“This girl is not bad.”
Back at his rented apartment, Darnell was taking off his clothes for a shower while starting the dashcam on his phone. He clearly saw the Porsche being towed away, along with a Maserati, heading to a repair shop ten kilometers away.
Darnell breathed a sigh of relief. He had been worried that Karlee might smash the car. The Porsche was barely a week old, and if Karlee and her friends had wrecked it, Darnell wouldn’t be able to explain it to Areli. Even now, with the car damaged, he was a bit troubled. Fortunately, Areli had another car to use and was busy with the Harmony Hospital project, so her transportation wouldn’t be affected.
He then thought about Karlee’s declaration. The girl had boasted about wanting to win him over, which left Darnell in a dilemma. Should he let her?
As these thoughts swirled in his mind, Darnell received an email from Wendy, informing him that twelve bodyguards had been arranged around Areli, working in shifts to protect her. They were using an open-four and hidden-two formation.
“This makes things much easier,” Darnell muttered as he felt a weight lift off his shoulders. Aryan’s appearance had made him tense, and although taking him out served as a deterrent, there was no guarantee that someone else wouldn’t act rashly. The presence of these bodyguards significantly eased his burden.
After replying to the email, Darnell checked the office surveillance system to ensure it was functioning properly. To his surprise, he saw Areli in the office on a Sunday. She wasn’t busy working but stood by the window holding a phone, looking very serious as if facing some difficulty. Unfortunately, her lips weren’t facing the camera, so Darnell couldn’t read them.
After a long time, Areli hung up the phone but didn’t return to her seat. She stood there lost in thought for a while before finishing her coffee and going to the safe. She entered the password and fingerprint scan to open it, first taking out a notebook and then a black box.
Areli habitually placed the black box on the table and scanned it with her eyes after entering another password. Darnell clearly saw rows of glass test tubes filled with various colored liquids inside the box. After quickly closing it, Areli took the box and left the office swiftly.
“It even has a self-destruct mechanism. This must be something important,” Darnell murmured to himself. “Could this be Utopia?”
He pondered whether he should go protect Areli but ultimately dismissed the idea after seeing four black-clad bodyguards in the hallway surveillance footage. These unfamiliar figures were very respectful towards Areli and followed her closely as she left the office with the box.
Darnell could tell these people meant no harm to Areli and were quite skilled, at least fifth or sixth-class warriors, more than capable of handling ordinary situations. They were undoubtedly the bodyguards Wendy mentioned. He also recalled yesterday’s conversation in the car and pondered their mysterious employer’s identity.
Moreover, Darnell had absolute confidence that unless an enemy killed Areli instantly upon contact, he could save her as long as she survived for an hour. Areli’s value alive was exponentially greater than dead. Surviving an hour was inevitable, giving Darnell enough confidence.
He then picked up his phone and activated the tracker in Areli’s Patek Philippe watch, watching Areli’s red dot move on the screen. An hour and a half later, Areli appeared in Eastmoor.
Darnell chewed on a carrot while opening his laptop to pull up a map of Whiteville, marking a red dot. Harvest Innovations.
He made an assessment. “This is most likely Utopia’s research lab.”
Darnell considered visiting there sometime to familiarize himself with the layout ahead of time.
After confirming that Areli was safe, Darnell lay down for a nap. He was awakened by knocking at his door.
“Damn! What’s all this noise in broad daylight?”
Rubbing his head, Darnell got up from bed, put on some clothes, and walked towards the door. As soon as he opened it while rubbing his face, four familiar faces came into view.
With grinning faces, they shouted in unison, “Boss!”
Cesar?
Darnell was momentarily stunned before grabbing Cesar by the collar and shouting, “Traitor! How dare you show up?”
Cesar waved his hands frantically. “Boss, calm down! Please listen to my explanation.”
Harry and two others also shouted, “Yes, Boss! Please hear us out.”
“What’s there to explain?”
Darnell held Cesar by his collar while patting him down for six thousand dollars but found nothing except two packs of cheap cigarettes and a lighter. “Embezzling six thousand dollars is heartless. Running away faster than your boss is disloyal.”
“There’s nothing more to say about dealing with heartless traitors like you! You should be thrown into the Whiteville River.”
“No!”
Cesar showed his gold teeth. “Boss, it’s not what you think! We didn’t betray you.”
Cesar looked pitifully at Darnell. “We ran ahead that night to divert Steve and the bar’s security so that you and that lady would be safe! Admittedly, it might have been slightly inappropriate in hindsight.”
“Slightly inappropriate? Bullshit!”
Darnell scolded without mercy, “If you were security guards, would you chase someone far away instead of catching those nearby? If I didn’t have some skills myself, we would’ve been surrounded that night.”
He extended his left hand and pressed on, “And where’s my six thousand dollars?”
Cesar spoke up, “Boss, we might be foolish sometimes, but our intention was truly to divert attention so you both would be safe. We never intended to abandon you! We’re loyal through thick and thin!”
“And we didn’t keep any of that money for ourselves either.”
Cesar further explained, “Apart from having one meal that night out of fear relief, funds went towards important matters.”
“For instance, erasing bar surveillance footage, gathering information on Steve, or bribing police officers for intel.”
Cesar fixed his eyes upon Darnell as he continued, “You smashed a bottle over his head and caused a commotion there. Naturally, we needed proper cleanup afterward.”
“It was you who erased the bar’s surveillance footage?”
That night after sending Bailee home, Darnelln hacked into the bar’s security system, intending to erase the footage, but to his surprise, someone had beaten him to it and hacked the hard drive from that night, leaving no images saved. He didn’t expect it to be connected to Cesar.
Cesar nodded. “We spent three thousand.”
Darnell crooked his finger. “What about the other three thousand?”
“Spent two thousand finding out about Steve’s background, and the rest on a meal to calm our nerves.”
Seeing Darnell’s expression ease, Cesar quickly offered a smile and replied, “We’ve found out that Steve is the heir of the Swain Group.”
“He’s Zane Swain’s son, a formidable force. Although Whiteville isn’t under the Swain family’s control, many still work for him.”
He added, “The three major gangs in Whiteville also have dealings with him.”
Darnell’s eyes narrowed. “He is Zane Swain’s son?”
He suddenly found the situation intriguing. He had tried his best to avoid being entangled in the Swain Group’s case, yet reality kept intertwining him with it.
He smashed a bottle to play the hero, and the person he offended was none other than Steve!
Cesar nodded vigorously. “Yes, Steve is the heir to the Swain Group, known for his vicious and ruthless nature.”
“Every year, no fewer than twenty women and nearly a hundred men die by his hand. He’s a despicable scoundrel hated by all.”
“His trip to Whiteville with a billion and a group of desperados is specifically to deal with Zane’s unfinished business here.”
When mentioning the billion, Darnell’s eyes gleamed, and Cesar continued, “It’s rumored that the journalist shooting in front of the Megavolt Electrical was a hit ordered by Steve to silence witnesses.”
“We’ve also found out that Steve has put out a million-dollar bounty for your whereabouts. He wants to sink you in the Whiteville River.”
Cesar showed concern. “You must be careful. A million isn’t much for the three major gangs, but it’s a huge reward for small thugs.”
“If they find out about you, they’ll stop at nothing to get to you. Troublesome spirits are hard to deal with. You must be very careful.”
He patted his chest. “But don’t worry too much. I’ll protect you with all my might. Anyone who wants your life will have to step over my dead body.”
Harry and the others echoed, “Right, we’ll protect you with all our strength, boss!”
“What? A million?”
Ignoring their loyalty, Darnell focused on the bounty. “Steve is really a spendthrift. For half a million, I’d willingly show up in front of him.”
Cesar and the others almost fainted, then took the opportunity to flatter. “You do have an unyielding spirit, boss. Impressive!”
“Your gang, the Pantheon, will sooner or later flourish.”
The four raised their arms and cheered in unison. “Long live Darnell! Long live the Pantheon!”
“Alright, stop the flattery.”
Darnell released Cesar’s collar and stuffed two packs of cigarettes back into his hands. “Although your explanation is full of holes, considering you’ve brought some valuable information, I won’t pursue your desertion that night and the six thousand. Alright, go back where you came from.”
“From now on, don’t let me see you again.”
Cesar made a bitter face. “Boss, you can’t do this. We haven’t done anything wrong, and we’ve been loyal. You can’t drive us away.”
“Get lost!”
Darnell unceremoniously drove them away. “With you four around, I’ll be driven mad sooner or later.”
Cesar grabbed Darnell, pleading, “Boss, we’ve been so loyal and have done so much for you.”
“That’s exactly what infuriates me the most.”
Darnell glared, disappointed in them, and knocked on his head. “I could have erased the surveillance footage and found out about Steve without spending a dime, yet you spent a whopping five thousand. Even if I had a mountain of gold, you’d squander it. Surely, I absolutely can’t keep you by my side.”
Cesar’s mouth dropped open, as if he was unable to retort for a moment.
Darnell waved them away repeatedly. “Go away.”
Cesar’s expression changed. “Boss, if you’re like this, we have no choice but to use our trump card.”
Darnell put his hands on his hips. “What? Are you going to sell me out for the million?”
Thud!
Cesar and the other three dropped to their knees in unison, clutching Darnell’s thighs and wailing,
“Boss, please don’t drive us away!”
“Once a boss, always a boss. How can you abandon us?”
“If you won’t be our boss, we’d rather die than leave.”
Darnell cursed inwardly, “Damn it! Why are you clinging to my thighs?”
Darnell was almost driven to madness by their antics. “Stop wiping your tears on my thighs!”