Yoyo immediately nodded. “Yes, Boss. Of course I do!”
His answer came so spontaneously that Fero raised an eyebrow. Yoyo quickly let go of Fero’s pant leg and sat up straighter, even though his body still hurt after being thoroughly beaten. “I’m honestly tired of living like this, Boss. Every day, we extort people, get hated by the community, and then we’re the ones chased down whenever there’s trouble.”
One of his men, still sitting while clutching his stomach, nodded as well. “We don’t really want to keep living like this either, Boss.”
“Then why do you keep doing it?” Fero asked.
Yoyo fell silent for a moment. He wiped his face, which had started to sweat despite the chilly night air. “Because we don’t have a choice. I’ve looked for work several times, but the moment they find out I used to be a thug, nobody wants to hire me.”
“Especially not us,” another man added. “What company would want to hire people like us?”
Fero watched them for a few moments. None of their previous fierceness remained. All that was left were several grown men in worn-out clothes, with bruised faces and lives that were clearly heading nowhere good.
“Then come to Blackline Garage tomorrow morning,” Fero finally said.
Yoyo blinked. “Blackline Garage?”
“At seven.”
“Seriously, Boss?”
“If I were joking, why would I give you the address?”
Yoyo immediately broke into a wide smile. “You got it, Boss! We’ll be there at seven.”
Fero pointed at them one by one. “Don’t be late.”
“We won’t!”
“And don’t cause any more trouble.”
Yoyo nodded repeatedly. “You got it.”
His men answered in unison as well. “You got it, Boss!”
Fero let out a short sigh. “That’s enough. Go home and get some rest. I’ll see you all at the garage tomorrow.”
“Yes, Boss.”
Fero turned and left them behind. Behind him, Yoyo and his eight men continued staring at one another with expressions that were difficult to explain. For the first time in a long while, they felt that there might still be another path besides becoming street thugs.
Fero walked into the grounds of Yayasan Cinta Bunda. As soon as Sita saw him appear, she approached with Mr. Hadi and several others. The children also began coming out of the building, but Sita quickly raised a hand to keep them behind her.
“Fero, how did it go?” Sita asked.
“It’s done,” Fero replied briefly. “They won’t bother this place anymore.”
Mr. Hadi looked relieved. “Thank goodness. I was worried the problem would get worse.”
“You don’t need to worry anymore, Mr. Hadi.”
Behind one of the windows, Angelo and several others had actually been peeking out the whole time. They had only watched Fero talking to the group of thugs from a distance, and none of them had heard the conversation.
Angelo finally came out once things had begun to settle down. “So they just left like that?”
Fero glanced at him. “Yeah.”
“What did you do to them?”
“Talked.”
“Talked?” Angelo frowned. “After beating up nine people?”
“What else was I supposed to do?”
Angelo opened his mouth but couldn’t come up with a reasonable answer. “Well... I don’t know.”
Fero merely shrugged. “The important thing is that everything’s settled.”
Sita still looked curious, but she didn’t press him. As long as Fero had solved the problem without making things worse, that was enough for her.
After finishing the paperwork and taking care of a few other matters, Fero rose from his chair. He straightened his jacket before saying goodbye to Mr. Hadi and Sita.
“Mr. Hadi, we’ll head home now.”
Mr. Hadi nodded. “Be careful on the way, Fero. Thank you for helping us.”
“You don’t need to thank me, Mr. Hadi. I just happened to be here.”
Sita smiled. “Then come visit again sometime.”
“If I have the time, I definitely will.”
Angelo, standing not far from them, seemed reluctant to leave. He was still busy chatting with Sita, while several children began gathering around him.
“Angelo, when are you coming back?” one of the children asked.
Angelo immediately smiled. “Tomorrow works.”
Fero, who heard that, rolled his eyes. “Are you planning to move in here?”
Angelo ignored him. He crouched in front of Andy and ruffled the boy’s hair. “I’ll come back. You kids better behave, okay?”
“Don’t stay away too long either, Angelo.”
“Got it. I promise.”
Sita gave a quiet laugh at his antics. “Enough. Fero’s really going to leave you behind.”
“Just a minute.”
“You’ve been saying ‘just a minute’ this whole time.”
Angelo finally stood up. He waved to Sita and the children before walking after Fero toward the car.
“You’re really suited to being a babysitter,” Fero teased.
Angelo snorted. “They’re good kids. Is it my fault I like them?”
“Not at all.”
“Then?”
“You’re just noisy.”
“Jerk.”
Fero chuckled softly and opened the car door. They left Yayasan Cinta Bunda after saying goodbye once more to everyone there.
It was late at night by the time the old car headed toward the Ardan family residence. After staying away from home for quite some time, Fero had finally decided to return tonight. Either way, he couldn’t exactly let Angelo sleep at the garage or at Black Tiger headquarters.
“You sure we’re going home now?” Angelo asked from the passenger seat.
“If we don’t go home, where are you planning to sleep?”
“At the garage.”
“Be my guest.”
Angelo immediately shook his head. “Never mind.”
Fero gave a faint smile while keeping his eyes on the road. A few minutes later, the old car entered the grounds of the Ardan family residence.
The Ardan family’s enormous mansion looked magnificent beneath the night sky. Garden lights shone brightly along the driveway, while the porch lights made the front of the building look even more luxurious. Expansive grounds stretched out on both sides of the road, decorated with neatly arranged trees and plants.
The old car Fero was driving slowly came to a stop in front of the mansion.
Several new servants stood lined up near the entrance. They looked slightly confused when they saw the arriving car, and some of them exchanged glances before straightening up again.
As soon as the car door opened, Fero got out first. His appearance was far from what they imagined a member of a wealthy family would look like. His hair was slightly messy, his black T-shirt was plain, and the jeans he wore looked more like work clothes.
Angelo got out on the other side, looking little different. He was also dressed simply and looked more like a young man who had just come home from a garage than someone who lived in a mansion that size.
The new servants exchanged glances again. One of them even unconsciously looked at the old car they had arrived in, as if still trying to make sure that the vehicle really belonged to the person who had just gotten out in front of the Ardan family mansion.
Fero slipped both hands into his pockets and walked toward the mansion doors, while Angelo followed behind him. In front of them, the line of new servants still stood with bewildered expressions, as though they couldn’t understand what connection these simply dressed young men had to the magnificent mansion they guarded.