Her figure was full and alluring, far more mature than the slender young women surrounding her. That maturity carried a special charm, enough to ignite a man's primal instincts at first glance.
Maria had long shed any trace of shyness. Hearing Charles' words, she clapped her hands and said,
"Girls, pack up quickly. Make room for the gentlemen."
The group of playmates, already terrified by the fierce arrival of Victor and his men, now seemed relieved. One by one, they scrambled to get out of the way, fearing that even the slightest hesitation would spell disaster.
Victor glared at Charles, jabbing a finger at his forehead and cursing,
"I told you to ship the goods to New York. Every time there was some excuse wind, rain. It's been two months, brother. Do you think this is a trip to the moon? Are you messing with me?"
Charles pointed right back at him but didn't get angry. Instead, he smiled and said,
"Brother, storms and waves are common. I haven't even blamed you yet, jinx. The ship sank, and it's all your fault!"
Victor and his men were dumbfounded. They had encountered shameless people before, but none this brazen. This wasn't just an excuse, it was outright nonsense.
Normally, Victor carried himself with refined composure. After all, he had once been second-in-command at Stark Industries. The funds he managed ran into the tens of billions, and his subordinates held degrees from Harvard and Cambridge. Even the lowest-ranking officers were elite graduates.
But now, no amount of patience could contain his fury. Especially the Mexicans standing behind him their eyes glimmered coldly, as if waiting only for Victor's signal to swarm Charles and tear him apart.
Victor pointed at Charles, his hand trembling, and said,
"Don't play games with me. I'll be clear. Last month's shipment was worth eighty million. Pay me back, and I'll let it slide. Otherwise, you'll cough it back up, one way or another!"
Watson glanced at Charles. Seeing his silence, Watson sensed an opportunity to shine. Stepping forward, he declared,
"You should've said that earlier. Our Brother Charles is a man of his word. If you wanted the goods delivered, I could've called a courier. By plane, they'd arrive in two or three days. But by ship? Of course, that takes weeks. Go home and wait."
Bang!
One of Victor's men couldn't stand it any longer. He charged and kicked Watson in the stomach. Watson felt as though an elephant had collided with him. His body flew backward like a kite cut loose, crashing into several men before stopping.
Tiger saw this and immediately charged forward, engaging the Mexican attacker.
Their fists and kicks clashed, creating a sharp metallic ring. Victor's eyes widened in shock. The Mexican had been enhanced with the Green Goblin's serum, yet Tiger seemed even stronger. Could it be that Tiger had been injected with some form of genetic enhancement as well?
Charles was stunned too. He and his two brothers had been sponsored by Hydra. Though Captain America's genetic program had failed, Hydra retained a downgraded version of the serum.
After fifty years of research, they had perfected a weaker but still effective genetic drug. Thanks to this, the three brothers had carved out an underground empire in New York.
Now, Tiger's fight against the Mexican was a battle of genetic enhancements. The formulas differed, but their effects were almost identical.
Victor ignored the fight and stared at Charles.
"What, sending your small fry instead of the real boss? Bring your big brother Tony out here!"
Thump, thump, thump.
Footsteps echoed from the staircase by the pool table. A tall, lanky man in a black leather jacket and dark sunglasses appeared. Nearly two meters tall, it was none other than Tony, leader of the Bomb Heaven Gang.
"You bastard!"
Before Tony reached them, his voice thundered. He grabbed an iron stool and hurled it through the air like a missile.
Victor shivered and ducked just in time, but one of his men wasn't so lucky. The stool smashed into the back of his head.
The man screamed, his eyes rolling back, and collapsed instantly.
Victor's rage exploded. He pointed at Tony and shouted,
"Kill him!"
Chaos erupted. Both sides clashed like a tidal wave smashing against the shore. Blood splattered everywhere.
Though scholarly in appearance, Charles was deadlier than anyone once the fight began. He drove a golf club into a Mexican's eye, stomped hard, and drove it out through the skull. The man dropped without a sound.
But Tony was even more brutal. His first move shattered bones. He grabbed a Mexican by both legs and swung him against the pool table's edge.
Crack!
A spine snapped. Without hesitation, Tony flung the body off the twenty-meter-high platform as if discarding trash.
Of Victor's men, only three had been enhanced with the Green Goblin's serum. The rest were ordinary, clearly outmatched by Tony and his brothers.
And this was Tony's territory. His men poured in without end. Victor fought ferociously, but human strength had limits. As he knocked out another of Tony's underlings, he realized only he and the first Mexican attacker remained standing.
The other two enhanced men had already been torn to pieces by the overwhelming gang members. Watson, who had been hiding on the sidelines, now stepped into the fray.
Tony looked at Victor, his bruised, swollen face smirking wickedly.
"This is how we do things."
Victor touched his forehead and felt something sticky. He pulled back his hand, now covered in blood, and fear gripped him.
As the saying goes: the weak fear the strong, the strong fear the ruthless, and the ruthless fear those who have nothing to lose.
Tony, in his eyes, was exactly that kind of man reckless, willing to risk everything. This negotiation was doomed. Worse, he might not even walk away alive.
"I surrender! I admit defeat! I've lost this round!" Victor raised both hands and shouted in humiliation.
Tony laughed aloud and stepped closer.
"What was that? I didn't hear you."
Victor swore if looks could kill, Tony would already be riddled with arrows. He shouted louder this time:
"I admit defeat! Stop fighting, I surrender!"
(End of Chapter)
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