-2/9/22 Another Tidbit From Caesar's Move

This is a conversation (from my book, Caesar's Move) between the protagonist (Casey Harwell) and the antagonist (Caesar) . They have many conversations together, throughout the course of the book, and each one leaves one man at a loss for controlling the situation. Can you guess which one dominates the control?

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“Yes. That is true. I almost forgot about that. Truly a difficult time you

must be going through right now. When it seems like the world has caved

in on you and the only person who is present that could dig you out …

is the very one that you abhor. Those that you called friends aren’t close

enough anymore to remove the piles of earth you feel like are covering you

… suffocating you beneath its unyielding pressure. But the one hand that

is available to move the dirt and let your rib cage expand so you can take

a much needed breath … is the very hand you would most like to cut off.

How ironic is that? You’re only friend … is your enemy. Does that make us

anything close to friends now, Casey? Or still enemies? Does one cancel out

the other? Or is it possible to be both at the same time? That is a remarkable

concept, don’t you think?”

Casey said nothing.

“Which one do you want to be?” Caesar asked him in a slightly different

tone.

Those words were strange to Casey’s ears. Not only had his life taken

such a drastic turn, but now this. He had spent so much time trying to shut

this man down and now he had asked him that.

“Why would you ask me that?”

“Someone needs to, my boy. Tell me you don’t need a friend. I think that

you do. So tell me, now that you’ve tasted something different, how are your

taste buds salivating these days? Are you still an emotional vegetarian? Or,

are you feeling a little more carnivorous? Salads leave you still hungry, but a

piece of meat stays with you a lot longer.”

“What are you getting at?”

“You missed the party, bud. We had a party tonight and you were a no show.

Now, how are you going to enjoy the night when you’re cowering in

the shadows? You need to come out into the light.”

“And compromise my position?”

“That’s not what I’m talking about, Harwell!” Caesar said, insulting his

intelligence. “You’re not stupid. Read between the lines!”

His words went from calm, to extremely irritated in half a second. Then

quickly returned to a more gentle tone of voice.

“You need to reevaluate your thinking process. Question. Have you ever

seen me, Casey?”

“No,” he replied with a bit of hesitation in his voice.

“But I’m in the light. Everyone sees me.”

Casey happened to glance over at a sidewalk light illuminating the

cement below. He noticed the ring of light that fell to the ground and

surrounded its base in a circular radiance; subtly displayed, but intense

against the power over darkness.

He understood what Caesar meant. Even though no one knew his

identity, he was still well known and in the public’s sight. Everyone knew his

name. He lived his fame in the shadows of what he did, popular in his own

demented way, but unapproachable, enabling him to maintain his privacy.

“Is that enough for you?” Casey asked him.

His question triggered an emotional response from Caesar.

“Now, that is the question of the century. Is that enough? You think it

would be, but just as soon as you put your faith in your accomplishment,

they walk in and tear down what you thought would make a difference. Is

that enough? Well it would be if you were being judged by something other

than a hypocritical self-centered piece of worthless dung. No matter how

hard you try to make it just so perfect, so that maybe, for once they would

be impressed with it and tell you what a good job you did, but no!”

Caesar began raising his voice again.

“They have to kill it with their insecurities! Break it down, piece by

fucking piece! Micro-dissect it so they can nitpick every little detail, so there

was no way possible you could ever out do them! Much less to match up to!

They could never let you be better than themselves! Always keep you feeling

like you were less intelligent than was their superiority! It should be enough!

But no! Was it ever?! Fuck that!”

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One man sets the pace. He states the rules. Initiates the momentum. Declares the outcome. And hits the replay button just when you've had enough. Two men from either end of the spectrum, at odds, and one is crazy.

Caesar has an overpowering arrogance about him. He's decided to play this game with Casey and ruthlessly toys with his emotions throughout the story. It's a deadly game of chess. He who thinks ahead gets the move. He who fails to move wisely, loses the game. But when you lose it's for more than just yourself ... you lose for others ... thus, playing the game takes on a whole new meaning. Casey didn't ask for it, but he got it anyway. Game on and may the best man win.

If you've already read my book and wish to play along then try your hand at this. Open up the pages and decipher this clue. It will leave you with a message about the ending. Good luck.

7:211

Undici: One2Five

IV: 9th in 1st Dialog

842 Reversed: Is it glazed? (>? >?)

4H(100): X<<SEND

If you figured it out, kudos to you. Perhaps you should take on some cold cases. If not, keep trying.

Thank you, reader, for spending time with me. I enjoy my time here and hope you do too. Sometimes I wonder just how much nonsense I can pull out of my head. I see it like, if it keeps flowing then I'm gonna keep the nozzle turned in the 'on' position. Come on Bain ooze.

Stay hydrated, kiddos. Drink some ooze. It's good for your ... well ... it's somewhat wet, anyway. Pick up a good book and quench your thirst. Feed that brain. You owe it to yourself.

Angelo

angelobain.com