“Please, tell Mr. Sy I didn’t want to do it, I was forced to do it.” Stephen could hear Michael Ho begging. The guards that stood in the room with him remained silent, unmoved by his pleas. “Hello? Stephen?” Vanessa asked as she answered Stephen’s call.“I’ll be a little late. Something came up.” Stephen told his fiance.“Alright. I’m done recovering all your files by the way. Why don’t I just go home then we can head over to the party together?” Vanessa suggested. Stephen was silent for a moment as he considered what needed to be done. “What if I sent someone over to bring you your clothes? I’m not sure how long this will take.” Stephen said as he looked through the monitor that showed him an image of Michael Ho in the other room.“Alright.” Vanessa said. “I’ll call you in a bit.” Stephen told her as he ended the call and quickly went up to their room. He chose a simple dress that he knew would look good on his fiance, he quickly asked a bodyguard to bring it to the office.“Am
“Are you ready?” Stephen said as he held his fiance’s hand. He knew that the last time she had to face her entire family was on the day they were supposed to announce their engagement. “I should be asking you that.” Vanessa chuckled. “I know my family didn’t treat you well last time, and to be honest, you deserve an apology.” “Vanessa, you are the only who’s acceptance matters to me.” Stephen said as she smiled lovingly at her. “Plus, I’m sure that when my real identity comes to the surface, your family will be begging for my forgiveness.”Vanessa laughed and shook her head, of course Stephen was right.If there was anything that mattered to the Ty family, it was their image and their connections. They couldn’t have imagined offending the heir to the Cho family because they thought he was poor.“Let’s go in and get out as soon as we can.” Vanessa said with a smile as she slid out of Stephen’s car. A bodyguard quickly came up to Stephen’s side and took the car keys from him.Eldric
“Stephen, I can handle this.” Vanessa whispered to him as she held him back.Vanessa was a smart and sensible woman, she knew that this wasn’t the time for Stephen to let anything slip, even if it was to defend her. “Vanessa, this is just too much.” Stephen hissed as he held back.“I will be the young madam of the Cho family, don’t you think I should learn to fight my own battles?” Vanessa asked as she glared at her fiance.Stephen sighed in surrender as he glared at his future mother-in-law.If she and the other members of the Ty family were not related to Vanessa he would not have spared them. Even without the Cho family’s backing Stephen could make the Ty family suffer if he wanted. Nothing was too much to protect Vanessa. He hated seeing her hurt like this.“Tell me, mom, would you rather I marry someone who comes from a rich family but can do nothing but leech of his rich relatives?” Vanessa asked.“Of course-” Vanessa held a hand up, stopping her mom from speaking.“Or a man
“I’m sorry about my family.” Vanessa said with a frown as she and Stephen walked out of the restaurant. Stephen looked at her and frowned, he didn’t understand why she kept feeling the need to take responsibility for her family’s actions. “Vanessa, are you a martyr?” Stephen asked his fiance.“A martyr? What? Of course not!” Vanessa exclaimed. “I could never be someone so, so, so selfless.”Stephen laughed and shook his head. He couldn’t believe how unaware his fiance was of how much she had already sacrificed because of family.“Vanessa, they aren’t your responsibility, you don’t owe them anything.” Stephen said as he pulled Vanessa aside. “I’m not.” Vanessa was frowning as Stephen told her the painful truth. “One day they will cross someone who is not as forgiving as I am.” Stephen warned her. “What will you do when that day comes?” “It won’t happen, my family would never offend someone better than them. Have you not seen how they grovel in front of your half brother?” Vanessa
“Did they leave ahead?” Stephen asked as he returned to find Vanessa waiting all alone for him. He had expected his uncle to insist on sending them home.He knew William Cho was starting to get desperate in finding out where Stephen lived.“Yeah, William got called home. Something about his brother being furious.” Vanessa chuckled as they walked out of the restaurant hand in hand. “Vanessa, I’m going to grab some drinks with Robert and Edward, if that’s fine with you.” Stephen told her. “I already asked Amalia to come over to the house to keep you company. I have to discuss work with the boys.”Vanessa shook her head and smiled at Stephen. “Amalia doesn’t need to come over. The house is safe enough, we have a few maids now and a cook. I’ll be fine alone.” Vanessa told him as he nodded in response.Around them, Stephen’s bodyguards walked silently as they observed their surroundings. They were particularly on the lookout for Willaim’s men that he could have left behind to stalk Steph
“Sir?” John asked as he knocked from the other side of the door.“Come in John.” Stephen called out as his right hand man entered the room.“Edward, Robert, this is John.” Stephen introduced as John bowed in front of the two men. “In the Essen Mafia, he is my right hand man.”“So that’s the mafia you were leading. You owe me ten thousand Edward!” Robert laughed as Edward took out his phone and sent the money digitally to his friend.As Robert reveled in his victory, Edward noticed the nervous glances he was getting from John. It was clear that he was worried about Edward Hao’s family.The Haos were a powerful and old political family, families like theirs viewed the mafia and gangs as the dark side of the world.“John Reid.” Edward suddenly said, making John look up, his fear visible in his eyes. “That’s your real name right? John Malcolm Reid, thirty five years old, you came to the country a month before Stephen did.”“You knew?” Stephen asked with a raised eyebrow as he looked at Ed
“Where do I start?” Stephen asked.“That morning, who did you speak to?” Robert questioned his friend as they were careful to go through every detail.“The first person I spoke to was Amalia, she was up early and crying as if I had died.” Stepehn laughed and shook his head. Little did they all know that that night, Amalia’s fears would become a reality.“Did what she told you change your mind?” Edward asked his friend as he refilled his glass of liquor. “No.” Stephen confidently answered. “I smiled and laughed and told her that I would be back in a few months when we had a break from school. We then went down to breakfast with grandpa, uncle, and my mom.” “Why was your uncle there?” Robert asked as he looked Stephen in the eyes. “If I recall correctly, your Uncle William rarely had meals with the family.”“It was my sending off meal.” Stephen told his friends. “Everyone was required to be there, but my Uncle William didn’t want his wife around, he was telling us how she might be pre
“Stephen, the Ty family?” Robert asked as they headed down to leave. “What about them?” Stephen asked, stopping in his tracks. “They don’t deserve to be associated with you or Vanessa.” Robert declared in an angry tone. “Even Vanessa deserves better. You are all their victims.”“What are you trying to suggest, Robert?” Stephen asked as he looked at his friend.“He wants your permission to drag their name through the mud.” Edward answered. “Of course, Robert is acting impulsively again.”“If I were acting impulsively, I wouldn’t have asked Stephen and just acted. I know Stephen would probably have a plan for them.” Robert answered, rolling his eyes at his friend.“The Ty family are fortunate that Vanessa is their child.” Stephen said in a cold tone. “But that doesn’t mean they will get through this unscratched. I will give them time, for now, to see their mistakes. If they refuse to change, then I will make a move against them.”Robert and Edward both nodded in understanding.No matt