31-1 Mariana Frustrated
Kembang Setaman Discothèque
The pounding music thundered, and disco lights spun and flashed, making the night feel like daylight.
On the lower floor, the crowd danced wildly. The smell of alcohol filled the air. Faces flushed red. Young men and women held each other without shame.
On the upper floor sat a graceful woman in an elegant black dress, her beautiful face framed by a paper fan in her hand.
She was Mariana, the grand madam. Owner of Kembang Setaman Nightclub.
In front of her sat a tall, bearded man, puffing on a clove cigarette.
He was Broto. Mariana’s loyal bodyguard and right-hand man.
Mariana: "Broto, how could failure after failure from the people you sent keep happening?"
Her voice was cold. Her fingers tapped the armrest slowly, again and again.
Broto: "Forgive me, Madam. The people we tried to eliminate turned out to have extraordinary skills..."
Mariana nodded. Her eyes narrowed, her gaze sharp.
Mariana: "Durgono and Durgani were humiliated by Nagini."
Broto: "That’s right, Madam."
Mariana: "Their failure to finish Nagini—I can understand that."
Broto nodded, taking another drag of his cigarette.
Mariana: "Nagini cannot be underestimated."
Her tone dropped half an octave, laced with restrained anger.
Broto nodded again.
Broto: "Pendi and his three friends were defeated by Rani and Rina. They had Giono’s help."
Mariana frowned. The fan in her hand stopped moving.
Mariana: "Giono?"
Broto: "Yes, Madam."
Mariana: "Why would Giono help the twins?"
Broto: "By coincidence, Seroja Indah Apartment is under Green Gang territory."
Mariana snapped her fan open with a sharp plak! and fanned her face slowly.
Mariana: "Only the Green Gang dares not to pay us tribute."
Broto: "That’s right, Madam."
Mariana: "Has no one gone to Giono to demand tribute?"
Broto: "Our men don’t dare, Madam."
Mariana opened her fan again. Her jaw tightened.
Mariana: "Why not?"
Broto: "Every time we ask for tribute, Giono fights back."
Mariana: "Fights back?"
Broto nodded.
Broto: "Several times our men have gone to him."
Mariana: "Why couldn’t they bring back the tribute?"
Broto: "Because Giono beat them up, Madam."
Mariana smiled faintly. A cold smile that never reached her eyes.
Mariana: "Forget Giono and his unpaid tribute."
Broto nodded.
Mariana: "Anton also failed to finish off that policeman, Burhan?"
Broto nodded again, inhaling his clove cigarette deeply.
Broto: "Yes, Madam."
Mariana: "Why couldn’t Anton kill Burhan?"
Broto exhaled smoke from his mouth.
Broto: "It turns out Burhan is a taekwondo expert—black belt, 4th dan."
Mariana shook her head. Her fan snapped shut with a sharp tak! Her smile turned into a cold sneer, her jaw tightening as if holding back a storm of rage.
***
31-2 Broto Realistic
Kembang Setaman Discotheque was still thundering with the DJ’s music, disco lights spinning in a blaze of colors.
Mariana opened her paper fan and fanned her face that wasn’t even hot. Her eyes gleamed sharply. Her breath grew heavy—a sign she was holding back her disappointment.
Broto: "Madam, sooner or later they will come here."
Mariana smiled. Her eyes flashed. Slowly, her paper fan closed.
Mariana: "You mean the police?"
Broto nodded.
Broto: "Nagini and Officer Burhan might also come."
Mariana: "Giono?"
Broto: "Would the Green Gang dare to come here, after we’ve beaten Giono?"
Mariana smiled again.
Mariana: "If Giono wants to come here again, so be it. Let him come."
Broto shook his head, tapping the ashes of his cigarette into the ashtray.
Broto: "Wouldn’t it be better if we laid low for a while, Madam?"
Mariana: "So many troubles have been caused by them, Broto..."
She looked down to the dance floor—crowds pressing against each other, moving to the dim pulse of the disco lights.
Mariana: "Since Nagini appeared, our business has started to fall apart."
Broto watched the movement of her paper fan.
Mariana: "Even the police are cornering us."
Broto: "That’s right, Madam. Nagini and Burhan are the root of all the problems in our illegal business."
Mariana looked down again at the floor below. The pounding music still shook the hall. The crowd dancing seemed to forget how late the night had grown.
Mariana: "The Green Gang, led by Giono, also fights back against us."
Broto: "That’s right, Madam."
Mariana: "Rani and Rina are also like thorns in the flesh, Broto."
Broto dragged on his cigarette and toyed with a glass of coffee that was nothing but grounds.
Broto: "True, Madam."
Mariana stared deeply at Broto.
Mariana: "I will not run, Broto."
Broto gasped, the cigarette nearly slipping from his fingers.
Broto: "But, Madam?"
Mariana rose from her seat. Her eyes flashed like lightning.
Mariana: "Let them come, Broto!"
A chill ran through Broto as he saw the spark in her eyes.
Mariana: "I will finish them all."
In her fury, Mariana snapped her paper fan shut with a harsh sound.
Crack!
***
31-3 Sawitri
Mariana sat back down on the long sofa. Her breathing grew steady again.
Mariana: "I don’t see Sawitri, Broto?"
Broto shrugged.
Broto: "That’s right, Madam. Sawitri hasn’t come out of her room since this afternoon."
Mariana rose from her seat once more. The paper fan was gripped tightly in her right hand.
Mariana: "Very well, Broto. I’ll go see Sawitri for a moment."
Broto: "Yes, Madam."
Mariana turned her body and began to walk away from Broto, who was still puffing on his cigarette.
Her steps were graceful as she moved toward Sawitri’s room.
Mariana slowly opened the door to Sawitri’s room. A wave of heat swept over her as the room revealed itself.
She saw Sawitri standing in a strong stance, performing powerful movements like a fiery dance.
Mariana smiled faintly as she observed Sawitri’s motions.
Mariana: "Good, Sawitri."
She said it in her heart.
Apparently, Sawitri’s movements were what made the room feel so hot.
Sawitri stopped her practice and looked to see who had entered.
Sawitri: "Madam..."
Mariana smiled warmly.
Mariana: "Have you mastered the core fire energy movements I taught you, Sawitri?"
Sawitri nodded shyly.
Sawitri: "Out of the eight movements, I can only do two, Madam."
Mariana smiled in satisfaction, then sat down on the spring bed in the room.
To be continued38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeXLKLx6VgL
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