Chapter 93

93 93. The Youngsters

If only Yamaguchi’s body wasn’t too old, he would have taken care of William himself. However, his chronic illness did not allow him to do strenuous physical activities. Just one minute of fighting and the next minute he’d be a corpse. That’s what the doctor explained to him. After all, his old body couldn’t possibly compare to the strength of young people like William and Ryuu. It’s not the time for him to fight anymore.

However, the last person he depended on could no longer be relied upon. His grandson even rambled about a strange story that he did not know before.

“Don’t you dare to betray me, Ryuu! Do what you should do!” Robert yelled out of anger. “You are the successor of the Yamaguchi family. Don’t embarrass me, Ryuu!”

However, Ryuu was unmoved. He still didn’t do anything his grandfather told him to do. “Grandpa, I’m sorry. If William hadn’t helped me when I was beaten up by some street punks, I would have only been left with a name now. You wouldn’t be able to see me anymore. That’s if you even want to see me.”

Yamaguchi shook his head in disbelief. “What do you mean?”

“I mean, William helped me when I was about to die. There’s no way I can beat him right now. I owe him my life. Do you want me to be an ungrateful person?”

“Nonsense! You must be making up stories,” Yamaguchi argued, not wanting to believe his grandson’s words.

“It’s up to you to believe me or not. I don’t care.”

Ryuu didn’t want to continue arguing with his grandfather any longer. He then stood up and approached William to help him get up. Ryuu bowed and greeted William.

.....

“You may not remember me, however, I will always remember your kindness to me,” Ryuu said with a sincere smile to William.

William, who was astonished, stared at Ryuu, trying to remember what kind of event had brought him together with an Asian who was as big as Ryuu. Then, glimpses of the past flashed in his mind.

At that time, he was still very young. He was a middle schooler. William saw an Asian boy his age surrounded by three grown men, members of a motorcycle club who were notorious for anyone who did wrong to them.

Coincidentally, William and Samuel happened to see the poor kid. That Asian boy was defending his mother who was being harassed by men. It was then, William asked Samuel to help the boy. They asked Ryuu to call the police immediately. While William and Samuel dealt with the three ferocious men armed with wooden sticks.

Of course, William and Samuel were in a lot of trouble. However, they were both lucky that the police arrived just in time. All were immediately rushed to the hospital. It’s just that the Montgomery family wanted their children to be cared for in a better hospital. Ryuu didn’t have time to thank William and Samuel. He only knew their name after doing some research.

The heroic action left a deep mark on Ryuu’s mind. He not only owed William and Samuel his life but also owed his mother’s pride. He couldn’t stand it if his mother was raped by criminals.

The incident was published in the media. How heroic the children of the Montgomery family were and also about the victims of the crime who were Japanese. It was then that the Yamaguchi family discovered the whereabouts of Ryuu, the secret heir to the Yamaguchi family.

Indeed, Ryuu’s mother divorced his father while she was pregnant. She fled to America and raised Ryuu by herself in New York. She didn’t ask for alimony because she didn’t want to have anything to do with the Yamaguchi family anymore. The pain of being betrayed by her ex-husband made her choose to live in poverty in New York rather than feel indebted to the Yamaguchi family.

A few weeks after Ryuu was out of the hospital, the Yamaguchi family, who heard about the whereabouts of the secret heir and the bad incident that had happened to Ryuu, immediately picked up his future heir. They even blamed Ryuu’s mother and sued her for being accused of hiding Ryuu from the Yamaguchi family.

Ryuu’s mother was about to refuse because the Yamaguchi family already had Akane. However, the court decided that custody of Ryuu was given to the Yamaguchi family.

Various terrible events made Ryuu forget about William and Samuel. He shut himself off from the outside and his subconscious only forced him to focus on practicing martial arts. He had forgotten what his original motivation was.

Initially, he practiced martial arts because he wanted to become a great person like William and Samuel. He wanted to protect the people he loves from criminals.

However, many things happened, making Ryuu forget about that. He just practiced and practiced without even remembering why he wanted to become strong. He only beat up the enemies of his father and grandfather, like this robot who only obeys orders.

Unknowingly, Ryuu’s tears burst into tears when he saw William’s seriously injured condition. Of course, William felt utter astonishment as the golden-skinned man shed tears.

“I’m sorry, instead of repaying your kindness, my family did evil things and tortured you,” Ryuu said with a very apologetic look. He looked at William’s face with regret, hoping that the pain William was suffering from could be transferred to him.

“It’s okay. You didn’t do it to me,” William answered softly. He winced at the pain all over his body.

“What ... what can I do to make up for this mistake?” Ryuu asked hopefully. His jet-black eyes stared at William intensely. His brows furrowed for fear that the pain in William’s body would be unbearable. He was afraid that the wound would be fatal. “Looks like I have to take you to the hospital first.”

William then shook his head in response. “I just want to go home soon. My wife must be worried now. I don’t want her waiting anxiously.” William’s voice was very low. Of course, it was because his injuries were very bad. However, what he wanted was to meet Paula as soon as possible.

“Wait! At least, let me call the family doctor to treat your wound. I can’t send you home in a condition full of wounds like this,” Ryuu insisted. His chest felt so tight seeing William’s condition, that was almost destroyed.

Ryuu immediately ordered his men to call a doctor. However, when Ryuu was carrying William out of Grandpa’s room, the old Yamaguchi then approached and threatened him.

“What do you want to do? Don’t do whatever you want in my house,” he threatened Ryuu. “Or I will return you to your poor mother.”

However, Ryuu didn’t care. His eyes glanced up at his grandfather and he said, “Do what you want, Grandpa! I told you, I owe my life to the Montgomery family. I will not betray them in the slightest. It doesn’t matter what your threats are.”

“How dare you talk back to me like that?” Old Yamaguchi’s hand was already raised, about to slap Ryuu, but unexpectedly, a hand covered in blood prevented it. The strong and muscular hand was still strong enough to break the old man’s arm. However, he was still kind enough not to do that.

“Mr. Yamaguchi, I don’t know what honor and family honor you are referring to. However, you are already old. Learn to be wiser,” said William softly. Blood was still flowing from his nose and mouth. However, that did not diminish the wise look he exuded. “Young people may indeed be naive. However, they have a code of ethics that cannot be violated. A code of ethics that is as precious as the old principles you have and keep for decades.”

“Don’t advise me!” Yamaguchi snapped again. He wanted to free his hand from William’s grip. However, he realized how strong that man was. With Ryuu on William’s side, Yamaguchi realized that he had lost.

“Mr. Yamaguchi, there will be a time when the younger generations run the wheels of life, becoming leaders in the big family. What will he be like in the future, that is the result of the education you gave him? So, if you are the one who forbids your grandson from committing crimes on your side, you can be sure what the future of your family will be,” added William confidently. His green eyes shone sharply again, looking at old Yamaguchi without even blinking.

“Grandfather, Akane and Father are the results of your upbringing. They are now on the verge of being jailed for their actions. Let me take a different path, Grandpa!”

“Ryuu!”

“Grandpa, I will receive my punishment later. Now, let me treat William’s wound first,” Ryuu said.

Yamaguchi fell silent. He could only watch his grandson lead William away from his room. In his heart, he thought, was what he had done all this time a big mistake?

***

Paula comes home confused. William shouldn’t be going anywhere. It’s already 20:00. He promised to make her dinner. She tried several times to contact William, but his cell phone was unreachable. This was not fair. There must be something bad going on with William.

“I have to call the police!” Paula said. She grabbed her handbag and coat, preparing to leave the apartment.

Just as she opened the door, it was then that several men in black were already standing before her.

“Who are you?”