Agnes tore into Kaze. Kaze listened quietly without defending himself. “Miru even said that she’d assign a new deputy manager to Hudson Investment Firm. Kaze, you should work closely with this new deputy.”Agnes broke the news to Kaze before glaring at him. “You hear me, Kaze?” “Yes.” Kaze nodded, unconcerned about the new deputy manager. He would not mind so long as the new deputy manager was capable, unlike Jem who kept harassing him. Once Agnes was gone, Darcy drew close and urged Kaze earnestly. “Cherish the opportunity, Kaze. Do your best, okay? “My mom will stop giving you an attitude when you show her results.” “Your word is my command, babe.” Kaze hugged her with a smile, giving her a little squeeze on her hips. “I’m taking a shower.” Darcy rolled her eyes and went upstairs. Kaze was about to hit the showers when he received a call from Johnson. “What is it, Johnson?” Kaze took the call and asked. Johnson replied, “Mr. Lee, Cosmo has been transport
Following the fall of the top three families, Lilyrose became a free-for-all. Various powerhouses wanted a piece of the pie. Johnson was a capable man, but he was at his wit’s end dealing with all the problems. The Lees even openly demanded Cosmo’s release. The arrogance of the rich and powerful knew no boundary. With Kaze holding the fort, Johnson could relax. Anybody would have to leave their cockiness out the door the moment they entered Lilyrose. “But, Johnson, I prefer a hands-off approach. Don’t bother with the daily duties of the mayor. I’ll intervene only when necessary.” Kaze made another request. He did not want to stick around the mayor’s office all day, toiling away at paperwork. “Don’t worry, Mr. Lee. I will tell my people not to disturb you on trivial matters.” Johnson patted his chest and promised. Soon, Lilyrose local council announced Johnson’s participation in an exclusive training course, and a Mr. Lee would be standing in his position for the
“Alright. We’ll leave it to Samson.” Gregory nodded menacingly. “Kaze broke the legs of his son too. I bet he’s more eager to kill that bastard.” … Kaze had no idea that his brief stint as acting mayor would brand him a loyal supporter of Loid.The Lees ceased fire for that reason, directly at least. The next day, Kaze’s presence was requested at the meeting room when he arrived at his office at Hudson Investment Firm. “Why are we having a meeting?” Kaze asked Sophie after stepping into the meeting room. Sophie whispered, “Miru was here after you were gone yesterday, Mr. Chairman. She criticized your lack of accountability and informed us that her assistant would act as the deputy manager here. “The new deputy is here, and she called for this meeting.” While talking, a beautiful and commanding woman in a power suit walked through the door. She glanced at everybody condescendingly and went on. “I should introduce myself. I am Jennifer Barwise. I am filling the role of
Jennifer was surprised by Kaze’s compliance. The disdain she had for him ran deeper. “Alright, that’s it for today’s meeting. Meeting adjourned.” Jennifer clapped her hands, announcing the end of the meeting. She did not care whether Kaze had anything to say. She saw herself as the highest-ranked superior at Hudson Investment Firm. Once Jennifer was gone, the senior executives gathered around Kaze. “You’re the only leader for me, Mr. Lee. I’ll follow you wherever you go.” “That’s right, Mr. Lee. We will only take your orders. Ms. Barwise doesn’t even respect you. Why should we listen to her?” The group was eager to prove their allegiance to Kaze. Yesterday’s incident left a dent in them. These people would not take Jennifer’s side right away because Kaze backed off. “Enough!” Kaze yelled, interrupting the group’s chatter. The senior executives exchanged glances. They were only trying to show their loyalty to Kaze. Kaze should be happy. Yet, he looked pissed. “
“I’m at the hotel next to the mayor’s office. Come over,” Kaze said. Soon, a young woman dressed in work attire drove over. Kaze parted ways with Caleb, Don, and the others. He asked Jennifer’s assistant, “What’s your name? Why haven’t I met you at the office?” “I’m Lilith Fair. Ms. Barwise asked me to join her from Lefteria Group,” the woman said proudly. She put herself above others because of her connection to Lefteria Group. Lilith pursed her lips at the smell of alcohol on Kaze. Sure enough, Kaze pulled strings to get where he was. He must be befriending the superiors at the mayor’s office by drinking with them in the afternoon. Lilith recognized these high-profile figures when Kaze parted ways with them. Nevertheless, Kaze was the CEO of Hudson Investment Firm by name, so Lilith was not surprised he could engage with these leaders. The way Lilith saw it, Kaze must be using his high-ranking position to establish connections with others. She had seen too many of K
The crew gave Kaze a strange look. They thought the interviewee was a VIP. Instead, Kaze was a moocher bankrolled by his wife. The crew held Kaze in disdain. “Sherry, you’re the anchor of our network. Yet, Hudson Investment Firm sent a moocher in for the interview. Isn’t that disrespectful toward you?” “That’s right. I’d suggest getting someone else. A regular employee is better than a moocher who got the manager position by pulling strings,” the crew said. Knowing Sherry was not pleased with Kaze, they stood up for her. Lilith glanced at Kaze, assuming Sherry held a personal grudge against Kaze. Otherwise, Sherry would not be so quick to call Kaze out. However, Sherry’s attitude did not bother her. Lilith said, “Even so, Mr. Lee is the CEO of Hudson Investment Firm, Sherry.“Ms. Barwise said he will be making public appearances and helping with the company’s publicity.” Sherry understood Lilith was Jennifer’s assistant. She could tell from Lilith’s indifference toward
“Are you ready, Mr. Lee? We should begin.” Sherry was professional, diving straight into work mode the moment the producer kept the cameras rolling. She said with a smile, “Today, we have invited the CEO of Hudson Investment Firm, Mr. Kaze Lee. Please say hello to the cameras, Mr. Lee.” “Hello, everybody. I am Kaze Lee.” Kaze waved at the cameras. Sherry said, “As everybody knows, the role of a CEO is very demanding. Experience is one of the essential requirements major corporations look at before hiring a CEO. “But after reviewing your resume, we discovered something rather strange. “Mr. Lee, you had no experience in investment before you took up the position as Hudson Investment Firm’s CEO. “To our knowledge, you have been living off your wife’s family. Is that true?” Sherry looked at Kaze and asked with a smile, “I am curious. How did you go from an unemployed house-husband to the CEO of a well-established investment firm?” “The questions seem a little too person
The interview ended in half an hour. Sherry stood up and stretched happily, having acquired all the information she needed. The nearby male crew members ogled at her bare midriff. Sherry’s eyes flickered with delight, and she soon turned to Kaze sarcastically. “You are such a loser, Kaze. You don’t even have the guts to refute my questions.“Don’t you know how absurd you look? Should I get the cameraman to show you the footage? “You are going to be famous at the broadcast of the interview. You should thank me for the appearance. “Sure, you’re getting publicity for the wrong thing, but that’s one way for the public to remember you. “Your life is in my hands, Kaze.“If you kneel and lick the sole of my heels, I might consider editing the parts that make you look bad.” Sherry took jabs at Kaze, assuming she had him by the balls. Unfazed, Kaze said indifferently, “You’re nothing more than a gold digger, getting ahead in life with your personal assets. “You’re a little
It never occurred to Kaze that Cyan and her influencer friends would attend Hannah’s celebration too. Before Cyan said anything, one influencer put her hand over her lips and said with a smile, “Get with the times, Anna. Cyan’s family isn’t just close with the senior members of the Viper’s Den. She’s going to be part of the organization soon.” “Huh?” Stunned, the other influencers asked, “What’s going on? Just tell us, Sweetpea!” Sweetpea was the influencer who just spilled the beans. She was Cyan’s closest friend and biggest ass-kisser. Taking Cyan by the shoulder, Sweetpea said, “Remember Cyan’s number one fan?” “Yeah!”“Sponge has been a fan of Cyan even before she signed with Golden Scale Corporation. Sponge tipped her tens of millions.”“That was how Cyan caught the eye of Golden Scale Corporation, and she became a hit.” The influencers chattered among themselves, all familiar with Sponge. They came from nothing and clawed their way up online.Their beginnings
The next afternoon, Kaze arrived at the parking lot outside Bronze Sparrow. It was packed with fancy cars. Needless to say, the underground garage must be filled with cars too. Hannah’s celebration was held in Bronze Sparrow. Just a few days ago, Siberian infiltrated Bronze Sparrow and abducted Anzu. The incident caused quite a stir in the upper crust of Riverbank. At the same time, the underground powerhouses were eager to get involved. As Miru, the up-and-coming underworld boss, seemed to be all bark and no bite, they wanted to see what she was made of. Bronze Sparrow, a place where troublemakers once ceased to exist, had to deal with incidents daily. Despite Miru getting tough on these troublemakers, business at Bronze Sparrow took a nosedive anyway. Miru was frustrated with the situation. Siberian had been a threat to the Viper’s Den for many years. It was no surprise that Miru’s crew could not defeat him. This time, Siberian’s death at the hands of the Viper’s
Kaze was taken aback. “How did you know?” “How?” June’s lips curled. “It’s all over town by now. Darcy is the chairwoman of Sky Ocean Corporation. Have you any idea how many eyes are on a rich and beautiful girl like her? “Her divorce has caught the attention of men, and they are going to try their luck with her.” It did not take Kaze much to know that the Quint family members had nothing better to do. Agnes had been hoping to marry her daughter up. However, Darcy had the power, money, and connections to be playing with the big leagues herself. Agnes’ expectations for her future son-in-law would only go higher. Despite her lack of brain cells, Agnes would not do something degrading like circulating the news of her daughter’s divorce. “Hey! Why do you seem indifferent about this?” June elbowed Kaze. “How do you think I should react?” Kaze found June baffling. June looked disappointed. “You don’t seem upset that you were dumped.” “Get a life.” Kaze did not hav
Sasha regained consciousness through sheer willpower. She had made a full recovery from her external injuries, but she simply could not wake up from her mental trauma. However, Sasha seemed to be in a better place than before the incident. Before, Sasha would avert her gaze, not meeting the eyes of the person she was talking to. Yet now, Kaze realized that Sasha looked at him straight in the eyes. There had to be some sort of experience to bring about the change in her. “Did something bad happen, Kaze?” Sasha asked, her eyes reflecting concern. Kaze pulled himself together and reached out to shuffle her hair. “No. Let’s not get into it. You just got up. You should rest well.” “No, I’ve been awake for a while now.” Sasha, one to be meek in Kaze’s presence, refuted him for once. She shook her head and said, “I was just afraid. I was scared that the nightmare would come back when I opened my eyes, so I pretended to be asleep. “But now that you’re here, I have no reason
Agnes settled down. “That’s right. We are better off without the parasite. “We will live comfortably thanks to our precious daughter—” “Darcy! Darcy!” Before Agnes could finish, an individual barged into the villa. Maxine, her hair disheveled and her body in bruises, rushed into the living room and grabbed hold of Darcy while wailing, “Darcy! I was wrong! I was a snob to target you! It’s all my fault. I’m the worst!” She gave herself a couple of slaps before pleading, “Darcy, I need Kaze’s help. Please, can you get him to tell Patrick to get back together with me?“Ever since I broke up with Patrick, he befriended Kaze and became successful. He calls the shots in his family now.“I’m being made fun of for not cherishing him. My parents, brother, and grandmother are on my case, telling me off for missing out on a good catch. “Darcy, we’re family. Please, can you talk to Kaze for me? Patrick doesn’t listen to anyone else but him.” Maxine, who always fancied herself to be
The Quint quickly realized they were so close to digging their own grave. Thankfully, they did not upset Darcy too much. They had a lot of ass-kissing to make up for now. Smug, Agnes went up and said, “Thank you for working together with Darcy. I know that you put the project on pause because you were tight with Kaze. “But my daughter and Kaze have separated. Don’t listen to him if he tries to get involved with Sky Ocean Corporation. “Kaze gets nothing out of the divorce, so he can’t offer you anything. You are free to collaborate with my daughter.” Perfect World Group and the Riverbank council were responsive to put the project on hold because of Kaze. However, Agnes was not the least bit grateful. In fact, she tried to acquire Kaze’s network. In her opinion, Kaze had lost everything. A wise person would choose to make the most out of the situation and make a business deal with Darcy. Blue from Perfect World Group put on a straight face. “Mrs. Quint, I have one more th
It took a lot of effort for Agnes to break her daughter up with Kaze. There was no way she would allow Kaze to have a second shot with Darcy. The way Agnes saw it, her daughter was the head of the Quints in the South River State and the chairwoman of Sky Ocean Corporation. Darcy was beautiful and a great catch. Kaze did not mean squat. While Agnes danced with joy, several vehicles turned up outside the villa. These cars belonged to two different parties. The first group was in fancy cars while the other group was much more discreet. Still, nobody would dismiss government vehicles. Though surprised, Darcy quickly went up to greet the people. “Chief Yaphet, Mr. Jayne, what brings you here?” The alphas of both groups were not some big VIP to Darcy’s family. However, they had control over Sky Ocean Corporation’s future. More accurately, the entities that these people worked for held the fate of Sky Ocean Corporation in their hands. Welson, a middle-ranking official in the
“No way! Madam Quint had no reason to kill Madam Dark.” There was a bustle at Villa No. 1. Despite the statement coming from the police, the crowd was skeptical that Phoenix would kill anyone. Agnes and Darcy found the truth hard to swallow. If Phoenix were behind the evil assassination, they would be wrong about Kaze. The police officer said, “We learned that the dump truck driver received 1.2 million dollars before the accident. We tracked the money to one of Phoenix’s people in Ridgesouth. “We looked into Phoenix’s phone records and discovered that she contacted the Steelclaw Guild through the dark web. “She had no idea that we have eyes on the dark web. Though we don’t know the specifics of her deal with the Steelclaw Guild, she would only have one reason to contact an assassination organization.“The Steelclaw Guild’s killer then showed up at the funeral parlor.“We are linking these two incidents, and our prime suspect is Phoenix, who is now deceased.“We didn’t de
“Kaze, do you know how unfamiliar and frightened you’re making me feel right now?“Why was the Steelclaw Guild’s killer after you? If today didn’t happen, I wouldn’t know that you had gotten yourself in deep trouble. “I don’t know what else you are hiding from me. I even wonder if you were behind Madam Dark’s car accident. “My feelings toward you have been true, but family is equally important to me. “I’m afraid that one day, you will get my parents and brother killed.” Darcy let everything out. The storm in Kaze’s eyes quelled.He grabbed a pen and signed his name before taking his copy. Kaze placed the other copy on the table before walking away. As the people in the villa watched on in shock, Agnes dropped her jaw in joy. Agnes thought that it would take a lot of talking and crying to push Darcy in the right direction. To her surprise, Darcy filed for divorce right away. Nevertheless, she was quick to complain. “You are silly, Darcy. You should have asked for V