Landon Krane crouched down beside his sniveling son, ruffling his greasy hair with a twisted smile.“Don’t worry, my boy,” he said, voice dripping with malice. “I’ll leash that brat and make her crawl like a damn dog. You can spit on her if you want.”The little piglet clapped with glee. “Yay! I want her to bark too!”Mrs. Krane practically melted beside them, her oversized body jiggling with every delighted gasp. “My man,” she cooed, batting her lashes. “You always know how to handle trash.”Gasps rippled through the crowd of teachers and parents standing at the back, too afraid to step in, too horrified to look away.This was Landon Krane — the man no one dared cross in Ironvale City.A walking nightmare dressed in branded suits.The teachers were pale. A few even looked like they were about to step forward… until they locked eyes with Landon and backed off instantly.Selena stepped up, clutching Mia to her chest, her voice trembling slightly despite her best efforts to stay compose

Morix Sable frowned as he stepped into the kindergarten courtyard, taking in the chaos. Landon Krane’s bodyguards were sprawled across the tiled ground, groaning in pain, clutching broken limbs and twisted joints. One of them was bleeding from the nose; another looked like he’d lost a fight with a freight truck.Morix’s jaw tightened. His eyes snapped to Landon Krane, who was leaning against a post, blood smeared across his lips and forehead, his hair disheveled, suit half torn.“What the hell happened here?” Morix asked, his voice cold and thunderous.Landon pointed a trembling, bloodied finger at Jaden. “That bastard,” he hissed. “He humiliated me! He laid hands on my family, beat up my men, and—” his voice cracked with fury “—forced me to kneel in front of everyone. Me!”Morix’s gaze followed Landon’s finger. His eyes landed on Jaden, who stood calm and unbothered, hands behind his back, his expression cool as steel. Their eyes met.A flicker passed across Morix's face. Recognition

Vane Verrick wasn’t the kind of man who raised his voice. He believed in restraint, in logic, in letting reason speak louder than emotion. But today, none of that mattered. Not when he looked into the eyes of the man who had destroyed his daughter’s life.The front door was still swinging on its hinges when he crossed the room in a blur of fury.“You…” Vane’s voice shook—part rage, part disbelief. “You’ve got the nerve to stand here? In my house? After what you did to her?”His hands curled into fists. His breathing turned ragged. For a moment, he looked like he was about to throw a punch for the first time in his life.Before Jaden could respond, another voice ripped through the air—sharp, high-pitched, and full of rage.“You bastard! You animal! I’ll kill you where you stand!”Nora Verrick stormed out of the kitchen, eyes wide, cheeks blotched red with fury. Her apron flapped behind her like a cape, but her hand was deadly steady around the gleaming cleaver she held high.Mia shriek

“I don’t want your explanation,” he snapped. “What I want is for you to wipe the stain you’ve smeared on this family. You let a vagabond who raped you back into your life. And then, you sent him to beat the hell out of Mr. Raze, one of our most important partners!”“That’s not what happened,” she protested, but her voice cracked under the weight of his contempt.“I was the one who convinced your grandfather not to disown you. I saved your job. I fought for you when the rest of the board wanted you out. And this is how you repay me? By shacking up with a street rat?”Elias took a step closer. “You’re a disgrace, Selena. Just because no man wants to marry you doesn’t mean you get to parade your shame like this.”Selena’s hands trembled at her sides, but she refused to cry.“You want to keep your job?” Elias asked, eyes gleaming. “Then tomorrow morning, you get down on your knees and apologize to Mr. Raze. Beg him for forgiveness. Or you're done. Out of the company. Out of the family. An

Mia knelt on the bed, hugging her plush bear and watching intently as Jaden unrolled a mattress onto the floor.“Papa,” she asked innocently, “why aren’t you sleeping in bed with Mama?”Selena froze, her back stiffening. Her face turned crimson in a flash.“Wh–What kind of question is that?” she snapped, her tone sharper than she intended. “Who told you Mama and Papa have to sleep together?”Mia blinked, confused. “Isn’t that what all the parents do on TV?”Selena stared at her daughter like she’d just committed a crime. “Those shows are clearly rotting your brain,” she said flatly. “No television for the next two days.”Mia’s mouth dropped open in protest. “But I didn’t—!”“No buts,” Selena cut her off, folding her arms. “You should be reading books or doing your coloring, not picking up nonsense from dramas.”Jaden chuckled quietly from the floor. “Seems like I’m not the only one banned from the bed tonight.”Selena shot him a warning glare. “Don't push it.”Jaden raised his hands i