“Strip naked and wash yourself.” Casius walked up to Buffy while wiping his fingers with a paper towel. He peered down at her, speaking in a disgusting yet maniacal tone, “If you don’t know what’s good for you, I think I might beat you to death. “A woman like you shouldn’t end up dead. You are still young and beautiful. More importantly, your mother is still in rehabilitation. Are you going to leave her helpless and alone in this world?” Buffy glared at Casius with utmost hatred. She initially did not take his words seriously but when he mentioned her mother, her body shook and chills ran down her spine. Her bedridden mother, Tulip, was her biggest weakness. She acted as a good daughter in front of her father for so many years, behaved like a good girl in front of Faith, or Hope, and endured the injustice and grievances—all because she wanted to help her mother recover. Yet Casius used her mother against her. Despair consumed her from within. She could die without a s
The Weathers were a powerful family with a long history. They had been in power for decades and were deeply rooted in Riverbank. Countless people had benefited from their connections with the Weathers. Yet Kaze claimed he could wipe out the entire family. It was utter nonsense! He must have thought he could do whatever he wanted just because he was slightly stronger physically. He must have lost his mind! “You bastard! Who do you think you are, disrespecting Mr. Weather like that?!” Madison stepped up, pointed at Kaze, and shouted, “Who gave you the gall to barge in here and attack our men?” “You and your family will die because of what you just did!” Hank, Casius’ usually silent personal bodyguard, spoke up as he subtly moved closer to Casius. His gaze turned sinister as he stared at Kaze. “Don’t waste time with him. Break his arms and legs. If he’s here now, he must be here for that woman. We’ll make him kneel and watch how Mr. Weather ravages her!” The other s
Ugh! Buffy was utterly horrified by the gory and bloody scene. She bent over and threw up. Casius was having tea when one of his men shot Kaze. Before he knew it, a part of his man’s brain was floating in his tea and his smile froze.Kaze, on the other hand, had stepped away before the brain splatter. His white shirt was spared from the blood and brains. The two dead bodies in the living hall silenced everyone. “Casius, are these your so-called experts?” Only Kaze remained relaxed in the room. “No wonder Hunter Yaphet looked down on you and South Stormborn can kill your assistant that easily. “It seems like you got carried away by the title given to you by some trust fund babies. “Now, do you think I am qualified to kill you and wipe out your family?” His casual tone left Casius, Madison, and Hank stunned; their expressions turned as white as a sheet. Casius had been alive for thirty years and his proudest achievement was being one of the Riverbank Seven—the most eli
Before her words even subsided, Madison dashed toward Kaze courageously. Neely got killed and she was promoted. It was the perfect chance for her to appeal to her boss. Her expression was ferocious as she charged forward. She reached out to her waist and pulled out a pair of iron needles laced with poisons. She twirled them around skillfully, the sharp glares and pointy ends flickered along the motion. Kaze did not even turn around to the woman. He swung a reverse slap and hit her in the face. Slap! Before Madison could even attack, she was sent flying away with a bang. She crashed onto the floor meters away, unable to get up even after a while. When she regained the strength to lift her head, her hair was messy and her delicate face became swollen. The other suited men were shocked. Their eyes widened in disbelief and fear was smeared all over their faces. Madison was stronger than them since she was able to fill Neely’s position so quickly. Many of them witnes
Buffy had always held back considering Jude was her biological father. No matter how many bad things he did, she would ask Kaze to spare his life at least. What Jude did to her today, selling her off to Casius and turning his back on her, disappointed her completely and she decided to cut off all ties with that man that she once called father. Kaze said, “Don’t worry. What the Gwake family did to you today, I will make them pay twice as much in the future.” “As you see fit.” Buffy nodded like a timid little girl. Casius, still pinned under Kaze’s foot, overheard the conversation and noticed Buffy’s obedience, which only agitated him further. He struggled but even the limited movements hurt his wounds, causing him to cry in pain. “You’re noisy.” Kaze exerted more strength in his foot. Casius felt his organs were being crushed bit by bit, so he quickly zipped his mouth and dared not make a noise. “Kaze Lee! Let go of Mr. Weather!” “You’re fucking dead!” The suit
Seeing the men stuck between a rock and a hard place, Kaze slightly released his grip, allowing Casius to catch a breath. “So, put your little toys away, or I might accidentally strangle your boss to death if I’m startled. We wouldn’t want that, would we?” said Kaze plainly, his tone cold. The shooters were reluctant to lower their guns but they could not afford to risk their boss’ life. “Cough! Don’t listen to him! He wouldn’t dare to strangle me!” Casius, who caught a breath, revealed a maniacal grin and screamed, “He doesn’t have the balls to die with me! “If I die, the Weather family will avenge me. If he dies, his beautiful wife is left alone with her useless parents! The whole family will suffer! “My family will do whatever they can and torture his wife and his family! He wouldn’t dare to kill me!” Madison, Hank, and the others grinned as they listened on.The suited men looked at Kaze with reignited flames of murder. Casius might be held hostage by Kaze, looking
“Come on! Kill me! Kill me, you piece of cowardly shitfuck!” Casius had lost his calm. He continued to provoke and challenge Kaze. He knew Kaze would not dare to kill him, so this would be the best chance for him to escape. However, he still underestimated Kaze. Kaze shook his head. He grabbed Casius’ left arm and twisted it. Crack! The left arm was broken just like that. The intense pain nearly knocked Casius unconscious. His handsome features contorted in agony, yet he did not make a sound. His endurance of pain somehow granted him the image of a tough guy. He gritted his teeth and grinned at Kaze. “Kaze Lee, you’re torturing me now, but have you ever thought of what would happen to your family once I get my hands on them?” Slap! Kaze slapped him in the face, causing him to spit blood. “What consequences? Do tell.” Slap! “You’re still thinking about going after my family? Do you think you can do that after today?” Slap! “You called yourself the Riverba
The shooters immediately turned their guns at the entrance. Fwoomp! Fwoomp! Fwoomp! Several muffled shots were heard. Then, the suited men surrounding Kaze and Buffy each had a bloody hole between their brows. Splat! The expression on their faces froze before they fell onto the floor. Their faces were in disbelief, confusion, and unwillingness. Even until their last breath, they did not know who took their lives. Gasp! Hank, Madison, and the surviving suited men gasped in shock as chills ran down their spines. The shooters who had just been shot stood scattered across the hall, with some distance between each of them. Yet to Hank and the rest, the shooters were all shot by a mysterious shooter at the same time. As fellow gun users, they knew that to achieve such an amazing feat required exceptional marksmanship and extremely precise judgment. It would not be exaggerating to call it godlike marksmanship. “Who did that?!” Madison and the rest were shocke
Aloysius came to have lunch and he picked up a piece of information during his meal. He wondered if it was real. When he first heard it, he thought it was ridiculous, but on second thought, it somehow made sense. Katie usually looked like a caring but overprotective mother but who would know for sure that she would not do something so outrageous? Once a person was driven by benefits and gains, sentiments and emotions ought to be sacrificed. “She’s ruthless but only a woman with her personality is fit to be the CEO of the Northborn Group,” Jet said with an approving nod. When a person discarded all sentiments and emotions, he or she would be invincible. “Are we attending the party?” “Of course we are. I still have to find the mastermind.” Jet refused to just step back. Someone ought to pay for halting his business ventures. “I understand. I’ll prepare a gift.” Aloysius nodded and turned around to leave the room. Jet remained in his seat, sipping on his glass of win
Jet did not look worried. His companions were confused. Anyone else in Jet’s position would panic. Each day the business ventures were on hold, and he faced continuous losses.However, Jet remained composed. It proved that Jet was competent to face problems. Despite the obstacles, Jet was able to overcome it in no time. “I see. Do tell if you need any help. We are happy to lend a hand.” “Yeah. I’m sure the problems will go away soon enough.” The group uttered, not taking the incident to heart. Seeing that the group was gullible, Jet was relieved. After dinner, Jet sent his drunk guests away. Jet grimaced. “None of them know anything. Those who do won’t see me.” Jet was curious as to who he had upset to deserve the attack. There was still wiggle room in regard to his business ventures, and Jet could still afford the wait. Nevertheless, it was frustrating to be targeted. “Is there anything you need, sir?” Aloysius asked. “Keep an eye on these people. Check
“We are happy to have dinner with you, but it’s only been a few days since we last saw you.” Though confused, the group took their seats. Jet invited them out to see if they knew anything about the mastermind behind the halted projects. However, the group behaved no differently from before. “Friends should always stay connected. I’m looking to take on a few business ventures. I was wondering if any of you are interested.” Jet was not in the mood to start new business dealings. He was simply trying to extract information from the group. Jet’s business ventures were stalled, and if the group had an inkling, they would not do business with him.If they were in the dark, they would jump at the opportunity to close the deal. They could not possibly say no, especially since they had been begging for Jet to throw a lifeline. “What kind of business are we talking about?” “Yeah. Can we be a part of it?” “I’ve been wanting to do business with you, Jet. It’s a pity we never
Aloysius entered the room. He was in a sorry state with a bandage on his head. “Mr. Lyfe can’t make it today, sir.” “Didn’t he say he was coming?” Jet asked without a second thought. “Mr. Lyfe’s son is apparently pursuing Leah.“Katie is planning to throw her daughter a birthday party here.” It was old news. The Frosts had always received an invitation to the celebration. “Katie sure put a lot of thought into the party. She must be trying to reach out to more powerful people.” Jet saw through Katie’s little plan. “What do we do now, sir? These people are saying they can’t make it now.” Aloysius had long understood that he would lose friends when he lost power. However, things had not progressed to that state yet. Yet, Jet’s previous business partners ignored him. “The Frosts are still in power. Where are they getting their intel from?” Jet could not put up with the humiliation. “What do we do now, sir?” Aloysius did not expect these people to be so disrespect
Tens of thousands in assets were lost as every second passed. Jet, as powerful as he was, could not let that happen. “Look into any prominent figures who have come to Butterworth lately.” Driven by fury, Jet had no qualms about attacking his people. Jet would compensate him with money anyway. Aloysius was used to the treatment. He kept his mouth shut and cleared up the mess before taking off. Jet’s nerves were on edge. After all, he had never encountered such a situation before. It was a mystery as to who would resent him so much as to take action. After much thought, Jet gave his previous business partners a call. He either could not get through to them or was transferred to their assistants. As it turned out, he could not reach anyone. Jet realized that he may have upset the wrong person. Otherwise, this would not happen in the first place. “That’s strange. I’ve been staying in Butterworth. I doubt I have upset anyone.” Jet just could not figure it out.
“Just lay all the bad news on me.” Jet started getting some ideas, seeing that the situation was rather unique. “The other important business dealings are halted indefinitely. I can’t get hold of the higher-ups.” Something did not add up, but Aloysius could not figure it out. This was the reason why he had to see Jet right away. “Have you investigated? Who is behind this?” It was clear to Jet that someone was out to get him, and the person targeted his business ventures. “We have run some checks. It’s a peculiar situation. It looks like someone is pushing this forward, but we can’t figure out who this person is.” Aloysius had been with the company for a long time. He knew a lot of people. Yet, he had never run into a case like this before. Despite the investigation, Aloysius could not find anything. “What’s the situation like?” Jet asked, holding back his rage. It was strange, indeed. However, there had to be some sort of trace. Who would attack the Frosts, th
Kaze watched as the senior citizens took off. The place was quiet as usual, and many things in the unit were left uncollected. “Mr. Lee, does this arrangement work?” Arthur awaited Kaze’s orders. “It will do for now.” After being out for the day, Kaze had seen some stuff. Business was all about making money, but some lines should not be crossed. As long as things remained within reason, there would not be scrutiny or blame. It was astounding the lengths Jet would go to. “The area will be demolished after a while. I want all of the Frosts’ projects on hold. Don’t approve any of them.” One word from Kaze could shake the very foundation of the Frosts’ business. “Alright. My team is on it. “But the Frosts will ask questions and find out who is behind this.” Arthur looked at Kaze worriedly. “They can’t find anything.” No one would know who Kaze was without his permission. It probably never crossed Jet’s mind that Snow had a powerful friend. Otherwise, he woul
Kaze was confused. Surely, the authorities would not disregard human lives and demolish the place by force. “Well, we tried to relocate them, but they refused our services. If they are still not on board, they will be sent to the retirement home tonight.” That was all Pax knew. The retirement home was just another place for the senior citizens to await death. “Is there nothing else you can do? So you signed the contract without thinking about the consequences? Karma will get back at you.” Pax’s shamelessness shocked Arthur. Pax mentioned that he would put the demolition on hold. It had not been long, and now the rights to the land were handed over. “It’s out of my hands. Jet went to my superiors to seal the deal. We are not allowed to intervene. “We had been figuring out ways to reach reconciliation for these senior citizens, but Jet was determined to make them pay.” It was the best Pax could do. He was just an employee, working to make a living. He did not have a say
“I want to see the person in charge of the demolition project now.” It was not a matter of time before the area was bulldozed, but Kaze hoped to delay it. Generally, it would take a large amount of capital to launch a project. Any delay would cause massive losses. Jet had several projects that had been put on hold, and it was a heavy blow to him. If Jet could not fix things quickly enough, all his money tied to the projects would be gone. He would be forced to ditch some projects to cut his losses. “I’ll get him here right now.” Arthur went out to make phone calls. He believed Kaze did the right thing as the senior citizens had nowhere to turn to. The senior citizens could only survive with some help. “Thank you, young man. Why are you helping us?” The senior citizens were old, but they could tell that Kaze genuinely wanted them to be okay. “I don’t think it’s right to bully you.” Kaze looked at the senior citizens earnestly, feeling sorry for them. Jet lack