The Manipulated Villainess

After driving for almost two hours, Jaxon pulled over his car near a metal workshop in the countryside. He gets off his car and rushed inside the workshop.

Though the sunset long ago, the back of the workshop was a house where the former right-hand man of Cassandra\'s father lived. So, he was still in the workshop even at such a late hour.

Joshua Kim wasn\'t pleased to see the right-hand man of the Moyan Boss. "Did Cassandra sent you here? I already said that I won\'t change my mind," he said to Jaxon in an unpleasant voice.

"Please help us, Boss. Our leader is captured on our way back to the city," Jaxon pleaded with Joshua Kim.

As the former right-hand man of the late Boss, even Jaxon was bound to show him some respect. Besides, it hasn\'t been long since Joshua Kim left the Moyan Gang and Jaxon also spent many years under his supervision.

Hearing the news, Joshua Kim\'s face instantly turned pale! Cassandra was captured? How? Who dared to do such a thing?!

"What happened?" Joshua Kim asked and shook his head. "No. Who did that? Do you have an idea?"

"The Prime Minister is the only one who will do this," Jaxon firmly said.

Peter Jung. Joshua Kim\'s pale face slowly faded. Turning to Jaxon, he asked, "What did Cassandra do? Did she do anything to cross Peter Jung? I already told her not to do anything."

"I know she ignores your advice but... you know all the things she went through. Will you be able to sit still while she is in a dangerous situation?" Jaxon said to Joshua Kim. Though he sounded more firm than ever, he still maintained a formal tone and demeanor.

Joshua Kim stood still and pressed his fingers against his forehead. He shut his eyes for a while and the moment he opened his eyes, they were like a burning fire! Rage. That was the only definition.

"Tell me. What did Cassandra do? I can help only if you tell me that."

* * *

Cassandra Lim wondered how much time had passed since she was locked up in an unknown place. The room where she was locked up was dim and quiet. She was tied up to a chair and her eyes were blindfolded.

She waited and waited again for someone to show up. If they want something from her, they won\'t leave her alone for too long. She was more than experienced in this kind of thing.

The sound she heard after a while proved that she was right. Maybe it was the sound of the door being opened, it was soon followed by the sound of footsteps. It wasn\'t long before her blindfold was removed and she could finally see again.

She was right. The one sitting on another chair opposite her was Peter Jung. The leader whom she talked with before was also standing a step behind the Prime Minister. As she was already expecting this, there was no reaction on the face of the Moyan Boss. She just sat still with a calm face.

Peter Jung quietly observed her before his lips curved into a smile. "You never fail to surprise me, Miss Lim. What\'s with the calm face?"

Cassandra Lim let out a sigh as if she was bored. "What reaction did you expect?" she simply said.

Peter Jung let out a chuckle. "Whenever I see you, I always think it\'s a miracle that you\'re not the biological daughter of Andres Lim. Everything about you is similar to him."

Cassandra slightly smiled. "That means you didn\'t know me well, Mr. Prime Minister. People said that I\'m more scary than my adoptive father."

Peter Jung nodded several times. "Well, I give you that. You\'re more intelligent than your adoptive father and that\'s what makes you scarier."

Cassandra just sat still with an annoyed face and Peter Jung continued. "Now that we talk about it, that was quite a great trick you played on me. I have no idea and you completely fooled me."

Cassandra Lim simply turned her head away and Peter Jung\'s face turned darker. "How do you even thought of teaming up with my son? No... " he shook his head and said, "How do you even know about my son\'s secret identity? Someone tells you that, right?"

"I don\'t know what you\'re talking about," Cassandra said, acting as if she didn\'t care about what the Prime Minister said.

Peter Jung knew that there was also another possibility. Maybe his son tailed him and met with Cassandra through that but... he had a feeling that there was something behind this.

Why would a gang Boss choose to help the leader of the Blackhood instead of him? Not to mention his relationship with Cassandra\'s father! He had a feeling that there was a secret yet important figure behind this. Who convinced Cassandra to deceive him? It can\'t be his son.

"You don\'t know?" he said to Cassandra with a little smirk. "Too bad. I\'m sure that everything is connected. My son already knew about my intention and he planned something to backfire on me. If you know nothing about it, it would be a miracle."

Cassandra glanced at the Prime Minister with a mocking smile. "Then let\'s just say that a miracle happened. Maybe your sins finally reached the ears of the gods and they decided to punish you."

PAK!

Cassandra was forced to turn her head to the right as Peter Jung slapped her on the face! Though it was pretty rough and her left face immediately turned red, she didn\'t react at all. All she did was biting her lip and clenched her fists that were tied to the chair.

"If I were you, I won\'t talk too much," Peter Jung said to her in a deadly low voice.

Cassandra shifted her gaze back to him and now, her eyes turned darker too. "It\'s a pity. You\'re not me," she said. Still, there wasn\'t a hint of fear in her voice or expression.

Seeing this, the man behind Peter Jung raised a brow and it went unnoticed. This woman\'s daring nature had no limits! How can there be such a woman in this world?!

Peter Jung stared at Cassandra for a while until... he let out a laughter. "It would be my pleasure to see you lost your confidence and \'stupid\' fearless behaviour little by little. I will make sure to see that happen."

Cassandra didn\'t say anything and Peter Jung rose from his seat. Then he shifted his attention to the young man standing beside him. "Make sure to make her talk. I don\'t care about what method you used. I want an answer, an honest answer. That\'s all."

The young man bowed and Peter Jung walked out of the room.

"I\'m not even sure if you\'re just blindly fearless or you have another backup plan," the young man said to Cassandra who was still maintaining a calm face.

Hearing this, Cassandra shifted her gaze and looked at the man\'s face. "You are the puppet of Peter Jung. I was right," she remarked.

The man didn\'t react at all. He pulled the chair away and sat on the table which was just behind. "Puppet? It\'s your second time saying that."

"You didn\'t like that? Then should I say a dog?" Cassandra Lim said, sarcastically. She turned her head away from the man as if she was bored by his presence.

"You can say whatever you want but I\'m still curious. Are you just blindly fearless or you have another backup plan?" The young man repeated his question before.

"It\'s both," the Moyan Boss simply said. "However, the latter is uncertain."

"That means you\'re crazy," the young man promptly said. "Risking your life over something uncertain."

Cassandra Lim shook her head when she heard him. "I already said that someone like you will never understand."

The young man thought of what Cassandra said just before his men caught her. "Obedience and trust. That\'s what you said. But what if you\'re wrong? If it cost you your life, will you still think that it\'s worth it? You should just speak and everything will be over."

Cassandra briefly narrowed her eyes before she looked up at the young man. "You have no idea about how things work. Even if I say something, do you think Peter Jung will let me go?" She shook her head and said, "Not a chance. He will kill me whatever the result is. However, I won\'t tell him what he wants even if that means I will die."

Cassandra wasn\'t lying when she said that she never fear death. It\'s not like she had a family who would be waiting for her but... Nathan crossed her mind. Will he be able to accept if she really dies in this place? What if he was blinded by rage and bitterness? Just the thought of it made her anxious.

The young man looked down at her and then darted his eyes to the door when he heard a sound. He saw two of his men entering the room and quickly turned back to Cassandra Lim. "It\'s still not late. Just tell us the answer," he said.

Cassandra fell silent with her gaze still fixated on the floor. The man even thought that she was finally having a second thought, until...

"I won\'t change my mind. Do whatever you want."

With that said, the young man let out a breath and then nodded to his two subordinates who were standing a few steps away.....