When Martin heard Griff's complaint, he laughed heartily and mocked, "What's so strange about that? You Italians are famous for being lazy. If you don't show up an hour late for work, your colleagues will give you a hard time. By 3:30 in the afternoon, everyone's already preparing to leave, and by 4:00, there's no one handling business—everyone's just having coffee and eating sweets. With that kind of work ethic, do you really expect them to be thorough?"
After a few jabs, Martin stared excitedly at Griff, who also seemed pleased. "So, what are you thinking?"
Griff didn't respond right away. Instead, he turned to look at the nearby Riva 50MT yacht.
After a few moments of observing the superyacht and seeing that Martin hadn't grasped his intention, Griff sighed. "I'd like to, but with just the two of us and the little money we have, even if we put a couple million dollars into the rare wood market, it wouldn't even make a splash."
He then turned his gaze back to the distant Riva 50MT yacht, and this time, Martin followed his eyes to the yacht. Griff finally looked back at Martin with an inexplicable expression.
"FKU, are you crazy, or are you so obsessed with money that you've lost your mind? You just said William Devonshire reeks of blood, and now you're actually thinking of messing with him?" Martin stared at Griff in horror, seeing the madness in his eyes.
With trembling fingers, Martin pointed at Griff. "Aren't you afraid that if you tell William Devonshire, he'll silence you? And don't forget the influence Faraday Group has in Italy. If they find out we're the ones holding them back, do you think we'll have any good days ahead of us?"
Griff sneered at Martin, who had been so aggressive just moments before. These Americans are only tough on the weak. The moment they face someone like William Devonshire, they turn into sheep. However, remembering how he himself had almost wet his pants when he stood in front of William, Griff's face flushed.
If it weren't for that, he wouldn't have dragged Martin into this. On the one hand, Martin had no trouble communicating with William, and on the other hand, it was also for his own safety. After all, Griff was an Italian, and Martin an American.
Having another person involved would increase the risk of William silencing them. Ideally, Martin would approach William, while Griff stayed behind as insurance and pulled the strings from the shadows.
Griff's motive for seeking out William was partly because he happened to catch William renting a yacht and partly because he wanted William to be the frontman, shielding him from Faraday's threats.
What Griff didn't realize was that everything he and Martin said was being heard by William, who was two meters away from them, thanks to a tiny Blackblade drone hidden in the bushes, controlled by Sunday. If Martin hadn't taken Griff out of the office, William wouldn't have been able to listen to their conversation so clearly.
Understanding the situation, William felt a sense of relief. Griff's unusual behavior now made sense—greed. As long as it wasn't a direct threat to his life, William didn't care. Besides, Griff's hand had already been revealed, so who was really being played here?
However, eavesdropping distracted William during his workout, causing him to lose focus. Ambrosio, who was in the middle of an intense workout, was very displeased and cursed at William, pushing him to the ground before continuing her squats.
But this was exactly what William wanted. He could enjoy himself while still listening in on Martin and Griff's conversation. With his hands behind his head, he smiled at Ambrosio and encouraged her, "Keep going. If you make me surrender, I might just rename the yacht 'Ambrosio'."
"You said it," Ambrosio glared at William. "It's just squats. Even if my legs give out tomorrow, I'm going to beat you."
Meanwhile, Griff quickly brushed aside his concerns about safety under the temptation of money.
"How will we know if we don't try? As long as we're well-prepared, William Devonshire can't cross two countries to silence us. And even if he tries, do you think two men in their forties and fifties would be stupid enough not to have some insurance?"
Griff continued to lure Martin in. "Besides, this rare wood business isn't something William Devonshire is familiar with. We're the ones doing all the legwork and gathering information. As long as we make him a lot of money, isn't it only fair that he shares some of the profits with us? I'm not greedy. As long as I can get $10 million out of it, I'll be satisfied. Together, we'd only be asking for $20 million."
Griff sat down next to Martin, putting an arm around his shoulders and coaxing him. "Think about it, buddy. Even killers need a motive and a cost-benefit analysis.
We're involved, too, and as ordinary people, we're probably more afraid of leaks than William is. Since there's no need for secrecy, I don't believe William Devonshire would risk everything to kill the people who made him a lot of money just for $20 million."
Martin was tempted by Griff's words, but his years of experience weren't for nothing. He wouldn't be swayed by a few sweet words. Although he was very tempted by the idea of making $10 million, his past experiences made him carefully consider the risks and potential surprises.
After a moment of thought, Martin suddenly broke into a cold sweat as he realized a potential problem. He asked in a panic, "Have you thought about the fact that William Devonshire is a billionaire? What if he doesn't care about the profit from the wood and instead sets his sights on the Riva shipyard or your parent company, Faraday Group?"
"FK, no way," Griff was startled by Martin's speculation. "Why would he go after Riva Shipyard and Faraday Group?"
"Are you an idiot? God, I really need to think twice about getting involved in this. You're just a brainless fool," Martin cursed in frustration.
"Why wouldn't William Devonshire go after Riva Shipyard and Faraday Group? Your shipyard is known as the Rolls-Royce of yachts, and Faraday Group owns eight mid- to high-end yacht brands. To someone like William, earning a couple hundred million dollars isn't as important as owning a world-renowned shipyard.
Do you believe that if he bought the shipyard, the next day, the acquisition would be front-page news all over the world? In a time of market crashes, people would love to see news about a super-genius, super-rich guy making moves worldwide. Even if there are those who resent the rich and curse him, the more they do, the more news will cover it.
Italy might even welcome him with open arms to invest there. William Devonshire is far more famous and wealthier than your Faraday company.
Even if Faraday can't be acquired, just getting Riva Shipyard would significantly boost William's reputation, and Riva's reputation would benefit from William's as well. It's a mutually beneficial situation. Do you think he wouldn't be tempted?"
Martin stood up, pacing nervously around the table as he continued to think aloud. "Besides, when you reach a certain level of wealth, it's not just about making more money. It's about securing that wealth, and diversifying investments across countries is the most normal thing to do."
Griff was stunned by Martin's logical reasoning. "This, this, this..."
He stammered, unable to refute Martin's points. He realized that if he were William Devonshire, he'd probably be eyeing the Riva shipyard as well.
After all, the opportunity was right in his hands. He, Robert Griff, was about to hand William the knife.
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