Chapter 464: Siege

The taxi sped off the moment my feet touched the pavement.

The night air hummed with the growl of motorcycle engines, their headlights pinning me in a blinding crossfire.

I squinted, shielding my eyes as the bikes circled like wolves, their riders jeering, swinging pipes and machetes inches from my face.

*Kristin was right.*

She knew Garten Chen better than I did.

Knew his money wasn’t won—it was *taken*.

In her eyes, I was just a pawn.

If I crossed the river, I had value.

If not? Disposable.

The irony wasn’t lost on me.

I’d come to collect a bounty, not become prey to some trust-fund thug.

Red Hair rolled his neck with a sickening *crack*, grinning.

"Still feel tough, huh? Go on—hit me again. I *dare* you."

He slapped his cheek, taunting.

I said nothing.

My eyes swept the perimeter, counting bikes, and calculating angles.

No escape.

And the $600,000 in my hand? A dead weight.

"Cat got your tongue?" Red Hair snarled.