Chapter 6: Mangosteen

Tyron was clearly not happy with the height of the low table.

...

Out of the corner of his eye, he glanced at the jacket on the floor. A half-exposed black wire—part of a listening device—poked out of the pocket.

The Paen family, Southeast Asia's number one crime syndicate, had twelve sons. Tyron Paen was nothing but a marginal figure, unloved by his father and unwanted by his mother, abandoned in this manor since childhood.

Li Yang had once asked Hu Jianming:

"Tyron Paen is just a discarded pawn. Why plant surveillance around him?"

Hu Jianming's answer:

"Surveillance is a long game. You never rush these things."

"What counts as rushing?" Li Yang asked.

Hu Jianming tilted his head up at a forty-five-degree angle toward the drifting clouds:

"You're still green. Not enough heat yet. Figure it out yourself, slowly."

A sudden jolt yanked Li Yang back to the present...

Her mind kept going blank, thoughts refusing to turn over.

From beginning to end, only those four words from Hu Jianming echoed in her head.

***

Noon the next day.

Tyron's assistant, Ah Yi, arrived at the manor to find Tyron alone, eating with a cat in his arms.

"How did the investigation go?" Tyron wore sunglasses. His rolled-up sleeves exposed lean, wiry arms marked with scratches, some deep, some shallow.

One hand stroked the Ragdoll cat in his lap; the other scooped soup from the bowl, spoon after spoon.

Ah Yi: "I went through all of last night's surveillance footage. Nothing unusual."

Tyron: "What was she doing?"

Ah Yi: "Just pacing outside the manor."

Tyron: "Anyone else on the footage?"

"No, just her. She didn't contact anyone." Ah Yi reported exactly what he'd found.

What he didn't know was that Hu Jianming had already tampered with the surveillance system, wiping certain traces clean.

"Mm." Tyron's response sounded absent-minded.

A long pause before he asked: "When was this surveillance system installed?"

Ah Yi: "Two years ago."

Tyron: "Find a chance to upgrade it."

Ah Yi: "Yes, Sir."

Tyron set down his spoon and handed the bowl of soup to Ah Yi: "Have someone take this to her."

Ah Yi reached out to take it and accidentally brushed Tyron's hand—jerking back instantly...

A few drops of soup sloshed over the rim, splattering the cat's back. The Ragdoll let out a "meow" and bolted.

"I'm sorry, Sir! That was careless of me!" Ah Yi ducked his head in a panic.

Tyron felt for a napkin, his face darkening as he wiped the spot Ah Yi had touched:

"Don't let it happen again. You know I hate being touched."

"Yes, Sir." Ah Yi carried the soup out, retreating.

From the very first day he'd started working for Tyron, Ah Yi knew his boss hated all physical contact.

He just didn't understand why the tea girl was the exception.

"Hey..." Ah Yi flagged down a maid. "Take this soup to the tea girl."

Plenty of maids served tea in the manor, but when Ah Yi personally delivered soup, everyone knew exactly who he meant.

The maid followed his instructions and knocked on Li Yang's door.

Li Yang took the bowl and asked: "Where's Sir?"

Maid: "He's finished eating. I think he went toward the tea room."

"Oh." Li Yang moved to close the door, but the maid hadn't left.

Li Yang: "Something else?"

Maid: "I'll take the bowl back once you're done."

"No need." Li Yang carried the bowl inside and shut the door.

————————

"Ding!"

First meeting—let's ease into a little steamy scene.

New readers, you'll get used to this. I like to split my "driving" across two chapters—for everyone's sake...

Guess the reason yourselves. I can't spell it out.