Betrayed On The Supposed Wedding Day.

CHAPTER 9

​Alex reached the first assassin instantly.

He grabbed the man’s wrist with his right hand and twisted it backward with great force.

At the same time, he drove his left elbow hard into the assassin’s neck!

​

​The first assassin choked and dropped his gun right into Alex’s open hand.

Without stopping for a second, Alex turned the heavy gun around in his grip and smashed the hard metal handle straight into the temple of the second assassin!

​

The second man collapsed onto the floor, knocked completely unconscious before he even knew what happened.

​

The entire fight took less than four seconds.

​Alex stood tall in the doorway, holding the captured gun. His breathing was smooth and steady, with a dark expression.

He reached down, grabbed the first assassin by his collar, and slammed him against the wall.

​He pressed the cold metal barrel of the gun right against the man’s jaw.

And then Alex asked in a lower tone,

​“Who sent you?”

​The assassin coughed up blood onto his black mask. He let out a painful laugh.

​“You... you think you can rule the Capital, boy?” the assassin choked out, staring at Alex with pure hate. “Lord Victor already knows... he knows you are on this train. The moment you step onto Platform 9... you are a dead man...”

​Alex’s face did not change at all. “Thank you for telling me. I will handle the situation.”

​

With a fast, hard chop of his hand to the man’s neck, Alex knocked him out and threw the body onto the floor next to the other man, then locked the heavy door from the inside.

​

Clara slowly climbed out from behind the seat. Her hands were shaking as she looked at the two fallen killers.

She whispered in shock, ​“Killers... on a high-speed train?” “This train belongs to the government! How could Lord Victor get past government security?”

Alex said, throwing the gun onto the table.​“Money and fear, “When you have billions of dollars and thousands of armed men, security guards are just workers waiting to take a bribe.”

​

He walked back to the window. Outside, the glowing lights of the huge Capital city were starting to appear through the fog.

Giant tall buildings with bright neon lights reached into the sky, showing off the ultimate center of wealth and power.

​Clara smoothed down her sweater, trying her best to stop shaking. “What do we do now? If Lord Victor has surrounded Platform 9 with his men, stepping off the train is walking straight into a trap.”

​

Then Alex looked down at the Phoenix Ring on his finger. A quiet, chilling smile touched his lips. He said,

​“A trap is only scary if you do not know you are walking into one. Lord Victor wants to see if I am strong enough to wear this ring. It would be rude not to show him.”

​The train’s loudspeaker made a soft sound: “We are now arriving at Capital Central Station. Please gather your bags before leaving the train.”

​Alex fixed his black suit jacket, wiped a speck of dust off his arm, and turned toward the exit door.

He said calmly to Clara, ​“Let’s go. It is time to meet the real bosses of the Capital.”

Upon arrival at the Capital, Clara whispered, ​“Alex, look at the platform monitors. The regular passengers... they’re all gone. The station is empty.”

​Alex glanced through the window. She was right. Platform 9, usually bustling with late-night travelers, was eerily dead.

Only a dozen men in identical black overcoats stood in a neat, menacing line along the edge of the tracks, their hands resting inside their coats.

It was like they were waiting for someone or something.

​A sudden flash of irony hit Alex. Two years ago, when he had first entered that dark, miserable prison cell, he had prayed for nothing more than a quiet, ordinary life.

He had believed that working hard, staying honest, and protecting the people he loved would bring him peace. Instead, betrayal had been his reward.

​“Remember this, boy,” the old Chairman’s raspy voice echoed in Alex’s memory, recalling a night in prison when the old man taught him how to read a room.

“In the Capital, sheep do not walk among wolves. If you act like a sheep, the wolves will eat you before you even touch the grass. Be the hunter.”

​“Are you ready?” Alex asked softly, looking down at Clara.

​Clara swallowed, nodding with a fierce spark in her eyes. “My father didn't raise a coward. Let’s go.”

​With a smooth hiss, the train doors slid open

Alex stepped out first, his black suit jacket catching the dim fluorescent light of the station ceiling.

Clara followed closely behind him.

​As soon as their feet touched Platform 9, a mocking laugh echoed through the empty station.

​“Well, well, well. Look what crawled off the train,” a voice sneered from the shadows.

​A tall man stepped forward from behind a concrete pillar.

He wore a white scarf and a tailored wool coat, and carried a walking stick.

His name was Miller, the head enforcer of Lord Victor’s northern security forces.

He looked at Alex with pure contempt, his eyes scanning Alex’s simple clothes.

​“So you are the little beggar who thinks he can waltz into the Capital and wear the Phoenix Ring?” Miller laughed, shaking his head. “Lord Victor was actually worried. He sent me to check on you. But looking at you now... you’re just a joke.”

​

Alex didn't answer; he kept his hands in his pockets.

Miller continued, stepping closer, his men spreading out to block every exit from the platform.​“You destroyed some weak fools in Boston. Boston is a playground.

This is the Capital. Here, men like you disappear into the river, and nobody even asks questions concerning their whereabouts. Young boy, hand over the ring and crawl back to your hole, and maybe—just maybe—I’ll let you and your little girlfriend leave on the next train.”

​Clara stepped forward in angrily expression, “You have no idea who you are talking to!”

​Miller scoffed, raising his walking stick to point directly at Alex’s chest. “Silence, girl. I am talking to a dead man.”