Total pages in book: 125
Estimated words: 124836 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 624(@200wpm)___ 499(@250wpm)___ 416(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 124836 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 624(@200wpm)___ 499(@250wpm)___ 416(@300wpm)
“That fucking final test hurt her heart. Do you understand that?”
“Monique picked your love over the East’s approval. Be happy.”
“You were the only one that told her the East was important.”
“Yes, but her heart told her that you are everything.” A dark chuckle left him. “I’m just happy she passed. During the tea ceremony, did you see? She could barely keep her hands still as she poured. That’s how much she loves you.”
I motioned to Chen. “Make sure the gates open for my father. He’s getting the hell out of here and I want him gone fast.”
My father laughed some more on the line. “You passed my test too, son—”
“I don’t give a fuck about your tests. While everyone else sees you as this great honorable man, I will always see you as a sick, sadistic monster.”
“You truly love Monique.”
“You don’t know what love is.”
“I picked her for you. Are you not happy?”
I went stiff.
He responded with more of that wicked laugh. “Chanel is out of your mind. You were attentive to Monique today. Your mind was not distracted with grief over Chanel or even memories of her. You saw how nervous Monique was and you ran to her rescue—”
“I am going to kill you tomorrow. Give us the address for this fucking battle. Let us prepare.”
“Song will give Chen the address around 12pm tomorrow and the feast will begin at 7pm.”
“We don’t need a feast—”
“The East will need it.”
“I don’t give a damn about the East and you don’t define what it needs or wants.”
“You will see, son.” His laughter echoed in my ear. “The East will always be bigger than us. It goes on, no matter what we do.”
Feeling defeated, I turned away from everyone, tightened my grip on the phone, and closed my eyes. “Father. . .”
All humor left his tone. “Yes, son?”
“Why would you do that? Why would you. . .kill Yan?”
“You know why.”
“No.” I opened my eyes. “You tell me.”
And then for the first time in years. . .sadness coated his words. “Yan would have come for the throne, Lei. You know that.”
“I could have handled it.”
“You could kill your sister? No.”
“If it got to that point, I could have done it.”
“There was no if about it. She was more than prepared and had three hundred men hidden in Paradise City.”
“She was your daughter.”
“Not anymore. She was a threat.” Although still sad, his voice went calmly. “A threat to everything I’ve built. Yan had to be removed. I knew this a year ago when I began planning out everything—”
“So, you knew you were going to kill her?”
“Yan’s crown was the first one I bought.”
My heart broke.
“She was a bigger threat than Chanel and Romeo. Originally, I’d planned to simply kill her this evening and hide the body. Make sure you would never know but then Monique told me about what Yan said on Mount Utopia. That was when I had to make a bold statement to Monique and let her truly know about her place in my heart.”
“I told you not to even say Monique’s name—”
“Use that anger in the battle tomorrow.”
“You shouldn’t have killed Yan.”
“As I already said, she was a threat—”
“A threat? She was your child! My sister!” My voice rose with each word. “Is that what you want me to do with your grandchildren?!”
Silence was his only response.
My hands shivered. “Answer me!”
“Monique and you are better than me. You don’t have my stuff so you would never harm my grandkids.”
“Your stuff?”
“The baggage. The. . .trauma. The things that turn kids into adult monsters.” He let out a long breath. “You two don’t have that and. . .it makes me happy.”
“I will never forgive you for all that you have done.”
“Yan was a liability in my bigger plan. She made her choice and she knew the consequences.”
“Mom is crying in heaven and it is all because of you.”
Just like that, his voice shifted to pure violence. “Do not ever say that to me—”
“You think that you will go to heaven? No. It will be to hell. And if you do get lucky enough to enter those heavenly gates, you think Mom will open her arms to you? No.” I sneered. “She saw what you did and she no longer loves you.”
Anger coated his next words. “Strong words, my son. We’ll see if you have that same strength tomorrow.”
“I will, because tomorrow I plan to send you straight to hell myself.” I hung up and gave the phone to Chen. “Get a new phone for Moni’s lady-in-waiting and then destroy this one.”
Chen took it. “Why are we destroying this one?”
“Because I don’t want it to exist.”
Chen blinked. “O-kay.”
“The tea ceremony is over.” I took Moni’s hand. “Uncle Song and him are already heading toward the gate. I won’t attack him down there and have more people die over our family bullshit.”