The man who stepped out of the unmarked luxury sports car was none other than Rosalie’s biological brother, Zaki Yoder. His eyes widened at the sight of Rosalie, and he exclaimed, “You and Mon… you two could pass for sisters.”
The Yoder family had planned for someone to collect Rosalie today. Zaki, having just wrapped up a high–stakes case, was on his way home for a much- needed break and decided to make a detour to pick up his long–lost sister.
He had half–expected to have to ask the Morenos to point out Rosalie, but the moment he saw her, he knew without a doubt that she was his sister.
Rosalie raised an eyebrow, skepticism etched on her face. “You’re my brother?”
“Indeed, I’m Zaki, your third brother,” Zaki replied, stepping forward with a grin.
Then, a realization struck him. Glancing down, he remembered he had been tailing a drug lord for days, without sleep or a change of clothes, and he had come straight here. Exhausted, he had forgotten to stop and grab a fancy suit to make a good impression.
“Sorry, I was in a rush and forgot to change,” Zaki said, the tough commander feeling oddly self–conscious for the first time in front of Rosalie.
Rosalie was about to dismiss it as no big deal when Yuri interjected from behind her, “Oh my, where’d this vagrant come from? Security, why are you letting just anyone in?”
The Moreno family’s gatekeeper hurried over, explaining, “Miss, this gentleman claimed he was here to see Rosalie, so I let him through.”
Yuri feigned surprise and turned to Rosalie. “Oh… Rosalie, I had no idea he is your family. Please disregard my earlier comment.”
Rosalie gave Yuri the cold shoulder. “If you’re truly sorry, the best thing you can do is be quiet. No one wants to hear your incessant chatter.” With that, she walked past, opened Zaki’s car door, and tossed her bag inside.
At that moment, Yosef arrived, seeking to settle a score. Seeing Zaki’s beat–up car without a logo, he smirked. “Never seen a car without a brand. Did you put this together yourself?”
Zaki leaned against the car, worn out, and replied, “Yeah, it’s custom.” They were a special forces team, and they all drove modified vehicles, especially this one, designed by his fifth brother, Kenneth Yoder.
Kenneth was still in school, but he was already a prodigy in weapon design for the Defense Department. His creations, once tweaked, were incredibly powerful and unmatched.
These cars could save a life in a tight spot. So, this car was worth more than any luxury car out there, and it hadn’t come cheap.
But Yosef didn’t understand and continued to mock Rosalie. “I can’t believe your family even has a car, but without a logo, who knows if it’s stolen.”
Yuri chimed in, feigning concern, “Rosalie, you should be careful. You could get entangled in some legal trouble!”
Rosalie had had enough of their nonsense, and now they were insulting her family. They had reached her limit.
Before Rosalie could speak, Zaki’s face darkened. He strode over to them, his imposing figure over six feet tall as he towered over Yosef. Placing a heavy hand on Yosef’s shoulder, Zaki said, “Kid, you can’t just run your mouth. Didn’t anyone teach you that?”
After years of rigorous training and interrogating criminals, Zaki had earned the nickname “Ice King.” His glare suggested Yosef might wet himself. Never had Yosef seen someone so intimidating. Yosef stammered, “I–I–I was just guessing.”
Zaki snorted, “Guessing? Sure, you can say what you want, but there’s a price for every word. If your folks didn’t teach you that, I can.” As he spoke, he squeezed Yosef’s shoulder a bit harder.
In an instant, Yosef’s shoulder–popped out of its socket. He felt his arm go limp and screamed, “Ouch! I won’t do it again! Please, let me go!”
Zaki finally eased up, coldly putting Yosef’s arm back in place.
1/2
12:09 Sat, 12 Jul GA
Chapter 3
Yosef was too terrified to utter a word.
Yuri, standing nearby, didn’t fully grasp what had happened, but Yosef was pale as a ghost from the pain.
Zaki glanced at Yuri, causing her to shiver. His stare was absolutely terrifying.
“Young lady, I don’t hit women. I’ll let you slide today, but watch your mouth next time. I won’t tolerate anyone cursing my family,” Zaki said coldly.
Terrified, Yuri could only nod.
Zaki dialed back the intimidating aura and turned to Rosalie with a grin. “Hey Rosalie, let’s bounce.”
Rosalie gazed at Zaki’s grin, seeing a totally different guy from the tough character he’d just played. She knew Zaki was definitely not someone to mess with.
Since he’d already shown Yosef and Yuri who was boss, Rosalie decided to play it cool. “Alright, Zaki.” With that, she hopped into the car cheerfully.
Zaki, not thinking much of it, agreed, slid into the driver’s seat, buckled up, and drove off from the Moreno residence. All that was left were Yuri and Yosef, staring in shock as the car vanished into the distance.
“Who is that guy really…” Yosef muttered, feeling his arm had healed, but the fear from moments before still lingered in his heart.
Yuri shook her head. “I don’t know either, but the license plate seemed to be from Janivelle. And it looked like a police plate too.” It was puzzling; Zaki looked so scruffy, and yet he was driving a police car from Janivelle.
“You must have seen it wrong,” Yosef shook his head. He had been too scared to notice those details, but he was sure she must have missed it.
Rosalie’s original family was supposedly all out of work–there was no way that they could afford a car with Janivelle plates. After all, only locals could use Janivelle license plates.
Getting a residency permit in Janivelle was not something just anyone could do. Even with all the Moreno family’s money, they still had out–of–town plates. They bet Rosalie’s family must be really poor; there was no way they were locals from Janivelle.
2/2
