Chapter 226 - Felt Like It*

Ash stumbled into the mansion. He did not bother to wash off the blood from his hands and clothes as he made his way towards the master bedroom. 

A guard outside blocked his way. 

"Sir, you can't-" 

Ash's cold glare made him falter. 

"Move," he threatened. The guard immediately backed off in silence. Ash barged through the door. 

The President's back was towards him as the old man humped Nida. Both of them were n.a.k.e.d and Nida was holding back her cries of torture as the vile man kept on inserting into her ass. She glanced back, her eyes begging him for help. 

Ash was unaffected by the scene. He felt nothing as he approached the n.a.k.e.d couple. 

"Ziko is dead," Ash declared. "I killed him." 

The President did not pause in his activities. Instead, he yanked Nida's hair and turned her over, continuing their copulation. Despite the torture, Nida purposefully gave Ash a sight of her bouncy globes in the hopes that he would be aroused. But Ash stood there, unfeeling and unamused. His mind was only on one thing. 

"There are no more contenders," Ash said. "The Cartel is rightfully mine." 

The President stopped and turned to face his grandson. His charred appearance would scare anybody. Most of his skin was gone, leaving only chunks of shapeless flesh. His nose was broken while one of his eyes was closed. The other eye peered at Ash with a hint of contempt. 

"Kwo Jiwon still lives," he stated as he slowly moved inside Nida. She whimpered as he brushed her g-spot but he was not letting her orgasm to be released. The constant physical and mental torture was deeply imbedded into her body. She tried to concentrate on the duo but the slow rubbing against her clit made it very difficult for her to think straight. 

"He will die," Ash promised. "It's only a matter of time. But killing him is not enough. We have to destroy him first." 

"And how are you going to do that?" the President questioned. 

"My company has already taken away some of their artists," Ash said. "With our upcoming girl group's debut, we will be able to topple Six X's comeback. A little trick will also help us to manipulate the charts. If Six X fails, KJ will be forced to make his own comeback. Which will leave him out in the public. Once he is on that stage, he's vulnerable to our attack."

"What if Six X is successful?" the President asked. 

"Don't worry," Ash smirked. "I know what to do." 

With that he exited the room, leaving them behind. Nida watched Ash retreating, not caring about her at all. 

"Your gaze is on him." 

A hard slap landed on her cheek, making her bleed. Nida splattered out the blood from her mouth as the President held her by the hair. 

"I-I wasn't…" she claimed. "I'd never betray you…" 

SMACK! 

Another slap almost made her unconscious. "The last time a bitch tried to betray me, I lost everything," he whispered. "Do you know what happened to her?" 

Nida fervently shook her head, as her eyes teared up in pain. 

"I killed her and her lover!" he spat. Drops of spit hit her face, making her squirm. "And now, I'll destroy her son! So don't ever try to double cross me, Nida." 

His threat made Nida's blood go cold. If he ever found out that she was planning to dethrone him alongside Junhyung and Ash, then he will kill her. Or worse. 

"I-I won't my d-darling, she stammered. 

…. 

KJ and Mirae pulled up in front of the crash. Riggs and Lee were being carried on stretchers towards the ambulances while the other guards were being treated. Some of them died due to gunshots and were being put into body bags. They also spotted Ziko's corpse being chained up into a body bag. 

Hyun Jung and Eli were already at the scene. 

"How did this happen?" Mirae demanded. 

"Someone shot the tires," Eli stated. "This caused the van to run off course and crash. Captain Kim and Secretary Lee survived along with a few guards. We suspect Ziko tried to escape during the crash and shot down some of the guards. But when he got out of the van, he was shot dead." 

"So whoever caused the crash was actually trying to kill Ziko?" KJ frowned. 

"Yes," Hyun Jung replied. 

"Must be the Cartel," KJ said. 

"But Ziko's men would have rioted," Mirae frowned. "No. This…this was a lone wolf." 

The others looked at her in surprise. 

"Madam Lim and Hong are dead," she recounted. "Shun was killed and now Ziko too. Four out of the five potential successors are dead. Only one left." 

She looked up at KJ. They were thinking the same thing. 

"You don't think it was…" KJ started. 

"It was Ash," Mirae stated. "Whether it was him alone or on his orders, it's hard to tell." 

She turned to Eli. "Where is the CCTV footage for this area?" she asked. 

"Someone cleared it out," Eli said in despair. "We can't find anything."

"It was Ash," Mirae concluded. A strange feeling crept up in her heart as she tried to picture the gentle person she had once known. The person whom she once loved with all her heart. With whom, she made countless promises. 

The smile, the vows, the love. Were those all fake? Was he really the monster everyone thought he was? 

Despite everything, Mirae had held a small hope that maybe he could redeem himself. She wanted to desperately think that he could find his way back to his friends. 

But now…if he really did kill Ziko then there was no more hope. He had crossed the final line. There was no redemption nor can he turn back. He could no longer have a second chance. 

KJ, too, shared Mirae's sentiments. He was ready to let go of everything if Ash had returned to them. 

But Ash himself had closed that door. Forever. 

…. 

"You could have asked someone else to do it," Junhyung pointed out. Ash was staying in the mansion for the night. Since Nida was keeping the President busy, Junhyung was free to talk to Ash. 

They were playing billiards in the mansion's gaming room. Ash aimed at a red ball. 

"What's the fun?" he asked with a grin, hitting the ball. "I wanted to see him beg for his life. And he didn't disappoint." 

"But you had the others killed through others," Junhyung frowned. "You gave that information to Abyss about Madam Lim. Also seduced Madam Hong to make sure that Jiwon and Abyss work together to bring her down. You had Shun killed in prison. All this time, you let others do the killing. But what made Ziko so special?" 

Ash carefully aimed at the black ball. 

"I just felt like it," he finally said, potting the black ball.