As the Chief and the ladies glared straight, Chief Santos added, “Are you the sex agent?”Dyesi and Mrs. Nathan exchanged confused glares as they looked at Chief Santos.“What sort of question is that? Don’t you know how your sex agent looks like?” Mrs. Nathan asked, brows furrowed.The Chief turned to them, slightly shrugging. “How would I know? I am not the person doing the recruitment! I have someone who recruits the boys for me. So, I am not in the wrong to ask him if he’s the real sex agent.”Before them was Franco, standing with his hands at his sides. He held his posture firm—like a bonafide warrior. Or better yet, a bonafide sex machine.“Alright then, Chief. You should get going already!” Dyesi said, stepping aside.The Chief turned to them again and flashed a seductive grin. “Don’t miss me too much. I’m gonna be back for another ride!”They all smiled and waved at him.“Come on, Chief. You should get going already. You don’t wanna be late for tonight’s show! Plus your player

Franco chuckled, deep and amused. “Fifty billion dollars?” he repeated, raising a brow.To him, that kind of money was laughable. He could give that away on a random Tuesday and never think twice. He was filthy rich—a fucking trillionaire. Fifty billion wasn’t even a dent in his empire.He strolled calmly toward the wine shelf, picked up a crystal glass, and poured himself a generous serving.He looked up at Chief Santos with a smirk. “You’re really offering that just to keep me out of the game? For that amount of money?”Chief Santos nodded slowly, his expression strangely sincere. “That money means nothing to me, Damien. If you want more, I’ll double it. I just don’t want to see your health destroyed. You're the first person I’ve truly loved since my wife left me... and took my kids.”His voice cracked slightly, but he didn’t let it linger. He straightened his shoulders and kept talking.“I gave up on love after that. That’s why I joined the Lioness’ Den.”Franco took a sip of his w

FLASHBACK – TWO DAYS EARLIERFranco had managed to slip into Chief Santos’ private study under the pretense of wanting a midnight drink. As Santos bathed, humming to himself, Franco noticed a sleek black flash drive plugged into a mini-encrypted device connected to the Chief's desktop.He recognized the insignia: a golden lion fang carved into the side.Bingo.Keeping his face calm, Franco leaned on the desk and coughed slightly to distract from the soft click as he pulled the drive out. Slipping it into his pocket, he strolled out casually and muttered, “Thanks for the wine, Chief.”Chief Santos smiled from the bathroom, clueless.****PRESENT – AT THE VILLAMuna leaned in, narrowing her eyes at the screen. Sweat clung to her forehead. The hacker they hired—an old friend of Michael's who went by the alias “Internet”—typed furiously, running line after line of encrypted code, the black screen glowing with cascading green text.He reached over and slammed a red button on his tablet.“T

Franco let his body hang limp, feigning unconsciousness with perfect stillness. His breath was shallow, slow—just like someone completely knocked out. As the metal ladder rose from the ground, glowing with a faint yellow light and etched with the Lioness’ emblem, the men grunted while hauling him down into the earth.The underground swallowed them one step at a time.Far behind them, in the surveillance van, Michael squinted at the screen. His hand instinctively tapped Oliver. “Their car already stopped moving… but why is it still parked there?”Muna, head buried in her phone, finally glanced up. “I just searched the location online,” she said, holding up the screen. “According to everything I’m seeing, there are no buildings there. Not even a shack. Just wide, empty land.”Her brows furrowed. “It’s the country’s border.”Oliver leaned forward. “Wait—so if an operation that big is happening out there, how’s the government not aware of it? You’d expect Customs to be patrolling that pla

Franco didn’t waste a second.The moment the door burst open, he lunged. His hand shot out like a hammer and slammed the guard’s head into the tiled wall—a sickening crack echoed through the room. Blood sprayed across the wall as the man's body dropped like dead weight.Franco snatched the guard’s gun just as the second guard charged in. Without hesitation, Franco pulled the trigger—BOOM! The bullet tore through the man’s chest, dropping him instantly. Blood pooled beneath his collapsing body.A third guard burst in, firing wildly. Franco dove left, the bullet grazing the tiled wall where his shoulder had just been. Another shot rang out—this one from the far left—and Franco sprang up, flipping backward onto the bed.The third guard snarled and stormed toward him. With a thundering grunt, he kicked Franco square in the chest, knocking him back. But Franco barely flinched. Fueled by adrenaline, he bounced right up.Another kick flew at him. This time, Franco caught the guard’s leg in m