I found the location and walked into a compound, noting its spacious land area big enough to build another construction in it. As I passed through its gate, I saw its office building, two rows of single storey offices connected to one another forming an L shape with some small lorries and private vehicles were parked in front of the office building.

The entrance to the building has double entry doors, one on the outside and another one inside the property guarded with security access panel. There was an intercom panel next to the staff access pad with rows of buttons displaying different freight companies, Pal Shipping, UniPar Express and ShipGoUK.

I peered through the doors and saw a small hall inside with some furniture by the corner but the hall was empty. I reached for the intercom panel and pressed for ShipGoUK. Then a flat-toned voice greeted me on the other line.

"Is there anyone in your premise with the name Nick Pholadi?" I asked.

There was a long pause before the voice answered, "Nope. Sorry, love. No one with such name."

My heart felt disheartened. I attempted to reach both Pal Shipping and UniPar Express respectively but with no luck. I tried once again at ShipGoUK with a different accent, "Nick Pholadi, please."

Still the same response.

I was ready to leave when my eyes caught a familiar tall slender figure emerging from the left side of the hallway, marched towards me. He pulled the first door in front of him effortlessly and reached for the exit button on the right side of the outer door. I took a few steps back and gave him some space for him to exit while he pushed the leaf of the outer door outwards to my direction. He seized my right arm which was still hurt as we rushed towards the back of the office building.

"What do you want?" he asked furiously, crossing his arms.

"Aren't you surprised to see me?"

"What do you want, Zahida?" he repeated.

"Don't call me by that name."

"If you don't leave, I will call you by that name."

"Okay," I replied cheerfully, flapping my arms excitedly like a carefree child before placing them into my pocket. "I gave some thoughts to your advice the other day and call this a cliché but I never thought I could –"

"Straight up!" he demanded impatiently.

"I want to be like you?" I declared.

"Sorry, I don't follow."

"I want to join the killer squad like you," I clarified. "I want to be a gangster."

Silence filled the air as Nick stared at me incredulously.

"You fuckin' idiot!" he snapped and turned away. "Go home!"

"I won't leave until you accept me," I persisted. "You said I could be like you."

"I don't ask you to be stupid," he shouted over his shoulder.

"But you said that I should get myself protected, to be like you!" I shouted back.

In a split second, Nick pivoted to face me with a gun in his hand. He took a shot, aiming at one of the containers behind me and I recoiled in fear, yelped and cowered to the ground. The deafening sound of the gunshot had caused the loitering pigeons to fly away in every direction.

"Do you know what I'm holding?" Nick asked.

"A gun?" I attempted.

"It's a Colt .38," he specified. "You're not cut out for it."

"Okay," I held both my hands facing forward and stood up. "Try me again, I'm ready."

Nick shook his head. "If you think joining us would make you feel invincible to face Abs, then you're making another stupid mistake."

"But I need a job!" I stalled.

"No job here for you. Go home before I shoot you in the head."

"I'll call the police and bust this place up!" I threatened.

"Go ahead, this is a legitimate business premise," he said over his shoulder.

I went home feeling dejected and overwhelmed over the failed attempt. I thought God diverted my direction to Nick so I could find sanctuary in him. But he turned out to be just another disruption to my course of finding contentment in life. Or maybe I hadn't really thought this plan through. I thought that if I join Nick, I'll gain access to his protection to use it against Abs. After all, we both have something in common; to take Abs down.

But maybe these malevolent thoughts and my unprepared speech to Nick caused my plan to go astray. Maybe this was another sign that God instructing me to be a perfect Muslim instead of pursuing for something worthless.

I was in my deep thoughts when I heard ringing coming from my mobile phone and I glanced at the unknown number on its screen. I contemplated to answer but eventually I swiped the green button and responded. A familiar male voice resonated through the speaker.

"Come to the warehouse tomorrow, half past 7.00 morn.", the voice ordered. It was Nick's.