Darnell had no idea that last night he not only hit Steve on the head but also ruined Hugo’s career.
After returning to his rental apartment from Horizon Yard, he slept soundly through the night.
He woke up late the next morning, almost at noon. After washing up, he went to a nearby ATM and withdrew five thousand dollars. He hadn’t started using Roberto’s four hundred thousand yet.
As for the check worth five million, he could only deal with them at the bank tomorrow, so he kept it in his pocket for now.
Then, he went to the company to pick up his Porsche. Just in case Areli needed the car tomorrow, he didn’t want to be caught off guard.
After getting fifteen kisses, Darnell felt he should treat Areli better.
After picking up the car, Darnell, who hadn’t eaten anything all morning, drove a few kilometers and stopped at a diner. He locked his car and walked in leisurely.
He was starving.
Halfway through his meal, he saw seven people walk in and sit at a large table.
Darnell glanced over and was stunned. These seven were none other than Garrett and his gang. They looked nothing like their spirited selves from last time’s encounter, their expressions dejected.
A few of them had injuries on their faces, looking like a mess.
Darnell chuckled, “What a small world.”
Seeing that they weren’t there to cause him trouble, Darnell merely glanced at them and went on eating.
While he was eating voraciously, several more groups of customers came and went from the diner.
Darnell paid them no mind, even adjusting his chair to conceal himself better. However, Garrett’s group’s voices still reached him.
“Boss, the Zipcode Security Company called. They said their boss thinks we’re not fit to be modern security guards because we can’t even use computers.”
“Sunrise Grocer also said they’ve found enough security personnel.”
“Sunshine Hub is willing to hire us, but the base salary is only fifteen hundred dollars a month with just two days off.”
“Boss, let’s go back to Northmoor. Being a thug pays better than being a security guard.”
As Darnell marveled at Garrett’s job hunt, Garrett rubbed his chest and glared at his group. “Go back to Northmoor? With what? How? Haven’t you had enough of that beating? We got our heads bashed in and spent five thousand on medical bills.”
“We were even warned by the Apex that if we tried to poach business on their turf again, they’d break our legs.”
“They have thousands of people, and we have just seven. If we really fight them, we won’t survive.”
Garrett might be brawny, but he’s not dumb. “Eastmoor, Westmoor, Northmoor, and here in the Central, these are the Crow’s and Rex’s territories.”
“If we want to survive in this underworld without becoming someone’s lapdog or fighting for turf and money against them, it’s as good as suicide.”
Darnell nodded silently. Garrett had a clear view of things.
“We should find proper jobs. I want quick money too, to pay for my sister’s tuition next semester, but Whiteville isn’t a place where fists rule everything.”
“Even if fists could rule everything, we’d still get beaten by someone like Darnell.”
Garrett picked up the menu. “Let’s find a decent job. As long as the pay is reasonable, we can endure some hardship.”
Recalling the alley fight, his six subordinates nodded. Their confidence and pride had been shattered by Darnell.
“Eat up. Order whatever you want.” Garrett patted his wallet. “I still have money here, enough for us for two months. Then we’ll continue job hunting this afternoon.”
“I refuse to believe that seven grown men can’t find a single job.”
“If we really can’t find work, no big deal. I hear electric scooters make good money in our village.”
“If worse comes to worst, we’ll buy three scooters and take turns ferrying passengers in shifts.”
“Each scooter only needs twenty rides a day for two or three hundred dollars. Three scooters make a thousand dollars daily.”
“In a month, each of us can earn two or three thousand dollars, enough for food and shelter.”
Garrett’s encouragement lifted their spirits. They all agreed enthusiastically before grabbing menus to order food.
Darnell tossed another piece of beef into his mouth. “Turning over a new leaf. Good men indeed.”
Garrett’s group quickly ordered a pile of food and started drinking beer heartily to dispel their gloom.
During this time, Garrett received a phone call. He glanced at it and his expression softened before stepping outside with his phone.
The six others didn’t seem concerned. They knew who was calling as they continued wolfing down their food.
Judging by how they ate, it seemed they rarely had such good meals.
At that moment, Darnell noticed a man and woman getting up, a round-faced woman and a one-eyed man, exchanging glances before sneaking towards Garrett outside.
To Darnell’s surprise, the man was none other than the one-eyed beggar from Horizon Yard last night. Only now he was cleaned up with new clothes on.
He looked much more presentable than last night, though Hugo’s sleazy demeanor hadn’t changed much.
Darnell couldn’t help but sigh, “Wow, this guy switches professions quickly.”
Outside, a taxi quietly pulled up with its door open and engine running as if ready for someone to hop in any moment.
With eyes slightly narrowed behind sunglasses after finishing his meal, Darnell got up to pay the bill before stepping out, unnoticed by Garrett’s drinking buddies.
“Guess who I am?” The round-faced woman suddenly rushed over as Darnell stepped outside. She covered Garrett’s eyes with her hands while laughing crisply,
“If you can’t guess right, you owe me lunch.”
Holding his phone tight, Garrett stiffened momentarily at being blinded but relaxed hearing it was a woman.
“Who are you?”
The round-faced woman giggled, “You have to guess! It’s only been a year. Did you forget me?”
Garrett twitched his lips. “Miss, sorry, but I don’t know you.”
He’d only been in Whiteville for months. However, he didn’t rudely push her away despite unfamiliarity.
The round-faced woman acted coyly. “How could you forget? We drank together before.”
“One more chance! If you can’t guess, you’re buying me lunch.”
During their chatter, Hugo stealthily approached, slicing off Garrett’s bag strap and smoothly grabbing the wallet before darting towards the waiting taxi. At one point, the woman deliberately brushed against Garrett with her chest, diverting his attention.
By this time, Garrett sensed something was amiss and bellowed, “Let go immediately, or I won’t be nice to you.”
“Not fun at all, getting angry over something like this.”
The round-faced woman replied with a face of resignation, “Alright, I’ll let go.”
After speaking, she pressed her fingertips, which were covering Garrett’s eyes, down hard on his eyelids, then released her hands and sprinted away.
Her figure could be considered plump, but she ran as swiftly as an eel, leaping down the stairs in an instant and dashing towards the taxi at a blistering pace.
Garrett tried to open his eyes, but felt a sting, as if his eyelids were glued together, preventing them from opening.
He wiped and sniffed his fingers, and the smell of glue filled his nostrils. His expression changed, and he realized he had been tricked.
With all his might, Garrett forced his eyes open and looked around, only to find the purse containing the money was gone.
The woman and Hugo were slipping into a taxi that their accomplice had hailed.
Garrett was furious. “Bastards!”
As the taxi was about to speed away from the diner with Garrett more than twenty meters behind, he felt helpless.
At that moment, three beer bottles whistled past his eyes.
Then came three ear-piercing crashes as the bottles smashed into the car, almost simultaneously hitting the round-faced woman and her companions on the head.
“Ah!”
Their heads were bleeding, and the driver about to step on the gas swayed, swerved, and crashed into a nearby flower bed.
Hugo was half thrown out of the car and saw the man who had thrown the bottles from a distance, filled with sorrow. “It’s you again!”
His forehead was bleeding, and his head was dizzy, but he could still recognize that the man was the one who had ruined his career.
Hugo was close to tears. This bastard was his nemesis!
At that moment, Garrett’s spirits lifted, and he rushed over immediately, pulling the driver out of the seat before he could turn the car around.
With a flick of his hand, the driver was slammed onto the hood, spitting out blood on the spot.
Then, he knocked out the round-faced woman and Hugo with a punch.
As Garrett retrieved his purse, six companions who had heard the commotion rushed out, seething with anger at the sight.
“Damn it! They dare to steal from us?”
“Beat them up!”
In pairs, they each grabbed one person and started wailing on them. The round-faced woman and her group were crying out, begging for mercy on the ground.
Seeing the three of them bleeding, Garrett waved to his six brothers. “That’s enough. Don’t cause any trouble, or we’ll have to pay compensation.”
“You’re lucky. Get lost.”
The six reluctantly stopped and drove the round-faced woman and her group away.
Garrett opened his purse to check and, seeing no loss, scanned the surroundings, looking for the savior who had intervened.
But he couldn’t find the Good Samaritan. He only caught a glimpse of a somewhat familiar figure getting into a Porsche.
Then, with a roar of the engine, the person drove away from the diner.
Garrett frowned slightly, having a guess but not being certain, then shook his head and returned to the diner, taking out his wallet. “Check, please.”
“Sir, your bill has already been taken care of.”
The diner owner, apparently having witnessed the earlier scene, was even more polite.
“Your friend took the liberty of paying for your meal and even added a few dishes for you to enjoy at your leisure.”
“Our friend? Paid for us?”
Garrett was taken aback, looked at the six men, and then exclaimed, “Who could it be?”
The diner owner tapped a few keys on the keyboard, pulled up the surveillance footage, turned the screen, and pointed it out to Garrett and his group, her face showing confusion.
“It’s him! Isn’t he your friend?”
Garrett and his group looked and gasped in unison. “Darnell?”
It was indeed him!
Feeling touched, Garrett was now certain that the person who had intervened was Darnell.