Poof!It sounded like something blew up in Kaze’s hand. Kaze opened his palm. The 10-carat pink diamond was shattered into shards. As Kaze spread his fingers apart, the remnants of the diamond sprinkled on the ground. Everybody in the room stared at Kaze in horror. Did he just crush a diamond with his bare hand? How did he do it? A diamond was the toughest known rock in the world. That was an impossible feat. Unless the diamond was a fake as Kaze said. Kiev was speechless. He stared at Kaze without a word. He knew better than anybody about the authenticity of the Pink Rose. The Pink Rose’s certificate of authenticity was kept in his home, so the necklace could not have possibly been a knockoff. However, Kaze had crushed the Pink Rose. Even if the diamond was real, others would assume it was a fake now. Anyone else would have gone ballistic by now but not Kiev. Keeping his cool, Kiev told Kaze with a smile, “It was my oversight. I was captivated by the fake Pink
Rose had a closer look. She bolted up from the chair and reacted stronger than when she saw the Pink Rose. “Oh my god! Is that the Goddess’ Heart?!” “Rose, is it something famous?” Agatha was intrigued by her daughter’s strong reaction. “The Goddess’ Heart was on display at a massive exhibition at Sunrise City and it has already attracted a lot of attention. Everyone was amazed by its beauty. “The designer is the world-famous Master Greta De Fontaine. She called this her masterpiece and can never replicate another one. “After that, the Goddess’ Heart hasn’t shown itself anymore. Some said the chairwoman of Sixth Eye Jewelry Group, the Queen of Jewelry, Jasmine Sundar, has it in her collection and no matter how much people offer her, she’s not selling it.” Rose was thrilled. Her voice sharpened and even started to blabber nonsense. “Don’t tell me it’s on Darcy’s neck now!” Her voice surprised everyone in the room and they all turned to Kaze. A diamond necklace of tens
Kaze was rendered speechless. His silly wife denied his identity as Perfect World Group’s chairman, but he did not correct her. He did not care about what other people thought of him, only Darcy’s feelings mattered. She could think whatever she wanted. Besides, the identity of Perfect World Group’s chairman did not affect their relationship. Darcy never looked down on him before. Her explanation sparked speculation. Psychiatric ward? Mental disability? Kiev looked at Kaze strangely. “Aunt Agnes, what is this about? Kaze was in the psychiatric ward?” “Kaze got into some conflict with his family and got locked up there for a few years. He’s fine but everyone in the city thought he had a mental disability. People still laugh at us now.” Now that Kaze had a promising future, Agnes was proud of him and she was no longer embarrassed to tell others about his past. Unlike before, she would be silenced and embarrassed whenever people asked about her son-in-law. She giggled a
Behind Miru was a group of men, all looking ferocious. Their bulging muscles were an obvious sign that they were experts in fighting. They all glared at Kaze the moment they barged into the room. Tension rose as they stared at each other. Darcy and the others felt pressured that they had a hard time breathing. “What? What are you talking about? Kaze killed your godfather? The chairman of Lefteria Group, Alan Cummingham?” Darcy blurted out instinctively. Kaze murdered Alan? Impossible. He was not capable of killing someone. The others exchanged a baffled look. Slam! Miru slammed some pictures on the table. Darcy went through the pictures briefly but still could not understand. “These pictures are the footage from the surveillance cameras of Lefteria Building.” Miru continued, “Around 10.30 in the morning, Kaze led the security guards on a routine security check around the building. Halfway through the security check, Kaze went into my godfather’s private office
Everyone in the room stared at Kaze, including Darcy. “Kaze, tell me, why did you run? Did you see something?” “I didn’t go into Alan Cummingham’s office. I saw nothing.” Kaze shook his head. He added, “I received your text and I was running to Clover Center to save you.” Miru glared at Kaze. “Text? Darcy, are you in danger or is he lying?” “I didn’t text Kaze, but if he received the text, that means someone is trying to prank him,” Darcy said. Her eyes remained glued to Kaze. “So, it’s his own words?” Miru tried really hard not to swing the machete at Kaze’s neck. Darcy did not answer this time. She did not know if she should continue to trust Kaze. Kaze noticed Darcy’s hesitation. He said, “Darcy, believe me. I didn’t do it.” “Excuses!” Miru shouted. She tossed another stack of pictures in Kaze’s face. The pictures showed him and Angel sitting together. Miru bellowed, “These pictures are from Leo. The man in the picture is Angel White, Cronus’ man, is it? He c
Don then ordered his men to take Kaze away, but Miru and her men stopped them. “What are you doing?!” the officers shouted at them. Miru’s men were ferocious gangsters who roamed in the underworld. They were not afraid of mere police officers. They stood in the way of the officers. “Ms. Scarlet, what is the meaning of this?” Don looked at Miru grimly. “Chief Braders, we are taking this man back to Lefteria Group and we will punish him for what he did,” Miru said coldly. Don grunted. “Ms. Scarlet, don’t get this wrong. This is a law-enforced society, you are not allowed to hurt others in private. Since we have already filed the case, the police must be involved.” He raised his hand. All the police officers pulled their guns out and pointed at Miru’s men. Miru’s men were deterred. Miru took a deep breath and glared at Kaze coldly. “Let’s go!” She left without pause, ignoring Darcy’s guilty and apologetic gaze. After Miru and her men left, Kaze was also taken away
When Kaze was taken away, Don noticed Darcy and her family did not even try to defend Kaze. He felt bad for Kaze. Kaze was accused of murder yet his family did not even believe him. Kaze waved his hand. “Just a bunch of clowns with circus tricks. I don’t need to reveal my identity to prove myself. Let’s just see what these clowns wanted to play.” His gaze suddenly turned cold. Even he did not expect that he would one day become the pawn in someone else’s game. Don was deeply concerned. He knew Kaze kept his identity a secret for the sake of the city and the safety of the citizens. “Don, just skip the station. Just send me to the detention center. I don’t want to waste your time and police resources,” Kaze said. Don immediately said, “Mr. Lee, you are being too kind. It is our duty to protect your safety. The detention center is messy, it’s not as safe as the station. Lefteria Group won’t let this go, they will come after you.” Kaze said, “If I am in the station, how are
The other elders of the company were infuriated as well. “Miru, you brought the punk into the company yesterday and he killed Alan today. Now you are protecting him, allowing the police to take him away. Are you part of this as well? You are planning to kill Alan too?!” “She’s involved in this!” “Her background is a mystery. She’s not a local. She appeared out of nowhere and somehow Alan took her in as his goddaughter. I think she’s a spy from somewhere, sent to hurt Alan!” The elders berated Miru. Miru finally experienced what it was like to be criticized and berated by others. It was the same thing Kaze experienced countless times. “Uncles, Miru is part of the family. We are both godchildren of our godfather. Please don’t accuse her without solid evidence. If we wronged her, I don’t think my godfather can rest in peace.” Leo finally spoke up after the elders had berated Miru. The elders quieted down but they continued to glare at Miru coldly. Even though Miru was
The incident did not sit well with Kaze, so he left them out to dry. After much searching, Kaze came across a café. Kaze bought a cup of coffee. Cupping the drink between his hands, Kaze sipped slowly. Many passengers swarmed the arrival hall in the airport, dragging along their luggage or pulling out their phones to get a pick-up. They all had a destination, a place they had to be in a rush. Intrigued, Kaze followed the crowd out. Kaze turned on his phone, and a text message from his airport pick-up came in. He glanced at the message, curious about who the person was. Nevertheless, Kaze trusted that the Westeros Branch members would not set him up out in the open. At most, they would pull little stunts to mess with him. Kaze was not the type to sweat the small stuff. However, he would not tolerate any extreme behavior. He had been keeping a low profile back in Butterworth, keeping the limelight off him. The purpose was to handle Jet without unnecessary complicati
“Alright. I will work hard to be the manager of the Northborn Group. You need to show me the ropes and teach me about management.” Leah looked at Katie with a smile. She believed Katie had not lost her mind. Katie simply had her memory mixed up. “You need to keep your people in line and reward those who deserve it. It all boils down to profits. “You need to work toward managing your people and working with rivals. You’ve got to keep the balance, and nobody loses out. “You need to build your own system when it comes to working together. Don’t be led around by the nose.” Hearing that Leah would start work soon, Katie imparted her knowledge. “Don’t worry too much about things. Joey is nice. You can go to her for help,” Katie said earnestly. Katie seemed to be herself at the moment. Leah wondered if Katie faked her insanity to escape the punishment. “What have become of you? Did they do something to you? “Did you really betray Kaze?” Leah whispered while leaning close
Leah kept working on her knowledge until late into the night. Just as she was about to hit the sack, she got a message from Snow. Learning was a hard enough process. The text message came out of the blue. Leah did not expect Snow to contact her at night. The message was strange as well. Leah could not understand why Snow would give her the address of a nursing home. Leah was determined to turn things around. She strived to become stronger instead of being a burden. She was grateful for Kaze’s help. At least, she had a job now. However, her gratitude was not extended to Snow. She believed Snow had gone too far. Snow left her feeling powerless. Leah did not think much about the message. She assumed that the text was not meant for her. Since Leah did not respond to the text, Snow put the matter aside and went to bed. Leah called Snow the next day. “Why did you send me an address?” Leah went straight to the question. She had been equipping herself with knowledge before
Snow could not believe her eyes. Katie suddenly went quiet and behaved like the CEO she was.However, Katie did not look like she was right in the mind earlier. “What’s going on? She seems to have gone insane.” Snow turned to the warden, still digesting the change. Katie had lost touch with reality before the Viper’s Den did anything to her. “How did this happen? She has been taking her meals. Just days earlier, she nagged about getting out because she was worried about her daughter. As usual, we didn’t respond to her requests.” The warden found the whole thing peculiar too. Just a few days ago, Katie demanded her release. Now, she kept to herself and abided by the rules. Out of the blue, Katie went nuts. Things had gotten complicated. Snow wanted to keep Katie behind bars due to her betrayal. However, Kaze decided against pursuing the matter for Leah’s sake. Katie would be let go soon enough, but she would lose her job at the Northborn Group. Katie’s presence woul
It was quiet in the office. Snow sorted the last bit of paperwork before picking her head up in exhaustion. Her initial plan was to delegate the tasks. However, Katie was controlling. Previously, she personally oversaw many matters. Snow could not distribute the responsibilities because the employees had no experience in handling them. They came to Snow for every tiny, little thing, and Snow really got her hands full. Despite her frustration, Snow could let things go as Katie was locked up. “I should pay her visit.” Snow decided to see Katie. Some things should not be left unsaid. Leah would be working for the Northborn Group soon, and the mother and daughter should meet to tie up loose ends. The truth would put Leah to shame, and her guilt would stop her from ever betraying Kaze. After a quick bite, Snow drove to the prison. Katie was furious when she was imprisoned. She was one step away from victory. She was so close to leaving Butterworth to head to Westeros
“Why do you want to sell the properties? Do you need money? Don’t you have some saved?” Joey had a good understanding of Leah’s finances since she ran all the paperwork. “My mother is being held, and I need money to ask favors. Maybe I can get her out.” Leah was not thinking much. Money could always be replaced, but not her mother’s freedom. “Don’t be silly. This is not the way to go.” Though Joey did not have the details, she observed that things were not as simple as Leah thought. Kaze was safe now, but the fact that Katie had betrayed Kaze and revealed his whereabouts remained unchanged. Katie had broken the Viper’s Den’s rules. Even if she got out, she would be a wreck. With Snow running the Northborn Group, Katie would remain a failure. Either way, Katie would not get away with it. Even if Leah offered all her assets, Katie’s situation would not change. It was a waste of money and resources for Leah to save her mother. Nothing would come out of it. “But I
“Give me an answer. Are you taking the job? If you are, you should sort out your affairs. Don’t bring your personal feelings to work.” Snow was not the type to go easy on fragile women. If Leah did not have what it took, she could be forced to leave the company. Nevertheless, Katie had left a lot of assets to Leah. Even without work, Leah could very well survive. The girl would have trouble keeping the wealth, seeing that she was without power or connections. If Leah had a job, she would have the resources to hold onto her assets. Leah had seen the best and worst of mankind. She was once the center of attention, and now, everybody avoided her. It dawned on Leah that it was over for Katie. If Leah could not even keep a job, she would lose everything. “I didn’t know things would happen.” Leah never thought that Katie was capable of stabbing Kaze and her in the back. The thought of betrayal put Leah in distress. Kaze was a great guy who helped Leah a lot. Feeling ete
Leah got dressed and was ready to leave, but she did not know who to turn to. She thought about going to her wealthy friends to see if they could uncover anything through their connections. However, Leah could not get a hold of them. It dawned on Leah that loyalty would fade when power was gone. Even though Katie was just missing, intel spread around Butterworth very quickly. These people must have found out and have chosen to stay away. Leah had always been treated like royalty. Nobody had ever avoided her like the plague. Nevertheless, she had not been in touch with these friends since her injury. Now, in her attempt to contact them, she could not reach them. “Why is this happening? My good friends have gone MIA, and I’m getting silence from those who have been trying to connect.” Sitting on the couch, Leah looked out the window in despair. She tried to seek help with her mother’s search, but her efforts were futile. She could do nothing for her mother. All al
“I have to work hard starting today. But before that, I have to get some sleep.” Snow remembered that Kaze punished her to get some sleep. He said her face looked tired and pale, signs of how hard she had been working. It felt great being cared for. It was because of his kindness, Snow fell for Kaze uncontrollably. Yet she understood not all things were meant to be. After she returned home, she went to sleep immediately without talking to anyone. She only woke up in the afternoon after a comfortable and easy sleep. Next, she would have to work on many things, first being taking over Northborn Group. Katie’s disappearance had the company shaken, but it gave many others a chance. They tried to calm their subordinates down and contact the higher-ups for more information, hoping that they could replace Katie as the new CEO. Little did they know, their preparations would eventually fall short. Snow and her secretary arrived at Northborn Group in the afternoon, and her a