014 | Chapter Fourteen - Business Trip
—Mary's invitation, like a moth drawn to a flame.
As the warm morning light filters through the curtains, dappling the luxurious carpet, even the hustle and bustle outside cannot disturb the harmonious atmosphere inside the bedroom.
"Hmm... Diaz?" Xiaoyue opened her eyes groggily. The familiar scent enveloped her completely, and an inexplicable sense of security welled up within her.
Diaz felt the movement of the person in his arms. His tired eyes, marked with obvious bruises, still jerked open his eyelids almost warily, and asked hoarsely, "...Awake?"
He let out a heavy sigh, like the growl of a wild beast awakening, but it was a tearing sensation from somewhere in his body that made him make a sound and furrow his brow.
She looked at Diaz, and a growing inner conflict began to surface.
His avoidance after he collapsed, and his deliberate avoidance of health issues, felt like thorns stuck in my heart, making even breathing a cautious affair.
...She didn't dare to speak.
The silence had no effect on him whatsoever, as if nothing had happened. He rubbed his sleepy face, withdrew his slightly numb arm, and slowly got up.
Xiaoyue watched his movements, her eyes filled with hesitation, yet also a hint of courage as she searched for an opportunity to speak.
However, this man never gave anyone a chance. Even if she couldn't sense it, Diaz returned to this room not only for physical contact with her, but also because he regarded her presence as a safe harbor for him.
It was as if, in those brief few hours, he could truly shed his heavy armor and get a real breather.
But when Xiaoyue opened her eyes, that almost mission-like protective instinct ruthlessly enveloped him once again, using a shield that no one sings of or inherits to protect the only purity in his heart.
"Dias, your body..."
Xiaoyue's voice finally escaped her lips, but was quickly swallowed back by Diaz's words.
"I'm going on a business trip for a week. My flight is at noon. I'll stay home obediently." He stood up, walked briskly to the coat rack, and said as he put on his pants.
These words struck her like a heavy blow, knocking her concern back down her throat.
A nauseating sense of familiarity crept up her spine and into her head once again... Just like a year ago, she had no say or decision-making power, let alone the right to care about him.
Finally, until he buttoned the last button, Xiaoyue couldn't utter a single word...
"I'm leaving."
Before leaving the room, Diaz glanced back at her on the bed, still dressed, and if you listened carefully, you might have detected a hint of reluctance in his tone.
"Don't wander off while I'm not here."
"One week, wait for me to come back."
His brown eyes were lowered, looking at her intently. There seemed to be some unspoken words on his lips, which he couldn't express for a long time. He couldn't even say "I will miss you".
"—Click."
The moment the door closed, it made a sound like heavy shackles, locking her once again in that cage called "protection".
But as the elevator slowly descended, there was an almost resolute determination in his figure. The tenderness in his brown eyes had completely faded, replaced by a sharp, blade-like light that flickered like a flame.
"I'd like to see what you're up to, Mary Silver." He clenched his fist, his white knuckles cracking.
After boarding the private jet, the rising pressure subtly altered his body, and a wave of nausea surged up again, but Diaz swallowed it back down, refusing to show any weakness even with his face pale.
Watching the changing scenery outside the window, the clusters of white clouds glistening in the sunlight, what should have been a relaxing view, was in his eyes a battle that should have ended long ago.
He beckoned to the air, and his subordinates immediately came forward, bent down, and waited for instructions.
"Order the others to be fully prepared. That bitch Mary's firepower is no joke. This time, you better be prepared to die." He said in a low voice, his heavy tone devoid of any joke or contempt.
"yes!"
Several hours passed—
They landed in the evening and received a very warm welcome.
From the highest-class limousines to fine wines, women, and local delicacies along the way, everything was provided, no less than Diaz's habits on the East Coast—the only thing missing was Mary herself.
"My elder sister instructed that we should welcome you, Godfather, with the most extravagant ceremony," Mary's subordinate said respectfully.
Diaz was already sitting in a luxury limousine, accompanied by several officials.
He was clearly not interested in those beautiful women, and with a sour face, he didn't want to touch those vulgar girls at all. Even when they swarmed around him, he almost always turned them away: "I'm married, you bunch of bitches get lost."
Diaz exuded an aura that made him unapproachable, coldly observing the women Mary had arranged for him. He didn't even want to drink a drop of the beverages served in the limousine.
"This woman's grand welcome... there must be some trick up her sleeve." He thought to himself, his brown eyes glancing into the car. The women who were eagerly courting him were each clinging to Diaz's men, their hungry and impatient expressions making him frown.
The limousine slowly sped through the foreign streets. The streetscape here wasn't as advanced or prosperous as the East Coast; instead, it possessed a unique charm, filled with a mysterious and ancient cultural atmosphere. The colorful lights flashed by, reflecting like oil paint on Diaz's features, making his face appear even more profound and unfathomable.
After a while, the limousine arrived at the entrance of a club. Its magnificent exterior clearly indicated that it was not a place for just anyone to enter. A long line of people outside the gate all looked at the limousine, as if curious about who it was.
It wasn't until he opened the car door and his tall, imposing figure stood in the doorway that the onlookers realized—this was definitely the aura emanating from the master of dark forces.
Diaz's men quickly lined up behind him and, led by Mary's men, entered the club.
Although it's called a club, the atmosphere is completely different from that on the East Coast. The restless drumbeats and jarring music intertwine, smoke swirls in the dark and psychedelic space, and people dressed in high-end clothing huddle together, rubbing against each other and dancing.
"What 'club'? More like a nightclub." Diaz took a puff of his cigar, glanced coldly at the club's furnishings and atmosphere, and scoffed, "...vulgar."
He walked through the crowded corridor, the noise and commotion deafening. Several inconsiderate people even blocked his way, but Diaz's men kicked them aside one by one. "What are you looking at? You dare block the path of the underworld godfather? Get lost!"
As Diaz looked at the door to the private room, his face darkened. After greeting the bodyguard and his men at the door, he slowly pushed the door open—
Many scantily clad men and women, dressed in suggestive outfits, swayed their hips in the spacious private room to the accompaniment of low-pitched music, exuding a strong atmosphere of decadence.
A woman wearing a white low-cut dress, with her usual long, smooth black hair styled in contrast to her usual wavy curls, sat in the center of the private room like a delicate white flower, a far cry from her previous fiery and eye-catching appearance.
"...Marie, what do you mean by this?" Diaz's expression was extremely gloomy as he looked at her deliberately changed appearance, his voice hoarse like a bonfire about to ignite.
Hearing this, Mary grinned, walked gracefully to Diaz, beckoned for wine to be poured, and said in a deliberately coquettish voice, "Oh dear, isn't this exactly what Lord Diaz likes?"
A subordinate quickly brought over some whiskey and had Mary hand it to Diaz.
"A pure, soft-spoken, seemingly harmless little girl?" She laughed as she handed him the whiskey, then raised her glass in a bold toast and clinked it against his. "Isn't this 'playing to his tastes'?"
She took a big gulp of her drink and then shouted to all her subordinates in the private room, "Come on! Mary's in charge today! Everyone, just relax and have fun!"
"Guards! Bring me the best food and drinks! Give Diaz's men a good welcome!"
At that command, the scantily clad men and women in the private room swarmed around the nearest subordinates like venomous snakes, using every means possible, from rubbing against each other, to tease them with their bodies.
Mary took Diaz's hand and sat down on the sofa in the center of the box, deliberately sitting very close to him.
"Hey, Diaz." She still held a whiskey glass in her hand, gently clinking it against his glass, making a crisp sound. "I heard—the heir to Westbridge ran away, and now Westbridge is part of your territory."
Diaz lowered his eyes, staring at the glass of whiskey, hesitant to take a sip, calmly waiting like a hunter for the moment Mary would slip up.
Especially the woman in front of him; he had only been in the private room for a short time, and she already looked completely drunk.
Things... are definitely not that simple.
"Look at you, now that you have the East Bank and the West Bridge, you've essentially disrupted the balance," she said, laughing as she swayed, radiating intense heat. "Do you think those two guys from the North City and the South Sea would let something like this happen?"
"And there's Felix from Mid Street... that foxy little rascal. What if the three of them team up against you, hmm?" Mary pressed herself against Diaz's chest, speaking in a coquettish voice, "I have a new batch of weapons here..."
"Nobody knows—only you." She nestled against Diaz like a little woman, rubbing against his strong arm, her fingertips already restlessly sliding towards the inside of his thigh.
The drumbeats inside the box grew increasingly frantic. Although Diaz's men were entangled by the men and women, they remained unmoved, their hands behind their backs, standing tall and firm, completely unaffected.
Just like their leader.
"Do you think my territories are something you need to care about?"
After a long pause, he finally spoke, without even glancing at her. He simply took out a cigar from his pocket, deftly cut off a section, lit it, and took a deep drag.
"call--"
"I didn't come here to do business with you."
He slowly exhaled smoke, which swirled around his silhouette like dragon's breath, his deep voice devoid of any emotion. The next second, he pulled his arm away, moved to the sofa beside him, and disdainfully patted his suit jacket.
It was as if they had encountered something dirty, showing extreme disgust.
However, on the other hand, the east coast.
"--bite."
The cold light of the message illuminated the darkness, waking the person in bed. She picked up her phone and saw a message with a link attached.
But when he saw the sender's name, the phone almost slipped from his fingers.
Sender: Mary Shiva
"This is your husband, Diaz Vinson."
"Face reality, little girl... When he was with me, he kept saying he couldn't live without me."
As Xiaoyue read the message, a wave of icy coldness washed over her, making her breath quicken and her heart clench uncontrollably, sending waves of pain through her.
"No...it's impossible..."
Her fingertips hovered over the link, her eyes were unfocused, and a sour, salty taste came from her nose.
It was a prelude to an emotional breakdown, even knowing it might be a trap...
But she still clicked it.
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