Caleb’s expression stiffened. “Um… Gareth might blame his disciples for the rumors. Besides, Gareth has friends in high places in Sunrise City who will defend him and put the squeeze on us.” “Chin up.” Kaze waved his arm. “Don’t sweat the meaningless stuff. I’ll handle Gareth.” “Yes, sir.” Caleb excused himself. … Meanwhile, Gareth, not one with the patience to wait at the hospital, followed Syed and the others to the Lyfes’ family residence. Once there, Gareth acted like he owned the place. Syed and the others waited on him hand and foot. “Tsk, tsk. The drink is alright.” Gareth happily sipped his beverage. The way he saw it, the job assigned to Sven and Wolf was as good as done. Seeing that Gareth was relaxed, the Lyfes’ tensed nerves loosened. Mary Sue barged into the place and shouted, “This is bad, Mr. Hornberg!” “Shut up!” Gareth’s reproach made Mary Sue shudder. “I don’t give a damn about your interactions with Madam Hacks, Mary Sue. But you bette
Gareth was skeptical. “Who are you kidding? Lee isn’t some influential guy. I doubt he has any security on standby.” He glared at Mary Sue, suspecting that she was only doing the bare minimum because of his earlier abuse. “It’s true, Mr. Hornberg.” Coming to Mary Sue’s rescue, Syed said, “Kaze isn’t someone of power or wealth, but his neighbor is. Chief Commander Lang of the Lilyrose Strategic Department lived in the next-door villa. This is the reason Skylar View District is listed as a restricted area.“The Lefteria Group once sent two dozen assassins to kill Kaze, but they were shot down at the entrance. “It’s an unspoken consensus among the people of Lilyrose that Kaze could escape danger by hiding there. He would be safe in Skylar View District for sure.” Gareth was at a loss. “C-Chief Commander Lang?” Discoloration washed over Mary Sue’s face as realization dawned on her that she had been close to death before. The place turned out to be Draco’s territory. Even i
“You’re wise, Mr. Homberg.” Mary Sue, Syed, and the others sucked up to Gareth in thrill. Tonight would be Kaze’s nightmare. “Get it done.” Gareth waved his arm. Struck by a thought, he said, “That reminds me. Give Hart an invitation too. Since he appreciates Kaze a lot, I want him to berate Kaze and reduce him to nothing. I want Hart to embarrass Kaze in front of everybody.“I want to crush him and his spirit.” Syed and the others were overjoyed. Soon, the heavyweights of Lilyrose received the invitation letter from the Lyfes. The Vikrams, Logmans, and Joestars were on the guest list. Trent, the former mayor, also received the invitation. Miru, a powerhouse in the underworld, had gotten one too. Even investors from out of town like Dakota were invited. Back in Skylar View District, Kaze received a call from Caleb. “Mr. Lee, Gareth is hosting an event and invited all the influential figures in the city. “We have gotten one at the mayor’s office too. Gareth pe
For once, even the unreachable prominent figures were courteous and friendly with the Lyfes. The delight helped the Lyfes grow a spine. Hart finally showed up. Syed sneered, “Oh, didn’t you talk about loyalty in the family? Why did you heed Mr. Hornberg’s call then?” “I bet you’re kicking yourself because you see how great we are doing now, Hart.” The other Lyfe family members taunted him. Ashen in the face, Hart said nothing. He could not bring himself to ignore Gareth’s invitation. The feeling of apprehension had not left Hart as he wondered why Gareth had summoned him. “Get inside. Don’t stick out like a sore thumb at the entrance.” Syed lashed out at Hart before lifting his chin arrogantly for a scoff. The Lyfes would hit it big time after tonight. They believed the dumbest thing Hart ever did was cut ties with them. Once some heavy hitters entered the scene, the Lyfes stopped attending to guests at the door. The feast began at 7:00 PM. Guests were sea
The air crackled with tension at the start of the feast. To everybody’s surprise, Gareth demanded the new mayor show his face. Either way, the new mayor ran the city. Yet, Gareth, fresh off the plane, had utter disregard for him. Some who kept in the loops of things were aware of Gareth’s motives. Gareth did not come all the way to Lilyrose just to confront Kaze. He had his eye on the upcoming Lilyrose New City project. If Gareth could overpower the new mayor, Gareth would basically be running the city. Anybody who wanted to dip their fingers into the project would have to go through Gareth. The venue was pin-drop silent. Normally, no one dared to break the silence for fear of being caught in the drama. Nevertheless, the crowd was filled with anticipation. The new mayor had been in office for a while now, and he had never made a public appearance, not even on the local news. No one knew what the mysterious mayor looked like. Maybe the identity of the new mayo
The Lyfes consoled Gareth at the front of the hall. “Calm down, Mr. Hornberg. It doesn’t matter whether the mayor comes or not. You’re the star tonight.” “That’s right. No one can take the limelight away from you.” “Please take a seat.” Gareth nodded. He went to the head of the table to sit down. “Weren’t you expecting an answer from the mayor’s office, Gareth? “Don’t bother looking back. I’ll give one to you now.” A harsh voice cut through. The remark caused a stir among the crowd. It was clear that the speaker held Gareth’s threat in contempt. The speaker’s defiant tone was telltale. Gareth paused. As his face fell, he turned his attention to the source of the voice. The crowd looked in the direction of where the voice was coming from too. Many gasped restrainedly when their eyes laid on the face. They recognized who it was. “Kaze!” Mary Sue, Syed, and the others grimaced. They were surprised that Kaze would show up at the Lyfes’ residence. Sur
Kaze said indifferently, “You’re out of your depth, so you used Gareth against me. Get lost. I don’t have time for you.” “You!” Trent heaved heavily and pointed at Kaze resentfully. “Fine. I’ll watch you crash and burn today.” Amid the strange looks from the crowd, Trent took a seat with an ashen face. He looked at Kaze grimacingly. “You sure are cocky in my party, Kaze. Do you even take me seriously?” Gareth said chillingly. Trent’s statement was the last thing on Gareth’s mind. The question of whether Kaze was the mayor was not important because the showdown between Kaze and Gareth was happening anyway. Kaze asked with a smile, “Aren’t you asking the obvious?” Tension hung heavy in the air. Kaze sure did not see Gareth as a threat. Gareth was upset. He eyed Kaze while figuring out where the latter’s confidence stemmed from. He was not in a hurry to set Kaze straight. “You’re taking things far by starting trouble here and disrespecting Mr. Hornberg, Lee.”
The Lyfes shared Darry’s sentiment. Anyone would cower in fear upon learning that Gareth invited Lilyrose’s most prominent figures to go up against them. Surely, Kaze was no exception too. Gareth’s reputation for aggression was well-known, and he would not even show the mayor of Lilyrose basic respect.Little did Kaze know, he upset Gareth without knowing the degree of Gareth’s horrible influence. Now that the Lilyrose VIPs heeded Gareth’s invitation, Kaze must have been terrified and knew he had done it this time. “A numbskull? Ha.” Kaze smiled and looked at Darry like he was an idiot. “What? Am I wrong?” Darry scoffed and swaggered toward Kaze. He said smugly, “You call us out for kissing Mr. Hornberg’s ass, Lee. “I admit that we are ass-kissers. “But you’re just a loser. You don’t even have the right to suck up to Mr. Hornberg.“You’re not worth Mr. Hornberg’s time. He will just kill you. “I might consider giving you a chance to kiss up to me and my family if