Two Villains

Ch. 44- Mature Conversations

"We replaced the director-general of MI5," Rhys revealed as we settled at the dining table.

"Wait, what? How did you manage to do that?" I was bewildered.

"We lobbied heavily for Bill taking the position a few years ago. Turns out he was being paid by one of our biggest rivals, Apex Group, behind our back. That explains his behavior when we met him at MI5 HQ."

"Apex Group? I remember hearing about them. But Bill seemed genuinely concerned about my security during our meeting," I murmured, still trying to piece it all together.

"He was just pretending to be loyal to us. When I told Bill that an attack was on its way in London, Bill took it lightly. Or, he thought that after the 2005 Tube attack, nothing of that caliber would have happened in London. He thought, even if a small attack happened, he could propose new security-related contracts in Parliament, then he would give these contracts to Apex group."

I almost gagged at this new information Rhys just told me.

"This is nasty and disgusting! How could he do that? How could he risk the lives of thousands of people?" I was livid and angry beyond what I could imagine.

"Bernard Cumberland was also very angry at the way Bill had dealt with the information. So, with Charles's order, we have removed Bill from that position. Now, a new woman would chair MI5, and she will be loyal to us," Rhys informed me. I was confused.

"Why is her loyalty important to you?" I asked him, Rhys gave me a sad sigh.

"Bill's disloyalty to us killed how many people, Kay?" He asked me, and I shook a bit.

"You think all the powerful men and women in these positions are independent of their actions? Honest? No. The world is not black and white; it's black, dark and musty, and everyone is corrupted. Nobody flicks a single finger without cash."

"So, you get yourself involved with their corruption?" I asked Rhys.

"You can't control hell sitting from heaven. Either you get your hands dirty when you do business or control the power..." Rhys was replying, but I stopped him in the middle of replying, and I asked him,

"What's the main purpose of Volkner's business ethics? Money or Power?"

"Controlling the power, with Money," Rhys answered calmly, I sighed.

"That's why everyone hates  Volkner Corp.'s Blackwater Inc.," I replied.

"Blackwater Inc. mainly earns from endowments, insurance companies, highly paid pension funds, private equity funds, and independent wealth funds from, you know... all the billionaires you see at our Caelus hotel in Como... We invest on behalf of them from Blackwater Inc."

"Your insurance policy sucks," I sneered at him. I was well aware that Blackwater's health insurance policies had caused significant problems for many patients in the USA over the past few years, often rejecting serious cases where costly surgeries were necessary.

"What are you talking about?" Rhys asked me with genuine concern, prompting me to explain my perspective on their insurance policies in both the USA and Canada. While my explanation seemed to agitate Rhys slightly, he remained composed as he responded.

"Kay, it takes almost 40 grand for a woman to give birth in America. How much does it cost here in the UK? How much does the NHS charge their patients?"

"Almost nothing, compared to that 40k bill," I replied.

"Exactly, that's precisely my point. The quality of care and medications are the same, and American doctors are just as competent as their European counterparts. Yet healthcare costs are substantially higher in the USA. How much do you think a vial of insulin costs in Bangladesh?" Rhys asked, prompting me to look it up. To my surprise, a 10-ml vial was priced at just under £2.