Chapter 193 Thorough Liquidation

Chapter 193 Thorough Liquidation



"Lock down his hands and feet.

In three days, deliver him as agreed."

"Yes, sir."

Iron Wolf dragged the sobbing Kyle back down to the basement.

By the time dawn broke, the news had spread like wildfire.

Cedric had conceded defeat and withdrawn from Azure Bay.

The entire city of Pinecrest was in shock.

No one had expected Cedric—who controlled the military forces—to lose just like that.

Lose to an outsider named James.

The major families scrambled into action.

They rushed to send gifts to Marius's company, proposing partnerships, eager to curry favor.

Others tried to dig up information on James, wanting to know who this man really was—someone capable of defeating Cedric.

Around noon, Eldon showed up again.

He brought plenty of nutritional supplements, along with Marius's profit-sharing contract.

"Mr. Anderson, Marius wanted me to thank you.

Azure Bay's assets—thirty percent goes to you.

Plus several commercial properties. Everything's listed in the contract."

He set a document on the table.

James glanced at it but didn't touch it.

"No need.

I'm not interested in any of that."

Eldon froze.

He'd assumed James would be thrilled.

Thirty percent of Azure Bay's holdings wasn't pocket change.

"Mr. Anderson, this is just a token of Marius's appreciation."

"Thank Marius for me.

But I don't need it."

James cut him off.

"Once I finish handling what's left, I'm leaving Pinecrest City."

Eldon was even more surprised.

Leaving Pinecrest City?

Walking away from all this power and influence?

He opened his mouth to argue, but seeing James's expression, he knew it was pointless.

"All right, then.

I'll let Marius know."

"Good."

Eldon didn't linger. He left shortly after.

Kevin eyed the contract on the table with a hint of regret.

"Mr. Anderson, you're really turning it down? That's a lot of money."

"I don't need that much money."

James said.

"Once I've settled the score, I'm going back to Silvermoon City.

Stay with Caroline. Live a quiet life."

Kevin didn't press further.

After all these years with James, he knew his temperament.

James had never been one to chase power or wealth.

Ten years—all for revenge, and for Caroline.

Now that his revenge was nearly complete, wanting to go back and live peacefully was perfectly natural.

---

At the Hensley Group headquarters, Graham sat in the CEO's office, his tablet slipping from his hands and clattering to the floor. He didn't even notice.

It was over.

All of it was over.

If Cedric had lost, what did the Hensley family amount to?

They'd sided with Cedric to climb the ladder, breaking ties with Marius.

Now that Cedric had fallen, Marius would never let them off the hook.

And then there was James.

Elena had crossed him repeatedly. He'd come for them eventually.

The more Graham thought about it, the more terrified he became, his whole body trembling.

"Dad! This is bad!"

Elena burst through the door, her face pale.

"Cedric really lost! The Royal Guard's been disarmed! Everyone's pulled out of Azure Bay!"

Graham looked up at her, his voice shaking.

"Elena, what do we do? Are we done for?"

Elena bit her lip, forcing herself to stay calm.

"Don't panic.

We're leaving."

"Leaving? Where to?"

"Solaria.

I know some people in foreign trade there. Once we're settled, we can start a business again.

When the time's right, we'll come back and settle the score."

A flash of venom crossed Elena's eyes.

James—she'd remember this debt.

"But what if James has people watching us?"

Graham worried.

"He just finished a war. He's busy cleaning up the mess. He won't have time for us.

We'll leave tonight, take the southern highway, cross the border at one of the remote checkpoints. No one checks there."

Elena said.

"Start packing now. Cash, jewelry, bearer bank cards—take those. Leave everything else."

"Okay, okay, whatever you say."

Graham was too panicked to think for himself. He'd do whatever Elena told him.

They rushed home and started packing.

They filled two large suitcases with gold bars, jewelry, and over a dozen bearer bank cards.

Years of accumulated wealth.

While packing, Graham kept muttering.

"This is all your fault! You just had to provoke James! Now look—we've lost everything!"

Elena whirled around impatiently.

"What's the point of saying that now? You agreed to side with Cedric back then, didn't you? Now you're blaming me?"

"I only went along because you said Cedric would win for sure!"

"How was I supposed to know Theodore would turn on us! Enough! Stop whining and hurry up, or it'll be too late!"

Still bickering, they snuck down to the underground parking garage.

The driver was already waiting with an unlicensed SUV.

Once inside, Graham kept grumbling.

"If we'd just reached out to Marius's side earlier, we wouldn't be in this mess."

Elena ignored him.

She stared out the window at the blurred cityscape rushing past, teeth clenched.

James.

Just you wait.

I'll be back.

But just as the thought crossed her mind—

Bang!

The front tire exploded.

The car lurched violently and stopped dead in the middle of the road.

"What happened?"

Elena shouted.

"The tire blew out! I think someone shot it!"

The driver stammered in panic.

Elena's heart sank.

This was bad.

They'd been caught.

She reached for the door handle to run—

But the door was yanked open from outside.

A hand reached in and dragged her out.

Elena hit the ground hard, gasping in pain.

She looked up.

Kevin stood nearby, gun in hand, smoke still curling from the barrel.

A dozen Specter Syndicate members surrounded the car.

Graham was pulled out too and shoved to the ground.

He trembled uncontrollably.

"Kevin, this is a misunderstanding—just a misunderstanding." Graham stammered.

Kevin didn't respond.

"Take them."

They were stuffed into a vehicle and driven straight back to the East Side villa.

---

In the basement, the lights were bright.

James sat in a chair, fingers tapping lightly on the armrest.

Iron Wolf stood beside him.

Graham and Elena were brought in and forced to their knees.

The moment Graham saw James, the terror drained him completely.

He wet himself on the spot.

The stench of urine filled the air.

Iron Wolf wrinkled his nose and stepped back.

Graham started kowtowing frantically, his forehead splitting open.

"James, please! Spare us! We were foolish! We never should have crossed you! The Hensley family's companies, properties—take them all! Just let us live!"

Elena stayed on the ground but didn't bow.

She bit her lip and glared up at James.

Hatred and fear warred in her eyes.

Her body shook uncontrollably.

She regretted everything now—hated herself for ever provoking someone so powerful.

But it was far too late for regrets.

James glanced at them.

His gaze was indifferent, as if they were nothing more than insignificant insects.

He said nothing.

The basement fell into suffocating silence.

Graham kept kowtowing until blood streamed down his face, not daring to stop.

After what felt like an eternity, James finally spoke.