The Unrivalled Return Of Lord Valerian

CHAPTER 6 - IVERSIDE

The Iverside clubhouse had never looked more magnificent

Crystal chandeliers dripped gold light across a banquet hall large enough to swallow three ordinary ballrooms whole.

Silk runners the color of aged wine stretched down long mahogany tables.

At the head of the table sat Theron Arkwright.

He was Vallencourt's investment director — the gatekeeper standing between a hundred hopeful executives and the empire they all wanted a piece of.

Tonight, that made him the most important man in the room.

One by one, they came to him. Trying to impress him.

"Director Arkwright." A stout man in a charcoal suit stepped forward after several others, two assistants trailing him with a lacquered case, hoping his own gift would shift something in him.

He bowed low, the case opened to reveal a watch resting on black velvet, its face inlaid with hand-painted enamel.

"A vintage timepiece, one of only twelve ever made by the workshop before it closed its doors in the sixties. The last one sold at auction for just under two million. I had this one appraised privately — it's worth considerably more, given the provenance."

Theron glanced at it, gave a small nod, and said nothing more than, "Thank you," as he beckoned his assistant to take it aside.

Next came a younger man, sweating faintly beneath his collar, practically shoving a velvet pouch into an attendant's hands.

"Sir — this is a matched pair of imperial jade carvings— currently worth about ten point six million. My father acquired them decades ago. It'd be an honor beyond words if you'd accept them."

He swallowed hard as Theron examined one of the carvings with detached curiosity.

"Ten point six million," Theron murmured, turning the jade over once in his fingers before setting it down. "You've done your research."

"I wanted to make sure the number would matter to you, sir."

"Everything matters to me," Theron said flatly. "That's rather the problem."

The young man's face fell, but he bowed anyway and stepped back into the crowd, already calculating what he might have offered instead.

Keeya stood near the edge of the gathering, Neil’s arm looped possessively around her waist.

Neil leaned in close, voice low enough that only she could hear. “He’s looking restless. Time to bring out the real gift.”

Keeya’s lips curved. She gave a small signal to two of the clubhouse staff. A moment later the low murmur of conversation faltered as a large object was wheeled into the center of the hall, draped in heavy black cloth.

Theron’s gaze lifted.

Keeya stepped forward, one hand resting lightly on Neil’s sleeve. “Mr. Arkwright,” she said, her voice smooth and clear. “The usual offerings must grow tiresome. We prepared something more… personal.”

With a theatrical flourish she pulled the cloth away.

A crystal cage. Inside it, chained by one thin iron band around her ankle, was a young lady.

Crystal.

Her clothes were torn and stained, hanging loosely from a body that looked too thin. Bruises bloomed across pale skin—dark purple at the wrists, faded yellow along the collarbone, fresh cuts on her arms and bare feet. Her hair hung in tangled strands over her face.

A ripple of murmurs moved through the hall. Some guests looked away. Most did not.

Theron's gaze crawled over her and something in his expression shifted for the first time all evening. Satisfaction.

He leaned forward.

Keeya looked at her with open disgust. “That blind trash was finally useful for once after all these years.”

Neil’s arm tightened around Keeya’s waist. He watched Theron’s face with open satisfaction.

Theron’s eyes moved slowly over the cage—over the chafed ankle, the bleeding soles of Crystal’s feet, the way she flinched at every sudden noise.

His throat bobbed greedily. A twisted smile spread across his mouth as he admired the young lady. Although blind, Crystal had grown into an exceptionally beautiful young woman.

“She’s far more interesting,” his voice came out low, “than the ones who throw themselves at me willingly.”

Watching Theron's eyes settle on the cage with such open, hungry interest, Keeya could barely contain herself.

She turned to Neil, pressing close, her voice pitched low with excitement.

"Look at his face," she murmured, gripping Neil's arm. "You were right. I can't believe I doubted you for even a second."

Neil's smirk widened, preening under the praise. "I told you— I have long heard rumors about Theron's particular tastes and I know someone like Crystal would definitely satisfy him."

Keeya let out a soft, delighted laugh, squeezing his arm once before straightening and turning the full weight of her attention toward the head table.

"Director Arkwright," she said, her voice sliding into something warm and coaxing. "She's completely tame, I promise you. Obedient. Doesn't cause trouble — you could keep her for a decade and never hear a complaint out of her."

She stepped closer to the cage, gesturing with an open hand as. "Yours to use however you please, for as long as you please. All we're asking in return is your support on our cooperation project with the Vallencourt Group."

Theron studied her for a long moment, swirling the wine in his glass, clearly enjoying making her wait for it.

Then he chuckled. "In the Vallencourt Group, my words carry weight. I have the CEO right in my hand," he said, "If I say yes, the deal is as good as signed and sealed."

A visible wave of envy passed through the surrounding tables.

Whispered conversations turned toward Keeya and Neil with new, hungry interest. A partnership with Vallencourt wasn't just money — it was a door into a world most of these people would spend their entire lives trying to knock on.

Rumor had already spread that once the final list of partners was confirmed, the CEO herself would meet the selected parties in person.

For people of their level, even securing ten minutes of her time usually required months of careful maneuvering, if it happened at all.

One of the executives leaned toward his neighbor and spoke just loud enough to be overheard. “Did you hear that the CEO appeared outside Hellvane Prison earlier today. Full motorcade. Personally receiving someone.”

"Who on earth could deserve that kind of reception? From her, of all people?”

The word rippled outward, people testifying to the fact that she was at Hellvane that morning and heads turned, curiosity sparking across the hall like static.

Keeya’s smile faltered for the briefest moment, realising the opportunity she had lost.

She believed had Valerian not wasted her time, she could have met the CEO herself and perhaps even forged a valuable connection and made things easier for herself.

And the more she thought about it, the angrier she got.

Her gaze slid back to the cage.

Without warning Keeya stepped forward and drove her foot hard against the iron bars. The entire cage shuddered. Crystal, already unbalanced, crashed sideways into the metal.

The metal struck flesh with a sickening crunch, ripping a deep gash across her forearm. Blood spilled freely from the wound, revealing a pale glimpse of bone beneath.

Crystal's scream tore through the hall, her whole body convulsing around the wound.

A few guests winced, but no one intervened.

Keeya stepped closer to the cage, expression utterly untouched by what she'd just done.

She reached through the bars and pressed a finger directly into the open wound.

Crystal shrieked, thrashing against the pressure, her blind eyes wide with an agony that had nowhere to look for mercy.

"Get out of the cage yourself," Keeya said, as though scolding a disobedient pet.

Crystal's hands found the bars, shaking, trying and failing to pull herself up, as she sobbed and refused to come out.

Keeya's patience lasted exactly as long as it took her to decide it had run out.

She struck Crystal across the face twice, the second blow hard enough to snap her head sideways into the crystal bars with a crack that made even Neil begin to wonder what the poor girl could have suddenly done.

Blood welled instantly at Crystal's hairline, trickling down through pale lashes that fluttered without ever truly closing.

“If I hadn’t fed you leftovers every day,” Keeya said, voice low and vicious, “you would have starved long ago. Since Mr. Arkwright likes you now, you’d better serve him obediently. If you dare resist again, I’ll have your tendons cut and throw you into the red-light district myself. Men will ruin you until there’s nothing left. Do you understand?”

Crystal’s body shook. Tears streamed freely now. She tried to shrink away, but the chain and the cage left her nowhere to go.

At the head table, Theron watched the entire display with amusement, like he was enjoying watching Keeya do her thing on the poor girl, swirling the wine in his glass, his eyes never once leaving the cage.

"Best present ever!" Theron snickered excitedly.