The Stones and the senior executives of the company were just staring at each other in the meeting room. No one was making any sound. Just when Liam was going to speak up once more, Reginald took a step forward from the crowd. He was with his walking stick, and he looked sullenly at Celena, who was bawling and sobbing. His gaze then landed on Liam, and he said, "Me! I hit her! Do you have any objections? Or do you think I have no right to hit Celena?"Reginald slammed his walking stick on the ground, creating a knocking sound so loud and clear. His gaze was cold and fierce, staring directly at Liam."Reginald, what mistake did Celena do to warrant such a heavy punishment?" Liam asked.He suppressed the rage he was feeling. His fist was tightened so hard that his knuckles were making cracking sounds. His brows were locked into a frown as he glared at Reginald. Reginald sneered and glared at Celena coldly before he asked, "Why? What else do you think could be the reason? If it was
Sherah quickly went forward to shield Cheryl behind her. Then, she shouted, "Liam, you better watch it! If you have the guts to act rashly, then Celena won't just be getting a beating as her punishment anymore! If you dare to strike, I'll banish Celena from the Stone family again!" "I'll get anybody who dares to bully my wife to pay tenfold for what he or she did!" Liam bellowed like he was announcing a sentence.He made the people in front of him so frightened that their legs started to shake uncontrollably.Reginald was completely infuriated by Liam's attitude. His expression changed rapidly, and his eyes were filled with rage. He yelled, "How dare you! This is outrageous! This is the Stones' company, and I am Celena's grandfather! What do you think you are doing? Do you dare to hit your wife's grandfather?"Reginald turned toward Celena and shouted, "Celena! You've had enough of me for a long time, haven't you? That's why you allow Liam to do as he wishes! See for yourself what
Even the air seemed to turn chilly as Trevyn said that, as though even the earth trembled from the weight of his words.Any ordinary person would have been scared by now, but Liam was unfazed. He replied calmly, "Is that so? I beg to differ. I think that when that day comes, you'll be the one on your knees instead. In fact, I think you and your entire family will be sobbing and begging me for mercy!"The entire room fell silent. All of a sudden, the soldiers standing along the entire stretch of the room loaded their guns unanimously as though preparing themselves for an imminent bloodbath!Trevyn and Liam stared daggers at each other. The air was so charged with electricity that everyone in the room felt chills going down their spines, and some of the weaker ones even started shuddering and fell onto the ground in crumpled heaps. Trevyn sneered, then leaned back in his chair and said to Liam, "You have balls, Liam Cole. I know that the only reason you're acting this way is becau
Celena paused, then glanced around at her own family glaring at her! Her rosy lips quivered as she tried to put her thoughts into words. She did not know what to choose. Although the Stones had been nothing but cruel to her, they were still her family! She had grown up learning the importance of family, and even though her family treated her poorly, she still did not want to leave them. Everyone turned to stare at Celena. There was a longing in their eyes, especially Yafe, Sherah, Qemal, and Cheryl. They all could not wait to get rid of Celena once and for all!Yafe did not like this daughter of his at all. Sherah, on the other hand, longed for nothing more than for Celena to disappear into thin air because Celena's presence was a constant reminder to her about the twisted start to her marriage with Yafe.Cheryl, on the other hand, had been living in Celena's shadow since a young age. She inherited her mother's hatred toward Celena and would rather Celena had never been born at all
Finally, Celena was beginning to calm down, and Liam gently helped her up from the ground and eased her into a chair. Then, he smiled and turned to glance at the people watching his every move. Finally, his gaze landed on Reginald. "Mr. Stone, do you remember what I told you? I told you that I would handle this! Why aren't you willing to give me a week to take care of everything?"Reginald frowned and stared back at Liam with a cold look. He scoffed and retorted, "You're far too cocky for your own good, Liam, but since you're so sure of yourself, I shall grant you what you want! I'd like to see what tricks you have up your sleeve to go against our future army general himself!"With that, Reginald got up and strode out of the room, with the rest of the Stones following suit. Soon, the only people who remained in the room were Liam, Celena, Yafe, Sherah, and their two children.Yafe's expression was dark. He glanced at Liam and was about to say something but decided not to when he s
Liam was unfazed. With a tilt of his shoulder, Kayson flung backward without warning, and he fell to the ground in a crumpled heap.He immediately picked himself up and patted his bum, glaring at Liam with boiling rage in his eyes. "How dare you! You're a useless, good-for-nothing piece of shit who relies on his wife and her family to provide! You can't even provide for Celena yourself! Why don't you go look at yourself in the mirror? Celena deserves far more than you! You should leave her and let someone else love her the way she deserves. I can give her everything she needs in life and more!"Kayson was glaring at Liam in the way a child would if his favorite toy was stolen from right under his nose. His entire face was flushed red with anger. Liam glanced at him sharply, then snickered and retorted, "Oh, you think Celena should be with you instead? You say you can give her everything she needs in life?""Of course! I'm the heir to the Wheeler family fortune, but not only that,
He glared in the direction Celena and Liam had left in, then screamed, "Very well, then! Since neither of you appreciates my efforts, I will make you realize just how wrong you were!"With that, Kayson took out his phone and dialed a number. "Hello, is this Stonehead? It's Kayson Wheeler here. I need your help on something. Someone has gotten on my nerves, and I need you to teach him a lesson! If you could cripple him, even better! Four hundred thousand dollars to get the job done!"After getting an answer, Kayson nodded in satisfaction and hung up. A mysterious smirk crossed his face as he glanced in the direction Celena and Liam had left. He would like to see how that wretched Liam could stand a chance against him. How dare he even cross him!Celena would finally realize how wrong she was to turn him down once he got ahold of her! He would teach her a lesson by letting her find out what she had almost missed out on!The thought of Celena's gorgeous face and her voluptuous curve
The windshield shattered into smithereens, and the man turned to admire his work. "A BMW, eh? Not doing too bad for yourself, pal."The rest of the men glanced at the car, then at Liam and Celena.Celena pulled Jovie closer to her and inched toward Liam in fear. "Don't be scared, Jovie. Mom and Dad are both here to protect you. Don't be scared…"Stonehead emerged from the crowd, one hand wrapped in a cast and the other clutching a cigar. He took a puff from it, then shouted, "Destroy the car! I have orders to capture both of them! Cripple the man, but spare the woman!"Being amongst the crowd, Stonehead could not recognize Liam. Instead, he gestured for his men to charge. The man who was in the lead raised his bat above his head, but before he could even bring it down to strike Liam, he was already sent pummeling into the air and landed in a crumpled heap.The rest of the men all froze, staring in disbelief at Liam. Stonehead was outraged at this. "What the hell are you all waitin
Liam saw Sunniva was up and wasted no time, saying. "Ms. Bristow, we've got gang trouble at the hotel. It's not safe. We're bailing to a new place," he said.Without skipping a beat, Liam and Sunniva were out of there, speeding off to another hotel in the car.Little did they know, as soon as they left, a convoy of black SUVs pulled up ominously at the hotel's grand entrance.The streets surrounding the hotel suddenly buzzed with the arrival of several new cars. Their occupants spilled out, pacing the perimeter with a clear intent to surveil.From the lineup of rugged SUVs at the hotel's entrance, a squad of men clad in black, brandishing weapons burst forth. They stormed the hotel, their presence ominous and unchallenged.The receptionists, staff, and patrons were petrified, cowering in corners, none daring to confront the intruders.The men made a beeline for Liam's last known location, only to find the room deserted.The ringleader cursed under his breath, "Damn it! He's slip
Each victim was marked with a triangle tattoo, a calling card that did not go unnoticed. Someone had snapped a picture of it before the hotel staff even showed up and had split.Liam passed the photo to Cirocco and Calum, and it hit them like a ton of bricks. Calum scrunched up his face and said, "Sir, this is Alpha's tag. They're big-time hitmen around Rasford City."They're known for their love of curved blades, and that triangle is their signature."Cirocco had been doing some digging too and came back with chilling news about Noel. "Sir, we got the why. Someone's put a three million dollar price tag on your head, right there on the hit list!""Moreover, the bounty was so colossal that it had all the shadowy players in Rasford City licking their chops. A coalition of forces was now banding together, plotting a takedown that had you in their crosshairs."Cirocco's face was a mask of ice as he spoke, and Calum's features were twisted in a scowl.Liam chuckled darkly, the quint
The new plan was a hit; every assassin in the room was on board.One of them, posing as a bellhop, stood at Liam's door, ready to knock.However, he never saw it coming. Before his knuckles could rap on the door, it burst open from the inside.Wham!The would-be knocker was sent flying, slamming into the corridor wall with a thunderous crash.The others barely had time to register what happened when Liam burst out, a quintuple-edged dagger in hand.He was a shadow among them, his blade a flash of silver that danced across their wrists, disarming them of their scimitars.In moments, the hallway was a cacophony of clattering blades and piercing screams that filled the hotel.The leader, clutching his bleeding wrist, stared at Liam in horror, leaning casually against the doorframe. Liam's dagger dripped crimson. He watched the fallen assassins with an unfeeling smirk."You think you can play assassins, skulking around in the dark?" Liam's voice dripped with scorn. With a casual f
Noel was a name that turned heads in Rasford City, especially since the Noel family ran a successful pharmaceutical business. In any place, those in the medicine game hold sway, and Noel was no stranger to the city's shadowy bigwigs. After all, nobody was immune to getting sick!Noel was quickly taken to the hospital for emergency care. Meanwhile, the assassin he had hired had pinpointed the hotel where Liam and Sunniva were hiding out.Sunniva was still visibly shaken when they reached the hotel. Too frightened to be alone, she could only gaze at Liam with watery eyes, silently pleading to stay in his room.Liam, left with little choice, let Sunniva take his room while he made do with the couch in the living room.After the night's earlier ordeal, combined with the alcohol and the drug slipped into her drink, Sunniva washed up and promptly fell asleep in Liam's bed.Liam, however, remained on the living room sofa, poring over the mysterious Arcane Manuscript.Out of nowhere,
"Thud!"Then, without missing a beat, Liam grabbed Noel by the throat and landed another punch on him. He struck him squarely on the chin, dislocating it and forcing a couple more of his teeth to fly out. "Ahhh!" Noel shrieked. His face was swelling up to twice its usual size, and he could not help letting out a cry of agony. Liam did not stop there, though. His fists rained down all over Noel without ceasing, his every punch striking where it hurt the most. "F*ck! You're going to pay for this!" Noel grunted. He would make this twat pay! What gave him the right to attack him? He was an heir of the great Noel bloodline, and he would make this cocky, self-righteous prat pay!Liam scoffed, then swung his fist and struck Noel squarely in his abdomen.Noel spat out a mouthful of blood, unable to utter another word from the sheer pain, but this did not stop Liam. The next moment, he grabbed Noel by the hair and bashed his head against the wall behind him.A sickening crunch alerted
The words had barely left her mouth when Noel lost his patience, swung Sunniva around and slapped her hard across the cheek. "D*mn it, you f*cking sl*t! What the f*ck are you shouting for? Let me tell you this—no one will come to save you, not even if you cry yourself hoarse!"The slap came so abruptly that Sunniva was momentarily stunned. Her cheek soon swelled up, and a bright red mark in the shape of Noel's palm began to take shape. Noel had hit her so hard that the back of her head struck the wall behind her, and all she could feel was an intense, throbbing pain that reverberated through her skull. Blood seeped out of the cut on the back of her head, and she could feel the warm liquid trickle down her neck. She suddenly felt strangely faint and stopped resisting. Noel seized the opportunity to strip her naked, grinning. "Ms. Bristow, I suggest you stop wasting your energy. You're mine tonight, and there's no running now!"He had long since heard of Sunniva's beauty, and he was
"Mr. Noel? What is the meaning of this?" Sunniva shrieked in alarm. Noel was wiping his face with a towel when she spoke, and upon hearing her voice, he slowly moved toward her. "Ms. Bristow, do I really need to spell this out for you? You're a gorgeous woman, and I admire you very much. There's nothing to be afraid of, darling. We're all adults here, so there's no need to be shy. I promise that I'll make this the most memorable night you've ever had. "Ms. Bristow, do you know how many women would die to be in your position? Women everywhere bend over backwards to keep me happy, and most of them are willing to please me just to get my business. If you still want this partnership, you better be a good girl and keep me satisfied. If not…"Noel trailed off, for at this point, he had already reached the bed and was just inches away from Sunniva. His flesh quivered with his every move, and he was so tall that he loomed over Sunniva's tiny body like a beast eyeing its prey. "You… you
Noel was not used to being rejected so outwardly. Sunniva's indifference infuriated him greatly. He scoffed, then brought his hand up to his nose and took a deep breath as if trying to catch a whiff of any scent that Sunniva had left on his skin. He sneered. "Ms. Bristow, it seems you are intent on challenging me?"Sunniva replied curtly, "So what if I am?""Very well then! You like to do things the hard way, eh? Let me make this clear—the moment you step out the door, the partnership will be called off! I will no longer do business with Bristow Group!"The audacity!With a smug grin, Noel cast Sunniva one last look before returning to his seat. He watched her coolly and made no move to stop her from leaving again, for he knew he had her cornered. Sunniva stood rooted to the spot, her brows furrowed in deep concentration. Noel knew he had Sunniva caught in a dead-end situation. He smirked and raised his glass to his lips. "How about this, Ms. Bristow? Just one last drink with
A glimmer of annoyance flashed through Noel's eyes, but he continued to reach toward Sunniva, grinning. "Ms. Bristow, I really, really admire you…"Sunniva froze. The next moment, she leaped to her feet, still holding her wine glass, and ducked out of Noel's reach. She replied, raising his glass in an attempt to disguise her nervousness, "Mr. Noel, I greatly admire your success as a businessman as well. Cheers to our partnership!"Noel's arm hovered in mid-air, looking awkward and forlorn as it dangled out of reach of its target. A strained silence fell over them. The tension lasted only a few minutes, though, because Noel soon regained his composure and drew his arm back. He clinked his glass against Sunniva's as though nothing out of the ordinary had happened. The two of them had been drinking for quite some time now, and Noel was growing more and more inebriated by the minute. He was a pale man, and so the alcohol gave him an unnatural flush that made him look as though he was