CHAPTER 259: THE DENVERS

They had learned about the involvement of Arthur. He had returned from Goscht Country, and now he was working with Ranon.

Not only that, but Ranon had also saved quite a number of the Lozens’ people. Since when did they work together? Kyle was flabbergasted when he learned about this revelation.

"You used a bomb! The method is cowardly!" Lyle was offended. They used to work in silence, but now the whole country knew that Ranon had a target on his back.

"We aimed for the goal."

"The goal?" Lyle scoffed. "Were you successful in killing him?"

Kyle gave his brother a nasty look for his comment. "He was lucky. He will not be so lucky next time."

"Next time?" Lyle got closer to Kyle. "Are you going to have a mass killing until you get him? That’s your new method?"

Lyle was exasperated, but Kyle was no less livid than him. "If you are here to criticize me on how to do my job, you can step down from this mission."

"And who is going to lead this mission? Michael?" Lyle scoffed. That boy was barely able to learn how this whole thing worked; there was no way he could lead a mission. It would be crazy to think Kyle considered that.

"No." Kyle twisted his wrist and wiggled his leg. "I am. I will take over the mission."

Because of the injuries that he sustained from the last mission, he had been inactive for the last few months, but Kyle felt better now, and handling the matter with Leighton would be an excellent comeback for him.

"You?" Lyle pressed his lips.

"I have assigned you to another mission." Kyle then patted his brother on the shoulder. "Come to my study an hour from now."

***

Nolu had a little sister and a widowed mother. Both of them were devastated when they learned what happened to their beloved brother and son.

The sister was only ten years old, and she kept asking where her brother was, because she was told that they were going to see him in the hospital.

But because of Nolu’s condition, it was not possible.

Ranon offered a generous amount of money and everything that they needed to make their life easier; Nolu was the sole provider for his family.

Of course, it wouldn’t offset their pain for losing him.

Meanwhile, Hazel checked on Yara after she met with Nolu’s family and offered her condolences. Yara would be fine; her injuries were not life-threatening, but she was quite shaken up.

"Is he... dead?" She was still in denial. After all, they had worked alongside each other for years. Therefore, to suddenly lose her partner was hard for her.

"Yes," Hazel replied. She sat on the edge of Yara’s bed, looking at her ashen face.

Yara was trying to hold back her tears. She breathed deeply and didn’t meet Hazel’s eyes. She stared at the dark sky out there, deep in her own thoughts.

"He is like a brother to me," Yara said softly. "He was my mentor when I first joined."

Hazel took Yara’s hand. She didn’t know what to say. She was not good at dealing with emotional moments, but she figured she would listen to her.

It was not like Yara was talking to her. She was talking to herself as she reminisced about the past.

River had lost a few of her men during the missions, but there was no such emotional moment like this. They carried on with their deaths the same way they dealt with their assignments, quietly and quickly. It was practical.

Therefore, she had never dealt with the emotional side of losing someone. That was part of their job. They dove into that business with the full knowledge that they were going to gamble with their lives.

However, Nolu and Yara’s jobs were different. They were not actively seeking death.

"Do we know who has done this?" Yara turned her head and looked at Hazel with hollowness.

"We are working on this. There is an active investigation." Hazel felt the squeeze on her hand. "You don’t need to worry. Rest well."

"Was it... them?" Yara ignored Hazel’s reassurance. "It was them, right?"

Yara and Nolu had helped Hazel with some of the investigation. They were well aware of the situation with the Barlowes and the McKennas; therefore, the first thing that came to Yara’s mind was them.

Of course, she was not wrong.

"Yes."

Yara lowered her head. "The police will not help." She learned that some of the police were on those families’ payroll.

Even though Ranon Leighton had a strong influence, seeking justice in that way would take a long time.

"You don’t need to think about that. Those people who are responsible for Nolu’s death will pay dearly." There was a sharp pain in Hazel’s heart when she said that, because it meant that Michael would be implicated, too.

She was not sure how much Michael was involved in this, but the thought of hurting him made Hazel sick to her stomach.

Michael was a brother that River had never had. She had watched him grow up, and he was always in her corner whenever she had a problem in her relationship with Arlo.

"Sleep well, Yara."

Hazel then left her alone, but there was a female bodyguard who would stay with Yara, since she had no family.

Yara insisted on meeting with Nolu’s family, but it was rather chaotic out there. Thus, it would be best for her to sit this one out. Yara still could attend the funeral and meet with them there.

Yara suffered a few broken ribs and a leg. She would need to use a crutch to help her stand up, and for now, she was not allowed to move around yet.

When Hazel walked out of the bedroom, she saw Ranon waiting for her. He leaned his back against the wall, crossing his arms.

And without saying anything, the two of them walked toward the parking lot, where Arthur was waiting for them.

They didn’t say anything, but there was a tacit understanding between them. They didn’t expect the situation to escalate like this. They were caught off guard.

Ranon laced his fingers with hers, and Hazel squeezed them lightly. She breathed deeply, feeling his hand on hers gave her comfort.

Arthur was waiting for them inside the car. He came out when he saw them.

Here they were in another parking lot. This time, Ranon took precautions. He made one of his men stay and never leave the car to prevent a similar thing from happening again, even though the place was guarded and was relatively safe.

However, Ranon could make the same argument regarding the Leighton building. Nevertheless, he was being one-upped and had to lose one of his men.

"They are using people from the Denver family," Arthur said once they were within earshot.

"The Denver family?" Ranon raised his brows. "They have not been active for the last five years."

Arthur was surprised when he heard this. "You know them?"

In his eyes, Ranon was a businessman. Even if he knew some details about the underworld, the fact that he knew the Denver family had not been active for the last five years meant he had done his homework well.

"I know," Ranon replied simply. "You put them out of business." He knew about this information because he was a little bit obsessed with knowing more about River and Hazel.

"River put them out of business," Arthur said with a tinge of pride. His attention shifted to Hazel, but she didn’t show any emotions. "Do you know them, too?" He asked Hazel.

"I know," Hazel replied with the same tone as Ranon’s. "Ranon investigated them. I read the report."

Ranon raised his brows. He had never shared this information with her, but then the report was lying on his desk. He was not really being secretive about it, so there was a chance Hazel indeed read them.

However, as River, Hazel was certainly familiar with them.

Just like what Arthur said, she was the one who put the Denvers out of business, as they were a threat to be their competitor. At that time, they were fighting against each other for territory and clashed a few times when they did their missions.

Therefore, Arthur assigned River to kill a few key people in the Denver family.

That mission almost cost her her life. River survived, but there was a price she had to pay dearly: she was unable to bear a child due to her critical condition and complications from her last fight with the youngest son, after killing his other brothers.

It was chaos. River lost many men during that time.

Thankfully, it was not a waste of effort. The Denver family was no more... until now.

"Who leads their family?" That was Hazel’s first question, since she was sure River had gotten rid of all of the potential leaders in the family.

They came to the business again. It must be because the Lozens had been eradicated, and someone had reached out to them.

"Laith Denver." Arthur furrowed his brows. "River should have killed that girl."

Five years ago, Hazel spared a fifteen-year-old girl, the only daughter in the Denver family, whom she believed was not a threat.

"Someone must have backed her up," Ranon chimed in. He read briefly about Laith Denver, and he thought she was too young to lead a mob.

"Yes, her uncle from her mother’s side of the family helped her," Arthur replied.