Shock and tension gripped her; she felt as though she were trapped. The urge to scream and cry bubbled up inside her, but instead, she felt like she was going to pass out. Memories flooded her mind; she had pushed other girls into these exact situations, thinking it was all harmless. But now, realizing how wrong she had been, she understood the pain she had caused, making them strip and submit to men who treated them like objects.

Tears filled her eyes, but she fought hard to hold them back, not wanting to give MK the satisfaction of seeing her break down. She looked back at AD, who was watching her closely, his expression a mix of concern and urgency. He glared at her, silently warning her not to do anything stupid, mouthing, "Don’t do anything foolish." In that moment, she felt completely cornered, haunted by her past and the unsettling reality of the situation she was in.

She gave a hesitant nod to MK, who then leaned over and kissed her shoulder. She squeezed her eyes shut, uncomfortable with the gesture. She had never let any man touch her before except AD, so this was a totally new experience that made her feel uneasy.

Finally, after what felt like a long pause, MK decided to switch topics and focus on AD. The woman was still sitting on his lap, as he messed with her hair and traced his fingers along her arm.

"Well, well, well," MK said, a smug grin on his face. "Let’s talk about your little... failure."

AD opened his mouth to respond, but MK cut him off. "I gave you two devices and one wire to catch the girl. Your guys told me it would be easy, and you said she wouldn’t get away from your trained men. Now look where we are: your guys are hurt, taken down by just one girl." He burst into laughter, the sound echoing throughout the basement. The woman on his lap looked visibly shaken by his outburst.

He then turned to her, eyeing her with a mix of mockery and amusement. "What’s with the fear? Seriously, it doesn’t look good on your pretty face." He paused for a moment, brushing her hair aside, and then added with a sarcastic edge, "Can’t your AD manage to catch even one girl? Sounds like he’s full of excuses, doesn’t it?"

She didn’t say a word, remaining silent while MK’s eyes lingered on her soft, plum-colored lips. Out of nowhere, he grabbed her by the neck, pulled her closer, and kissed her. She was taken aback at first, hesitant and confused, but then she unexpectedly leaned into the kiss, wrapping her arms around MK’s neck.

AD watched in disbelief, feeling stunned as everything around him started to slip away. She was kissing MK right in front of him! It didn’t look like MK actually cared about her; it was obvious he was just using her for his own ends. In that moment, AD felt like all his careful plans were falling apart, leaving him feeling more lost and frustrated than ever.

After breaking the kiss, MK glanced at her cleavage before leaning in closer and whispering in her ear, "Tonight, in my penthouse." She tried to get up from his lap, but he pulled her back with a grin, asking, "Are you in a hurry for tonight?" She smiled back, wrapped her arms around MK’s neck, and kissed him on the cheek. Then MK turned his attention to AD and ordered his guards, "Bring them in."

The guards walked in, dragging two injured men behind them. MK shot a look at AD and said, "You were hiding them from me, weren’t you?"

AD was taken aback, clearly not expecting this. "I didn’t even know they were back, and I had no idea they were hurt!" he replied, stunned. Both men were among his best operatives, and seeing them in such rough shape was a complete shock.

The woman looked just as surprised. She turned to MK, gently placing her hand on his cheek as if trying to calm him down. "MK, honey, we didn’t know they were back. The last time I checked, they told me they were going out to catch the girl. They didn’t mention anything about coming back."

MK let out a dark chuckle, shaking his head. "You won’t believe it, the girl really gave it to them. She beat them up pretty badly; they’re bleeding all over the place. One of them is already dead from blood loss, and the other one is barely hanging on. He’s got maybe 30 minutes left if things don’t change."

When AD heard what was going on, he couldn’t wrap his head around it. "No way, that can’t be right! These are my best guys! They can’t die. If they do, I’ll hunt her down myself and take care of it."

MK shot him a serious look. "Your job is to bring her to me, not to take her out. I have my own way of handling this, and I’m the one who’ll make her learn a lesson."

The woman, caressing his chest, asked, "And what kind of lesson is that supposed to be?"

MK smirked, a hint of danger in his smile. "One she’ll remember. One that’ll make sure she can’t escape from the devil’s grip."

The woman tensed up on his lap. "MK... maybe she fought back because she was scared. She’s all alone...."

MK abruptly turned to her, his gaze sharp. "Alone?" He let out a dark chuckle. "Listen, sweetheart, girls who are really alone don’t just break bones without a second thought." Here they are. They really don’t get how capable she is.

AD’s jaw tensed up. "She’s trouble."

MK raised an eyebrow, a smirk on his face. "You make it sound like that’s a bad thing."

AD shot back, "It totally is when she’s coming after us."

MK shrugged, looking pretty chill about it. "She’s not after us; she’s trying to get away from us. That’s a whole different story."