To protect his father’s hard-earned small shop from becoming a drug transit point, Nacho was determined to get rid of Hector. Hector had a heart condition and always carried nitroglycerin capsules with him for emergencies. During one of Hector’s episodes, Nacho had obtained one capsule. If he could get identical capsules and fill them with other powder, he could make Hector’s death look unexplained. When it came to getting the capsules, Nacho’s first thought was Daniel.
When Daniel got home from work, he was shocked to see Nacho sitting on his living room sofa. The fate of his father’s shop rested entirely on Daniel, so Nacho didn’t want to use force. Instead, he offered $20,000 to buy two boxes of unpackaged capsule shells. Tempted by greed, Daniel agreed. But due to their unpleasant past experiences, Daniel decided to pay Mike to accompany him for the delivery.
When Mike was investigating Hector’s drug transport routes, he had witnessed Hector having a heart attack and taking nitroglycerin. As soon as he heard Nacho wanted to buy empty capsules, he immediately guessed their purpose. Mike had initially wanted to stay out of it, but he thought of the innocent bystander still buried in the desert—someone whose family didn’t even know his whereabouts. So he agreed to help Daniel.
At the meeting point, Mike first checked Nacho’s gas cap to make sure they weren’t being followed. He then reminded Nacho that after the job was done, he must replace the capsules to erase all traces. Additionally, Mike took out a pen and paper and asked Nacho to reveal where the innocent bystander was buried.
During this time, Jimmy not only had to sell his TV ad slots but also attend community service. Dressed in a yellow vest, he picked up trash under an overpass and was even harassed by the supervisor. As soon as his four-hour community service shift ended, he quickly wiped the dust off his face, changed into clean clothes, and took a film crew from the state university to shoot an ad for a client. He had already sold one of his remaining eight ad slots. Jimmy planned to sell the remaining seven in a single package, but the $4,600 price tag scared off several inquirers. Regardless, he decided to first finish shooting the ad for his first client and earn his first sum of money—otherwise, he wouldn’t even be able to pay his half of the office rent.
Another ad deal came in. The next day, Jimmy hurried to pick up the film crew right after his community service. But it was destined to be a bad day: his old car broke down. He took a bus to the musical instrument store run by his clients, only to find that the gay couple who owned the store had changed their minds. With no time left to find another client, Jimmy had no choice but to offer to shoot the ad for free. He made a deal with them—if the ad worked well, they would buy the remaining six slots at the original price of $900 each.
He earned nothing all day and even had to pay the film crew out of his own pocket. Jimmy had never been so tired before; being a good person was harder than he thought.
Kim had also been exhausted lately, often working late into the night. Part of the reason was Chuck. After the excitement of winning the hearing faded, a sense of guilt crept in. Making a sick man have a breakdown at the hearing—and letting his ex-wife witness it—made Kim feel uneasy. At night, she sat outside her office, smoking a cigarette.
Jimmy, who was equally tired, came up with an idea. The two went to an upscale restaurant, ordered an affordable drink each, and scanned the room for targets. Whenever they found a suitable one, they raced to think of ways to trick that person. Of course, they never put their ideas into action. But as Kim watched Jimmy get more and more invested, she secretly worried that he would go back to his old ways.
Jimmy’s financial situation was desperate. He remembered buying a one-year lawyer’s professional liability insurance two months earlier, so he went to the insurance company to ask for a partial refund. But the account manager had to refuse his request. What’s more, the manager told him in advance that once Jimmy resumed his practice, his insurance premium would increase by 150%.
This was like adding insult to injury. Two glistening tears rolled down his cheeks. As he cried, Jimmy talked about his misfortunes and expressed sorrow for his brother Chuck. He said Chuck had a mental illness, lived in a house without electricity, and used smokeless gasoline to get by—and that he was the one who had left Chuck lonely and helpless.
While listening, the account manager secretly wrote down details about Chuck. Jimmy seemed to realize he had said too much and quickly stopped the manager. When he walked out of the office, the sad look on his face was replaced by a faint sneer. It was time for Chuck to taste the same suffering.