The Hero

Chapter 140 Regret

Javier shook his head, took out a cigarette, and lit it. He moved the package towards Jonah, but the older man waved nonchalantly.

“Samuel did not let go of his hand or my head. No. gabe. He just killed my best friend.”

Jonah's voice broke as he wiped his wrinkled face and sobbed like a schoolboy. It took a long time for him before he could finally endure his chaotic emotions. His mind seemed to have traveled back to the time when it happened ...

Samuel knelt down, trembling. Red blood brilliantly colored his hands.

“I swear, Dad, he instigated me! He told me that there was no point in school and education and told me ... He told me that I would finally work for him. He told me to join him to make so much money that our heads would turn and surprise you.

“I sold bynha. Age is chasing you, Dad. Fathers are getting weaker and unable to meet the challenges in this society. If I stick to a good educational path just to be useful to you .. how long does it take? So I thought I should start making money with him, and I wanted to make enough money so dad could retire brilliantly. It was my dream as a child to see my father happy and comfortable…

“But he lied to me, and I went too deep before I finally understood that. He tricked me, manipulated me into.. liaising*** with our teacher against his will, and then. he persuaded the teacher to use it against me. He hung the threat over my head and forced me to sell drugs. Tell me it can make money fast. Telling me that I only need a few years to raise enough funds for your retirement!

“I have no choice, Dad! I have no choice! He threatened me! I don't know what else to do. The only way is to do what he says and pocket as much money as I can before leaving him for good. Then, we will move to a place far away, where no one knows our past, so we can start a new life in the present.”.

Jonah took a piece of tissue from the table and wiped his tears. “I believe him. Who else should I trust? Samuel was a kid. What does he know? I haven't talked to my friends in years because of my wife and kids. And he. His wealth continued to bubble with this incredible speed. So I trust Samuel.

“But then, one day, I met his teacher by chance. That's when I realized what he told me wasn't true. Her...He had tried to rape the teacher's daughter, and just because he wanted to save the innocent young woman, oh God, his mother had instead let him do it to her. But that wasn't enough for Samuel. He threatened his teacher. Told him that he would kill his entire family if word got out.

“Sahabatkj accidentally heard this through a grapevine, and in order to make up for the regret he felt between us, he found the teacher before he sought help from the police. He bribed her with money and helped her and her family migrate elsewhere to bury the scandal. Samuel was afraid that I would find out, so he begged my friend not to say a word to me. He said he was confused. It was a moment of regrettable confusion. My friend believed him; he was worried that I would get angry, so he helped Samuel hide everything and never said a word!

“Samuel expelled from school. He had no direction, no decent pursuit. My friend sympathized with him, so he brought Samuel into his business, hoping that by giving the young man a chance to make him right again. He's not interested in any of that. All he had in his low brain was a deviation! He persuaded my friend to start a nightclub. He said it would be law. The cleanest nightclub in the country, he said…

“My friend rejected the idea at first. But Samuel threatened him with his wife and children, tested his resolve, and made him submit to his wishes. My friend ended up financing Samuel's nightclub.

“He never wanted it clean. He just wants to make a bank. It was a prostitution ring and a drug haven from day one. He made deals with brothels and drug dealers and started making money like there was no tomorrow. My friend found out a while later, and since I was around, she wanted to tell me.

“And that's when Samuel did it. He won't give my friend a chance to pit his sheep, so he..he slit his throat..He killed him and blamed the dead!” Jonah wiped away the tears that had just come out. “Yes God, I'm blind. Blind to hell and back. I believe the lies he told. I helped him bury my best friend's body in the hills. He's 'lost' and I'm acting as if it's true.

“I close the nightclub. I helped her process the papers and sent them overseas to continue her education. At first, it seemed like everything was fine. He took a picture of his school and showed it to me. He called me on his school phone. But then, one day, I decided to visit her at that school and realized that she did not go there at all. It's all fake—phone numbers, photos. All fake. He's been involved in some crime syndicates overseas and he trades women and children, and sometimes, uses those kids as drug mules!

“I decide. I will put an end to Samuel, I will avenge my friend, and I hope it is enough to atone for the sins he has committed. But before I could do that, he came back and took over my own business. My employees were bought by his disgusting dollar bill. Every thug on the street is taking his money and listening to him now! If any of my old allies and disciples resisted, he would beat them up. Two families—women, children, and parents— were killed for fighting! The extent of his ruthless methods towards anyone who dared to oppose him ... Oh my God, all that cruelty ...

“I won't back down. Won't lie down and let him trample on me. You can leave me alone, with a knife and nothing else, and I will still throw myself at him and cut the bastard to pieces!

“But he..he has one more trick. He's holding my best friend's kids hostage. He brought them before my eyes, telling me all it takes to silence them once and for all is my mind. If I dare come any way to threaten him ...

“And the rest. I don't care about any of them. Not having the power to care. That woman you mentioned, that Chessie girl? I've never seen her before, but I've heard of her.—she sounds like a good girl. But I didn't start all that Mafia League bullshit. It was all Samuel did. She took my name and abused it, using me as a doll.”

When the story was finally finished, Jonah took another tissue and wiped the tears from his eyes before lying back on his bed. “Samuel..He is my punishment, isn't he? He is the embodiment of the anger of my wife and children. Like the last judge in the past, he was my punishment, wasn't he?”

Jonah sank into silence as he lay on his back. He was so quiet that one might think he was sleeping, but an uninterrupted fresh trail grazed his cheek from the side of his eye saying otherwise.

Javier finished his cigarette with one last puff and buried the embers into the ashtray. He also fell silent. He left without a word, though,

There's nothing more to say. If Jonah is telling the truth, then all he needs to do is kill Samuel. If Jonah lies, Javier could come back and take his life. Doesn't matter.

Jonah listened to the sound of the door closing and sat on his bed, his hands on his weathered face.

He's intrigued. With a hoarse, loud voice. He regretted the ways he had done to mistreat his wife, his children, and his best friend. All that was left of them in his mind was already tainted by his unrelenting regret and suffering.

Javier went straight home after leaving Jonah's house. A few hours later, he arrived at his home when it was almost three in the morning.

As usual, he chose to sleep in the car instead of getting in. He had announced his intention to gather all information about Samuel through the black market and was convinced that any information about him would flood his mailbox tomorrow afternoon..

Javier pushed his chair down and lay there for a while before hearing the hasty footsteps of the creaking corridor sandals and grazing on the floor. The owner rushed from his voice. He thought it was a resident in the middle of an emergency, so he quickly sat down and looked outside.

She barely sat still as Kiara, who was wearing her nightgown and framed by her disheveled hair, saw her, her face beaming with joy. He wasted no time walking to the car and tapping the window, exclaiming, “You're back, baby! Come on!"

It's three in the morning. Why isn't he sleeping?