Gemscentric

Written by Julian Robov


Twenty Eight


Several telephone calls arriving at the same time drove Johnny crazy. The gem dealers from Europe, North America, and South America, where his business deals were concentrated—had a lot to do with the regional economies slow reform process, and the strength of the almighty American dollar. All of a sudden dealers discovered everything was cheap and affordable, and they began pouring into Thailand, and Johnny’s influence and business connections became extremely necessary for consistency, due to his long experience in the gem industry.

He had been doing just great—with the exception of a few disgruntled gem brokers, whose perks remained the same, despite the unusually high number of dealers arriving in the country. He didn’t want to give any false expectation, but took care of them well and rewarded appropriately. There were always a few who thought differently, because they believed it was they who worked hard to fatten Johnny’s bank balances, and they got only a pittance at the end of the day. He had a way of fencing the whining brokers, and as he was about to call Rak, one such broker, for his arrogance and disrespect. James walked in to Johnny’s office unexpectedly.
“Surprise, surprise. Take a seat, buddy. I have to say something to this fucking asshole. Give me a few minutes break, will you?” Johnny said to James, while waving at Rak.
Rak stood like a statue staring at Johnny.
“What’s fucking wrong with you, uh?” Johnny said to Rak angrily.
“Why you no give me more money, na? I bling new customers fol you, and you gibe me the same pelcentage. You no good, na. I no happy. I want more money, na,” Rak commented in a Thailish accent.
James understood the situation, and said nothing. He was in Johnny’s territory, and had to abide by the unwritten rules of the trade: Silence.
“You know what? I want to hit your head with a rock,” Johnny added. “Why did you say to my friends that I was starving your family to death, uh? Who took care of your five children, when they were begging for school fees? Where were you, asshole? You remember, Surat?”
“That’s my wife,” Rak answered quickly.
“Where were you when she was begging me to pay her medical bills, when you were fucking around with the dirty bitches in Pattaya? And now you are saying that I forgot to pay your share, because you brought in some new customers to my office? You know what? I want to fucking cut off your dick, and throw it to the crocodiles in my farm, you sonofabitch. Now get out of my sight, before I do something crazy. Get out! You don’t rat a friend, understand?” Johnny exploded.
“You are violating my human lights. I did no wrong, na. I just ask for more money, and you want to cut my dick off for your crocodiles. Why you angly with me, Khun Johnny?” Rak asked.
“Now you are talking about your fucking human rights,” Johnny said. “James, did you hear that? He is talking about human rights, when he was running around Chantaburi, and saying I was starving his family to death. Jesus Christ! I wish I never met you before, and look at his attitude. Asshole!”
“Okay, let’s cool down, you guys. This is not good for the health,” James interrupted.
“You see, Khun Johnny. Your fliend is light, na,” Rak quipped.
“Get the fuck out of here, will you? I am not going to pay you a single satang for what you did to me. What? Slandering!” Johnny said.
Now, Rak was smiling and acting deceptively apologetic.
“I’m solly, Khun Johnny. It was a mitake, na,” Rak uttered.
“Look at the fucking personality shift,” Johnny added. “After all this talk, he is now acting apologetic. Where is the meat cleaver? I want to fucking cut his tongue out too.”
James laughed loudly. After a while, Johnny too began laughing at the abrupt twist and turn of the event. And Rak was still standing saying nothing. He didn’t know whether to cry or laugh.
“Now listen buddy, can you just leave me alone for a while?” Johnny said. “I have a guest in my office.” James smiled at Rak.
“I’ll talk to you later, na” Rak said, and then left Johnny’s office.
“What a fucking day! Yep, What can I do for you, James? Sorry for the rough language. Usually, I’m quite careful, but today it just got out of control. Pardon me,” Johnny said.
“I understand,” James replied. “It happens. Now, I have some important thing to share with you. It’s going to affect us all.”
“What the hell is that?” Johnny asked surprisingly.
“Suvit is the man to watch. The blue BMW belonged to him,” James recalled.
“He is my good friend. How can he do such a thing to me? In fact, he called last night urging me join him investing in a new fucking mine in Madagascar. Who the fuck wants to go to Madagascar? If what you are saying is true, then something is not right. Are you sure it’s the same Suvit? There are thousand of Suvit’s in this country,” Johnny said seriously.
“Suvit Ploychan!” James uttered.
“That’s him. Bingo! I can’t believe this. So what you want me to do?” Johnny asked.
“Rudy wants us to inform Prapan of the truth. He must know the facts. The rest he will take care of. Listen, at the end of the day, we are all some kind of fucking foreigners here. No matter how many decades you live here, you are still that bloody farang (foreigner), understand? We got to work with the big buys to save our fucking ass. Otherwise, one fucking bullet, and a clueless assassin is more than enough to put us into that deep sleep,” James echoed his thoughts exactly.
“You’re right boy. So, where is Rudy? I need to talk with him,” Johnny added.
“In Bangkok.”
Johnny sat motionless thinking how quickly events had turned around to their disadvantage. No matter how hard they worked, one mistake was enough to bury their fortunes, and without the local’s help, there was no way they could do everything.
He thought of Rak for a split-second.
Maybe, he was right. Despite the sudden outburst and the rough language, countless Rak’s still returned bringing new customers for that small cut (commission). And they were crying for more money, and anyone who worked in the trade knew roughly the profits the foreigners were making, but preferred to remain quiet. Only the ones with balls argued for more of a share, and Rak happened to be one such son of a bitch.
“Let’s go out for a drink,” Johnny said.