Despite talking about an arrest, Reuben appeared to have named them the killers. Snow understood that Reuben was quick to take action against them, likely due to Aiden and Reiko. God knew what would happen once Snow and Kaze were taken away. Reuben smiled at Snow. “But since you’re a member of the Frosts, I can give you proof. “Take him here.” Reuben waved his arm. Patrick, still in a hospital gown, was carried in by the neck. A Tiger’s Cave member dumped him on the floor. With the impact ripping his wounds, Patrick let out a harrowing cry. He quickly looked humiliated. First, the Weathers sold him out, and the Ryokanians tortured him. Now, the Tiger’s Cave members insulted him. It dawned on Patrick that without power and influence, he was left without dignity. Reuben pointed at Patrick. “You must know him. He’s Patrick Weather. He pocketed Refined Blade’s two-billion-dollar shares. Mr. Kita was one of the few who went after Patrick.“Patrick is with you, and M
Even though Kaze was enraged that Snow was hurt, Snow held Kaze from fighting back. Kaze stopped and looked at Reuben grimacingly before uttering icily, “You will soon know what you’re in for.” “What? Are you planning to get even with me?” Reuben took a step ahead with a smirk and looked at Kaze in defiance. His intention could not be clearer. Reuben was trying to rile Kaze up, giving himself a reason to order a hit on Kaze. He could then avenge Genesis. “Come on. I’m standing here. Don’t you want to hurt me?” Reuben took another step forward and gave Snow another slap. As a trained fighter, he was incredibly quick. Snow was just a fragile woman. She did not know what hit her. With a smack, Snow had another mark on her other cheek. Withdrawing his arm, Reuben put his hand close to his nose for a sniff. He then pointed his gun at Kaze and said with a pretentious smile, “What? Too scared to fight back? “If only your hands were as tough as your mouth.“You’re just a c
As Buffy, now the president of Gwake Corporation, carried herself with authority, Reuben had a sinking feeling. “We were once friends, Buffy. Your family and mine go way back, but you have no right to tell me how to do my job.” Reuben was aware of the changes Buffy had gone through. Buffy was not just the president of Gwake Corporation, but she was also the head of the Riverbank Gwakes. The Riverbank Gwakes were extended family to the Westeros Gwakes. Now that Buffy wore the pants in the family, she gained massive support from the main branch. Considering Buffy’s position now, Reuben did not feel superior as the Swan heir and the Tiger’s Cave’s commissioner. Sure, the Swans were highly influential within the Tiger’s Cave.However, Buffy’s family was equally powerful within the Viper’s Den. Jude was not the only member with authority in the Viper’s Den. Though it was not clear why the Westeros Gwakes did not support Jude in the power struggle within the South River Stat
“You have no right to dictate how I and the Tiger’s Cave run things. “Besides, your family may be powerful within the Viper’s Den, but you might find yourself in hot water by interfering in the Tiger’s Cave’s affairs. “Seeing that we were friends before, I won’t pursue you for obstructing justice.“Now, get out of my way!” Reuben waved his arm and said sternly to his subordinates in the back without looking back, “Kaze Lee and Snow Frost aren’t going to be cuffed themselves.” “Click!” The subordinates raised their guns at Kaze and Snow. Another pulled out cuffs. Buffy grimaced and said curtly, “Reuben, are you really going to push this so far without giving me any respect?” Reuben scoffed. “I would need to give you respect when Casius was around, Buffy.“But your man is dead. Why should I give you any now? “If you continue to get in my way, I’ll have you arrested too.“You should know that once you’re taken into the Tiger’s Cave’s custody, you can forget about ever
“Hannah!” Getting on his feet, Reuben rubbed his hot cheek. Reuben looked Hannah dead in the eye and hissed her name. He was filled with rage. “You have gone too far. I am the commissioner of the Tiger’s Cave. How dare you hit—” “Smack!”Hannah cut Reuben off with a slap in the face. “Have I, though? I don’t mind taking things to a whole new level.” Reuben dropped to the ground once more. With Hannah assaulting Reuben, his team would have none of it. Even Snow and Buffy narrowed their eyes at Hannah. Reuben may not be the most influential man, but he was no pushover. However, Hannah was pretty disrespectful to whip Reuben. It was possible that Hannah’s interactions with her posh circle in Westeros had set a precedent.Reuben’s response when he saw Hannah was a good indication. He and his kind revered Hannah. On the other hand, Hannah’s newly acquired power as the South River State Branch chief may have something to do with it. Either way, Hannah did not see
Hannah intimidated Reuben. Reuben would not stand a chance against Hannah if she were to go for the kill. He could not even dodge her attacks. The way she disposed of Reuben’s subordinates suggested that she held a dozen gunmen in utter contempt.Fear washed over Reuben. He was baffled too. Reuben did not believe that his insult toward Kaze and assault on Snow warranted Hannah’s revenge. Hannah could not possibly kill him without worrying about the Tiger’s Cave’s retaliation. To Reuben, Kaze was just a loser who hid behind women’s backs. There was something more to the loser, though, because three women stood by him. Still, Hannah made no explanation. She believed that Reuben did not deserve to know who Kaze was. “Hannah, the boy killed our ally from Ryokan. Are you sure you want to bail him out when this is possibly going to be a huge diplomatic dispute?” Reuben pointed at Kaze and said grimacingly to Hannah, “I doubt you can handle the weight of the situation.”
Hannah’s aggression only made Reuben grimace harder. He looked Hannah dead in the eye and hissed through clenched teeth. “So you’re determined to stand by Kaze Lee?” “Let me correct you there again. I am not qualified to protect Kaze.” Hannah said in a flat but firm tone, “As I said, I don’t care who from your organization gets in my way. No one can take Kaze away, not on my watch.” Reuben’s gaze fell on Kaze. If he heard it right, Hannah said that Kaze was one of the Viper’s Den. Yet, Hannah mentioned that she was not qualified to protect Kaze. Did Kaze hold a higher position than Hannah in the Viper’s Den? It was impossible. There was no way. Kaze was a guy who had to take his wife’s family name. He could not possibly earn a high-ranking position. Reuben believed that Kaze had the support of someone more powerful than Hannah within the organization. Who could it be? Hannah was the branch chief, so the individual had to be a deputy leader or branch leader to
The ward was a scene of utter chaos with screams of the injured. Reuben thought that Kaze’s assault gave him an opportunity to kill, but before he could point his gun, he was knocked off his feet. The slap came on too fast and strong, throwing Reuben into a daze. Not realizing that he dropped his weapon, Reuben held his cheek and wobbled to his feet. He fixated on Kaze, feeling enraged and humiliated. “How dare you, Lee! You’re asking for it!“Don’t just stand there! Get him! Arrest the bastard. Shoot him if he resists arrest!” Reuben stamped his foot and yelled. He blew his top. It was bad enough that Hannah slapped him in public. However, Kaze did the same to him too. Kaze had some nerves. He was a loser who took his wife’s family name. Yet, Kaze had the cheek to attack him. Reuben’s ego would not allow it. He would never live it down if word ever got out. Reuben’s shouting came to an abrupt halt. There was no response from his people. Some Tiger’s Cave
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
Leah had not had it easy these recent days. However, she had learned to be submissive and give in. It never occurred to her that Perry would do this to her. After repeated beatings, she quickly wised up. “Mr. Duncan, why is this disgusting person here? She’s an eyesore.” Dressed in a red number, a woman with wavy hair sat next to Perry. She clung to Perry intimately. She spoke in a sultry and mesmerizing voice. “Oh, she’s just a bitch. “She got on my nerves, so I punished her. I’ll dump her once I’m bored with her.” Perry had the time of his life getting back at Leah. He got a kick out of it. However, he did not feel that it was enough. Every time he looked at his injured hand, his resentment toward Leah grew. “How did she upset you, Mr. Duncan?” Another lady extended her arms to knead Perry’s shoulders while gently murmuring into his ear. With women gathering and fussing over him, Perry felt his ego thoroughly stroked. He was thrilled. “Well, she doesn’t kno
Katie thought about everybody. Kaze was the odd one out, so he had to be the suspect. It made sense that Leah would elope with Kaze. “There must be some sort of misunderstanding. We can talk it out. Don’t do anything reckless.” Snow stopped Katie from doing anything extreme. “How could there be a misunderstanding? There can be no one else but him.” Katie was stubborn. “We can help with your daughter’s disappearance. You won’t get anywhere by picking on him.” Snow tried her best to defend Kaze. She would not let Kaze be hurt on her watch. Eager to find her daughter, Katie believed her suspicion to be the truth, and Kaze must have stashed her daughter somewhere. “I don’t have time to waste, but no one could’ve taken Leah away.” Katie was naїvely convinced that Kaze was behind it. Kaze had only just learned about Leah’s disappearance. It was quite late for Katie to finally look into the matter. “I didn’t take your daughter, but we can dig deeper into this.” Leah w
The blue gem necklace around Snow’s neck brought out her elegance and class. Snow was educated well. She carried herself with ease at the social event. She exchanged pleasantries with business partners and greeted them all. Snow shared a few drinks with several prominent families. Aloysius and her secretary stayed with her and drank on her behalf.The party was a success. Kaze held a glass of wine to sip in a corner. Snow’s brilliance was the assurance he needed. He did not have to worry about her leading the Frosts now. “I guess I was worried about nothing. I didn’t even have to be here. She has gotten everything covered.” Kaze was concerned about Snow because she had always been his assistant. He was apprehensive that Snow would have no control over her staff after her promotion. He even asked the Viper’s Den to lend a hand. Nevertheless, Snow did not let him down. She had done a great job. Kaze drank wine and enjoyed the music. Soon, men and women entered the
Aloysius looked at the business venture at hand with a mix of emotions. Jet was supposed to make a comeback with the project, but the defeat was a huge slap to his face. “Can I ask whether Kaze was behind this?” Aloysius braced himself to ask the question. Even though Aloysius had an inkling, he feared receiving confirmation of his suspicion. “Chairman Lee helped me. If Jet hadn’t hurt my mother, I wouldn’t have rushed back to take his place. “He did this to himself,” Snow said blatantly. “How did you know about the island project? We have been discreet about it.” Aloysius was eager to find out. The question would burn on his mind unless he got some answers. “You can’t keep anything from the Viper’s Den, but this is the end of the matter. If you’re interested in the project, I can put you in charge of it.” Snow could not be bothered to explain herself. Aloysius played it smart. He had been carrying out Snow’s orders without a hitch. Snow was happy to honor her prom
“Tell them that the company is expecting funding, and all the projects will be launched in a few days. Everything will be back on track. It’s a good thing that the higher management is gone. We will be opening the positions for internal employees to apply.” Snow got the right solution to handle the situation. She had to give these employees hope to gain their dedication in return. Aloysius was surprised. “Who would pour money in when our finances are in a mess?” Having worked with Jet, Aloysius had a good understanding of the company’s ins and outs. Several business ventures were up in the air, and the company was bleeding money. Even with a relaunch, these projects would not bring in much of a profit. Most importantly, the relaunch had to be backed up by some funding. The business got a loan from the Viper’s Den. If payment was not made in time, the company’s shares would be used to make up for the loss. The whole thing spelled trouble. Snow just joined the company.
“This is the financial report you submitted today. Any intern can do a better job than you.” Snow mocked Jack. She was disappointed in his performance. A finance director who could not even get his basics right should not be working in finance in the first place. “Who do you think you are, doing this to us?” The others are only out to save their own asses. They did not sympathize with Jack. “I’m sure you are well aware of what you have done.” “You’re on your phone all day at work. You put your daily expenses on the company card, and we’re talking about tens of thousands of dollars a month. You only bought stuff for your personal use. “Let’s not forget about you. Your so-called business trips are to take your mistress out for expensive hotel stays and vacations.” Snow looked at each one of them while detailing their deeds. She shamed them in public, utterly humiliating them. “Why were these allowed before? Why are you stopping these practices now? If you can change