Late at night at the Golding family estate, the massive mansion blazed with lights from top to bottom. Strangely, though, the entire place was dead silent, not a single person in sight. Only the grand hall was occupied—several figures stood beneath the towering chandeliers. At the center sat Richard, head of the Golding family, high on the main seat with an icy expression carved into his face. The butler stepped forward and leaned in to whisper in his ear. "Sir, there's an update on the bounty." Richard's eyes flickered. He growled, "Well? Where's Andrew's head?" The butler's face twisted slightly. "We didn't recover Andrew's head, sir… but three members of the assassin group were found dead at the villa. We believe it was Andrew's residence here, but by the time our men arrived, the place had already been cleaned out." The flicker of satisfaction in Richard's eyes disappeared, replaced with pure disgust. He hissed, "How useless." Knowing his place, the butler backed away q
At that moment, Kenny would much rather die than suffer the humiliation. He had fought tooth and nail to get Sherilyn married into the Goldings, thinking it was their one-way ticket to the top—a guaranteed leap from rags to royalty. However, he never imagined that in a family like the Goldings, they would stop treating someone like a human altogether once they lost their worth. They were tossed aside the moment they were no longer useful. Richard looked over at Elon, who still had not made a move, and let out a cold laugh. "If you can't do it, get out of my sight." Elon numbly stepped aside, staring at the weeping Sherilyn as if she were a stranger. His eyes were hollow, and his body did not move. Suddenly, three men and eight women were dragged into the hall and forced to their knees before Richard. Each one wore a look of absolute horror. "So, you're the ones who were fooling around with Sherilyn, right?" Richard asked calmly. None of the group who had participated in the
In the faint light of dawn, Aspen slowly woke up back at the hotel. Her body ached, and a soft groan escaped her lips as she frowned from the soreness. The last thing she remembered before blacking out was Andrew finally arriving at the villa to find her. Everything else after that was a blur. However, she vaguely recalled him treating her wounds and undressing her. When Aspen realized Andrew had undressed her, she bolted upright and flung the covers aside in a panic. Her bare, pale body was fully exposed beneath the sheets, with bandages wrapped around her chest and lower abdomen. She wondered how Andrew helped with the bandage, and if he had touched her. If he did, where did he touch? Did he touch her chest, her thighs, or even her private part? A sharp scream echoed through Room 9527, and Andrew jolted awake on the sofa, looking more irritated than surprised. "What the hell? You moaning from a dream or something?" Aspen scrambled to sit up, her face flushed with fu
"Not bad. You look stunning," Andrew commented with a smirk. Aspen silently cursed him for being a pervert. Though she was fully dressed now, her expression remained dark, and her mind kept flashing back to the thought that he might have touched every inch of her body—especially the most private parts. Her skin crawled just thinking about it. … After a quiet breakfast downstairs, the two returned to the villa they had been staying in. "Pack your things. We're leaving. It's not safe to stay here anymore," Andrew said casually. Aspen frowned, feeling both annoyed and disappointed. "The house was perfect, and it was paid for, too. Such a waste, all thanks to you!" Andrew let out a cold laugh. "Then why don't you stay behind?" Aspen's face went pale in an instant, and she did not dare argue further. At this point, she and Andrew were practically bound together—if she did not stick with him, she was not sure she would live to see the next day. They gathered a few essentia
In one of the rooms inside the private club. "Mr. Parks, I'm still recovering from my injuries, so I truly can't drink. I hope you'll understand," Aspen said politely, her brow tightening. She had come expecting a legitimate business conversation—a contract negotiation. However, judging by the atmosphere and Davon's sleazy expression, it was clear he had other intentions. Fat-faced and beady-eyed, Davon swirled a glass of red wine as he leered at her. He said, "Ms. Stevens, you must be new around here. I guess you're not familiar with how things work in this city. "When you sit down to talk business, drinks and fun go hand in hand. Loosen up. Don't be so uptight. Tell you what—down this bottle, and I'll sign that contract on the spot. Deal done." Aspen replied calmly, "I'm sorry, Mr. Parks. I don't drink at all. But if you sign the deal today, once I've recovered, I'll gladly toast with you to celebrate." Davon's smile faded, and his tone sharpened with irritation. "Aspen,
Aspen's expression fell immediately. If she had not been injured, this group of muscle heads would not have even made her blink. However, her chest wound had just been freshly bandaged by Andrew—if she fought now, the stitches would rip open for sure. Still clutching in pain, Davon was helped to his feet by two of his men. He stared at Aspen with a twisted grin. He taunted, "What, getting scared now, slut? Do you think you're walking out of here after that? Think again. Let me be real clear—the only reason I agreed to meet you today was to screw you. If I don't have you writhing and begging under me tonight, then this deal is far from over." Aspen's face twisted in fury. "Why don't you go home and screw your mother instead, you fat freak?" Davon roared, "Get her! Hold this bitch down for me!" His goons lunged at Aspen like starving wolves. Suddenly, a figure shot in from the side and landed in front of Aspen like a shadow. Then, three kicks flew out in the blink of an eye,
Aspen glared coldly. "Says who? What is this? Are the Haywoods running a den of thugs now? Does no one here know what decency even looks like?" Rufus let out a sinister chuckle. "Sweetheart, did you really think this club was built for a legitimate business? You rookies must be first-timers here. This entire club belongs to Seth Haywood himself. "And what we offer isn't just champagne and contract signings. We provide services that rich men like Mr. Parks truly value. You want logic and fairness? Girl, after you've been taken a few times, you'll realize reason doesn't matter. Power and money are all that do." Aspen's face darkened instantly when she heard that it was Seth, the same man who had once pursued her and paraded around like a golden boy from a noble lineage. She never would have guessed he was secretly running this kind of hellhole. She was glad she never placed any hopes on him. But right now? They were surrounded by over 100 armed guards. Injured or not, there was n
Aspen's eyes never left Andrew as she asked nervously, "Andrew, do you need my help?" Andrew calmly replied with just two words, "No need." With a casual motion, he slapped a thug holding a machete so hard the man flew back. Without even looking, he threw his elbow backward, smashing into another guy swinging a steel pipe like he was volunteering to get wrecked. The blow crushed his nose flat, and he howled in pain. Andrew's expression did not change—no anger, excitement, just pure calm. To him, these guys were not even worth warming up for. Then, he raised his hand and collided directly with Rufus. Rufus looked shocked. "You actually caught my Haywood Strike? Kid, I gotta admit, you've got some skill." Andrew smirked coldly. "Only 'some'?" "Fine, try this next strike and see what happens!" Rufus tossed aside his jacket, revealing a tight shirt stretched over rippling muscles and a solid chest. Andrew scoffed. "Bring it on. You think I'm scared of you?" Rufus sneered,