Vincent shared the news he just learned. “I bet you don’t know, but Perfect World Group, the local government, and the Lefteria Group joined forces to go up against the top three families and Cronus.“Taurus Automobiles wasn’t the only place that was shut down. The casino of Hades, Cronus’ nephew, was cordoned off too. The Novoelite Alliance is declaring war against the top three families. Kaze has nothing to do with it.” In a matter of mere hours, the world had given a name to the rising force.The Novoelite Alliance was the coalition between Perfect World Group, the local government, and the Lefteria Group. The public believed the alliance was to give the top three families and Cronus a run for their money. Even the top three families and Cronus thought so too. Rudy’s family was thrown for the loop. They were out of their depth to understand the level of conflict.Still, they were relieved to learn that Kaze had nothing to do with it. Deborah pounded Vincent coyly. “Wh
Kaze believed the fugitives with blood on their hands were better off dead. It was a waste of resources to lock them behind bars. Getting the message, Snow gave Don a call. Kaze closed his eyes for a rest. “We’ve arrived at Benedict’s home, Mr. Chairman.”Not too long later, Snow whispered to Kaze. Benedict lived in a 30-million-dollar villa. He was the deputy director of the medical center. He earned quite a lot managing the logistics and procurement. Kaze furrowed his brows the moment he got out of the car. Something was off. Still, it did not bother him. He strolled into the villa. Snow stayed behind him. The living room was filled with packed suitcases. Benedict must be selling the property to pay off his debt to Hades. His wife and kids were not around. It was just him. “Why are you here, Kaze?” The sight of Kaze washed the color off Benedict’s face. Benedict was surprised that Kaze made the personal trip over. Kaze walked over and sat on the sofa be
Benedict trembled in fear and excitement. The question of how Kaze had discovered the five assassins was pushed to the back of his mind.“I told you that you were asking for it, Kaze, but you didn’t believe me.” Folding his arms, Benedict looked arrogantly at Kaze. “You’re an idiot. You think you have the world beneath your feet just because you can fight. The nerve of you to give me crap at my own home.” Benedict pointed at Snow behind Kaze. “Is she your wife, Darcy? Hehe. If your wife spends the night with me, I might make your death a little less painful.” “Fuck off!” Snow scowled. Kaze lifted his chin, his gaze ruthless. Benedict and the five assassins could not look him in the eye. Even though the assassins had killed many, they had never seen such terrifying eyes. They could see hell in his eyes. The weight of his murderous intent hung heavy in the air. The assassins felt chills up their spine. “Kill him!” The female assassin was the first to succumb to
“What’s happening?” Terrified, Benedict shivered on the ground. He had no idea what was going on. Kaze and Snow watched with composure as the scene unfolded. No one would have thought that Kaze and Snow masterminded the massacre. The two dozen fugitives somehow escaped, barged into Benedict’s villa, and encountered the assassins at the right moment. Both parties worked for Cronus, but they did not know each other. The fugitives on the run wanted hostages to negotiate with the police. Those who did not make good hostages should be killed. However, the fugitives underestimated the assassins. The assassins had been trained to kill. Despite being outnumbered, they were highly skilled compared to the fugitives. With each swing of their blades, a fugitive collapsed in his own blood. Still, the fugitives were undeterred in the face of blood. Their companions’ death did not slow them down. In fact, they were thrilled to kill. The fugitives managed to wound and eventually
Every little thing that happened to Darcy’s family had something to do with Kaze. At the time, Quintessential Group held sway in Lilyrose with ambitions to extend their reach into Sunrise. It would not have taken long for Hector to propel the family into the orbit of multibillionaires.Kaze had confessed his feelings to Darcy then. Those who had eyes on Kaze would not allow him to rise back to power through the Quints. A single command unleashed a coordinated assault from powerhouses like the Sunrise Lees, leaving the Quints and their family business devastated.Hector met with a car crash, and Agnes was fired. The family of four, who were living the dream, fell into an abyss. “Did you get it on tape, Snow?” Kaze asked without looking back. Snow approached and showed the phone to Kaze. It was a video of Benedict confessing. Benedict shook and pleaded, “Don’t tell the Goldings that I told you when you seek them out for vengeance, Kaze.” If the Goldings were to find o
Cronus went straight back to bed.He had been through a lot as a prominent underworld kingpin for two decades. The incident was no reason to lose himself yet. Despite what had happened, he could still have a good night’s sleep. However, the same could not be said for the top three families. They had received two pieces of bad news. Angel dropped a message that the Novoelite Alliance was closing in on them, but they did not feel the strain. The other piece of news drove the family heads to call for an emergency meeting at the Chapmans’ residence. “Edward, Flint, I found my daughter.” Belarus dove straight to the point when the two family heads hurried over. “Where?” Edward and Flint looked at him. Belarus said solemnly, “Tiffany took Lilyrose Strategic Department Logistic Division’s Commissioner Renslayer to Springvile District to choose a mansion. Commissioner Renslayer fancied the one resided by James’ family two years ago. “Tiffany wanted to procure mansion No. 9
“What? One billion dollars for an invite? That’s daylight robbery.” Belarus was furious when Flint relayed the price. Even though Albert was the chief commander of the State Strategic Department, an invitation to attend his ceremony should not cost that much. Flint uttered, “I heard Albert trained under the God of War. He longed for an assignment from the God of War himself. I’m confident the God of War will be there.”“Seriously?” Edward had his doubts. “Even if the God of War is attending, one billion dollars for an invite is ridiculous. Maybe it’s a special price to scam us out of our money.” “Even if it is, I’m paying up.” Belarus interrupted him. “My family will be attending the ceremony. I don’t care if the money is for the God of War or Albert, I’m paying the one billion dollars. The things they can offer me in return outweigh the cost.” “That’s right. My family will be attending too.” Belarus managed to convince Flint. Edward let out a wry smile. “We are in t
It was Kaze’s idea to raise the price to one billion dollars per invitation to the ceremony. Kaze heard Tiffany and Martin talking at mansion No. 9 yesterday. He learned that the top three families wanted to befriend Albert through the ceremony. They wanted to utilize their connection with Albert to confront Kaze. It was amusing. Kaze decided to give the top three families what they wanted and so much more. The families’ wealth was stolen anyway. It was dirty money. Kaze and Draco chatted. Darcy had her usual briefing at Quintessential Group office building, listening to her department heads’ reports. “Presently, the group’s focus is on the Passion Fragrance project. All the preparations for the pre-sale are completed, and we are scheduled to open for pre-sale the day after tomorrow.“The 2-billion-dollar investment poured into the group enabled a bigger budget in marketing. With our solid relationships with the banks, we are starting to see a positive lift since the a
“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