The Chapmans informed the Vikrom and Logman families that Howl and Daniel were hospitalized. However, they did not tell them who thrashed Socialite Club. The Chapmans wanted it to remain a secret. A high-end club run by them got thrashed by a useless son-in-law of a second-tier family. The news alone was humiliating enough and they would not want others to laugh at them. Hmph! A member of the Logman family scoffed, “Are you kidding me? That useless brother-in-law of yours? If he was the one who thrashed the club, I’ll eat shit!” “This little bastard is trying to waste our time! He really thinks someone will save him. Hahaha…” The Vikrom and Logman families laughed at him. They did not believe a word Sky said. Vicky mocked him, “No one can save you now. Even if God is here, he won’t be able to take you away! You are doomed the moment you swing the bat at my brother’s leg.” “Make him kneel for a day and we’ll torture him later!” someone said. It was suicidal for a y
Kaze's shout was as loud as thunder, shaking even the entire Landor Residential Area. Vicky and the others who were closer to him felt an extreme pain in their ears. The shout was so powerful that it felt as if their souls were being blown out of their bodies. They stared at Kaze blankly, stunned by the sheer energy of the shout. Deep inside the mansion, Bernard was talking to Peter, the head of the Logman family, and they were discussing Howl’s and Daniel’s injuries. Suddenly, a terrifying roar resounded, shaking even their cups of tea on the table. Even though Bernard and Peter were seasoned family heads, accustomed to storms, they were paled by the bellow. What was even more terrifying was the name they heard. “Kaze Lee?” Bernard and Peter exchanged a quick look and saw the horror in each other’s eyes. The name left a strong impression on them. They saw the young man in person during the rebuilding of the new Construction and Material Society. They knew how power
The others from the Vikrom and Logman families knelt as well. They dared not stand while their heads of families were kneeling in fear of the young man, so it must mean he held the power to annihilate them easily. They had made a huge mistake! Kaze looked at Vicky and the others coldly. “That’s it? You think kneeling is enough? All of you slapped Sky right? Now slap yourself like how you slapped him just now!” Slap! Slap! Slap! Vicky and the others slapped themselves immediately and did not hold back. The continuous slaps sounded like a round of applause celebrating Sky’s innocence. When all of their faces were swollen, Kaze tapped Sky’s shoulder and brought him away. “Come on.” The two of them then left the mansion. The slaps continued for a little longer before they stopped. Other than Bernard and Peter, everyone else from the two families had swollen faces. “Vicky, you almost doomed us all!” Bernard shouted at his granddaughter. Peter lashed out at his fami
Kaze was infuriated. He exuded a ferocious aura that could frighten others easily. Agnes and Sky were terrified. Their faces turned pale. It was their first time seeing Kaze this angry. “Kaze, what happened?” Sky asked. Kaze went off without saying a word. He called Draco while driving out of the construction site. He said, “Tell Lone Wolf to bring his men. I want him to take over Nation Hotel as soon as possible!” He hung up the phone and drove off to the hotel. “Everia, if something happened to Darcy, I’ll drag every one of you to hell!” At the presidential suite of Nation Hotel, a handsome young man was seen drinking wine on the couch as Darcy stepped in. He looked relaxed but when he laid eyes on Darcy, a strange zeal and lust appeared in his eyes. Darcy felt uncomfortable while being stared at. “Mr. Everia, why did you change the location from the restaurant to the suite?” “I’ve heard Ms. Quint is a beautiful woman and now that I’ve seen you in person, you
“Eliot Everia, anything but this!” Darcy begged. “Then I’ll tell the Vikrom family to kill your husband.” Eliot picked up his phone and called Vicky. “The useless son-in-law of the Quint family, is he there at your place?” “Yeah, Eliot.” Vicky’s voice came from the phone. Eliot glanced at the pale-looking Darcy. “Kill him!” He sounded casual as if he was telling Vicky to kill an ant. “No! Please! No!” Darcy was devastated! How could Eliot kill someone at will? Why was there no one to punish him for his crimes? The call went quiet for a moment before Vicky said, “I’m sorry, Eliot.” Eliot was stunned. “Sorry? What do you…” “You don’t know? That’s because she dared not kill me.” An emotionless voice sounded all of a sudden. Darcy was startled. She turned around to the entrance and saw Kaze. “Kaze!” Eliot was surprised. “The hotel is filled with my men! How did you get in?” Eliot was shocked. He looked at Kaze anxiously and in fear. Not only did Kaze
“Yeah.” Kaze nodded. He was happy that Darcy would ask the question. Before this, she would never assume the possibility of him having such capability. When they came out of the hotel, the entrance was already surrounded by a police line with many bystanders who were watching curiously. There were also many reporters with cameras waiting for the scoop of the day. Vice Commander Jayden Belfast from Garo Spec Ops Team was answering the reporters’ questions. “We are from the main Garo Spec Ops Team. Our brother team, the Tiger Fangs, got ambushed while escorting a VIP to Nation Hotel. We believed villainous criminals were behind the attack. “The Strategic Department is highly concerned about this case, so we were sent here to wipe out the criminals. A few of them are killed on the spot.” The bystanders and reporters applauded loudly. “Ouch!” Kaze gasped in pain all of a sudden because his waist was pinched. “Hmph! You almost got away this time! You like to tease me!”
Edward Everia, Belarus Golding, and Flint Chapman. The three of them were said to be the real mayors of Lilrose. Mayor Johnson might be the mayor in the public’s eyes but every decision he made must go through them one way or another. Without their permission, no decisions would be made. The three of them were close and united. They advanced and retreated at the same time, and nothing could separate them. It was because of their union that they were able to control the city. “The events at Socialite Club and Nation Hotel happened on the same day, and both of them are related to the Quints. How strange.” Flint, the head of the only family that had not witnessed anything transpire, mumbled as he observed his partners' somber expressions. Rather than reveling in their misfortune, he was apprehensive about the unfolding events. “Especially Nation Hotel. This is terrifying. Even the Garo Spec Ops Team is there! I supposed the Everias lost a lot…” He looked at Edward who wo
The three families were local tyrants so they were not afraid of Ray, an outsider. Therefore, they decided to go to war with him. They had been eyeing Ray’s wealth for some time now. Edward said, “Ray had been secretly supporting the Quints, and now he used Kaze’s name to thrash the Socialite Club. We shall move against the Quints, especially Darcy and Kaze. I want them to suffer the consequences of hurting Eliot.” He made the two of them a priority because of what happened to his grandson. The other two family heads nodded. Belarus said, “The Quints’ Passion Fragrance District project is about to presale soon and Darcy has been running around to get loans. As long as we intercept the loan, we can destroy them.” The fate of the Quints was sealed by a few words from the three family heads. Then, Edward sighed and said, “Now, the Everias are in trouble. After what happened at Nation Hotel, our family has gotten on the bad side with the military. Flint, you have men inside
“I have pointed you in a direction. If you still can’t trust your team, you can go to the Viper’s Den.“There’s one thing, though. Don’t rely too heavily on the Viper’s Den, or your company will be left without secrets.” Kaze’s suggestion gave Snow assurance. She considered tapping into the Viper’s Den’s resources. However, Kaze warned her against excessive dependence. “Why did you say that, Chairman Lee? Will the Viper’s Den stab me in the back?” Surely, the Viper’s Den took orders from Kaze. The Viper’s Den would always be an ally so long as Kaze was the branch leader. “I just don’t want you to put too much faith in others. You find loyalty by developing your own team. Those who revere me will never trust you completely.” Kaze analyzed the situation. Snow ate her supper and looked at Kaze in confusion. “You can only count on the people you win over. You can’t trust anyone else, and that includes me.” Kaze would never hurt Snow. However, he hoped that she would fin
“As you said, all is in the past. What’s the point of dwelling on it?” Leah perked up. Such was life, but it took her too long to understand the harsh reality. She guessed things were just not meant to be. “I’ll think about what to get Kaze. Rest well. We’ll visit him in a few days.” Taking the matter seriously, Katie wanted to get gifts ready ahead of time to thank Kaze. “Alright. I’ll see what I can do too. I want to be in touch with the outside world. I don’t care what they have to say. This is not my fault. I won’t blame myself.” Leah wanted her phone back to contact her former friends. Ultimately, she needed to move forward instead of backward. She had to face and fight back the rumors with courage. It was the crucial step to kick trauma in the face. The abduction was kept hush-hush for the most part, but Katie’s frantic search for her daughter at the cocktail party did not go unnoticed. Hearing about the incident, the influential people were keen to find out
“When did Kaze start setting it all up? I get the feeling that everybody played into his hands right from the start, and he had controlled every step of the way.” Leah realized that Kaze was an amazing man. Nothing could go past his eyes. “I don’t know.” Katie feared someone like Kaze. She would not be caught dead near him. Even when grasping the situation, Katie dared not look into Kaze for fear she would be targeted. Katie was careful not to show her face around Kaze. For all she knew, Kaze might get back at her. “But he came to Butterworth alone. We met at the train station, and he helped me out of a bad situation.” Leah felt warm and cozy inside just remembering the events. They did not know each other then. Kaze was kind to help a stranger out. From then on, Kaze could do no wrong in Leah’s eyes. Leah befriended him and found him nice. Her interest in him grew. They also got along well. Her memories of Kaze were sweet. Anyone could hurt her in the world, but
Even though Katie was the CEO of the Northborn Group, many eyed her position. There were too many vying to replace her. Without dedicating herself to her work, Katie risked falling from grace. Katie had been too eager to find success to give her daughter the best life. Leah could not understand the pain Katie had to go through. “I understand it now. I explained the nature of my relationship with Kaze to you, but you just wouldn’t get it.” Leah stubbornly expressed herself in hopes her mother would understand. “I just couldn’t get it through my head that you have grown up. You make an easy target since you just graduated and have not stepped into the real world.” Katie would not always be there for Leah. Hence, Katie did her best to get rid of potential danger. Her overprotectiveness triggered Leah’s defiance. It was Katie’s fault for not realizing it sooner. “I’m not angry with you. I didn’t understand a mother’s good intentions, but I understand now. I will listen to
Leah’s face beamed, but her mother’s words threw her into a daze. In the end, she tried to squeeze a smile to assure her mother. However, Leah could not muster a smile. Those days lingered with her like a recurring bad dream. Whenever she recalled the incident, she felt trapped in that nightmare again. Leah wanted to let those memories fade away, but she just could not do it. She would get startled awake late at night and trace the scars across her skin. During moments like this, she resented Perry. Leah was rather cheerful during the day as if the past was behind her. However, it was simply a way for her to escape the pain. By the way Leah was behaving, Katie instantly regretted the question. She should not have probed. Even if they avoided the elephant in the room, they could pretend like nothing ever happened. Nevertheless, the act of asking brought up unsettling times for Leah. “It’s my fault. I shouldn’t have asked.” Katie gently held Leah, hoping to cast
When the ambulance door closed shut, Leah wailed once more. The reality of her rescue finally sank in, and she grasped that it was not just a dream. It was a pity that she did not have much time with Kaze. She longed to spend more time with him. “Don’t cry, young lady. You’ll get better soon enough. Don’t worry about the scars on your face. I can administer medicine to help you,” the doctor said while wiping her tears. “Thank you. I’m finally out of the hell hole.” Leah’s worst nightmare would be to be trapped in there forever. Kaze watched as the ambulance disappeared into the night. He then turned to face the villa. “Apprehend everybody in there. Perry should be punished for his crimes.” Kaze had not intended to go after the Duncans, but the family had crossed the line this time. Leah was an adorable and vulnerable woman. She was abused beyond recognition. It never occurred to Kaze that the Duncans could be so cruel. “Perry has passed out in there. Where should
With the secret out in the open, the housekeeper dropped his attitude. He pointed at the basement not too far away. “My employer is in there.” The housekeeper grimaced and kept his head down. Kaze laughed. Unaware of his impending doom, Perry was still living it up. It was absurd. Perry was playing with fire by hurting Leah. “About time you wise up.” Arthur smiled and patted the housekeeper’s face. He opened the door to the basement. Kaze walked to the bar counter and picked up the best bottle of champagne there. He fiddled with the bottle before carrying it to the basement. The other Viper’s Den members followed him. Kaze took a stride down the steps, to the basement. The noisy music was blasting before they reached the entry. Kaze was filled with a mix of emotions. Nevertheless, he said nothing. He opened the door and walked in. The light in the basement was bright, making everything perfectly clear. However, the people inside were not bothered by the
“You know him. It’s Perry Duncan, Leah’s ex-boyfriend.” Snow did not see the point of hiding the truth, so she laid everything out. “Leah must be feeling foul because she was unaware that she was being stalked. By the time she realized what was going on, she was taken into a vehicle. “We spotted the vehicle they departed in from the surveillance footage. They headed to the mountain up north.” Snow had a general idea of the location. “I got Arthur on the job. He’s putting up a team from the Viper’s Den.” Snow was uncertain of Kaze’s stance toward Leah, but now that she was made aware of the situation, the least she could do was help. Katie belonged to the Viper’s Den, so Snow was lending a hand to a friend in business. “Thank you. Please save my daughter.” Katie was nervous. The Viper’s Den was the people she could count on. “Arthur is good, but he’s slow. I’ll do it,” Kaze said. The whole thing was unrelated to him. Kaze was well within his right to stand on the si
Even so, Elsie was out to get Leah. Elsie could pick up on Perry’s delight when she took a swing at Leah. Poor Elsie was just trying to survive by catering to others. People like her learned to pick up social cues and read body language to please customers for money in return. Their income would double if their customers were happy. Leah was the obstacle. If the women could not get rid of her, they would lose their profit. They had no hard feelings for Leah, but they stood on opposing ends. “You should be fawning over Mr. Duncan, not begging me,” Elsie said while grabbing Leah’s hair to pull her up. Leah snatched Elsie’s wrist to try and break free. “Let me go. I never did anything to you.” Leah was no doormat. She did not want to cross these people or get involved with them. She still hoped that by waiting here, her prince would arrive to save her. However, all she got was a cruel beating, and she had enough. “This isn’t my fault. Blame Mr. Duncan for your cir