Chapter 10

Clif finally hit the brakes. The Ferrari, pushed entirely by the Urus’s momentum, skidded forward and ground to a halt.

Kerry was pale as a sheet. Okay. He made his point. That's the end of it, right?

Without a word, Clif shifted the Lamborghini into reverse. He backed up about forty feet.

Then, he slammed the gas pedal to the floor and charged the Ferrari again.

Kerry’s jaw dropped. She couldn't make a single sound. She could only watch in absolute, paralyzed horror.

BANG.

The Urus smashed into the already-crushed bumper of the sports car, violently jerking the cabin. Kerry slammed back into the leather seat. Her mind desperately tried to figure out a way to time-travel twenty minutes into the past so she could take the damn subway.

But Clif wasn't the only psychopath on the road. The Ferrari driver was clearly out of his mind. He threw his car into reverse and floored it, slamming backward into the Lamborghini.

Instantly, the two massive engines were roaring like chained beasts trying to tear each other apart. The tires shrieked against the asphalt, spinning out and burning thick clouds of acrid smoke.

The collision alarms inside the Urus were screaming. Every single beep felt like an ice pick driving straight into Kerry’s already-fried nerves.

Finally, she couldn't take it anymore. She whipped her head toward Clif.

"Mr. Condon, calm down!" she yelled over the screeching tires. "Dustin is waiting for you at home!"

Clif’s face was still that terrifyingly blank mask. That was the scariest part. He wasn't acting out of blind rage—he was just doing it. Kerry was starting to realize Zoe hadn't been exaggerating. Dealing with this man wasn't just about navigating office politics; it was an actual threat to her physical survival.

"Hold on," Clif said softly.

Kerry didn't hesitate. She grabbed the 'oh shit' handle above her door with a death grip.

Clif let off the gas for a split second. The Lamborghini was shoved backward by the Ferrari’s momentum. In that exact fraction of a second, Clif violently jerked the steering wheel. Kerry’s shoulder slammed against the passenger door as the heavy SUV snapped out of the lock.

Without missing a beat, Clif floored the gas and blew past the sports car, leaving the ruined Ferrari a hundred yards in their rearview mirror in seconds.

Kerry stared at the side mirror, her chest heaving. Thank god. The red car wasn't chasing them.

She glanced sideways at the man in the driver’s seat. His breathing was perfectly even. He didn't even look slightly flushed. It was as if he hadn't just committed aggravated vehicular assault, but had simply hit a minor pothole.

The Urus merged back into normal traffic, cruising smoothly.

Kerry forced herself to let go of the door handle. Her right hand was stiff and aching. She slowly unclenched her left hand, which had completely mangled her lesson plans. Without saying a word, she bent down, picked up her briefcase, smoothed out the crumpled papers on her lap, and went back to reading.

She pretended absolutely nothing had happened.

A few minutes later, the low rumble of Clif’s voice broke the silence. "There are tissues in the glovebox."

Kerry’s heart, which had just started to slow down, instantly spiked again. Her face remained perfectly composed. She popped open the glovebox, pulled out a thick, embossed tissue, and discreetly wiped the cold sweat off her palms.

"Thank you," she said evenly.

"Nothing else you want to say to me?" Clif asked.

Kerry turned the page of her file. "How is Dustin’s foundation in math? We haven't really had a chance to discuss his academics yet."

A flicker of genuine surprise crossed Clif’s eyes, though it vanished almost instantly. "You’ve seen some things in your life," he noted dryly. "Didn't even cry and beg me to let you out of the car."

Kerry offered a faint, sarcastic smile. "You just totaled a four-million-dollar car and didn't even blink. Why on earth would I cry about it?"

Clif didn't reply to that, and the rest of the drive passed in silence.

They eventually pulled into a sprawling, hyper-exclusive estate built into the side of the mountain. Back in her college days, Kerry had tutored the children of some incredibly powerful people. But this? This was emperor wealth.

The Condon estate was a fortress. Just the visible garage had more than ten bays. It suddenly made sense why Clif treated a luxury SUV like a disposable bumper car.

Clif parked in the courtyard. As they walked toward the massive front doors, an older man with graying hair at his temples but a ramrod-straight spine stepped out to greet them.

He bowed respectfully to Clif, then turned to Kerry. "Good afternoon. I am Bill Chen, the head butler."

"Hello, I’m Kerry Jones," she replied politely.

Clif kicked off his shoes and vanished into the depths of the first floor without another word. Bill took over.

"Everyone here calls me Bill. Feel free to do the same," he said warmly. "The young master’s room is upstairs."

Bill led Kerry up a grand, sweeping staircase to the second floor. They stopped outside a heavy, custom-built door. Bill knocked twice.

"Ms. Jones is here," he called out.

No answer.

Bill opened the door for her and gestured inside. "He might still be sleeping. If you need anything at all, just let us know."

Kerry nodded and stepped inside.

The suite was massive. She was standing in a private living area, but heavy blackout curtains were drawn tight over the floor-to-ceiling windows, plunging the room into oppressive gloom. The carpet was so thick her shoes didn't make a sound. There were doors on either side of the room. She hesitated.

Right side, second door, a muffled voice drifted through the dark.

Kerry walked over to the door and spoke clearly. "Hello. I’m your new tutor."

A few seconds later, the voice replied, "Come in."

Kerry pushed the door open. It was even darker inside than the living room. She couldn't see a single thing.

She opened her mouth to speak, but suddenly heard a sharp click behind her. The door had shut. She reached back and grabbed the handle, pressing down.

It was locked.

With the ambient light from the hall completely cut off, the room was pitch black. Frowning, Kerry pulled out her phone and flicked on the flashlight, pointing the beam forward into the dark.

The bright white light hit something.

Kerry froze.

She was staring dead into a pair of massive, reflective, glass-like eyes. It took her three full seconds to comprehend what she was looking at.

Attached to those eyes was a body nearly six feet long. Its skin was heavily armored, a dull grayish-green, covered in jagged, terrifying scales.

What the fuck...