Then the room plunged into darkness, with only the corridor light outside the cell shining in. The tall guy named Ricky’s vision blurred.
“Bastard! Bastard!” Ricky roared, wiping the foot-washing water off his face and shouting to his companions, “Drag him out and cripple him.”
“Where is he? Where is he?” Dozens of men turned around, searching for Darnell’s figure. But there was no sign of him within their encirclement, only a plastic basin and shattered lampshade pieces.
“Over here.” As they turned, a lazy voice sounded from the corner.
They all looked over to see Darnell sitting beside the scarred man, holding a piece of broken glass.
The shard was pressed against their boss’s neck with lethal intent. One of the scarred man’s arms and legs were dislocated, and he was in so much pain that tears were about to fall.
Having roamed the underworld for years, Darnell fully understood the importance of capturing the leader first. It was the most effective and efficient way to solve problems.
“Let go of our boss. Let him go!”
“Kid, release him now, or I’ll kill you.”
They all shouted, “If you dare harm him, we’ll cripple you.”
The scarred man also managed to squeeze out a sentence with difficulty, “Kid, don’t do anything stupid, or you’ll really die.”
“If I’m destined to die here today, I might take someone down with me.” Darnell made a cut on the scarred man’s neck with the shard, and blood instantly flowed out. “Tell them to back off and behave.”
The scarred man screamed in pain and quickly ordered them to retreat. “Back off! Everyone, back off.”
They retreated a few meters angrily and reluctantly.
“Make them do three hundred push-ups,” Darnell said with a bright smile. “For every one they miss, I’ll make another cut.”
The scarred man groaned in pain and then shouted to them, “Quickly, do as he says.”
Although he felt humiliated, he had no choice but to obey his orders, as the shard pressed against his carotid artery.
His subordinates were furious but had no choice but to start doing push-ups. For a moment, shadows moved up and down in the cell.
“Do it properly. Legs straight, and chest down. Anyone who slacks off will get two hundred more.” Darnell scolded them unceremoniously, making them feel very uncomfortable. They were used to bullying others. They never expected to be humiliated today.
A middle-aged man and two bald men sat still, but the former had a hint of interest in his eyes, as if he was curious about Darnell.
Suddenly, two prisoners sprang up fiercely towards Darnell in an attempt to grab him.
At that moment, Darnell raised an eyebrow. Instead of retreating, he advanced. He grabbed one prisoner rushing from the left and threw him over his shoulder hard onto the ground. Then he forcefully kneed another prisoner in the stomach.
Both prisoners spat out blood instantly and fell to the ground, unable to get up.
Meanwhile, Darnell’s glass shard returned to the scarred man’s neck. “You guys aren’t being honest.”
He directly made another cut on the scarred man’s neck, causing blood to flow out again. “Look! Your boss is bleeding now.”
“When you finish your push-ups, I’ll stop his bleeding,” Darnell said seriously. “Honestly speaking, I don’t know how long he can last. It’s up to you.”
“Bastard,” they cursed angrily. “We’ll kill you sooner or later.”
Darnell didn’t reply but pressed on the wound again to make it bleed faster.
“Ouch!” The scarred man screamed in pain. “Do it quickly! Do as he says!”
They resumed doing push-ups with grunts and groans.
Three hundred push-ups took almost half an hour for over twenty people to complete. When they finished, they collapsed on the ground, gasping for air.
However, Darnell issued another order. “Fifty frog jumps.”
They almost spat blood in frustration.
The scarred man sighed helplessly, “Do as he says.”
They gathered their last bit of strength to jump like frogs. But after hundreds of push-ups had drained their energy, only Ricky managed fifty jumps while others collapsed after twenty-something jumps.
Darnell was quite pleased. He then pulled on the scarred man’s limbs, dislocating them with a swift motion.
After that, he charged toward Ricky and his crew.
Exhausted, Ricky quickly assumed a fighting stance, but before he could steady himself, Darnell kicked him over, sending him spinning three times on the ground.
As stars danced in his vision, Ricky vaguely saw the rest of his companions being taken down one after another by Darnell’s relentless kicks, groaning in pain as they collapsed.
Once Darnell had dispatched the lackeys, he grabbed a bedsheet and tied them all up neatly.
Ricky and the others seethed with indignation, thinking to themselves that this kid was too cunning.
Darnell then kicked the scarred man down to the floor and lay down in his bunk. “Tonight, I can finally get a good night’s sleep.”
He reached under the pillow and felt around, discovering a small bottle of vodka and a box of cigars-hidden treasures belonging to the scarred man.
Darnell lit the cigar, taking a couple of quick puffs despite not being a smoker, just to get it burning brightly-not for warmth, but to disperse the foul odor in the cell.
Next, he twisted open the sealed bottle of liquor and poured himself a few generous swigs, letting out a satisfied sigh. “What a lovely evening.”
The scarred man and his companions looked utterly despondent, their faces filled with a mix of anger and despair.
Despite the commotion in the cell and the shattered light bulb, no guards appeared. It was clear they knew something was going down.
What no one had expected was that Darnell, once a helpless lamb, was now completely unscathed, while the scarred man and his crew were destined to spend a cold night.
The middle-aged man and the two bald men remained motionless, watching the scene unfold with keen interest.
Seeing Darnell take control of the situation, the middle-aged man even showed a hint of admiration. Darnell piqued his curiosity.
After warming himself with a few sips of liquor, Darnell looked down at the scarred man on the floor. “Sir, it’s a long night ahead. Why don’t you sing us a song?”
He gestured toward Ricky and the others on the ground. “It’d be a good way to boost your men’s spirits.”
The scarred man’s lips twitched in frustration. It was truly a turn of events. He was always the one making others sing, and now he found himself in the spotlight.
“What’s wrong? Feeling reluctant?”
Darnell flashed a bright smile at the scarred man. “I won’t take no for an answer, you know.”
“I’ll sing! I’ll sing!”
The scarred man quickly responded, eager to comply. “How about my favorite, ‘Talking to the Moon’?”
“Oh? Not bad,” Darnell said, intrigued. “Go ahead. Sing it.”
The scarred man cleared his throat a few times and began to sing, “At night when the stars light up my room. I sit by myself. Talking to the moon. Trying to get to you…”
Darnell shivered at the sound, goosebumps rising in his arms. The off-key notes nearly brought him to tears, yet, the scarred man seemed to gain momentum, singing louder with each line.
“In hopes you’re on the other side. Talking to me too. Or am I a fool… Who sits alone.
Talking to the moon…”
Darnell felt like crying. “Oh, gentleman, I was wrong! Please, stop singing…”