Chapter 97 - 97: Cut the Crap

The icy man with burning rage in his eyes glares at Avery.

Andrew smiled casually, "Nice to see you, Mr. Howel. It' s been awhile."

"Let go of her," Evan hissed through gritted teeth.

"You're interested in her as well?" Andrew pretends to be amazed though he knew who raised his every bid.

Avery silently observes the two men, sizing them up. Evan's commanding presence doesn't overpower Andrew. Her instinct tells her Andrew is not just anyone.

"Cut the crap," Evan says, "Do you know who she is?"

"I know her as the Lion Queen, a Miss Felicity Winter. And she chose me just now. Accept the consequences, Evan. It won't look good for you if word gets out about your little tantrum here."

"Felicity Winter?" Evan frowns.

"You know Evan?" Andrew asks Avery, "You didn't just drop his name in the bathroom?"

Avery peeks at Evan and sees Lisa standing close behind him.

"No, I don't know him," she says with a smirk.

"Avery Howel!" Evan screams her name with rage.

"How dare she claims she doesn't know me?" he thinks, "And what the hell is Andrew referring to in the bathroom?"

Evan's bodyguards all point their guns at Andrew, but Andrew is a powerful man with guards of his own. Two groups of people face-off, pointing guns at each other.

"Avery? Who is she?" Andrew asks, casting an intriguing glance at Avery.

Avery gives him a look that seems to say cut the crap and get me out of here already. Andrew approaches one of his bodyguards slowly and takes the man's gun. With a swift motion, he presses it into Avery's lower back.

"Sorry, Evan. Lion Queen here says she doesn't know you," Andrew laughs, "So I have to take her with me."

The gun makes a quiet click as Andrew releases the safety.

"Evan, tell your boys to back up ten meters," Andrew orders.

"Sir—" Robert objects.

The butler is infuriated by Andrew's arrogance and he wants to charge and attack him immediately.

Evan stops him, "Do as he says."

Andrew doesn't stand a chance in a gunfight: his men are outnumbered. Evan is concerned that he has Avery and won't risk hurting her.

Andrew laughs smugly, "Thanks for your cooperation, Mr. Howel."

Then he holds Avery by her shoulder, keeping the gun pressed firmly to her back as he passes Evan and his bodyguards. Avery suddenly stops a few meters from Evan and glances at him.

"My dear husband, I've already given you the room key," she says flirtatiously, "Don't let my kind gesture go to waste. It just so happens that you have a beauty on your arm and I have a good-looking man by my side. I hope we all have fun."

"Avery Howel!"

Evan's roar echoes through the empty nightclub. The power of the scream contains all the pain from his broken heart.

Avery knows she has just challenged Evan's superiority. He's lost a lot of dignity seeing his wife purchased and taken hostage by another man, but he didn't consider her self-esteem back in the private room. She's sick of his overbearingness and wants to take him down a notch and diminish his power over her. She needs him to understand that he can't do anything about the divorce even if he has tons of men on his payroll, even if he uses women like Lisa to make her jealous.

"So you guys go way back?" Andrew asks with a half-smile, "Avery Howel? You're his wife?"

"Put down the gun," Avery snaps.

With a swift motion, she reaches backward with her right hand and snatches the gun from Andrew. Andrew's men look on in amazement. They can't believe Avery just took Andrew's gun away. She's the second person to ever take a weapon from their boss. By the time they stop at Andrew's presidential suite, Avery is done dealing with him.

"Look, you've paid me back what you owed me," she says matter-of-factly, "Now I want you to remember that we don't know each other."

Avery's hair is still messy from the battle with the lion, but her large eyes shine like mirrors or diamonds under the light. Andrew lowers his head and the mole flashes making him look like a thoroughly flirtatious and dissipated man.

"What if I don't let you go?" he asks.

Avery places the gun against Andrew's chest, alarming his bodyguards. They all point their guns at Avery. Andrew frowns as the gun nudges the wound by his heart. In spite of the pain, he casually puts his hands in his pockets, completely immune to the threat on his life.

"I think I've paid more than what I owe you," he says as his eyes gleam, "So how do you plan to pay me back?"

…

"Sir, they entered the room together," Robert reports.

Robert knows he's walking on thin ice just by saying this and his voice betrays his lack of confidence. He never would have expected Avery to willingly and blatantly go to another man's hotel room—not after Evan agreed to the divorce. 

Evan feels fresh pain tears at his heart. In a rage of pain, he kicks Robert in the shin. The man falls over and lance kicks him again in the face. He gets up despite the pain and walks to Evan's side again, a trickle of blood flows from his mouth.

Evan has snapped. It's one thing if Avery can't love him back, but he refuses to allow her to become another man's woman. The thought that Avery might already be on Andrew's bed letting him caress her makes him half insane.

He gathers his bodyguards and rushes to Andrew's presidential suite. Evan's men quickly overpower the bodyguards Andrew has stationed outside the door. He kicks the door open and enters the room with his gun drawn.

The Swarovski diamond light leaves no corner in the room unseen. Andrew reclines on the couch in a bathrobe. He hasn't tied it tightly, revealing his vigorous chest muscles and the gauze over his wound. His legs are crossed and he drops magazine over his lap. He smiles calmly at Evan.

"Mr. Howel, are you interested in my girl?" he asks with amus.e.m.e.nt.

"Your girl my ass," Evan tosses his gun to Robert and strides over to Andrew, "She's Mrs. Howel, my wife."

"Wow, she neglected to tell me that," Andrew smirks.

Andrew's casual answer brings ice to Evan's eyes.

"Mr. Clifford, show some respect. Don't forget that we've subdued your guys," Robert warns.

Andrew isn't armed and toying with Evan when he's in one of his icy moods could prove fatal for the other man. Suddenly footsteps come from outside the door and dozens of Andrew's bodyguards rush in to surround Evan and his men. Robert presses the gun to Andrew's temple. Andrew snaps his fingers and his men retreat outside.

"Where is Mrs. Howel?" Evan asks.

"Where do you think a woman would be before she seeks pleasure with a man?" Andrew says provokingly.

Though Robert has his gun against Andrew's temple, the man picks up the magazine and begins browsing through it as if nothing unusual has happened.

Evan strides over to the bathroom and kicks the door open.