The restrained assassin remained silent for a long moment, his eyes scanning the room with a faint glimmer of defiance. He had been caught, yet he did not flinch. The quiet in the compound stretched thick, heavy with anticipation, as if the night itself were waiting to see what would unfold next. Jasper observed him carefully, every muscle, every subtle twitch recorded in his mind.Finally, the man spoke, voice low, bitter, and edged with frustration. “You think you caught me by chance?” he scoffed, the words dripping with contempt. “Do you really believe you knew where he was by yourself? There’s no way I would have led you there willingly.”Jasper’s eyes narrowed slightly. He tilted his head, watching the man’s expression shift from confidence to defiance, then to a faint shadow of fear. He did not respond immediately. He had learned long ago that words, at the right time, carried more weight than force. Silence could be a tool. Silence could be a weapon.Bai Zhe, still seated nearb

After leaving the Zhou family’s house, the car drove smoothly along the road. Neither Jasper nor Bai Zhe spoke immediately. The tension from earlier had not faded yet, but it had settled into something quieter. It was no longer explosive. It was steady.Bai Zhe leaned back in his seat and finally broke the silence. “So,” he said, turning slightly toward Jasper, “what’s next?”Jasper didn’t answer right away. His gaze remained on the road ahead. The city moved past them steadily, people going about their day without knowing what had just happened or what was about to happen.“We wait,” Jasper said after a moment.Bai Zhe frowned slightly. “Wait?”“Yes.”“For how long?”“That depends on them.”Bai Zhe thought about it for a moment. “You’re talking about the Bai family.”Jasper nodded. “They need to move first.”Bai Zhe crossed his arms. “If we strike now, we could catch them off guard.”“That’s exactly why we shouldn’t,” Jasper replied.Bai Zhe looked at him. “Explain.”“If we attack fi

Jasper arrived at Bai Zhe’s company without any announcement. The building was busy, people moving in and out, voices low but constant. It was the kind of place where things were always happening quietly, without drawing attention. Jasper preferred it that way. Noise attracted eyes, and eyes led to questions. This place understood how to move without leaving marks.The glass doors slid open as he approached. Cool air brushed against his face. Inside, the lobby was clean and modern, but not flashy. Everything looked deliberate. The walls were light-colored, the floor polished but not reflective enough to draw attention. Employees passed by with folders in hand, some talking in hushed tones, others focused on their phones. No one lingered.When he stepped inside, the receptionist recognized him immediately and stood up. “He’s expecting you,” she said, already reaching for the phone.“There’s no need,” Jasper replied calmly. “I’ll go in myself.”She hesitated for a second, fingers hoveri

Jasper sat alone in his Oakridge office, the lights dimmed just enough to keep his focus sharp. The city outside was quiet at this hour, distant traffic reduced to a low hum through the glass. On the desk in front of him were several folders, neatly arranged, each one marked with dates, locations, and names that had been repeated often over the past few months.Ashford.He picked up the first file and opened it slowly, eyes scanning the contents without haste. Financial movements. Property acquisitions. Shell companies tied back to the Palmer family. Nothing here surprised him. What mattered was how everything connected.He turned a page.The Palmer family had been careful. Careful enough that most people would miss the patterns. Jasper didn’t. He had spent months watching how they moved, how they reacted when pressured, how quickly they adapted when competitors appeared. Their strengths were obvious. Their weaknesses were less so, but they were there.“They always overextend when the

Jasper and Jackson arrived in Silverlake early in the morning, before the city fully settled into its daily rhythm. The drive in was quiet. Neither of them spoke much as the skyline slowly came into view, stretching wider and taller than anything Oakridge had to offer. The city rose in layers, glass and steel stacked without apology, as if space itself had been forced to make concessions.Silverlake didn’t try to be welcoming.Tall glass buildings crowded the horizon, packed tightly together, each one competing to stand higher than the next. Digital billboards glowed even in daylight, flashing market data, company slogans, and faces of people who had long since bought their way into influence. Numbers scrolled endlessly, rising and falling, fortunes shifting by the second. The streets were wide but busy, filled with cars that moved with purpose rather than patience. Everything here felt fast, sharp, and alert.Jasper watched it all without reaction. Cities always revealed their rules