<b>Chapter </b><b>171 </b>
<b>Jan </b>shot Briar a look of utter despair as he whined, “I’m not scared! I’m just being smart!”
He had returned to the country with one main goal: to be a low–key, attractive individual making a modest ie without drawing attention from the influential figures in Shoneport.
If Ashton took notice of him, how could he keep a <i>low </i>
profile and quietly build his fortune?
As they approached the parked cars, and just asn was about to get into the same one as Briar, someone grabbed him by the back of his cor. It <b>was </b>
Connor.
“Hey, buddy,e ride with me. I like your vibe,” Connor grinned, pullingn along without giving him a chance to refuse.
Connor pushed him into the car, and the door mmed shut with a bang that felt like a jolt to his heart. Ian crammed himself into the passenger seat, fastening his seatbelt while sneaking nces at Connor. Trying to sound brave, though his voice was shaky, he said, “Briar and I are tight, like brothers. So don’t even think about messing with me while he’s not around–Briar will get you back!”
Connor, who was steering the car with one hand, didn’t even look atn <b>as </b>he asked, “What was that?”
Suddenly,n found the sky, the ground, and even the scenery outside the window fascinating and stayed quiet.
Connor let out a teasingugh while watchingn act all nervous, “What, are you scared because you’re worried I’ll realize who you are? S?”
Panic filled him as he thought, ‘Oh no! Did I just reveal Briar’s secret too?‘
Connor rolled his eyes and questioned, “What do you think? Do you think one phone call from you could persuade Ashton toe to this ce in person?
Inside,n was losing it, but tried to keep calm on the outside. He probed, “So if you knew who I was from the start<b>, </b>why did you let me walk into Shoneport?”
<i>Connor </i>smirked in response, “Take a wild guess. Every year, tons of people sneak into Shoneport for their own reasons. Do you think they just leave quietly <i>on </i>their own?”
Connor grinned and nodded in response, “Exactly, what a smart guy, you got it.”
Ashton’s reputation in Shoneport was <i>no </i>joke.
There are always shady things happening in the city, and if Ashton weren’t there to pull the strings and keep everyone in check, the police would be overwhelmed.
In the other car, Briar watchedn get dragged away, and she pleaded, “Ashton,n doesn’t mean any harm. Don’t scare him.”
Ashton drove with one hand while holding Briar’s hand with the other, reassuring, “Alright, whatever you <b>say</b>.”
Briar raised an eyebrow and said, “It doesn’t look like it from your face.”
u <b>Wed </b>20 <b>AUG </b>
<b>Ashton </b>sighed and picked up the radio and said, “Connor,n’s one of us. Don’t give him a hard time,<b>” </b>
Connor’s voice came through immediately, “Got it.”
Ashton nced at Briar and asked, “Are you happy now?”
Briar gently fed Ashton a piece of chocte as she replied, “I am happy. He’s just my friend, so stop getting jealous for no reason.”
After seeing Ashton get jealous over nothing so many times, Briar would have to be a pretty clueless girlfriend not to know exactly why he was scaringn,
<b>“</b>I know,” Ashton replied coolly. “Otherwise, my people would’ve had him under surveince before he even set foot in Shoneport.”
In fact, the moment Ashton’s people discoveredn was an overseas mercenary, he was already on their radar. But thanks to Briar, they never actually put him under surveince.
What they didn’t expect was that before they could even approachn, he had gone and snitched to Ashton himself.
For a mercenary like S, known for his notorious reputation, seeking help from someone
else instead of tackling problems alone was unusual.
Ashton was skeptical that S had suddenly changed his ways.
That’s what maden’s actions concerning to Ashton.
Briar took a deep breath and said, “I know who he is. Back in Qathana, I found myself in trouble a few times, and he saved me each time.”
It was no secret thatn had aplicated past, and Ashton had plenty of reasons to be cautious. But Briar couldn’t let Ashton keep shadowingn; if she did, it could expose her secret identity as Q, the elite instructor at the DDC Vanguard Mercenary Special Operations Base.
With Sawyer and someone from the Garza family already watching her in Shoneport, she needed to stay under the radar.
“Okay, since he saved you, I’ll keep an eye out forn, too,” Ashton said, feeling a heavy burden in his chest.
Briar’s records from Qathana had been altered, and even Connor, using all his resources on the Dark Web, couldn’t find anything about her time there. Little did Ashton know, Briar had faced danger and been hunted more than once.
‘What kind of people would go after a sweet, gentle girl like her? And not just once, but several times?‘ he thought, feeling truly baffled.
When Briar said “a few times,” she was being prett
or three times.
vague about it. If she didn’t bother to spell it out, it meant she’d been hunted way more than just two
Briar was only just eighteen now, which meant she hadnded on someone’s hit list before she was even an adult.
Ashton’s eyes were deep and stormy, rage churning inside him, but his face stayed calm. He reassured, “As long as I’m here, I won’t let anyoney a finger
on you.”
He’d said something like this before, but this time, it was the most serious promise he’d ever made.
From this moment on, Ashton cared about nothing more than keeping Briar safe–her safety became his top priority.
He never pushed Briar to share where she had been or what she experienced in Qathana. He respected her silence, knowing she had her reasons. <b>Now </b>that she was in Shoneport, right in the center of his territory, he was determined to ensure that those who had previously hunted her would never ha the chance to harm her again.
Ashton and Briar were the first to step out of the two cars that pulled up in front of Briar’s house.
got </b>out. “Briar…” he began.
Briar waved him over andforted, “Don’t worry, Ashton is a good guy: Remember how you wanted to find a job to <b>help </b>your little <b>sister</b>, <b>who </b><b>is </b>
<b>Chapter </b>171
<b>struggling</b>? Just talk to <b>him</b>—he knows a lot of people who might help?
Ashton shot Briar a look for trying to set things up forn, but he replied, “No problem. Come by my office tomorrow, and I’ll help you find some good po opportunities.”
Since Briar had spoken up, Ashton felt he had to show her some respect.
This unexpected turn of eventspletely tookn aback. He stared at Ashton with wide eyes and gasped, “Wait, Ashton, are you serious? You’re not just trying to trick me or something, are you?”
Connor smackedn on the back of the head and said, “You? As if Ashton would waste his time trying to trick someone like you. Get real.”
Inwardly, he grumbled, ‘Why wouldn’t I be worth it? I am worth quite a bit of money on the ck market.
‘Butpared to someone like Ashton, who has billions, maybe I don’t stand a chance!
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