CHAPTER 9

“Harassing him? It’s the exact opposite! I’m the one being harassed here! Can’t you see me on the ground with my clothes ruined? What more evidence do you need?!” He exclaimed but none of them cared for what he said.

“Yes, he is. You know how all these beggars behave when you refuse to give them money.” Paul said with a mischievous smirk.

“Beggar?” Jeremiah frowned.

How dare they call him a beggar?

He might have been poor for many years, but he had never begged anyone for money. Not even once in his entire life.

They should apologize for insulting him in such a way, but sadly, they continued to ignore him.

“We’re terribly sorry for allowing a nuisance like this to inconvenience you, sir. We’ll deal with him expeditiously” the first security guard said.

Paul grinned.

“Thank you. I’m glad I can always count on hard-working men like yourselves to do a good job protecting the peace of the real customers”

“Your kind words are greatly appreciated, sir,” the second security guard said.

“Here… For your lunch” Paul took out two hundred dollars from his pocket and stretched it to the two security guards.

Their eyes widened with excitement.

“Thank you very much, sir! You’re always so kind” The first security guard said as he took the money for himself and his partner while bowing his head to Paul.

“Please enjoy your visit, sir” the second security guard gestured at the bank’s entrance.

“Come, babe. Let’s leave these two to take out the trash” Paul said to Mary and both of them started heading to the bank.

Now, the two men in uniform could give their full attention to Jeremiah.

“You should be ashamed of yourself. Instead of going to work like a man should, you are here harassing hard-working people. Vermin like you make me sick” the first security reprimanded.

“Come on, beggar. Stand up!” the second security guard said as he walked over to Jeremiah, grabbed his right arm, and raised him.

“Beggar? I’m no damn beggar! As a matter of fact, my family owns this entire bank so you should treat me with respect!” Jeremiah fired back and both security guards looked at him from head to toe.

They started laughing.

“You? The owner of this bank? Don’t kid yourself, punk” the second security guard mocked.

“The lies and games are over, so get out of where before we use force and make you leave” the first security guard warned.

Instead, the two received a glare from Jeremiah.

“I’m seriously sick of you people trying to use what little power they have to maltreat those they think are powerless,” he said.

“What the hell are you talking about?” The first security guard grimaced.

“The two of you have less than ten seconds to get out of my way and let me go do my business in there or you’ll regret it” Jeremiah warned

Both security guards chuckled.

“And what can a weakling like you do?” The first security guard questioned.

“Do it! I’d like to see what you think you can do” the second security guard insisted.

That was it. They had tested Jeremiah for far too long and he wasn’t going to be merciful.

“I warned you but I guess you’ll just have to find out the hard way,” Jeremiah said then took out his still messed up phone from his pocket and called the new manager of the Polaris Bank, Anthony Keller.

After a second, the call was answered.

Anthony, who had been awaiting Jeremiah’s arrival all morning made sure his phone was on him at all times and he would be mad to allow a fraction of a second to pass before hitting the answer button the moment he saw Jeremiah’s name on the caller ID.

[“Mister Jeremiah, good morning! I’m guessing you’re on your way to the bank”] Anthony said energetically.

“I’m actually in front of the bank right now” Jeremiah replied.

[“Oh you are? That’s great! Please come right in and I’ll come find you”]

“I’d like to do that but two imbeciles are stopping me from going in,” Jeremiah said.

[“What?! Don’t worry, Sir. I’ll be right there to teach those fools a lesson. How dare they obstruct the owner of the entire bank”]

“I’ll be waiting so you better hurry up,” Jeremiah said and then ended the call.

Both security guards looked at each other with confused stares then they looked at Jeremiah.

“Who did you just call?” The first security guard asked.

In response, Jeremiah scoffed and replied “Don’t worry, you’ll find out soon enough”

His words angered both security guards and the second security guard punched his fist into his palm in a threatening manner.

“You know what? I’ve had it with you. Your arrogance has forced my hands and I’ll enjoy making you regret not leaving when we told you to” the second security guard said then grabbed Jeremiah’s collar and was about to punch him.

Just then, the bank’s mechanical doors opened and a blonde-haired man in a blue Tom Ford suit and black leather shoes dashed towards their location.

“Don’t you dare touch that man!” Anthony yelled, causing the second security guard to halt his attack and look at him.

Anthony was panting and sweating profusely as he ran towards them.

Once there, he grabbed the second security guard’s fist and pushed it away from Jeremiah’s face then he grabbed the hand holding Jeremiah’s collar and forced it to let go.

Once he had helped Jeremiah get free, Anthony, who was still panicked, started fixing Jeremiah’s clothes, starting with the now rumpled collar.

Next, he reached into his pocket and took out his Louis Philippe handkerchief which was worth one hundred and fifty dollars, and started dusting the dirt off Jeremiah’s cheap clothes.

“Are you okay, sir? Hope I wasn’t too late” Anthony asked Jeremiah hurriedly.

Jeremiah was about to give his answer but was interrupted by the first security guard.

The two security guards had been looking at Anthony in confusion because by how sharp and expensively he dressed, it was clear he was someone rich and important, but here he was acting like Jeremiah was a god or something.

It didn’t make sense to them because in their eyes Jeremiah was a beggar. A complete nobody.

“Excuse me but who are you and why are you helping this guy?” The first security guard asked Anthony.

His voice irritated Anthony to the core and it was evident in the face he made when he swiftly turned to him and the second security guard.

“Who am I? My name is Anthony Keller and I’m the new manager of the bank you work for. In other words, I’m your boss!” Anthony said boldly and both security guards widened their eyes in shock.

Because Anthony was just starting the job that day, a lot of the employees hadn’t gotten the chance to know him yet and these two were among the oblivious. Well, until now anyway.

All they had heard from the other staff was that there was a new manager and his name was Anthony, but they hadn’t gotten the opportunity to put a face to the name until that moment.

“Nice to meet you, sir! Pardon us for not knowing that you were our boss sooner—“ The second security guard saluted.

“Shut your rubbish mouth up!” Anthony yelled and body security guards jolted.

They were confused about why their new manager was angry at them. What did they do wrong to deserve his fury? They wondered.

After all, they were just taking out the trash from the premises so shouldn’t they be rewarded instead?

Glaring at them, Anthony asked, “Do you know who this man you fools tried to hurt is?”

Both security guards furrowed their eyebrows and looked at Jeremiah then they looked at Anthony and shook their heads.

“This man is the owner of this entire bank! In other words, my employer and yours and you monkeys just disrespected him in the worst way possible!” Anthony said and both security guards’ eyes widened