Waylan was simply curious and not because someone was trying to buy the information from him. “Don’t poke your nose into matters that you shouldn’t. I need you to find out whether Kaze Lee is at Northborn Hotel.” Aloysius sensed danger as well but he must take the matter into his own hands. Besides, as Jet’s assistant, he could not walk away. “I understand. But he’s not back yet. If you go now, you’ll have to wait for him,” Waylan said after tapping on his keyboard to pull up the hotel’s system information. “I got it.” Aloysius was displeased but he did not say anything. “Can we talk about my payment? I’ve been digging around for days and it’s not that appropriate if you guys don’t pay me,” Waylan asked, taking the chance to urge Aloysius. “Don’t worry. You will be rewarded.” Aloysius and Waylan had worked together for many times. Other than the loose mouth, Waylan was quite professional. Since Aloysius was a regular customer, Waylan usually did not charge him for sma
“Jet’s assistant, Aloysius, is waiting in the lobby. Mr. Lee, do you want to meet him? If not, I'll clear the place out,” Arthur asked. “We are going to meet one way or another. I just wonder who he thinks I am now?” Kaze had drawn too much attention at Leah’s party the other day, and that might have been when he first caught Jet’s eye. “If you don’t want to meet him, I can clear the place anytime and I can also make a move against Jet Frost.” Arthur did not want Kaze to be stuck at a crossroads. “No need to worry. I have to go take a look anyway.” Kaze smiled. What was meant to come would come; it was something he had anticipated all along. Jet had lost a lot of projects and money recently. Kaze wondered if the guy had learned his lesson. Otherwise, he could do it all over again and teach Jet another valuable lesson. “Should we do something?” Arthur asked out of concern. “It’s okay.” Kaze was not afraid of Aloysius. A mere assistant would not dare to do anything
“I hope Jet won’t disappoint me.” Ever since Kaze arrived in Butterworth, everything had been so peaceful to the point that it started to feel boring. Now that he could finally meet Jet, he wondered what surprises awaited him. Jet had started to suspect Kaze, so a move would be made against him. Standing by the side, Aloysius was waiting for further instructions from his boss. “He said we could arrange for a meal tomorrow morning at any location.” “How generous of him. He doesn’t seem to be afraid of me,” Jet said with a chuckle. Regardless, as long as Kaze was willing to meet, Jet was confident he could uncover Kaze’s identity and expose the secrets behind the veil of mystery. “Book a room at Kurosawa Club and prepare everything necessary.” Jet looked forward to meeting Kaze. He wanted to know what secrets Kaze held. A man who was unafraid of Katie had to have a strong background, yet he carried himself like just another nameless, ordinary man—which only made him e
Kaze appeared to be there just for the food. Aloysius said nothing more. He invited Kaze into the car and drove out of the Northborn Hotel. With Kaze on the move, Arthur would make sure to stay by his side in the dark. Today was a different situation. Arthur brought along a few members of the Viper’s Den. “Arthur, is this necessary?” One member was confused. Kaze had been discreet, and nobody knew who he was. The agents were just following Arthur’s orders. “Our goal is to keep Kaze safe. Jet’s invitation to dinner is just a trap. If we don’t keep a close eye on the situation, all the issues will be on us.” The young members did not seem to know any better, so Arthur had to lay it thick on them. Without another word, the young members followed the vehicle Kaze was in. However, they did not have much respect for Kaze since they knew nothing of him. Kaze was in the dark about things over at Arthur’s end. Even if he did, he would not be bothered. “Where are we headi
The car pulled up in front of a high-end club in the city’s most cosmopolitan area. “This is Kurosawa Club, a members-only establishment. Non-members can be invited by members, and to be a member, you have to be a high-paying consumer. Members are expected to deposit half a million bucks. “On average, the consumption here is no less than half a million dollars each time.” Aloysius sounded proud talking about it. The private club catered exclusively to the rich. The management came up with new and diverse ideas to attract these people to spend money. The entrance to the club was not obvious. It would be an easy miss unless the person had been there before. Aloysius brought Kaze right into the place. Entry to the club required the swiping of a membership card. Once the card was swiped, the information of the member would be registered at the bar, and an attendant would approach to provide service. Though it was not Kaze’s first rodeo, the whole experience was rather i
It never occurred to Aloysius that Jet’s and Kaze’s first encounter would turn out to be rather confrontational. Nevertheless, Aloysius was just an assistant. He should not be meddling anyway. Pretending like nothing ever happened, Aloysius stepped out of the room without a word. “What have you been busy with? I can’t catch you anywhere.” Jet chatted Kaze up. “Nothing much. I’ve been wandering around,” Kaze answered nonchalantly, his eyes roaming the things on the table. He looked a little disgusted. Jet was not too pleased. He displayed his best-kept wine on the table, and these bottles were priceless. Only real collectors would have this impressive collection. Yet, Kaze did not appreciate the wine at all. “You must know who I am.” “Are you talking about the Frosts? How can I not? You called for this dinner. I wouldn’t have come without doing my homework.” Kaze looked at Jet as if he were an idiot.Jet felt insulted. “I guess you do. Of course, I’m going to ha
Kaze wondered what Jet would do to him. To think Jet would adopt one of the oldest tricks in the book—the honey trap. Jet was forced to take this approach as he could not get information on Kaze. “Mr. Lee, these girls have a clean bill of health. You are free to use a room next to this one.” Jet subtly hinted. Jet was confident that no man would resist a gorgeous lady, and Kaze would be lost in lust. He poured himself a glass of wine and waved at the ladies to tend to Kaze. These women were veterans in the business. Despite their lack of knowledge about the situation, they knew what to do. They approached Kaze and sat around him. “My, you’re a handsome man, Mr. Lee.” “Do you want some grapes, Mr. Lee?” “Mr. Lee, I’ll pass the wine to you, and we can do it mouth-to-mouth.” The ladies, surrounding Kaze, started caressing him. “Is that all you got, Jet?” Kaze was in disdain. Jet did not take Kaze’s comment seriously. These ladies would take any man’s breath away.
The women had been given an order. These were questions they could usually get their hands on, but now, their efforts hit a wall. Kaze would keep his mouth shut when it came to the key questions and simply drink wine. His silence sparked the ladies’ will to win. “Mr. Lee, why aren’t you talking? Is it because you don’t hold much power?” Since their less aggressive tactic did not work, these ladies tried to rile Kaze up. “Jet, do you really want to know who I am?” Kaze suddenly turned to Jet. Jet was surprised to be brought into the picture. He was having fun with one woman while listening to the conversation. These ladies were witty, asking the right questions, but Kaze would not give a straight answer. “I was just curious. I wonder if you are happy to let me in on it.” Jet believed he could drop his act now. Since Kaze knew he was after something, there was no use hiding. “I have a question for you,” Kaze uttered while prying a woman off him. He then forcibly r
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