Chapter 144

Chapter 144

Juniper saw the look of pain on Daniel's face and frowned, a flash of unease crossing her own. She leaned close to his ear and whispered, "Daniel, maybe we should just tell Father about this."

Daniel's frown deepened.

Some things, once said out loud, could easily turn their branch of the family into a stepping stone for the Taylor family's rise.

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Meanwhile, at the Jasper residence.

Bronte had barely walked through the door when Jasper jumped to his feet. "Well? Did it work out?"

Before he could say another word, he spotted the marks on Bronte's face. He rushed over, eyes wide with shock. "What happened? Who did that to you?"

Bronte's eyes filled with tears. "It's over," she choked out. "Our family is completely finished."

Jasper's brows knitted together. "Talk. What happened?"

Bronte told him everything that had gone down at the dealership.

When she finished, Jasper sucked in a sharp breath. "What did you say? Ms. Roberts actually stayed with that bitch Emily?"

Bronte nodded.

Jasper went quiet for a long moment, then muttered under his breath, "How is that possible? How could that even be possible? Ms. Roberts — an Enforcer from Bloody Prison — choosing to stay in Emily's house?"

Bronte sat slumped on the sofa, her face ashen. "But that's what happened. Father is furious with me. He told me to come home and think about what I've done. I was going to try to win Layla over, but now..." She looked up at him. "Jasper, what do we do? What are we supposed to do now?"

Beads of sweat had broken out across Jasper's forehead.

What were they supposed to do? He wished he knew.

But he understood the state of the family better than anyone.

He looked around the house and said, his voice tight, "If it comes to it, we'll have to sell the house. And the cars — we've got a few, we'll let them go cheap."

Bronte wiped her tears, still sobbing. "If we sell the house, where are we going to live?"

Jasper was already on edge, and hearing her worry about that only made his anger flare. "Where are we going to live? You've got some nerve asking me that. Every time I tried to discipline Kian, you stepped in and stopped me. And now look — that little bastard has run this family into the ground, and you're asking me where we're going to live after we sell the house?"

Bronte said nothing. She just sat there with her head down, crying.

What neither Bronte nor Jasper knew was that after Kian had left the house that day, he had taken the property deed straight to Open Door Bar.

Second floor. Outside an office door.

Kian was patted down, then shoved inside.

The moment the door shut behind him, he pulled the deed from inside his jacket with trembling hands, dropped to his knees, and held it up above his head, tears in his eyes. "Mr. Chapman, please — I'm begging you to help me."

Across the room, a middle-aged man with glasses and a full beard sat back in his chair, the corner of his mouth curling slightly. "Isn't this Kian? Go ahead — tell me what brings you here."

Before he could finish, a man standing beside Rufus Chapman let out a cold laugh. "Mr. Chapman, I think he might be here to pay off his debt."

Rufus smiled faintly. "Pay off his debt? How much does he owe us in total?"

The man answered without hesitation. "All told, it's somewhere north of eighteen million dollars."

Rufus stood up and walked slowly over to Kian, hands clasped behind his back. He bent down and looked at him, then glanced at the deed in his hands. "What's this property worth?"

Kian spoke carefully, one word at a time. "Mr. Chapman, this house is a gift to you. As for the debt I owe — I was hoping we could work something else out."

Rufus let out a laugh. "Mr. Taylor, you're really something. You kill someone, you pay with your life. You borrow money, you pay it back. That's just how it works. Right now, you—"

Kian cut him off, his expression dead serious. "Mr. Chapman, please hear me out. If you're willing to clear my debt, I promise you — I can help you make at least three hundred million dollars more than you'd expect from this. Maybe more."

At the words "three hundred million dollars," Rufus's eyes sharpened.

The young man beside him scoffed. "Kian, quit dreaming. Three hundred million? If you could actually pull in three hundred million, why would you be crawling in here to see us?"

Kian looked up, his gaze steady. "Mr. Chapman, I can't pull this off on my own. And in Novaria, you're the only one who can."

Rufus's interest was piqued. He waved the young man back, then walked to his seat and turned to Kian, who was still kneeling on the floor. "Get up."

Kian rose to his feet, and Rufus leaned forward. "All right. Tell me what this is about."

"I want to hire you to hold someone," Kian said without hesitation.

Rufus's smile turned cold. "Hold someone? You mean kidnapping? Let me be clear — if you think you're going to walk in here and tell us how to run that kind of operation, forget it. We know how to do it ourselves. We don't need your help."

Kian cut in again, just as serious as before. "Mr. Chapman, I know you do. That's exactly why I came to you today."

Rufus studied him. He could tell this kid had something brewing in that head of his — and it wasn't anything good.

He paused, then waved his hand for Kian to go on.

Kian opened up and laid out his plan.

"Mr. Chapman, you've pulled off kidnappings for ransom before — successfully, more than once. But the risk is always enormous. One mistake, and there's no coming back. What I'm bringing you today is different. Almost no risk at all."

Rufus gave him a half-smile. "Watch what you're saying. I don't know what you're talking about. And as for this 'no risk' deal of yours — from where I'm standing, every major family in Novaria that could actually put three hundred million on the table has serious protection around their key people."