, everything felt eerily silent.
In a place where violence was the only accepted language, especially in those mining areas, it was a chaos-filled land. Conflicts arose nonsensically and ended just as absurdly. People couldn't even figure out who was going crazy.
Of course, the victims were clear; these guys were sowhat related to Gaddafi.
As for who did it?
It seed that no one else but the CIA had that capability.
...
"What? It wasn't us; we don't know anything. Everything's gone haywire," soone reported.
"Darn it, what are you doing? Go look into it," William snapped.
When it ca to shifting bla, William White was quite skilled. He was very sure that this ss wouldn't land on him. After all, he was just a victim.
Looking at the pile of diamonds before him, William White couldn't help but feel dazed. He never expected such a huge windfall.
"Our guys are okay, right?" he asked.
"No problem. We were just coordinating. Those security companies handled everything," was the response.
"Companies? Ha, forget it. The mission was executed well, and I'm doubling the rewards for this one."
"Thank you, sir."
"You earned it. I'll set up a fund with these diamonds for helping forr or injured personnel."
Max was thrilled; these guys were willing to take risks just to make their lives a bit easier.
To be frank, they weren't scared of death as long as it could be asured in equivalent money. Now, they evidently had another assurance in hand.
As for him, William White had never been stingy.
What? You say there's right and wrong?
Sorry, that concept didn't exist, at least not on the African continent. Those miners down in the pits danced with death every minute.
Looking at the sparkling diamonds, William White felt a twinge of revulsion. That bloody sll could never be polished away.
Though he had pulled out of the two biggest markets, he hadn't completely given up on diamond trading. Soon, the global auction markets welcod a cash-rich purchaser.
Was De Beers really that strong?
The guy wasn't short on cash; as for his own mine's output, in the international market, everyone had to consider who had the most money.
...
"Three million dollars, once. Three million dollars, twice. Three million dollars, three tis. Sold." An 80-carat pink diamond wasn't worth that price; cut it down, and getting 40 carats would be lucky.
However, this was just a signal. From this diamond forward, De Beers frequently lost bids for diamonds over 20 carats. Whenever they placed a bid, so guy always raised his paddle.
In nearly a hundred years since the company had been founded, they had never faced such provocation.
Yet now, that guy clearly had the guts.
...
"Arican company? Since when did Aricans start dealing in diamonds?" soone asked incredulously.
"I don't know; they're quite capable. They've already spent over ten million and don't seem to want to stop."
"Gee, did we offend soone sowhere?"
They certainly knew about the chaos on the African continent; they just couldn't understand who was taking action.
"What? The world's richest? You sure you're not mistaken?"
"Absolutely not."
"Conditions?"
"The chaos in Africa is all Gaddafi's doing." Listening to his subordinate's report, Bill had a smirk on his face.
"So, this isn't the Aricans? What do they say?"
"No deal ans no harm; they reckon we should give up this trade."
"Ha, does that represent Arica or just their boss?"
"Anything else?"
"Our diamond? The price is whatever; their boss wants to buy it." His subordinate spoke in a sowhat dry tone, with a hint of arrogant defiance.
"That's nonsense. That's our Century Star. How could we sell it to him?"
His subordinate wanted to say the guy was talking about buying it; was William planning to not do business?
In truth, Bill, though tough in tone, didn't dare make unilateral decisions. This matter was better off reported to headquarters. As for this auction? Better to bow out -- no need to humiliate themselves.
...
William White was certain that De Beers, which monopolized 90% of the raw mineral trade, was not nearly as clean as it appeared. It was plain as day; diamond trading was no simple matter. If you didn't have so savvy, how could you monopolize it?
Dealing with soone like Gaddafi was beyond William White's capabilities.
And De Beers?
Ha.
They could monopolize simply because they controlled the processing links, in addition to having so real power.
For others, this might seem like an unresolvable deadlock. Otherwise, how could they have managed to control this market for a century?
Well, William White might not win, but he was definitely soone who could make others miserable.
...
"You think there might be a misunderstanding that we did sothing sneaky?"
"Sir, I'm afraid that's a certainty."
"Hey, their side left, didn't they?"
"They left, sure. But this chaos can't be separated from them, and it's likely they're working with the CIA."
While the old guy was in a tizzy, William White wasn't concerned. He was confident the other side would make the right choices.
No deal ans no harm, huh?
The old man began to feel uneasy, rembering the other identity of that dia tycoon. If he truly offended that guy, trouble would surely co rolling in.
"Alright, I agree. Let's have them refine and process that diamond, hmm, one hundred million dollars will do."
These days, William White wasn't worried about paying a hundred million for a treasure that could last for generations. After getting their reply, he imdiately arranged for a lawyer to draft the contract.
At this point, the surface-level dispute was over. As for what happened behind the scenes, that was a whole different story.
...
"Dad, you think this was his doing?"
"What's there to ask? It's definitely him, but don't go probing around."
"Yeah, that guy's got so real guts."
"Guts? He's just overly confident, thinking soone else will take the fall for his ss. And besides, he won't be the one getting his hands dirty."
"If that's true, then why give up?"
"Ha, if he didn't, how could the other forces ever let it go? After all, does he need to take the risk?"
The last comnt from Bush Sr. was key. If he knew about De Beers, he probably would've expressed sothing quite different.
*****
spatreon/Sayonara816.
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