Chapter 14

Chapter 14 Few weeks after the incident at the bar and his meeting with the Don, Sawyer noticed that the older man who had helped him the last time kept frequenting their restaurant. He would often drop by after work to eat their delicacies and he would even drop by during the weekends also. Everyone soon knew him as a regular when he came around. Just like tonight, Sawyer could see him, he was seated at a table by a corner of the restaurant eating the famous burger that the restaurant was known for. " Good day Sawyer" he greeted him when he saw Sawyer walk towards him. " Good day Don Maximus" Sawyer greeted in return " How are you doing today? I hope you're enjoying your meal?" He asked him. " I'm having a very great day, since I decided to step foot in here to have a taste of one of these magical and tantalizing burgers, the day has only gotten better" he told the young man, smiling. " I can see that," Sawyer told him. He was glad that he loved the snacks that they made in the restaurant also. Just like everyone who came by too and had always complimented their job in here, he was more than pleased to hear it from Don Maximus himself. " If you notice, I come here almost every day. You can say that I'm addicted to them" Don Maximus added, pointing to the food on his table. " Thank you for always dropping by at our restaurant. We don't take your patronage for granted sir." Both Sawyer and the Don had gotten quite close and had also bonded well since the last time. This made Sawyer feel very comfortable with him. He was the only customer that Sawyer gave the special treatment to and also spoke to. Most times, when all other customers came around, he'd leave them all to be attended to by Sofia but Don Maximus was an exception. He would always drop by the main restaurant, leaving the kitchen for a moment to check on the man. They got close to the extent that Sawyer could always open up on some of his fears to the older man. He felt comfortable around him. Don Maximus had ever since that night at the bar thought Sawyer was a nice person and would also make a good candidate for the plan he had in mind. He had a particular thing he was working on at the moment but he decided that he was going to unveil those plans as the time went by. He decided that he wouldn't tell Sawyer yet about them until the time was right. ******* When he was done eating, Don Maximus bid Sawyer goodnight as he was headed out of the restaurant. It was nighttime already and he had already had his fill. Dinner was out of his plans for the night, the restaurant had solved that. So, what was just left was for him to go to his house and finish up some things he was unable to complete before leaving his office today. He was a busy man with very tight schedules, so it even amazed him that he was able to always find the time to drop by the restaurant like he was doing presently. He entered his car parked a few metres away in front of the restaurant and started the ignition of his car before speeding off onto the road. While driving, Don Maximus noticed that the road ahead of him that led to his place was blocked at the moment. There was construction that was currently taking place, so road users had to suspend its usage for the time being till it was finally completed. Having no choice but to turn, Don Maximus made for another available path. It was an alley and it seemed to be quite short, so he decided to take the route instead. As he kept driving, he noticed that there were some people lurking about on the streets ahead of him. Some guys who seemed to be smoking and doing whatever it was they termed fun out on the streets that night. He didn't really feel comfortable passing the route he was in currently as a result of not being too familiar with the road here. He was used to passing the other route that was currently under construction. He reduced the rate of his speed while passing the route. It was quite different from the part he was used to which was larger and wider. The alley was narrow and dark. It didn't have many street lights like most of the major roads had. Suddenly as he kept driving, he noticed a guy standing in front of the incoming vehicle. He wondered why he was standing on the way when he should have noticed his car. Pressing the horn to alert the stranger, he realized that the person wouldn't go away. He was speechless. What was happening exactly? He slowed down his vehicle so he wouldn't run the strange man over. " Why does some people act so funny atimes?" Don Maximus asked, confused at what was happening before him. He guessed that the young man was probably drunk. As he was still contemplating going out of his car to address the situation, two men suddenly jumped out from nowhere beside his vehicle. They banged hardly and violently at the glass of his car, causing it to break. " Hey Oldie!!" One of the men by his right side who looked rough and tattered yelled at him, ordering him to get down from the vehicle. He smelt of tobacco, was obviously not in his right mind at the moment. " How are you doing today man?" The second man at the left who had a huge scar that ran over his face asked him laughing hard at the man in the car who wore a very confused and frightful look on his face. " Why don't you come down while we're still acting nicely" he told him. " Why should I come down?" Don Maximus asked them, mustering courage to cover his fear. He could not understand why someone would stand in the way causing inconvenience for others. " You guys blocked the road I am supposed to use and now you are telling me to come down. Come down from my car against my wish? I can't " he told them, now getting angry at their stupidity and insolence. " Shut up old man!" The one who had caused the whole ruckus from the beginning said. It was the man who stood in the way slowing him down from moving further. " Get the fvck out of that car!" He shouted angrily at Don Maximus, his voice was very deep and coarse in a way that his words registered in the brain of Don Maximus. " No!!!" He said to them, not wanting to obey their directive which was very foolish to him. He tried to drive off but soon stopped when he noticed that his car wasn't able to move. ' What was happening?' He thought, getting scared and anxious. " Don't even think of escaping or driving off because you can't," one of the men told him with a smirk on his face. They had deflated his tyre within those few moments and he had no idea. " Your car's tyre has been punctured" he added which made them burst into laughter. A very wicked kind of laughter. " I'm going to call the cops on you guys," he said, searching for his phone in his car but he wasn't given any chance as one of the men pulled the phone from his ears through the broken glass window. " Give me back the phone!!" " Shut the fvck up now or risk getting your brain burst out of your skull by this," the man on the left said to him, pointing a gun to his head. Don Maximus shook the moment he saw that they were armed. He was not expecting it at all. Could his day not get any worse? " Get down!!" The man by the right said again, holding his phone. He opened the car and came down. He didn't want to act rashly, he could get killed within seconds and he would not want to risk that. " Atta boy!! Move closer" the man with the gun said, pushing him roughly away from his car to the road. The other men went into his car to search for anything they could steal. Ransacking his vehicle with the intention to take basically everything he had. " Hey!!" Don Maximus shouted at them when he saw what they were doing. It didn't dawn on him before but seeing them now, he saw that they were armed robbers and he was unfortunately a victim of their foolishness and greed. He tried to go over to them but was hit by the thief standing before him. He saw the diamond ring on his victim's hand and tried to pull it out. He was sure that it would be a fortune should he steal it to sell but Don Maximus was not willing to part with the ring. It was his wedding ring, the one thing that he sees often in his fingers which reminded him of his late wife. He was not going to let a damned thief steal the jewelry away from him. It was more than a jewelry to him, it was a memory. They could part away with other gifts like his watch and phone, not this one. While he was being adamant, the man got angry and pushed the older man to the ground, kicking him violently by the side till he was weak enough for him to get what he wanted. While this was going on, one of them noticed a stranger running towards them. He had been chanced to pass the same route just in time to see the injustice being meted out. " Let's get out of here!!" The man who seemed to be the leader of the three thief-gang shouted to the others. One more person seeing their faces and they would be in trouble. They fled the scene immediately they saw the person coming towards them. " Don Maximus!" Sawyer yelled when he saw the old man on the ground. He was unconscious as a result of the violent attack. He was returning home that night from the restaurant when he was done with the day's work when he came across them. " Oh my God! Why did they do this?" He asked, lifting his head on his laps. He was bleeding and had bruises on his body. He saw that his car was not in a good shape and decided to call for a taxi to rush him to the hospital. He decided to toll the vehicle later to the Don's house. Due to the shock Don experienced, he fainted and fortunately for him Sawyer had rushed him to the hospital just in time. After being checked on by the doctor who treated his bruises and wounds gotten from the attack, he was told to get some rest, Sawyer was very glad that it wasn't anything fatal and thankful that he got there just in time to prevent something bad from happening. Who knows what else could have occurred had he not walked right into the scene? He also noticed that Don Maximus had been stripped of everything he had on him. The only thing left was just his clothes and now ruined car. Who knows, if he hadn't come across them, they could have stolen the poor man's clothes and shoes also. Although it was a simple wear, it was of great quality and value. While he stayed in the hospital, Sawyer decided to stay with him overnight since he knew that the man had no family or anyone he could call to come check up on him. *********** The next day Don Maximus was released from the hospital and Sawyer took him home via a taxi. His car had already gotten home and the matter had also been reported to the police so they could find the culprits. Don Maximus thanked Sawyer, he felt very glad that the young man had once again proven to be someone of great worth and value. " I am very thankful for your help Sawyer. You're my saviour and I can never thank you enough for what you did." He said to the young man who had walked in just at the right moment to stop the robbers. " Sawyer" Don Maximus called, looking him in the eye. " I want you to name your price, anything at all that you want," he said to him. He really wanted to appreciate him for his great deed. Those violent thugs were bent on killing him had another person not walk up on them. " Tell it to me, anything it is you want me to do for you. I promise to do every one of them." " Thank you so much Don," Sawyer told him " But I won't accept anything from you, sir. I didn't help you because of money. Your life was in danger and I happened to be there. I had to do that. I don't want anything. I'm just glad that you're now okay. That's all that matters." " Wow!" Don Maximus whispered. He was shocked that Sawyer was not only a nice promising young man, he was also very selfless and was a good man. These acts of his only made the man like him the more.