The men surrounded Victor but kept their distance. The fierce-looking men were waiting for Elias' orders."These men are not your standard gangsters. They are underworld warriors who have fought under the most dangerous circumstances. Your street-fighting skills will falter before them. Since you already want to die, they'll put you out of your misery.""My misery?" Victor asked. His aura had darkened, bringing a sense of dread to everyone else. But Elias was clueless because of his loud, egoistic rant."Well, are you so oblivious of your condition, Victor? You are dirt poor and absolutely worthless. Maybe you earned some money from pimping out your body to female billionaires. However, I am sure you spent it away like the fool you are.""Because of your insanity and poverty, Carol left you. Don't you see your misery? Perhaps you thought showing up here like a hapless orphan would persuade her to sympathize and take you back. What a joke! Instead, your erratic behavior only made her s
There was pin-drop silence in the room, eventually shattered by Elias guffawing loudly. He banged on the desk as if he had heard the best joke of his life. Victor’s words had somehow struck his maniacal funny bone. But actually, it was a pitiful scene to watch since his charming personality had vanished, replaced by a shallow man.“You are hilarious, Victor! Did you just say you’ll take EVERYTHING from me? Who do you think you are? The President of the country? The Prince of Britannia? Or are you the Chosen One? Poverty and rejection have driven you crazy, it seems! A man who has nothing claims to have the power to take away everything! What a joke!”Elias’s expression became serious, and he turned to his goons. “Attack the loser now! Break his legs and arms! But don’t kill him yet! I will make Victor into a cripple first! He has yet to watch his beloved women violated in my sex dungeon!”Having received the hit order, six of the henchmen surrounded Victor and charged at him with base
On the second ring, Elias snatched up the phone. “Hello!” he barked. “Who the fuck is this? What do you want?”Victor leaned forward and pressed the speaker button so everybody else could listen in.“Shut the fuck up, Elias!” a heavy voice scolded him from the other end.“Dad?” The voice on the phone belonged to none other than Ichabod Crane, the Governor of the State.“Please, Dad,” Elias whimpered. “I need your help. I’ve been kicked out of office, and Springfield has been declared a state! Please use your contacts in the federal government to undo this! Or we’ll lose the city!”“Don’t call me Dad, you good-for-nothing!” Ichabod thundered. “I am not your father! You couldn’t even fulfill a simple task and instead dug up trouble for me! You have ruined our plans!”Elias cowered in his chair like a frightened child. “What are you saying, Dad? What happened?”“It’s all your doing, you miserable piece of shit! Tell me, who did you offend? Someone exponentially powerful has declared war o
Rambling on, Elias turned on his heels and rushed towards the back door. Victor sighed. The young Crane was still delusional that he had control over his life.Before Elias could reach the back door, it was kicked in, and a crowd of uniformed and armored men rushed inside. It was a SWAT team!“On the floor! I won’t repeat it!” The Captain hollered, pointing a machine gun at Elias.The young man dived to the floor in terror. “Please don’t shoot! I have done nothing wrong! My father is the owner of all the illegitimate wealth! He’s the mastermind of the criminal rackets!”“The charges on you are much more serious, son,” the Captain asserted. “We found the places where you commit your inhuman debauchery. These include filthy sex dungeons on every property, including this building. We rescued young women imprisoned against their will in every location. They have agreed to testify against you in court and identify you as their abductor, jailer, and rapist. You are going away for a long tim
The entire Atelier family sat transfixed in the living room, their eyes glued to the television. They could not believe the breaking news flashing on the screen.The mighty Crane family had fallen like a stack of dominoes! Federal authorities raided Ichabod Crane and found him guilty of a litany of crimes. He lost everything within hours—his state governor position, wealth, lands, properties, and influence. Who had enough power to make such a titan bite the dust? It was like a waking dream."Is it true?" Martha asked Carol with narrowed eyes. "Did Elias really propose marriage to you?"Carol nodded silently. She looked more disturbed than the others because she had barely escaped from becoming a victim to the Crane heir.The morning news also highlighted scandalous revelations about Ichabod Crane's son, Elias. Details of his secret life of debauchery and brutality shocked the world.The young man who used to be the most eligible bachelor in the state, turned out to be the most rotten
"I wonder who is destroying such well-established billionaires?" Chloe asked with concern. Daphne and she lost great opportunities after Damien and Derek disappeared from existence. At this rate, they would run out of lavish, wealthy men in the city. "It makes me think there is indeed a mysterious man targeting them. Although I also think Carol is being too presumptuous."Carol bit her lip. The only one powerful enough to bring about such drastic results would be Caesar, her savior whose identity was still shrouded in secrecy. He always came to her rescue. Did Caesar realize the danger Elias posed to Carol and take pre-emptive action? That was a plausible explanation.Just then, the doorbell rang, and Josh rushed to open the door."Dad, we have guests!" the brat exclaimed, leading a group of distinguished-looking men into the living room.Ronald Atelier jumped to his feet on recognizing the guests. Mainly because the young man at the center was none other than Sebastian Damone, the CE
Carol shook her head in disbelief. Her family wasn't even concerned about an engagement and wedding. They had instantly sold her off to have a pre-marital relationship with Sebastian!"Dad, Mom, Josh… I love you all, but I must decline." No longer was she the weak daughter who'd break into tears and give in to her family's demands. Carol was self-dependent and the bread earner. Having announced her final decision, she turned to leave.The Ateliers exchanged glances in panic. They saw the opportunity of a lifetime slipping from their fingers.Martha yelled out dramatically and rushed to the living room's bay window. She pushed it open wide and placed one foot on the ledge. Eyeing Carol with disdain, she began howling hysterically."Did I raise my daughter to be so disobedient? What an unfortunate mother I am! I have no right to live! Let God be my witness! I will jump to my death rather than live with an ungrateful child!"While Josh and Ronald did nothing to dissuade her, Carol's eyes
Victor felt no obligation to respond to Sebastian's enraged question. He leaned back comfortably in the Chairman's seat as if nobody had spoken yet. With furrowed brows, Sebastian turned to Clive Baron for answers."What is going on, Clive? Why is this wastrel on your leader's chair? Is this some sort of prank?"Clive smiled thinly before replying. "This is neither a prank nor a mistake. Mr. Victor Damone is the principal investor of the Springfield Rapids Project and has contributed billions of dollars to launch it. Moreover, it was his venture idea in the first place. He intends to transform Springfield into a world-class business hub and a next-gen metropolitan. The Chairman's seat always belonged to him."Sebastian looked utterly confused. "What? That's ridiculous! Victor is a middle-class, unemployed guy who works as a bodyguard. His family is on the brink of bankruptcy. Are you people out of your minds?"When the young man was again greeted with silence, he addressed the rest of