The mad cook merely laughed. Lifting his hand, he pointed his gun at Ryan’s face again. “Stop interfering with my fight.”
He said a strange thing. Could it be that Bill saw something else? Hallucinating, perhaps?
“There’s no fight here, Bill. We’re in a restaurant, enjoying breakfast that you make.”
“Lies!” Bill’s anger rose like a rocket. “There’s fights everywhere, you can’t fool me!”
Ryan thought about how to solve this. It wouldn’t end in a good way if he didn’t solve this. The police would probably arrest the cook, and his life would spiral down even further. That wasn’t what the veteran needed. Help, he had to give it.
“How about this,” Ryan shot an idea, “I bet I can take the gun from your hand in one minute.”
“You’re weak. Impossible.”
“Humor me, then. If I can do it, you have to
Heading to a place called Pink B!kini was not something Ryan thought he’d do someday. Let alone with the intention of looking for a runaway kid named Cinos.[Please turn left 100 yards from here.][The destination is on your right.]Ryan slowed the car, and didn’t want to miss it. Turning 180 degrees on this narrow road would be a pain in the neck. Indeed, he wasn’t in the middle of the city, so the street was not that big. It was two lanes, shared with the cars coming from opposite directions, but the junks littered on either side was a big hassle.Looking to his right, Ryan soon found the building named Pink B!kini. Covered by vulgar and sarcastic graffiti, it was hard to know what color the building’s paint was at first. Mostly, it was dominated by shades of pink, like its namesake. Two entrances in its front.The rolling door was closed, so he went to the rickety door after he parked the green Spider in front. The area w
Driving through the city, Ryan contemplated where he'd go next. Of course, he could go back to the Crowne's residence, but there was just one little problem here."Where am I?" Bill Kennedy groggily asked as he rubbed his face."I don't know your home, so I just take you with me."The mad cook whipped his head so fast he'd break his neck. He glared at Ryan with a suspicious look on his face, "I saw you disappear!"Ryan internally grimaced, but he tried to keep his face impassive. No one was supposed to know about TEETS and all of the abilities it gave. "Maybe I'm a magician.""Magician, my ass. You disappeared like a ninja right in front of my eyes. How did you do that?""I don't," he lied, partially. He didn't disappear. At least not to everyone else in the restaurant besides the mad cook himself."Don't lie to me," Bill grumbled, "Are you the governmnet's secret project?""The, what?""Don't think I'm a fool. I know th
First thing in the morning, someone rang the doorbell of the Crowne residence.Marissa wouldn't have heard it if she was in her bedroom, buried under the blanket and snoring loudly like her own husband. Sadly, the strange things that kept happening with her useless son-in-law had kept her awake since three in the morning. She was just drinking water in the kitchen when she heard the bell.However, instead of walking to the living room to open the door, she stomped her feet further inside. The direction was clear. She knocked on the scum's bedroom door and called in a loud voice, "Wake up, you useless son-in-law!"When there was no answer, Marissa banged her hand against's the door.She'd continue to do so until that useless scum woke up. How could he still be asleep around this time? He should be up since dawn to clean the place and make breakfast. No matter what he said two nights ago and yesterday about no longer cooking for them anymore.When he
Three people gathered around the dining table, speaking in a hushed tone.“We can’t let that scum treat us like this forever.” Marissa said, opening the spontaneous conference of the most important matter in the Crowne residence. “We have to do something before he truly forget his place. We can’t have that.”Taking off his reading glasses, Robert folded his newspaper and nodded. “I agree. And we have to do it quick.”“But how?”When both of them couldn’t think of anything, they looked at the third participant. Violet was busy on her phone, typing furiously with a heavy scowl on her face. Feeling the stares, the blonde beauty glanced up. “What?”“We have to do something to that useless scum. Think up something.”Violet sighed, “This is all your fault, okay?”“Me?” The middle-aged woman frowned, “How could you accuse m
A pair of married couples fumed to themselves. Their current target of this negative emotion was none other than their own son-in-law, Ryan Wilder. “Ungrateful scum,” Marissa said for the third time, walking back and forth with a heavy scowl on her face. Sitting on the leather couch in the living room, her husband threw the newspaper in his hand with displeasure. The headline told him a piece of news he rather did not know. ‘VERNEST’s New Owner, The Mysterious Businessman Have Yet to Make Appearance!’ If only he didn’t know that the mysterious new owner was his own degraded son-in-law, he’d be speculating about it with most of the rich people in the world. Not only did that press conference from Vernest stir the luxury brand enthusiast into a roar, but it also sparked new interest as the businessman behind it said the acquisition hadn’t even shown his face. “Businessman?” Robert scoffed grimly, “More like a scum that deserves to die.
Seething from something ugly deep inside his chest, Ryan thought, ‘Unlock.’[Unlock Lvl 1 activated.][Time Left: 59 minutes 59 seconds.]The closed set’s door was slammed open as easily as ever. It turned all attention of the people inside into the doorway, shock and anger on their faces. Five crews and four naked performers whipped their necks to him. Embarrassment followed suit.“What do you think you’re doing?!” The director hollered as the four performers scrambled to cover their naked bodies as quickly as possible. “Get out of here!”Hilarious, he thought.They were shooting a sex scene, baring all of their skin for the whole world to see, and yet, they covered their body in his presence. Even Violet, who hid behind Ashton’s muscled frame, cowered with her red face so that Ryan wouldn’t see her.And Ashton?Oh, the scandalous actor might proudly show that he slep
It had been three days since Ryan unceremoniously terminated Violet's contract with her agency on her latest movie – the Lover's Fool.Indeed, the title perfectly fits how the filming work.No one could sway him on his opinion. Terminating the contract was the best course of action. If anyone said anything against it, they didn't think Violet deserved better than being a lowly pornstar without her consent.Ryan chuckled at the thought. Obviously, his own in-laws didn't think anything was wrong with that particular movie. It was like they didn't care in the slightest. Could it be that was the case?His face turned bitter at the speculation. To be honest, he wasn't surprised. Despite their claim that they loved Violet so dearly, they let her do something unspeakable and would let her bare all of herself to be recorded for everyone to enjoy.He was sick, just thinking of it."This is all your fault!" Marissa said again for the countless t
"Good evening, sir," she said, "My name is Jess Carter, and I will escort you to your private jet. If you would follow me?""Thank you," Ryan rose to his feet.He paid a look at his wife and in-laws. Of course, they were seething in anger – or something he couldn't quite decipher."Wait," Marissa stopped them from going, "What did you say again?"The airport staff looked worriedly at Ryan, believing he was in power in this situation. So, with a bored sigh, he said, "You heard her. My private jet is waiting for me.""How could you–"Marissa stopped on her track, recalling that he had money to throw away now, despite her initial shock. "You ungrateful scum! How can you fly in a private jet while we stuck in a commercial plane?"Ryan didn't like the sound of it. "Oh? I thought my brother-in-law already took care of it? Didn't he bought you first class seats?""This has nothing to do with Jared," Marissa protested, "We'll fly i
Ryan struggled to stay awake as he stared blankly at one of the bare white walls around him.The hum of the bright fluorescent lights above him flickered occasionally, breaking him in and out of his trance. There were no windows except for the small one at the door, which barely showed into the hallway.He had long lost count of the hours he had been held inside this room since he arrived. He felt tired and broken in more ways than one, but he was managing, and that is all he could do right now.He just needed to hold out a little longer.Just a little longer.Shifting his gaze at the paper before him, it did not take long to realize that no one here was ever on his side to begin with. Telling the truth did not matter. Everyone believed he was a murderer. He was guilty the moment he was arrested, and they made that very clear after trying to repeatedly beat him into signing the confession, making sure to avoid his face. Anything that his prison uniform did cover, they beat until they
The interrogation room was well air-conditioned, it was supposed to be cold. Yet, Ryan couldn’t feel anything but stifling heat from deep within his chest. He felt rage, more than fear or puzzlement at this point.There was only one person who could and would frame him, but getting everyone to believe was hard. Almost impossible, even.Leaning back in his chair, Detective Pierce continued, "Let me tell you the short version of what I think happened. You murdered Jorge and left Edric for dead. You left straight from the party to the airport, trying to flee the scene of the crime.""That's ridiculous.""Why else would you leave Seattle in such a hurry? Were you planning to leave the country next?"Glaring, Ryan griped out a resounding, "No, I simply went home. If I wanted to run, I'd go anywhere but there, wouldn't you think?""It's not far-fetched for you to gather your things and prepare to disappear for good. You wanted revenge for your father's death and you wanted to take down the
Still in shock, Ryan asked the police officer who told him to step forward. "Can I make a phone call?""You're not allowed.""What about an attorney?""The police will contact one on your behalf once you've been transferred.""Transferred?"The officer sighed, pushing him to move forward after a moment. "To Seattle's police jurisdiction. Now stop talking and walk."Following the orders to move, Ryan was taken to a small check-in station where an officer forcefully dipped each of his fingers in black ink, printing each digit on a white paper document.Once they were finished, he was escorted into another area, which was equipped with a digital camera and a large backdrop against the wall that was marked with varying heights. He inwardly sighed as he was given a small blackboard with his name to hold up.An officer instructed him to stand up straight and look towards the camera. He flinched as the flash sounded and wa
Opening the door, Ryan was alarmed at finding a couple of police officers standing on the other side. Glancing at the police car in the driveway, his face drained at wondering what the hell was going on."Are you Ryan Wilder?" one of the officers asked."…Yes."One of the men immediately took his hand and placed a handcuff around his wrist, pulling his other arm behind his back before adding another cuff.Another officer said, "Ryan Wilder, you are hereby under arrest on suspicion of murder."His mouth fell open in complete disbelief. "What?""You have the right to remain silent," the officer continued. "Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be provided for you. Do you understand the rights I have just read to you?"His knees felt weak. He couldn't believe what he had just heard. If this really was a dream after
Everything was a blur as Ryan rushed down the hall and burst through the door where they had last left Violet and Edric.What he had found on the other side was his worst nightmare realized.Kneeling down as he pulled Violet limply into his arms, he shakily touched the side of her draining face and gently shook her, finding no response. Choking out her name through cracked whispers over and over, he couldn't stop the sudden tears blurring his vision.Never in his life had Ryan ever felt so hurt and broken as he did now."G-God, no…" he whimpered. "Violet, please… please wake up."Every silent second that passed felt like eternity as his chest began to heave with broken sobs. His throat burned and his eyes clenched in anguish.Weakly picking himself up to see her face, he brushed back her bangs and froze when her blue eyes slowly fluttered open. Everything around him grew still like he was viewing a dream
Violet was ready to fight him. She had trained in several martial arts and mastered them for self-defense against harmful men like him. Rendering Edric useless was an easy task. She had almost done that months ago, when he was still playing with his old dog. Come to think of it, where was that old dog of his again? Violet’s blue eyes were focused as she shifted into a defensive stance, her lithe frame ready for action. On the other hand, Edric appeared remarkably nonchalant, sitting at a table with a book and a wide grin on his face as if he knew something Violet didn’t. The first move came from the infamous actress. Her movements were swift and precise, as she had aimed a roundhouse kick at Edric’s head. The red dress with high open slit at her tight created a beautiful motion picture, if one were to enjoy it. Sadly, the circumstance was not fit for such approval. However, just as Violet’s foot was about to connect with Edric’s head, a stack of books toppled over, and he stumble
"Pick it up," Edric haughtily repeated. Violet couldn't believe what she had done - even if he did deserve it. Her reputation was already in the mud lately, so it wasn’t her concern. She just didn’t believe that she punched Edric because of Ryan, the fucking scum. To hell with people still watching her nude scenes. She had made that choice in her younger days, so she didn’t want to regret it right now. However, to insult and humiliate Ryan for having such wife, crossed her line. Oh, how her world had turned upside down because of him. Not responding fast enough for his liking, as she stood frozen in place, he roughly grabbed her arm and nearly pushed her towards the floor before Ryan had cut in between them. "Don't you ever touch her again," Ryan furiously spat. "You'll fucking regret it." Before Edric could retort, the Head Butler of the Ashford family, Jorge, wedged between them, gently pushing them back by the shou
Right after breakfast, Thomas knocked on the penthouse door and asked if they were ready. Once they were, they left with Thomas, who had been waiting in the living room. He had been instructed to chauffeur them around Seattle today to find appropriate attire for the company's black tie fundraiser tonight.Although they were being forced to attend, Ryan surprised himself by enjoying their time together shopping for the event. Maybe it was because he got to see Violet try on dresses, or maybe it was just nice to do something normal. Before they return to the penthouse, Violet wants him to buy her a car. She would never ask him for such a thing, because even with all the wealth he had acquired, Violet could afford a car herself. Besides, she was too proud to ask for one. So, when she did ask him, Ryan easily agreed, and they bought one. Too bad, Violet didn’t let him see what the car she bought either, saying it was a surprise for him. Once they returned back to his penthouse after t
Street lamps flickered on one by one as Thomas drove him about an hour south from the Ashford Gorup's building headquarters to the city's international airport.As the car rolled to a stop, Thomas turned back from the driver's seat and said, "I'll go wait for Ms. Crowne and escort her here, Mr. Wilder."Already unbuckling his seat belt, Ryan lifted a hand up for him to remain in place. Opening the door, he said, "Not necessary. Just stay here and wait for us.""But-"Slamming the door shut, he reached into the inside of his suit jacket and pulled out a pair of sunglasses. He felt like an idiot wearing them, but they had helped with shielding his eyes from any sudden camera flashes. He doubted it would somehow cover his identity, but it served as a kind of protection from meeting someone's eyes directly.Familiar with where to go, Ryan placed his hands in his pockets and walked towards the terminal she would be arriving from.Once he heard Vi