“You don’t have to keep things inside. Just be direct. Since your mother doesn’t have time, just be straightforward with her, and speak your mind.” Kaze felt irritated, just waiting there. “When is your mother coming? Have you called her?” Once the girl was picked up by her mother, Kaze could leave. “I couldn’t get through to her, but I called her assistant. They are on the way.” It was common that Katie’s phone was unreachable. Leah did not feel too sad about it. She could get in touch with Katie’s assistant anyway. “At least she makes time to pick you up.” Kaze could tell that Leah was rebellious to get her mother’s attention. Hence, he said something to ease the tension between the mother and daughter. “Do you think so? She might be here to pick up a client. “I’m always the one to make compromises. I don’t believe that she’s coming all this way to pick me up.” Leah was skeptical of her mother’s commitment to her. “Just wait and see. If she is here just for yo
The tall man struck the bat on the ground multiple times, producing heavy clunks with each hit. His friends in front of him smirked with their arms crossed. “This girl is quite the looker but she’s not too bright.” “Yeah. She must be dumb to ditch a rich guy for a poor bastard.” Leah was nervous. She had always lived under her mother’s protection and had never experienced the wickedness of society before. She would visit the club with friends from time to time and had a few close encounters with conflicts but was never part of it due to the excessive protection. This would be her first time getting into trouble. The man seemed to be after her specifically. Yet when she heard the man’s friend, she realized something was off. “Who are you working for?” Understanding her mother’s influence and status in Butterworth, Leah gained the confidence to stand up once more. Even if the men were gangsters, they would have to be respectful to the Northborn Group and its CEO. Le
Kaze remained standing on the spot with his luggage, watching as the men approached him with a blank face. “Are you that useless? You push the girl forward to take all the heat? You are quite tall yourself, not that bad looking, but why are you that useless?” The tall man, Keeble, was surprised. As the situation unfolded, any man with a sense of humanity would step up to protect the girl—saving the damsel in distress. Yet Kaze remained unfazed, like a rock as if he was not part of the confrontation. Keeble and his men were notorious gangsters. Their fists could solve most problems quickly. Their swiftness and ruthlessness allowed them to make a name for themselves in the underworld. People would always come to them with requests similar to this and they could use it to make good money. Despite their experience in handling similar situations, this was the first time they had encountered such a setback. It was Perry’s order to deal with Kaze and use it to intimidate Leah,
It was exactly what Keeble wanted. First, verbal humiliation. Then, when Kaze ran out of patience, Keeble and his men would beat him up. Since they were close to a hospital, Kaze would survive the beating but it would be a lesson that he would carry for life. “My mother is the CEO of the Northborn Group. If you so much as touch him, I will make you pay.” Leah initially did not want to reveal her identity but she had no choice. Keeble and his men forced her with their intimidation. If she could not stop them, Kaze might be dragged into a whirlpool of trouble because of her. “This is none of your business. Why don’t you step aside and let us deal with him.” Keeble looked at Leah, surprised by her background. Whether or not she was telling the truth, he dared not mess with the Northborn Group and had decided to let her go. “He is my friend. If I walk, he walks; if you hurt him, I’ll call for help.” Leah noticed her words had power over Keeble. She tried to bring Kaze a
Everything happened quickly. When Keeble’s bat hit the ground, he noticed his target was missing. “Keeble! What happened?!” “What?! How did he get there so fast?” “Keeble! Can’t you aim properly?!” His friends were surprised by the sudden twist in the outcome but were not overly concerned. “It seems like he’s professionally trained. No wonder he just stands there the whole time. Turns out he’s quite fast.” Keeble knew what happened. The moment the bat was swung down, Kaze already predicted the trajectory and reacted accordingly, allowing him to dodge the hit easily. The swift reaction clearly indicated Kaze was powerful. “I don’t want trouble, but if you people chose to be persistent, I wouldn’t mind teaching you a lesson but I’m sure you won’t be able to handle the consequences.” Kaze had been holding back but Keeble and his men continued to annoy him, grinding his patience off. “I thought you can’t speak. Why didn’t you say anything at first?” Keeble scoffed.
When the man saw the confrontation, he frowned and quickly strode over. “Isn’t it Peter from the Viper’s Den? Of what do I owe the visit?” The moment Keeble turned around, he saw someone he used to respect. It was a surprise that Peter appeared at such a critical moment. He wondered if Peter was just passing by or came here to pick up someone. “What are you people doing?” Peter had been tasked with picking up Kaze and should have arrived earlier, but he got caught in terrible traffic. When he finally arrived, he saw that the person he was supposed to pick up was surrounded. Although he did not know much about Kaze’s background, his boss had given him the order, and that was reason enough to treat Kaze with respect. “Mr. Lee, sorry I am late,” he apologized as soon as he went up to Kaze. Kaze simply nodded and did not blame him for being late. “He’s with you?” Even if Keeble was a fool, he should have noticed by now that he had just messed with someone that he shou
“We didn’t do anything. Why?” Keeble aspired to become a gangster boss one day and if he were humiliated here and now, his dream might come to an abrupt end. He might not even be able to stay in the underworld anymore. “So you guys can bully Kaze and we cannot take revenge?” Leah said, her tone upset. She was determined to avenge Kaze. Keeble wanted to argue. He even looked at Peter, seeking clarification. Peter had agreed to let him and his men go, so why would the girl hold them back? “This has nothing to do with me. If she’s okay, of course, I can let you go,” Peter said. He did not want to overly expose his intention, so it would be best to be no part of the conflict. Kaze wanted to steer away from trouble but Keeble was the one who started it and simply letting them go might send the wrong message to others. “If you guys are bold enough to come here for trouble, then you should know how to handle the situation when it backfires.” Kaze was not the type of person w
With heels clacking and a branded purse hanging in her hand, Katie walked toward her daughter. When she saw the man beside Leah, a hint of displeasure rose from her heart. Then, she noticed Peter and a sense of familiarity rose to her mind. On second thought, she seemed to have met Peter before. “Peter? What are you doing here? Here to pick someone up?” A smile appeared on Katie’s face when she spoke to Peter. Leah initially wanted to introduce Kaze to her mother and tell her how he had helped her before. However, her mother did not even look at her or Kaze and went straight to Peter to greet him. Once again, she was ignored by her mother and it upset her. Unfortunately, she could not do anything to change it because she knew it was her mother’s job. She knew from a young age to never interrupt her mother during work or else she would be beaten. Kaze had heard a lot about Katie from Leah. The girl complained to him how unfair her workaholic mother was, yet when he saw
Katie invested heavily in Leah’s upbringing, hoping to marry her up, which would boost her business while securing her daughter’s future. “I got it. I’ll follow whatever you have planned for me.” Leah gave in to Katie’s requests, despite feeling uneasy. Her mother had control issues. However, Katie’s controlling behavior had gone on for years, and Leah did not know how to retaliate. Even if Leah was defiant, she would quickly yield to her mother. Leah was back to her goodie-two-shoes self. Katie was pleased with Leah’s surrender. “I’ll wire you more money. Just buy whatever you see fit.” Katie had always been generous financially to make it up to her daughter. Leah had nothing on her shopping list. However, she would never refuse money from her mother. She accepted the money and saved it in her bank account. “Now, I expect you to be on your best behavior. I have work to do. There is a lot to do for your birthday party too.“That reminds me. You can invite your frie
Katie watched as tears streamed down Leah’s face. She reached out to dry her tears. Looking at Leah’s beautiful face, Katie could not be any prouder of her daughter. Her daughter was her pride and joy. Katie wanted only the best for Leah, providing her with the new seasonal fashion collection or the latest tech. She ensured that Leah had an abundance of material things, so she would never go without. Nothing in the world would stray Leah away. Katie’s confidence came from the love she had for Leah. “Trust me. I’m not wrong on the matter. I’d never hurt you. Anything I do is for your own good. “I’ll invite Kaze to your birthday party if I see him again.” Knowing Leah, Katie decided to assure her. “Really? Are you really going to invite him to my party?” Despite feeling uneasy, Leah tried to have faith in her mother. “If I do see him again, I will apologize to him. I came off rude because I was worried about you. You should understand where I was coming from.” Ka
“Mr. Lee, since you’ve just arrived, do you want to get a shower or get something to eat first?” Arthur picked up the phone to call the front desk and was ready to ask for room service.“I’ll have a shower first. I’m travel-battered.” Kaze might not be a clean freak but he was tired from all the traveling. Taking a shower would be a good way to relax. Arthur then told the front desk to deliver some food. Meanwhile, at Northborn Emerald Residence, Leah was forcefully brought back home by her mother. She was displeased with her mother’s attitude, but she could not defy her and had no choice but to accept her fate. Still, regret and guilt lingered over what had happened. Kaze helped her a lot but her mother misunderstood him and insulted him. Leah was aggrieved but could not do anything. Her mother had absolute control over her life. “Stay at home and don’t wander outside anymore. I’ll call someone to make you some dresses for the upcoming birthday party.” Katie loved
This also meant that the upcoming schedule would be met with obstacles. Regardless, Arthur felt he needed to be with Kaze to keep him safe. “Let’s go to the hotel first.” Kaze was not in the mood to think about anything else. The car drove into the parking lot. They went up using the executive elevator instead of going in from the lobby. When Northborn Hotel was built, it was accustomed to the guests’ privacy and confidentiality, so an executive elevator was installed for convenience and safety. Due to that, many tycoons in the business world or famous celebrities chose Northborn Hotel when they visited Butterworth, allowing them to conduct business in private and not worry about being exposed. People with certain needs would also choose the hotel for special occasions, such as having an affair. Arthur guided Kaze to the elevator. Kaze scanned around the elevator box and realized there was no surveillance camera. “They did this on purpose?” Kaze said as he pointed u
“I’m okay for now.” “Mr. Lee, are you sure you don’t want to investigate the matter and find out who the mastermind is? I’m sure they are after you for a reason and it’s anything but good,” Arthur said, voicing his concerns. Even if no investigation was launched, he wanted to figure out what happened, or else it would be difficult to fend off potential attacks. “The Frost family won’t let me go this easily, but I have to say they underestimated me this time,” Kaze said nonchalantly, revealing a bit of information to Arthur. Arthur’s eyes narrowed into a serious look. He then gazed into the distance and softly sighed. This little incident might be out of his expectation but it was nothing serious as well. He knew Kaze’s identity, so there was nothing to be worried about. Kaze was the branch leader of the West State Viper’s Den, commanding multiple branches in the state. If he wanted to, he could deal with a lot of matters quietly. He must have had a reason for not using
“That won’t be necessary. I’ll just take it as a forgettable show. They are nothing, just expendable pawns to the employer.” Kaze already knew who sent Otto, so an investigation was not necessary. He came to Butterworth to deal with Jet, so it would be normal for the man to come after him. It was just surprising that Jet would resort to such a cheap tactic. On second thought, it was understandable because Jet never took Snow seriously. With that, it would only be natural that he assumed Kaze was a nameless lowlife, thus sending street thugs to humiliate him and then abduct him to threaten Snow. Kaze would never underestimate his enemies but Jet did not seem to share the same understanding. “You are just letting them go? Isn’t it a little dangerous? People might think that they can jump on us at any time without consequences,” Arthur asked while looking at Kaze with a serious look. He wanted to find out what plans Kaze had for the thugs. Kaze looked at the men crying on
The others were surprised by the situation as well, but they understood their roles and dared not back down. They grabbed their weapons and charged toward the man. After a brief fight, all of Otto’s men collapsed. Arthur continued to stroll toward Kaze, like nothing could stand in his way. One of his hands remained pocketed, and the cigar remained hung from his mouth, setting off a rugged and manly demeanor. “Mr. Lee, I am sorry for being late.” His strong and deep voice sounded from behind Otto. Otto was stunned as if struck by lightning, unable to believe the voice he had just heard. He stood frozen in place. His bat was still pointing at Kaze but his legs started to shake. An uncontrollable fear spread from the bottom of his heart. “What’s Alfonso doing?” Kaze was displeased by the arrangement. He should be resting at the hotel by now had Alfonso made better arrangements, not standing in the middle of the road because some thugs got in the way. “The boss was worr
“You don’t need to know who I am but you will soon find out what will happen to yourself.” Kaze gazed into the distant horizon. A red supercar tore across the horizon, its engine roaring fiercely even from afar.The thunderous roar of the engine was enough to ignite excitement in any man’s heart. “So, there’s someone stupid enough to interfere? They must have a death wish!” Otto was displeased by the engine roars further away. He shot a gaze at his men. A few of his men nodded and headed in the direction of the incoming car with their bats. Whether the car was merely passing or intended to be here, Otto would not allow them to interfere with his plan. “I see you people are ruthless. Don’t tell me you are going to attack some innocent people,” Kaze said casually. If the car was just passing, it would certainly turn away when they saw the situation; if not, it would stop. Kaze watched as the red Ferrari slowed down to a stop in front of him. He initially thought the
“That’s a new car! What the hell?!” Peter felt immense heartache looking at the dent. He had always taken good care of the car and given its luxurious brand, one dent would cost him tens of thousands to fix. More importantly, the car was imported and he had to send it overseas for repair, which would increase the cost. Peter initially did not want any trouble but Otto and his men crossed the line when they damaged the car. “I don’t care if the car is new or old, that guy is coming with us. Why don’t you do us a favor and walk away? You are not part of this.” Otto knew the value of the Maybach as well, but he had no qualms about damaging it as it was not his. Peter was frustrated and aggrieved. The damaged car made him feel worse. “Can’t we just talk this out? Why must you damage my car? We are all working for someone else. Why are you doing this?” he said, attempting to reason with Otto. “Cut the crap, or we’ll beat you together.” Otto signaled one of his men to attac