Chapter 104

Chapter 104

What made it worse was that, even now, they still couldn't figure out whether the "Lena" those people kept mentioning last night was actually their Lena — the Davis family's Lena.

If she was, then everything the Davis family had done over the years would be a complete joke.

If she wasn't, then why now, of all times? And why use Lena's name to send gifts?

Lucas sat at the head of the hall, his expression dark enough to scare anyone. "Still no word from Lena?"

Luca stood below him, forehead covered in sweat. "Her phone is still off. Cassia went to find her in person. We should hear something soon."

"Should?" Lucas slammed the table. "The new Chicago mayor takes office today, and 'should' is the best you've got?"

No one dared make a sound.

The entire Davis family knew today was different. What happened at Kaufman Manor last night had put them right in the crosshairs. One wrong move today, and once the new mayor was actually in office, the Davis family might not survive it.

Lucas clenched his jaw, voice dropping low. "Whether or not last night's Lena was her, she needs to show up today. No excuses."

He didn't actually want to see Lena.

He needed to pull Lena back under his control, today of all days.

Even if it was just for show — that was still better than losing her completely.

Meanwhile, Cassia was already waiting outside Lena's apartment building.

She stood there squeezing her phone, her expression getting worse by the second. "This little piece of trash. Never this hard to reach any other time, but today she won't pick up a single call."

She muttered curses while watching the building entrance, a belly full of frustration. She hadn't fully understood what went down at home last night, but she knew enough — the most urgent thing for the family right now was to get Lena back. Otherwise, who knew what other trouble might surface today.

Just then, someone walked out of the building.

The person was dressed in black, face blank, like Cassia wasn't even worth acknowledging.

It was Ethan.

The moment Cassia saw him, her anger flared. "Stop right there!"

Ethan glanced at her, expression flat. "Something you need?"

"You have the nerve to ask me that?" Cassia was so furious she could barely stand it. "Where's Lena? Where are you hiding her?"

Ethan couldn't be bothered to argue. "She took the kid to school."

"Took the kid?" Cassia laughed coldly. "Of all the times to play the devoted mother. You go tell her — get back to the Davis family right now. Her grandfather is looking for her."

Ethan gave a small nod. "I'll tell her."

He turned to leave.

That made Cassia even angrier. "I'm not done talking! Where are you rushing off to?"

Ethan kept walking. "Somewhere I need to be."

"You useless piece of trash, acting like you've got somewhere important to be?" Cassia's face sharpened with contempt. She reached into her bag, pulled out a card, and flung it at his feet. "There's a hundred thousand dollars on that. Take it and stay away from Lena."

The card hit the ground with a faint click.

Ethan looked down at it but didn't bend to pick it up. "I don't want it."

"Not enough?" Cassia latched onto that, her sneer deepening. "Knew it. People like you put on such a good act, but it always comes down to money. Just say the number. How much will it take for you to walk away?"

Ethan looked at her, voice completely flat. "You've got it wrong."

"Wrong about what?"

"Lena isn't something you buy." He said it simply. "So that card is useless to me."

Cassia blinked, then erupted — trembling with rage, like she'd just heard the most ridiculous thing in her life. "Oh, playing the devoted lover now? Take a good look at yourself! The new Chicago mayor takes office today, and once the Davis family gets in with him, people like you won't even have the right to stand in front of us."

Ethan stopped.

He turned and looked at her. No anger in his eyes — just something that made her feel colder than anger ever could. "Then you'd better hope you don't actually end up standing in front of him today."

That look sent an inexplicable chill through Cassia, but she kept her chin up. "What, are you threatening me now?"

Ethan didn't bother responding. He turned and walked away.

He had somewhere to be today.

Something a lot bigger than anything Cassia could even imagine.

Outside City Hall, the crowd kept growing.

People who had staked out spots along the street hours ago packed the entire block. Everyone wanted to be the first to see this new mayor — to find out what kind of person had just stepped into power.

What no one expected was this: at a moment when everyone else had arrived in motorcades and formal attire, the person who was actually supposed to walk through those doors had quietly rented the most ordinary black sedan and parked it without any fuss at a street corner a little ways off.

Ethan sat in the car. Through the windshield, he looked out at the sea of people and flags in front of City Hall. Nothing on his face.

He checked the time, then pushed the door open and stepped out.

There were too many people outside. Nobody noticed the man walking in from the side. Anyone who did glance his way would have assumed he was just another person who'd come to watch the spectacle — unremarkable, not worth a second look.

But Ethan wasn't in any hurry.

He moved along the edge of the crowd, calm and unhurried, like he was just passing through.

Two young guys nearby were whispering to each other. "Wonder what this new mayor is actually like?"

"What do you think? Parachuted in at a time like this — probably nothing good."

"Not necessarily. Maybe they sent someone specifically to clean up Chicago."

"Clean it up? Whoever comes here, the seven families will put them through the wringer first."

"Keep your voice down, you can't just say stuff like that."

"Relax, it's not like anyone's—"

The guy stopped mid-sentence. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught Ethan walking past. He couldn't explain it, but the words just died in his throat.

The man hadn't even looked at them. He just walked by. But somehow, the guy felt a heavy, suffocating pressure — like if he'd said one more word, something very bad would have happened.

His companion felt it too and instinctively went quiet.

Only after Ethan had walked several steps past did the guy swallow hard and murmur, "That man just now…"

"Drop it," his companion said, voice tight.

Ethan didn't look back.

When he reached the main entrance of City Hall, a confrontation had broken out near the doors.

An elderly man with both arms missing had been shoved to the ground. His old clothes were smeared with dirt, and several wrinkled pages were scattered around him. A group of guards blocked the entrance, and the one leading them — Kellan — was picking at his sleeve, barely hiding his irritation.

"Like I said — the mayor's inauguration is today. Not just anyone gets to walk in here." Kellan's voice was cold. "You think waving a few sheets of paper gets you a meeting with the mayor? What do you think this place is?"

The old man struggled to push himself up, shoulders shaking, but he raised his head anyway. "I'm not here to cause trouble. I served with Dragon Security Bureau — cross-border operations. Lost both arms. My compensation has been withheld for twelve years. I just want five minutes with the new mayor."

"Meet the mayor?" Kellan let out a short, contemptuous laugh. "You? Really?"

A few bystanders looked like they wanted to say something, but one hard stare from a guard and they swallowed it.

Kellan kicked the scattered pages aside.

"Get rid of him."

Two guards moved in. Ethan was already at the front of the crowd.

"Stop."

Kellan turned around. When he saw it was just some young guy in ordinary clothes, his brow furrowed. "And who the hell are you?"

Ethan didn't answer. He crouched down and picked up the pages one by one, then placed them back beside the old man.

The old man looked up at him, lips moving slightly. "Don't get involved. They'll come after you too."

Ethan set down the last page, then stood and looked at Kellan.

"Since when do you get to throw people out of City Hall like this?"

Kellan's expression hardened. "Who do you think you are, telling me how to do my job?"

He raised his hand, and several guards stepped forward immediately.

Right at that moment, hurried footsteps came from inside City Hall.

Eddie rushed out with several people behind him. He took one look at the scene by the door and froze.

The next second, he dropped to his knees.

"Welcome, Mayor!"