Alex leaned back in his chair, casually stretching his arms as though bored by the whole ordeal.


    "Next," he drawled, voice t. He shot a cold nce across the room.


    "You, brown hair in the ck suit. Get over here."


    The man in the ck suit stepped forward, trembling so hard it looked like his legs might give out.


    He risked a quick, apologetic nce at Be.


    “I''m... I''m sorry,” he muttered. Then, in a jittery burst of courage or desperation,


    he raised his arm and pped her.


    The crack of flesh echoed in the silence.


    Be flinched, blood trickling at the corner of her mouth.


    Alex gave a dismissive yawn.


    "Move it along, people. Don''t make me do it for you." He cocked his pistol and spun the barrel for emphasis.


    "From here on out, if anyone''s slow to follow orders-" he tilted his head to the side, eyes shing menace.


    -I won''t waste my time with warnings. I''ll just shoot."


    A hush fell over the crowd.


    One by one, people inched forward, some grimacing with regret, others almost too eager, as though seizing the chance to vent their personal grudges to Be. Be took every hit with a ragged gasp, her cheek swelling into a purple mess. She had already lost three teeth, and the blood ran freely down her chin.


    It was difficult to tell which blow hurt worse-physical or psychological.


    Atst, Be snarled through split lips, clinging to thest shreds of her pride.


    "You miserable bastards! Do you have any idea who I am?" she screamed, her voice trembling with fury and pain.


    "My father is Jericho Kane! If you don''t want to end up buried in a ditch-"


    Her words broke into a sob, tears of rage streaking down her face.


    "You should be on your knees begging!" she shrieked. "I''m the one who''s supposed to be pping all of you! Know your damn ce! Maggots!"


    Alex leveled his gun at a nearby man who seemed hesitant.


    He fired off a shot, deliberately missing by only a hair.


    "Scared of her daddy?" Alex sneered.


    "How about I send you straight to the King of Hell instead?"


    "Or... you can p her, walk out of here alive, and pretend this nightmare never happened. Your choice. But I won''t say it again.”


    The man, panicked, reared back his hand and struck Be hard across the jaw.


    She coughed up blood, head spinning so violently she nearly copsed.


    Alex watched her with a cold, amused smirk.


    "Spare us the name-dropping," he said, voice sharp as a de.


    "If your father were here, he''d be on his knees right next to you, taking the same damn ps. Man can''t even control his own spawn-what a pathetic excuse for a father. Total failure. Just like his daughter,"


    A loud, furious voice boomed from behind the crowd.


    "That''s enough!" Heads turned to see Henry storm forward. The moment Henryid eyes on Be, battered beyond recognition, his face twisted with fury.


    Be''s eyes red with desperate hope. "Henry! Thank God! Help me!" she begged, stumbling toward him.


    Henry gave a curt nod.


    "Don''t worry, Ms. Kane. With me around, this punk won''ty another finger on you."


    He turned and realized who stood in front of him.


    "You," he spat. "I''ve been looking for you all over the city."


    Be''s battered features flicked from fear to confusion. "Henry, you know this guy?"


    Henry didn''t break eye contact with Alex, rage rolling off him in waves. "This is the piece of trash who punched me a few days back. I swore I''d teach him a lesson."


    "Hitting someone from Chicago Lord... Sure you have a death wish" she hissed at Alex.


    "You''re dead! Not just you your whole pathetic bloodline! I''ll hunt down everyst one of them and make them beg for death before I''m done! You think you''re tough?"


    "These people are elite fighters from the Chicago Lord! You''re nothing but street trash to them! They''ll snap your bones one by one-and when they''re done, I''ll finish the job myself!"


    She forced herself to stand, wobbling on weak legs, her face a grotesque mask of rage and blood.


    "Chicago Lord?" someone whispered, eyes wide.


    The room tensed. The name hit like a bolt of lightning. Everyone knew it.


    The Chicago Lord weren''t just gangsters-they owned the city. They were a shadow empire.


    One of their enforcers could wipe out a room alone.


    "Holy shit... they''re really here?"


    "Looks like that guy''s screwed."


    "Please," one man muttered, trembling, "help us get out of here alive..."


    The room buzzed with whispers.


    Most of the guests just wanted to get out.


    "Jerk," Henry drawled, his voice dripping with disdain, "if I were you, I''d drop to my knees right now and beg. Maybe-just maybe I''ll let you leave here breathing."


    But Alex just raised an eyebrow.


    "So what if you''re with Chicago Lord? No one stops me from doing what I want." Henry''s face twisted in fury.


    "You punk!" he snapped, nearly spitting the words.


    "If I hadn''t gone easy on you before, you''d be lying in a hospital bed right now.


    You really think you can disrespect me and walk away?"


    With a grandiose wave of his hand, Henry turned to his chief guard a muscle- bound woman named Barbie-her broad


    shoulders and height made her look more like a trained soldier.


    “Barbie, take him down. Show him what happens when you disrespect the Chicago Lord."


    Barbie''s stare was ice-cold as she squared her stance, but before she could make a move, Henry jerked his chin at three additional guards standing behind


    her.


    "All of you, help Barbie snuff this brat out. Do not hold back."


    "Yes, sir!" they barked in unison, drawing their swords with a deadly, metallic hiss.


    Just a few days ago, they''d been caught off guard by Alex-he''d managed to handle them easily back then. This time, though, they were united, focused, and burning with vengeance.


    The second Henry nodded, the four of them burst into motion.


    Two came at Alex from the left, the others from the right, swords raised high, glinting under the harsh banquet lights.


    The crowd collectively sucked in a breath. Even Alex''s critics figured he was toast.


    Then it happened-a single, swift motion. Steel met steel with a thunderous ng.


    Before anyone could blink, the swords were shattered into shards, scattering across the marble floor.


    The shockwave of the impact sent Barbie and her fellow guards hurtling backward as if rammed by a speeding truck.


    Time seemed to slow as they soared through the air, coughing up arcs of crimson before crashing to the ground in a jumbled


    heap.


    Theyy there, sprawled, unconscious.


    A stunned silence smothered the crowd. Jaws hung open. The top enforcers of


    the Chicago Lord were down, their expensive swords reduced to scrap.


    No one had any words left-they were all swallowed by the gravity of what they''d


    just witnessed.


    Henry''sposure crumbled.


    His eye twitched in disbelief, sweat gathering at his temples.


    All his boasts about power and dominance had just blown up in his face.


    Alex took a single step and drove a brutal punch into Henry''s stomach, knocking the wind out of him.


    The man copsed to his knees with a tortured wheeze.


    "Get over there," Alex snarled, hauling Henry by his cor and dumping him at Be''s side-a spectator who had been frozen with wide eyes.


    "p them both, everyone,” Alex said smoothly, as if he were asking for a top-up


    of wine.


    "It''s not every day you get to smack a Kane heir and a Chicago Lord''s son, right?"


    A heavy silence fell over the room.


    Unease rippled through the guests like a cold wind, each of them quietly questioning their own judgment-Why the hell did Ie to this banquet? 2