Chapter 16 - THE ULTIMATUM TO MASTER CHENTwenty-four hours later, the Tribeca penthouse was entirely secure.
Commander Sterling was tied up in a high-security detention facility underground, waiting to be interrogated by Adrian’s inner circle, and the Triad’s digital footprint had been completely scrubbed and reverse-engineered by Izzy’s custom malware.
However, Adrian wasn't sitting back to relax.
We were standing in his private office. Adrian was dressed in a pristine charcoal three-piece suit, looking every bit the ruthless mafia kingpin, while I stood beside him holding a secure satellite phone.
“Are you sure about this, Adrian?” I asked, looking up at him. “Calling Master Chen directly? That’s walking right into the lion's den.”
“Chen thinks he can play a game of chess with my family,” Adrian replied coldly, his eyes fixed on the city view outside. “It’s time I reminded him who owns the board.”
He pressed the speakerphone button.
The line rang twice before a smooth, elderly, yet venomous voice answered from across the globe in Hong Kong.
“Adrian Kane,” Master Chen spoke smoothly. “I must admit, I am surprised to hear your voice. I expected my operative Sterling to have successfully leveled your penthouse by now.”
“Sterling is currently contemplating his life choices in a concrete box two floors beneath us,” Adrian said, his voice entirely devoid of emotion. “Your hit squad on my roof didn't fare much better, Chen.”
A heavy pause hung over the satellite line.
“You are a persistent thorn in my side, boy,” Chen sneered. “The Triad does not lose. If not today, tomorrow. If not tomorrow, next year. We will take everything you love.”
Adrian stepped closer to the desk, his gray-blue eyes flashing with pure, lethal dominance.
“Listen to me very carefully, Master Chen,” Adrian said, his voice dropping into a terrifying, gravelly register that made even me shiver. “You touch my ports again, you send one more assassin near my wife or my children, and I won't just dismantle your syndicates in New York. I will personally fly to Hong Kong, burn your operations to ash, and leave you with nothing.”
“An empty threat—”
“Try me,” Adrian interrupted sharply. “And by the way... your Macau server? Izzy says hello.”
Click. Adrian hung up the phone without waiting for a response.
The room fell into a heavy, electrifying silence.
I stared at him, a mix of awe and lingering worry swirling in my chest. “Do you think he’ll back down?”
Adrian turned around, his harsh expression instantly softening the moment his eyes met mine. He closed the distance between us, wrapping his strong arms around my waist and pulling me flush against his chest.
“Chen is a businessman,” Adrian murmured softly, resting his chin on top of my head. “And he knows a losing investment when he sees one. He won't be back.”
Just then, the office door swung open, and Noah marched in wearing a miniature detective trench coat and carrying a magnifying glass, followed closely by Izzy and little Chloe.
“Dad! Auntie Izzy says we solved the case and captured the bad guy!” Noah announced proudly. “Does this mean we get ice cream for dinner?”
Adrian let out that deep, helpless laugh—the sound that had changed my life forever in that echoing hallway over two years ago.
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“Ice cream for dinner,” Adrian agreed, looking down at our son, before his gaze shifted back to me with a devastatingly handsome smile. “What do you think, my love? Do we have time for ice cream before the underworld tries to conquer us again?”
“Always,” I whispered, leaning up to kiss him. “As long as I’m the one managing the schedule.”
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