“What do you want?” Ryan frowned. “If it’s money you’re looking for, I don’t have any. You better step away, as you can see I’m in a hurry to deliver these herbs to my mother-in-law”.He said and tried to walk away, but Spaco, the gang leader took quicker steps blocking his path again.“Woah, not so fast man”.Spaco smirked and retrieved a small picture from his pocket. He stared at it intensely, then raised his eyes to Ryan, a smirk curled on his lips.He snapped his fingers, gesturing at his men. "That's him. We've got our guy." With a grin, he stepped back, letting his crew take over.The men moved fast, surrounding Ryan, cracking knuckles and tapping weapons in their palms.Ryan’s eyes darted, tracking each one. He didn’t know who they were, but they sure weren’t here to say good morning."Stay back. I don’t want trouble with any of you," he warned calmly."We don’t want trouble either," Spaco shot back sarcastically. His face hardened as he turned to his men. “What are you waitin
***The moment Ryan stepped out of the house Catherine sat up, stopped groaning, and chuckled mischievously. The change in demeanor was instant—no one who had seen her gasping and wailing a few minutes ago would believe she was the same person now grinning with satisfaction.She snatched her phone from the table and dialed a number. “He’s on his way. You know what to do,” she said curtly before hanging up.Without hesitation, she made another call. “Everything is going perfectly. I’ve sent that loser straight to his grim reapers. You can come over now—it’s time for plan number two,” she whispered, her voice dripping with malice. A sly chuckle escaped her lips as she ended the call.Once she finished the second call, she tossed the phone back to the table, leaned her back into the couch with a sigh of relief. Whatever she was orchestrating was clearly going her way, and she couldn’t have been more pleased. Not long after, there was a sharp knock on the front door of the house. Ca
“Left? What do you mean Ryan’s left for good?” Kim asked, her voice laced with confusion.Catherine dabbed at her eyes with a tissue, feigning woe. “Forgive me, Kim. I tried to stop him—I begged him not to go, but he wouldn’t listen. He’s left you, left us... and he’s not coming back.”Kim’s brows furrowed deeper. “Ryan’s left the house? Mom, I don’t understand what you’re saying.”Catherine slowly wiped away her crocodile tears, her expression a picture of faux sorrow. “Kim, dear,” she began, her voice heavy with contrived emotion, “your husband has left you for a middle-aged millionaire widow who lives abroad. He admitted everything to me—he said she came into town months ago on a business deal, and he’s been cheating on you with her for the past two months.”Kim stared in stunned silence as Catherine continued her tale of deceit.“He confessed that he never truly loved you,” Catherine said, her voice trembling with exaggerated grief. “He’s been pretending all these years just to le
Everyone stared at Ryan with wide eyes, a mixture of shock and disbelief etched their faces. Barnes was so shocked that he cringed back, stumbled on a size stool and fell to the floor before getting up again.He thought he was seeing a ghost.Catherine rubbed her eyes with the back of her hand to confirm she wasn’t hallucinating. Her jaw dropped when she realized she wasn’t. Yes, it was Ryan, her trash son-in-law whom she had connived with Barnes to get killed— was the same one standing in front of them unscathed.Kim was equally stunned seeing Ryan. Just now her mother and Barnes clearly told her Ryan had followed some widow and flown out of the country for good. How come he be here now?Ryan ignored their awkward gaze and approached Catherine. “Mom, you are no longer in pains, thank goodness! I was scared your condition might’ve worsen than it was initially before I left to buy the herbs. Please tell me how to prepare the herbs immediately”.Catherine was awestruck— her lips shook u
At the entrance of an apartment complex, a woman glanced at her wristwatch for what felt like the thirtieth time in the past two minutes."Come on, Kim, we need to go. We're already running late, and you know how much Mom hates it when anyone’s late to her events."From the driver’s seat of the car, Albert, Kim’s father, drummed impatiently on the steering wheel.“One more minute, Dad. Ryan will be here soon,” Kim responded quickly, her eyes darting to her watch once more.“You’ve been saying that for the past ten minutes. If we leave now, it’ll save us all from the embarrassment of showing up with that loser”.Catherine snapped from the front seat, her tone sharp. She was Kim’s mother and never shied away from voicing her opinions, especially when it involved Ryan.“I don’t know why you keep insisting he comes. He’s just going to make a fool of himself again,” Sydney, Kim’s younger sister, chimed in from the backseat, crossing her arms in disdain.Ryan was Kim’s husband and the three
Ryan froze. His mind struggled to catch up with what he’d just heard. Kim—his wife—stood right beside him, yet this guy had the nerve to declare he wanted to marry her.Without missing a beat, Ryan took Kim’s hand and forced a smile. "I’m sorry, man, just in case you don’t know, Kim is already married to me”.Barnes shot him a cold, dismissive glance, then scoffed. "So, you’re the joke I heard about. How does a woman like Kim end up with someone like you? You appear more disheartening in person than my friends described over the phone.”Ryan’s jaw tightened, but he said nothing, his hand still gripping Kim’s. The guy knew she was married, yet, he acted as if her husband didn’t even exist. Unbelievable!Barnes sneered and turned back to Hannah. "Grandma, I’ve heard how hard your company has been trying to secure an Investment deal with Pinnacle Investment Company. My dad’s friends with the owner," he said casually."If Kim agrees to marry me, one phone call and the deal could be done b
Albert’s jaw dropped, eyes wide in disbelief. Had his mother just disowned him and his family? Everyone in the hall was equally shocked.“Mom? Did you just…”“Don’t call me Mom—we’re no longer related,” Hannah cut him off coldly. “Until you secure the investment deal, I don’t want to see any of you here.”“Guards!” she called. In seconds, four men appeared at her command. “Throw them out of my house!” she ordered firmly.“Huh!”Even the guards hesitated, stunned by the idea of evicting her own son and his family. But the fury in her eyes left no room for defiance.Kingsley and Natasha smirked in satisfaction as Albert and his family were unceremoniously thrown out of the hall, humiliated before all.Outside the villa, Catherine’s hand swung sharply across Ryan’s face, delivering a stinging slap.“This is all your fault, you filthy swine!” she hissed. “Why won’t you just sign the divorce papers and end this miserable marriage? Because of you, we were humiliated in front of everyone—and
Ryan’s eyes narrowed as a man in military uniform stepped out from the backseat of the car.“General Ryan!” the soldier said, snapping to attention with a crisp salute.Ryan frowned, recognizing the man immediately—Kane, his inferior from five years ago in the military. He wasn’t exactly thrilled to see him.“How did you find me?” He inquired under clenched teeth.Kane stared at him eyes widened, a bit of doubt on his face. “General, it is really you!” he exclaimed as he scrutinized him.But Ryan didn’t seem to share in the excitement. He gave him a dismissive glare and looked around suspiciously.“What are you doing here? Or did Kublai send you to assassinate me?”“No, general,” Kane shook his head. “General Kublai is dead! He sustained major injuries on the battlefield and passed away a few days ago”.Ryan’s jaw dropped to the news. General Kublai the supreme general of the country’s army was dead!Five years ago, Ryan and Kublai were two lieutenant generals under General Hansson in
Everyone stared at Ryan with wide eyes, a mixture of shock and disbelief etched their faces. Barnes was so shocked that he cringed back, stumbled on a size stool and fell to the floor before getting up again.He thought he was seeing a ghost.Catherine rubbed her eyes with the back of her hand to confirm she wasn’t hallucinating. Her jaw dropped when she realized she wasn’t. Yes, it was Ryan, her trash son-in-law whom she had connived with Barnes to get killed— was the same one standing in front of them unscathed.Kim was equally stunned seeing Ryan. Just now her mother and Barnes clearly told her Ryan had followed some widow and flown out of the country for good. How come he be here now?Ryan ignored their awkward gaze and approached Catherine. “Mom, you are no longer in pains, thank goodness! I was scared your condition might’ve worsen than it was initially before I left to buy the herbs. Please tell me how to prepare the herbs immediately”.Catherine was awestruck— her lips shook u
“Left? What do you mean Ryan’s left for good?” Kim asked, her voice laced with confusion.Catherine dabbed at her eyes with a tissue, feigning woe. “Forgive me, Kim. I tried to stop him—I begged him not to go, but he wouldn’t listen. He’s left you, left us... and he’s not coming back.”Kim’s brows furrowed deeper. “Ryan’s left the house? Mom, I don’t understand what you’re saying.”Catherine slowly wiped away her crocodile tears, her expression a picture of faux sorrow. “Kim, dear,” she began, her voice heavy with contrived emotion, “your husband has left you for a middle-aged millionaire widow who lives abroad. He admitted everything to me—he said she came into town months ago on a business deal, and he’s been cheating on you with her for the past two months.”Kim stared in stunned silence as Catherine continued her tale of deceit.“He confessed that he never truly loved you,” Catherine said, her voice trembling with exaggerated grief. “He’s been pretending all these years just to le
***The moment Ryan stepped out of the house Catherine sat up, stopped groaning, and chuckled mischievously. The change in demeanor was instant—no one who had seen her gasping and wailing a few minutes ago would believe she was the same person now grinning with satisfaction.She snatched her phone from the table and dialed a number. “He’s on his way. You know what to do,” she said curtly before hanging up.Without hesitation, she made another call. “Everything is going perfectly. I’ve sent that loser straight to his grim reapers. You can come over now—it’s time for plan number two,” she whispered, her voice dripping with malice. A sly chuckle escaped her lips as she ended the call.Once she finished the second call, she tossed the phone back to the table, leaned her back into the couch with a sigh of relief. Whatever she was orchestrating was clearly going her way, and she couldn’t have been more pleased. Not long after, there was a sharp knock on the front door of the house. Ca
“What do you want?” Ryan frowned. “If it’s money you’re looking for, I don’t have any. You better step away, as you can see I’m in a hurry to deliver these herbs to my mother-in-law”.He said and tried to walk away, but Spaco, the gang leader took quicker steps blocking his path again.“Woah, not so fast man”.Spaco smirked and retrieved a small picture from his pocket. He stared at it intensely, then raised his eyes to Ryan, a smirk curled on his lips.He snapped his fingers, gesturing at his men. "That's him. We've got our guy." With a grin, he stepped back, letting his crew take over.The men moved fast, surrounding Ryan, cracking knuckles and tapping weapons in their palms.Ryan’s eyes darted, tracking each one. He didn’t know who they were, but they sure weren’t here to say good morning."Stay back. I don’t want trouble with any of you," he warned calmly."We don’t want trouble either," Spaco shot back sarcastically. His face hardened as he turned to his men. “What are you waitin
The next morning in the living room, Catherine hung up from a call and started screaming loudly.“Ryan, where are you? Come quickly! It hurts so badly, I’m about to die!” Her voice rang through the house, sharp and desperate.Ryan was in his bedroom preparing to leave for work when he heard the shells of her screams from downstairs. Without wasting a beat he quickly ran to her in the living room.“Mom?! I’m here, what’s wrong?” his face flushed with worry and concern as he approached her.As soon as she saw him, Catherine clutched her abdomen and wailed even louder. "Oh, my dear son-in-law, please save your poor mother-in-law! The pain is unbearable!"Ryan was dazed. Did he hear right? Catherine just called him ‘her dear son-in-law?’ He couldn’t even remember the last time she said a kind word to him. The sun must’ve risen from the West today for her to speak to him so politely.“Ryan, I’m in so much pain, my condition’s just worsened and I’m about to die. Only you can save me,” she g
Everyone watched with disbelief. Kim and Ryan had been telling the truth— Kim had sealed the deal and it was incredulously generous like she’d claimed earlier. It was surprising enough that she managed to finalize the agreement, but the real shock was the fact that Mr. Singh personally brought the documents to her.After Kim collected the documents, Halbert wasted no time. Without addressing anyone else, he turned on his heel and left the house with his secretary in tow. Just before exiting the room, he exchanged a discreet nod with Ryan.This was all Ryan’s doing. After leaving the company with Kim, he had anticipated that no one would believe she had secured the deal without solid proof. To preempt any doubt, Ryan secretly messaged Halbert, instructing him to personally deliver the finalized contract to the Kardashian Villa.As soon as Halbert departed, Hannah snatched the documents from Kim’s hands. Her eyes widened with disbelief as she scanned the contract, her expression shiftin
Kim stared at the papers before her, devastation etched across her face. If only Grandma Hannah had believed her, things could have been so different. Instead of pushing her to divorce Ryan, Grandma would be popping champagne to celebrate the deal.Ryan stood beside his wife, visibly exasperated, battling the urge to grab the papers from Hannah and shred them to pieces. This naive woman wasn’t being fair.“What are you waiting for, Kim? Sign the divorce papers already! Or do you plan to defy Grandma again? Don’t you want us to be welcomed back into the family?” Sydney urged, her voice sharp with frustration.To Sydney, her sister divorcing Ryan would be killing two birds with one stone—being accepted back into the family and getting Ryan out of their lives for good. Just like her parents, Ryan was just a waste of space and time in her sister's life.Kim’s gaze flickered to her sidelined family, their expressions filled with the same expectation as Sydney’s—urging her to end the marria
AT THE KARDASHIAN VILLAIn the living room, Hannah sat on a tall chair in the center of the room, to her right seated Kingsley and his immediate family, on the couch to her left was Barnes with two men and a priest. While in front of her, just beside the door was Albert, Catherine and Sydney. They stood there excluded with no seats.Hannah glanced at the clock and frowned, “This stubborn girl, how dare she waste so much time”.When Albert noticed how annoyed and impatient her mother was getting, he took a few steps forward. “Mother you—”.“I’m not your mother!” Hannah snapped cutting him off. “Unless I have the investment papers in my hand you are not family. Now step back and stand beside the door,” she scowled, exasperated.Barnes chuckled smugly, leaned back, and promised, “Don’t worry, Grandma Hannah, once Kim divorces that trash and gets married to me, I’ll make the call and the deal will happen in a few hours,” he chuckled confidently.Shortly afterwards, Kim hastily entered the
After the call, Kim looked at her husband with a sad expression. “Ryan, what if Mom and Dad were right? What will happen if I fail to secure the deal?”Ryan smiled reassuringly and held her hand. “Don’t worry, dear. I trust you. You stayed up all night preparing the proposal; they’ll certainly accept it.”Kim sighed and forced an awkward smile before they walked into the building.“Good morning, ma’am, sir! Welcome to Pinnacle Investment. How may I assist you?” the young lady at the front desk greeted them warmly, her smile lighting up her face.The new receptionist appeared calm and kind, unlike her predecessor. Truth be told, Lucy had gotten what she deserved for being so ignorant and rude.The couple exchanged a glance, and Ryan nodded calmly. Kim stepped forward. “Good day, Miss. I’m here on behalf of KK Enterprises to present an investment request to the CEO.”As soon as she spoke, a man walking out of the building scoffed. “KK Enterprises? You must be joking! What makes you thin