25 Chapter 25

She absentmindedly swished a cleaning cloth back and forth over the building's doors and eyed the nearby surveillance cameras surreptitiously. They looked like they had been manipulated using Misha's methods.

She decided to head up the building, her entire body tight and anxious.

Before getting off the elevator on the 112th floor, she ran her hands over all the other buttons, making sure it would stop on every floor on its way down. Then, she carried her janitor's bucket off the elevator with her and stepped into the hall, continuing forwards until she passed what was definitely the entrance to the safety deposit room.

She narrowed her eyes, her facial features twisting in suspicion. Everything was going too smoothly. All was quiet, and there weren't even any security guards patrolling the area. Lily wondered if that was because Misha had gotten rid of them all, or if there was a more ominous reason.

She was still deep in thought when all of a sudden, she noticed a sliver in the entrance to the safety deposit room. The door had been broken into — the slit was tiny, but glaringly noticeable to any professional robber. Lily lowered her head and began wiping down a nearby glass window.

Suddenly, there came a sound of something snapping in place. It was faint, but the hall was so still and silent that Lily heard it very clearly. She grit her teeth and cursed. It had been too long, so the time-sensitive door of the safety deposit room shut, trapping everything and everyone inside it. It was now on total lockdown and it would be impossible to leave until an employee opened it the next day.

Meanwhile, the surveillance camera near her had started flashing as it came back online and began swiveling back and forth as it was programmed to. It seemed that she had underestimated the seriousness of the situation and overestimated the abilities of whoever had entered the safety deposit room.

Lily grit her teeth and made sure to keep her back to the camera as she pressed a switch on the watch she wore on her wrist at all times. It was a compressed computer system, used to hack into all surveillance systems — but there wasn't enough time now to get into the building's system. The only thing she could do was release a strong frequency to disrupt it and hope for the best.

The problem was that this would alert security to her presence. The frequency was powerful; in just an instant, the entire plaza's security system was shut down again. And just as Lily predicted, the on-duty security team was instantaneously aware that someone had infiltrated the treasury and guards were already rushing towards the 112th floor.

Lily didn't have time to worry about them. She clicked open the door of the safety deposit room with ease and peered into the dark empty space. "Misha, come out!" She whisper-shouted. When her eyes adjusted to the darkness, she stopped. "What are you doing here?"

She had been expecting to see Misha, but there in the room was Fei Xin and her mentor.

It had been a trap. Ya; her informant in Obsidian Alley; it had all been a setup. It became apparent the moment she saw her mentor. They had lured her in using her relationship with Misha.

Lily looked from Fei Xin's smiling face to her mentor's somber expression and whirled around, ready to hightail it out of there. Mu Ya, you asshole, she thought. I'm going to kill you.

"You can't run, Lily. We have you trapped. Where are you going to go? I…" The organization's second-in-command trailed off suddenly. "What the hell is going on here?" He had followed Lily out of the treasury. Incessant, shrill police sirens echoed all around them from outside the building. His face darkened.

Lily jumped out of the way to avoid an incoming kick from Fei Xin. While she didn't know how to fight, she'd spent all these years acting as Misha's target during practice — avoiding a few hits was still feasible.

She laughed at her mentor's stony face. "Despite all your tricks, Teacher, you forgot something. You should know how important Misha is to me since you used her to lure me into your trap — but did you think I'd play around with her life? Let's see which one of us gets out of this mess, shall we?" With that, she ran down the hall yelling, "Thief!"

Fei Xin and her mentor froze, their faces pale. They had predicted that Lily would come and rescue Misha, but they had underestimated how close the two were; that Lily would go to such extremes to ensure the other girl's safety. At this rate, all of them were going to get caught by the cops.

The organization's second-in-command, a man who at the current moment had his face twisted in fury, waved a hand and all at once, a flurry of organization members who had been hidden in the dark flew down the hall towards Lily. Subduing her before the authorities got to the scene was going to take some work.

Unfortunately for Lily, the organization had come prepared while she had rushed over only with the intention of saving Misha. They had the upper hand, and were so close to capturing her when the elevator dinged and its doors opened to reveal a team of security guards.

"Thieves! Catch them, they're trying to kill me! Help!" Lily shouted, scrambling frantically towards the guards.

Her janitor's outfit was an advantage in the chaos. All the security guards and police rushed to meet the organization's people and she was left alone. The corners of her lips lifted and a bright smile split across her face. Everyone was too busy fighting each other to pay attention to her as she made her way to the end of the hall.

She didn't see the pair of arms until it was too late.

She crashed headlong into someone's arms, and in the next instant, a strong, full-bodied fragrance floated up her nose. Right before she passed out, a single thought passed through her mind: Well, shit.

Her head was killing her.

As Lily slowly came to, the only she could sense was the world spinning uncontrollably around her as her vision blurred in and out. Her knees were cold and sore, and she felt like shit.

She stretched an arm out, feeling around until she came into contact with what appeared to be a couch right behind her head. Wonderful. She got up slowly, clutching her head, and sat down. It was soft, and incredibly warm.

"How bold of you." A hostile voice suddenly sounded in her ear. She rubbed a brow; she had definitely heard the voice somewhere before. She turned towards it, craning her head to see its source.

She found herself peering into a stunning pair of blue-black eyes. An unmistakably sharp gleam radiated from them, marring the otherwise beautiful sight. They were framed by sharp brows; split by a tall, straight nose that led to a pair of thin, cold lips.

What emanated from this remarkable face could not be considered maliciousness; neither was it sinister, or even placid. Rather, it was a kind of conceited arrogance — a maleficent ferociousness akin to that of Yama, the Hindu lord of death.

The face was only inches from Lily's own, but the suddenness of its appearance failed to evoke any reaction from her. Her head was spinning and she was still recovering from whatever drug she'd inhaled.

She observed her surroundings from her peripheral vision and found herself in the center of an enormous room. There was the couch she was on, and a desk. It looked more like an office of some kind instead of a room, and it was definitely not a jail cell.

She rubbed her eyebrows again and wondered if perhaps prisons had upgraded their inmate accommodations.

All of sudden, there came the sound of coughing — there was someone else in the room. Lily turned towards the sound to see someone standing next to the couch, gazing at her with raised eyebrows. They were scrutinizing her with a look that was both astonished and probing. The person coughed again, suggestively.

She rubbed her eyes and upon taking a closer look, her eyes widened. "You're Daniel Craig," she said, surprised. "I know you."

The man just stared at her in silence.

The second Lily realized who he was, she suddenly felt that all was not right. Daniel Craig was part of the Di Clan. His presence meant that this was likely the Di estate. She better not have escaped one man to land in the hands of another.

She swept her eyes over the elegantly-decorated room once again and felt her heart start beating faster. And then, probably because her mind had been jolted out of its haze by the sight of the Di Clan member, when she shifted sideways with the intention of increasing the distance between them, she suddenly became aware of how peculiar the couch felt beneath her.

She looked down and nearly jumped out of her skin.

She was sitting on a pair of legs.

Lily's mouth tightened. If Daniel Craig was standing, and this mysterious person was sitting, then it wasn't too hard to figure out who they were. She turned and met the cold, indifferent face that had greeted her when she'd first woken up. "Sorry," she said, laughing uncomfortably, shimmying out of the couch and moving as far away as possible from it.

She remembered now where she knew the voice from. It was the person who had spoken to her through the comms during the car race.

It was the Di Clan's head. The criminal overlord that was infamous for his rampant tyrannical rule over his clan; a man known for his impassiveness and reserved nature.

Stay quiet, stay quiet, Lily repeated to herself in her head. And she certainly would have liked to stay silent, but she found it hard to believe that silence was golden whilst being penetrated by a stony, horrifying glare.

Which was why she ended up clearing her throat instead, and then raising her head to look at Daniel Craig. "What is the meaning of this? You promised me last time that you guys would leave me alone after I helped you. So why was I forcibly abducted here? Don't tell me that Di Clan people don't keep their word."

If she was going to talk, she was going to avoid the larger issue — the stealing of their jade — as long as possible. She had to gain the upper hand.

Daniel Craig raised his eyebrows. This woman was unbelievable. He was just about to retort, but the Di Clan overlord beat him to it: "Lily, how dare you touch what belongs to me?"

Lily watched as he moved languidly, leaning his tall body against the back of the couch. He crossed his legs — a small movement, but she felt waves of menace coming off him; it was powerful enough to be oppressive. Her mouth twitched, but she forced her face to remain nonchalant. "I didn't take anything of yours," she responded. "Mr. Di, I wouldn't dare steal anything from the Di Clan… not even if I had balls of steel. I was the first person to witness those thieves trying to rob you. Why would you accuse me instead of rewarding me?"

Her face twisted comically as she adopted an aggrieved look. On the side, Daniel Craig couldn't help quirking his lips up in an amused smile. Her acting was on point.

Lily ignored him. She hadn't stolen anything after all, and they were not going to just accuse her of something she didn't do. Only someone who wanted to die would steal from them, and she'd certainly not lived long enough yet.

The Di Clan overlord continued watching her his cold stare. Reaching to his side, he pulled out a long, silk scarf. Her brows wrinkled in confusion. She had had a green scarf like that once, but it had blown away in the wind.

"The Western Qin jade from Yunnan was mine." The statement came in a quiet, threatening sort of way. Lily froze. She couldn't forget that job even if she wanted to; it was her last, and she had gone a little overboard. But no one had told her that what she was stealing belonged to the Di Clan… she would have had to think it through before going through with it.

After a moment of silence, she said, "While I get that you need to find your thief, Mr. Di, you can't accuse innocent people." She thought back to the mission and concluded that she definitely hadn't left behind any implicating evidence. They wouldn't be able to accuse her so easily.

The man on the couch grunted, but said nothing. Daniel Craig answered her instead. "The thief didn't leave any concrete evidence at the exhibit, but they did unintentionally leave behind a unique fragrance," he said. "And coincidentally, the thief's green silk scarf landed in our hands. Lily… one of the thieving organization's most-skilled members. Your presence at yet another attempted robbery of our property confirmed your identity for us."

His unwavering, indifferent accusation made her grind her teeth in annoyance. What shit luck; she couldn't believe her scarf had to fly into their car of all people. Thinking back, the cold, detached stare she had felt back then must have been the Di Clan overlord's stare. And fuck it, if she'd known earlier, she wouldn't have worn her favourite sunshine-scented perfume that day. She'd brought this all upon herself. Even now, the scent clung to her body, making it impossible for her to deny Daniel Craig's accusation.

Lily grimaced inwardly. She shouldn't have cared so much. Misha was fine, but now she was screwed. Her former organization was a mantis, but the Di overlord was a goldfinch.* It was comical, really — the thieves had overestimated themselves, thinking that they could use the Di Clan's property to lure her to expose herself to them; when meanwhile, the Di Clan overlord was using their own property to lure both the thieving organization and herself to show themselves.

It was all a giant trap — a trap within a trap, with her at the very center of it all.

She opened her mouth, about to defend herself, but then the Di overlord suddenly got up from the couch and came towards her. Her eyes narrowed cautiously and she backed away, desperately searching her mind for ideas.

The roughly 6'2 (190cm) man rapidly approaching her made her feel like the entire weight of Mount Tai was bearing down on her, his overpowering presence invading her personal space. She continued moving backwards unconsciously, until suddenly, she felt her legs hit the coffee table and found herself stumbling.

Before she fell, however, she felt herself being pulled up by her throat by an exceedingly powerful grip. In an instant, she felt her lungs tightening and pain expand through her chest.

"I don't like people who talk back to me. Remember that." The Di overlord held her down with one hand, all the while staring down at her with cruel eyes.

"I don't like people who talk back to me. Remember that." The Di overlord held her down with one hand, all the while staring down at her with cruel eyes.

"Let me go! Let go, I stole it, alright? Just let go," Lily managed to choke out. Her entire face was turning red from lack of oxygen and it was getting increasingly difficult to breathe. His grip was insanely strong.

He suddenly let her go with a grunt and she collapsed onto the floor gasping, sucking in huge lungfuls of air. The skin on her neck was already beginning to show with purple and blue bruises, the dark blotches a stark contrast against her skin.

"From now on, you are going to be in my service," Overlord Di said with a voice completely devoid of any emotion. Then, he turned and left the room without looking at her again.

Daniel Craig followed close on his heels, turning back towards Lily's ghostly pale face just before he exited the room. "No one has ever touched Di Clan property and lived to tell the tale," he mused. "You should consider yourself lucky. You were spared because you helped us out once. I suggest you behave… Boss isn't exactly the most patient person; he was being lenient just now. I don't want to be carrying your body out of here in a few days."

Left alone in the giant room, Lily rubbed her neck lightly, considering her situation. Honestly, she was just glad she was still on earth. Rumor had it that Overlord Di was cold and merciless; that she was still alive after having stole from him was a serious blessing from some higher power.

She found herself unexpectedly grateful towards Shu Kori. If he hadn't dragged her to Zhong Ni's car race, she wouldn't have had the opportunity to race on the Di Clan's behalf. If they didn't owe her one, she probably would've had to kiss goodbye to the world a long time ago. The universe had its ways after all.

After sending Shu Kori a mental blessing, she sighed sullenly. She might as well go to sleep on the hardwood floor. She couldn't believe she had gone from being the Queen of Racing and a thief that appeared and disappeared at will, to a lowly servant. It seemed that the longer she lived, the more her living standards declined. There went her carefree, laid back lifestyle.

Of course, she hadn't forgotten that her mere survival was already a miracle of miracles. Someone must have offered a sacrificial incense to her ancestors or something — not that she even knew who her ancestors were.

Lily sat staring fixedly at the half-open door to the room, thinking. Should she sneak out and run away, or stay and be a servant? She circled the both options in her mind for several minutes before she came to a decision. She would temporarily forget about running away. They wouldn't have left her in this room alone if they felt there was a chance she'd get away.

It was safer to stay put and slowly figure things out. This was the estate of a crime syndicate after all… if she tried to run, there was a possibility she'd get killed by a flying bullet or something, and that was so not a risk worth taking.

~~~

It was nearly noon when she woke up the next day. Lily rubbed her eyes tiredly. It'd been a long time since she'd gotten such a good night's rest; no need to worry about the thieves finding her, no need to worry about anything at all. It was such a great feeling to have nothing on her plate for once.

Wait.

Shit, she forgot she had become a servant overnight. She peered out the window at the secluded environment outside and it occurred to her that she had never so fervently wished it were possible to turn back time.

She scrambled her way to the living room, where Overlord Di, otherwise known as Di Mo, was sitting on a couch flipping through a newspaper. The scent of coffee wafted from a cup next to him. Lily turned, ready to tiptoe out of the room; she hadn't even made one step when his icy voice stopped her in her tracks.

"Come over here."

She pursed her lips and shifted her way to him. "You didn't give me any orders," she said. "No one did. I've never been a servant before; I have no idea what I'm supposed to do." Being proactive and gaining control over the conversation had always been Lily's policy when dealing with the enemy. Besides, it was true that no one had told her what to do.

"Come over, I'm not going to repeat myself again." Di Mo didn't raise his eyes from the newspaper, but his voice was frigid enough to cut ice; yet it also contained white-hot fire.

Lily clenched her teeth. She was in his territory and had no control here. But no matter — being agreeable on the surface while harboring inner rebellion was a strong suit of hers. She slowly moved two steps forward and came to a stop in front of him, feeling uncharacteristically on guard and careful. Anyone would, if they had to face someone who could take their life whenever they felt like it.

"Pack a suitcase for me," Di Mo said without looking at her. "We leave for Southeast Asia this afternoon."

That was it? Seriously? Lily observed him from the corner of her eye. He was still calmly reading his newspaper. She had expected him to shout up a storm, but instead, he was a picture of serenity. She reached up to wipe cold sweat from her brow. He didn't seem as bad as people said he was.

Before she could hasten off to do her bidding, however, his calm, breezy voice drifted towards her again. "If you don't show up within my sights like you're expected to, the next time you'll be reporting directly to the King of Hell." His voice was quiet and undisturbed, as if he were talking about the weather.

Still, Lily felt her entire body turn icy cold, because he wasn't threatening her. He was simply stating a fact: A reality that he could make happen any time he wanted.

She rushed off immediately to Di Mo's room and began cleaning up his things. This time he had given her a warning; she understood unconsciously that it was the last time he would be so diplomatic. She valued her own life, but to him, she was little more than an ant. Whether she lived or died was of no consequence to him — so she would have to make sure she ran fast enough because she would have to rely on herself if she wanted to survive.

~~~

Southeast Asia was a busy, chaotic hub of the criminal underworld. And currently, the territory was ruled by Di Clan, the most powerful family of the underworld.

Lily was sulking behind the steering wheel of the car she was driving. She'd never come to the region before; she couldn't even drive on the left side of the road, and that made a huge difference. Whose bright idea was it to put her in charge of driving?

From the rearview mirror, she could see Di Mo, who was currently leaning back with his eyes closed, dozing peacefully. In contrast, Daniel Craig was next to him, shifting his eyes uneasily from side to side, on guard.

She marveled again at how in the world she had ended up here — from a lowly thief to personal driver of the esteemed crime syndicate overlord.

"Focus on driving," Daniel Craig said in his usual unperturbed manner. Lily heard the unspoken warning anyways. Don't overthink, mind your own business, he was saying. Just drive.

She raised her eyebrows. Bossy.

Suddenly, a subdued noise sounded from in front of their car. Lily observed the car right before them; a luxurious limousine not unlike the one she was driving. The vehicle's body suddenly shook, and she predicted professionally that it must have burst a tire.

She shook her head. It was a shame that the Cadillac had such bad tires. They seemed to be custom-made too. Cars like that really ruined the reputation of luxury cars all over. She was still musing over the terrible design of the unfortunate car in front of them when Daniel Craig's tense voice sounded from behind her, saying, "Make a left and floor it."

Lily stared at him blankly. She couldn't just cut into the turning lane… she barely had time to turn the steering wheel around when suddenly, the air exploded with sounds of gunshots. She witnessed the Cadillac in front of them being pierced with so many bullets, it looked like it had been attacked by a hornet's nest.

Explosions split the air all around her head, and she suddenly came to her senses. She floored the gas pedal, yanked the steering wheel, and their car shot out like a flash of lightning.

The streets were filled with deafening gunshots as fire was exchanged; along the street, innocent passerby simply got on the ground and crawled to safety, as if they witnessed such things every day. No one even screamed.

Everything happened swiftly, as intense as it was on television.

Lily's heart pulsed in her veins, her heart rate accelerating. She could hear bullets endlessly pelting the body of their car. Her foot had pushed the gas pedal as far as it would go, and her hands were busy maneuvering the steering wheel in frenzy. She drove the damn Cadillac as if it were her racing Ferrari, making her way down a tiny, crowded street at the speed of lightning, trying to get them out of firing range.

"Stop panicking," came Di Mo's voice suddenly. He spoke with ease, without a single trace of uneasiness or anxiety.