CHAPTER 22: PRS 22

Slam!

Bobi threw out all the evidence of Revan’s embezzlement over the past few days. His face was filled with anger and deep disappointment.

"Return the money, Revan, and write your resignation letter right now," Bobi said sharply, his voice trembling with emotion. "If you’ll do it properly, I won’t pursue it any further. I tried to give you a chance, but you betrayed that trust. Do you think I’m stupid? Do you think I don’t know what you’ve been up to? All transactions are neatly recorded, Revan. Your entire digital footprint is recorded. I have all the evidence right here. Customers have reported discrepancies in payments. Cashiers are also becoming suspicious of your behavior. Do you think you can get away with it?"

Revan, unaware that his actions had been discovered, quickly tried to defend himself. He looked at Bobi with a feigned innocence.

"Bobi, trust me. I wasn’t the one who took the money," he said in a trembling voice, trying to cover up his mistake. "Maybe someone else is trying to frame me. I wouldn’t do something like that. You know me, right? How long have we been working together? I won’t disappoint your trust. This must be a misunderstanding. Check it again, there must be an error in the data. Maybe the system is having problems. Or maybe there’s a coworker who’s jealous of me and is deliberately manipulating the data to make me look guilty. You know, not everyone in this office likes me. There must be someone who wants to bring me down."

The more I saw Revan’s innocent face, trying to deny it, the more Bobi felt disgusted.

"If I hadn’t seen Benedik begging me first, I wouldn’t have hired you here," Bobi snapped harshly. "Once a thief, always a thief, wherever you are! The evidence is right before your eyes. Still trying to defend yourself? Still trying to lie? Do you think I don’t know your reputation in City XX? Everyone knows what you did to your ex-wife. You took all her belongings, then kicked her out with nothing. Now you’re doing it again here? At a company that kindly gave you a second chance?"

Bobi’s words ripped open old wounds in Revan’s heart. They tore apart any remaining self-respect. Emotionally exploding, Revan stepped forward and landed a raw punch to Bobi’s face.

"Bugh! Bugh! Bugh!"

A flurry of blows landed on Bobi’s face. Revan’s temper flared at hearing himself called a thief again. Those words had haunted him ever since rumors spread throughout City XX. Many whispered that he had treacherously taken all of his wife’s wealth before divorcing her, then thrown her out with nothing.

The rumors tarnished his reputation. He could treat even his wife, who had sacrificed so much for him, so much the worse for others. Many people were reluctant to hire him.

Initially, Bobi thought the same thing. If it weren’t for Benedik’s inability to bear Revan’s plight, he would never have accepted someone like him into his company. However, those good intentions were repaid with betrayal.

From the moment he joined, Revan immediately sought a loophole. He noticed customers often leaving cash with the marketing department before depositing it with the cashier. He saw this as an opportunity to regain a comfortable life.

Initially, he only took small amounts of cash, as a token of his commitment to the unit. But since he got away with it, he repeated the practice. As the days went by, he even helped the cashier collect down payments from customers so he could take a small share for himself.

Finally, the day came. A big boss at the company, Alesio Xander, happened to know one of the customers who had payment problems. That’s when all of Revan’s corruption was uncovered.

The company still tried to offer leniency. They simply asked Revan to return the money and resign immediately. But instead of complying, Revan brutally attacked Bobi.

As a result, the company was forced to report him to the authorities. He faced a minimum sentence of three years in prison. However, even after being behind bars, Revan showed no remorse. He was actually satisfied with having beaten Bobi until his face was swollen and several of his teeth were knocked out by the force of the blow.

Upon hearing the news, Benedik immediately came to the hospital to visit Bobi. With a remorseful expression, he said, "I’m sorry, Bobi. I really didn’t think Revan was that bad. I just wanted to help him. I thought he could change. I thought given a chance, he’d get better. It turns out I was wrong. I should have been more careful before recommending people to you. This is all my fault. I was too naive. I thought everyone deserved a second chance. But it turns out not everyone makes the most of it. I should have been more selective. I should have checked his background more thoroughly before asking you to hire him. Now you’re a victim of my stupidity."

Bobi tried to smile, even though his face hurt. "Don’t worry, bro. That bastard has already paid for his sins. Besides, what he did won’t affect our friendship. You don’t need to feel guilty. You just wanted to help, and that’s not wrong. The one who’s wrong is Revan for being ungrateful. You have a good heart, Benedik. Don’t let this incident stop you from helping others. It’s just that next time we have to be more careful in choosing who deserves our help."

Benedik felt relieved. To him, a friendship with Bobi was far more valuable than someone like Revan.

Shortly afterward, Joseph and his wife, Margaret, came to visit. They hoped to persuade Bobi to drop the lawsuit.

"Please, Bobi," Joseph pleaded softly. "We’re willing to return the money Revan took, and even cover all your medical expenses. As long as you drop the lawsuit. We’re begging you, son. He’s still our son. We know he made a mistake, but please give him a chance. We’ll guarantee he won’t do it again. We’re ready to watch over him every day. We’ll make sure he becomes a better person. Poor son. He’s still young. He has a long future ahead of him. If he goes to prison, his life will be ruined. No one wants to hire an ex-convict. Please, Bobi. As parents, we’re begging you."

Bobi shook his head. "I’m sorry, Mr. Joseph. This matter is no longer in my hands. The company has taken over everything. This is no longer a personal matter between me and Revan. It’s a company problem. The company is the one being harmed, not just me. Revan has also committed violence against me. That’s already a criminal matter. If you’re lucky, you can meet our big boss directly. It just so happens that Mr. Alesio is currently on business in City XX. But I can’t guarantee anything. The decision is entirely his. I’m just an employee following company policy."

At the mention of Alesio Xander, Joseph’s face immediately paled. He knew the man’s reputation all too well. "Meeting Alesio? That’s tantamount to suicide," he muttered.

But Margaret spoke up, "Dad, how about we try meeting Mr. Alesio? Who knows, he might understand. We just want to save Revan. We can explain the situation properly. We’re his parents, so he’ll surely understand our feelings as parents who want to save their child. He’s human too, and he has a heart. Maybe if we come to him sincerely and apologize earnestly, he’ll be touched. We can tell him that Revan is under pressure. We can explain that he needs psychological help, not prison."

Joseph immediately snapped, "You know what?! Who do you think Alesio Xander is? If you want to live, don’t ever suggest I see him again! You have no idea what someone like him is capable of. He’s not someone who can be persuaded with tears or sad family stories. He wouldn’t care! Someone like him has seen too much deceit in the business world. He doesn’t trust anyone. For him, punishment is the only way to teach a lesson. If we dare to go to him, it might not just be Revan who goes to prison, but all of us!"

"But Dad," Margaret cried, "it’s also for our child. We can’t just stand by. How can we let Revan go to jail? I can’t imagine him there. How can he survive in prison? He’s not used to such a harsh life. He’ll suffer there, Dad. As parents, how can we sleep soundly knowing our child is being tortured?"

Joseph glared at her angrily and left without saying goodbye to Bobi. Siska chased after him, still crying.

Bobi shook his head slowly, muttering sarcastically, "Revan’s bad character is indeed inherited from his parents."

In the hospital parking lot, Joseph couldn’t contain his emotions. "SLAP!" A hard slap landed on Siska’s cheek, as she continued screaming the entire way.

"Daddy... slapped me," Margaret choked out a sob.

"If you still don’t shut up, I’ll hit you even harder and leave you here!" Joseph snapped. "I’ve told you many times, don’t talk about Alesio again! You don’t understand how dangerous that man is! He’s not an ordinary businessman we can deal with with ordinary methods!"

Siska finally fell silent. Joseph started the car he usually used to work and drove at a moderate speed.

His heart broke when he saw the clear five-fingerprint on his wife’s cheek. Even when he was angry, he never used force. However, today, his mind was completely confused.

"I’m sorry, Mom. I made a mistake," Joseph said remorsefully. "I didn’t mean to hit you. But I was really panicking. I was afraid you really wanted to see Alesio without me. If that happened, I couldn’t imagine the consequences. I’ve heard many stories about people who dared to bother Alesio. They all ended tragically, Mom. No one survived."

Margaret remained silent, staring out the window.

Joseph took a deep breath. "Mom has to know. Alesio isn’t just anyone we can meet at will. He’s not the type of businessman with a heart. Revan has gone too far. If we force him to meet with Alesio, instead of freeing Revan, we’ll be the ones destroyed. Tomorrow, Mom might have to deal with Revan’s body. Or even all of ours. Do you think Dad is playing around? Dad is serious. People like Alesio don’t hesitate to eliminate anyone who bothers them. Dad once heard that someone tried to meet him to ask for leniency. He just disappeared. No one knows where he went. His family has been searching for him to this day and hasn’t found him. Mom wants us to suffer the same fate?"

Margaret’s eyes widened. "Is he... that cruel, Dad? Really? Who is he? How could he be so scary?"

Joseph nodded slowly. "Every businessman in this country knows that. It’s better for Revan to languish in prison for three years than for us all to die. I don’t want this family to be a victim. Three years is something we can wait, Mom. But if we all die, who will wait for Revan to come out? Dad still wants to be alive to greet Revan when he gets out of prison. We can still send him food, we can still visit him. But if we’re gone, who will care for him? By staying alive, we can support him from the outside. That’s far better than being reckless and having everything destroyed."

Siska finally broke down in tears, but secretly she was grateful for that explanation. She had originally intended to meet with Alesio without Joseph’s knowledge. But after learning of the man’s cruel reputation, she changed her mind.

Although forced, she began to accept the reality: it was better to let Revan rot in prison than to let their family be destroyed.