「Half an hour ago.」

Under the cover of night, an unfamiliar van stopped soundlessly in front of The Metropolis Residences.

Kenneth Adler sat in the van, his face dark. Beside him was his new godson, Austin Hale, and surrounding them were five henchmen who had narrowly escaped police custody.

These five were Kenneth Adler’s most trusted subordinates.

Kenneth Adler stared menacingly at the subordinate who had come with the report, demanding in a low voice, "Are you sure that woman is home right now?"

The subordinate in the passenger seat replied, "Boss, rest assured, there’s no doubt about it! Our man on the inside, the guard, said he asked her mom. She told him herself that her daughter’s been home for the past few days and hasn’t set foot outside!"

Kenneth Adler’s murky eyes narrowed dangerously. They had paid a hefty price to bribe a security guard at The Metropolis Residences, who had told them a great deal about Melody Summers’s family.

According to the guard, the Summers family had been quite ordinary, but they got lucky. Before the disaster, they had invested in the community supermarket. As a result, Melody Summers’s mother and uncle were now in charge of managing and distributing supplies at the supply point.

In addition to her mother, uncle, and aunt, two elders also lived in the house.

The guard also mentioned that since the beginning of the year, he had occasionally seen Roman Rhodes’s private car entering and leaving the villa district of The Metropolis Residences.

Roman Rhodes didn’t own any property there, so the guard figured one of his relatives or friends must live in the villa district.

When Kenneth Adler learned this, he felt that everything that had been puzzling him now had an answer.

’If Melody Summers and Roman Rhodes knew each other all along... that can only mean one thing: Melody Summers is a police informant!’

’Roman Rhodes must have sent her to The Crestview Hotel to set us up!’

He didn’t know how Melody Summers had managed to call the police and get a message out right under the noses of his henchmen, but Flynn Adler’s death had to be her doing!

The image of his son’s gruesome death filled Kenneth Adler’s eyes with fury.

’His son’s killer might be right here.’ He could no longer contain himself. Today, no matter what, the entire Summers family would join his son in death!

Kenneth Adler slapped his thigh hard and snarled, "That bitch. Daring to conspire with the police to set up my son... I’ll personally slice that little bitch into a thousand pieces!"

Kenneth Adler asked in a low voice, "How many bodyguards does the Summers Villa have? Are any of them carrying?"

Ever since the Long Night began, many wealthy people were accompanied by armed bodyguards whenever they went out.

Making firearms wasn’t all that difficult. With the right materials, a lathe, and a skilled craftsman, you could make your own guns and lead bullets.

In the early days of the disaster, few people bothered with guns. Most didn’t realize how bad things would get and didn’t want to cross that line for fear of attracting the government’s attention.

But since the Long Night began, with danger lurking around every corner, many people had stopped caring about such things.

Kenneth Adler had considered going directly after Roman Rhodes, but Rhodes was armed, and the Rhodes family estate was guarded by professionals.

With only a few henchmen, they were no match for that. You pick the easier target. He decided to take care of Melody Summers first.

The subordinate replied, "According to the guard, there are no bodyguards at the Summers Villa. It’s just a family of women, children, and the elderly... The only man in the house just so happened to leave today to help transport supplies. He won’t be back for a few days."

Hearing this, Kenneth Adler let out a cold laugh, his eyes glinting with excitement. ’This is a golden opportunity!’

’Today, the Summers family will join my son in death!’

The subordinate hesitated before continuing, "As for whether they have any guns... the guard wasn’t sure. But he said they probably don’t, because the Summers family has crossbows. If they had guns, they wouldn’t have bothered with those."

Kenneth Adler gave a dismissive laugh. ’Crossbows? What are those? All seven of us have guns. A primitive weapon like a crossbow is a joke in the face of firearms!’

’Besides, they’re just a bunch of women, kids, and old folks. Even if they had guns, would they even dare to use them? They’d probably just faint from fright!’

At this thought, Kenneth Adler’s confidence swelled.

He glanced at the henchmen in the van and said in a low voice, "Once we’ve avenged my son, we’ll flee to the next province! When the Adler Group rises from the ashes, you’ll all be founding members. Cash, gold, women—you’ll have as much as you want!"

He had recently contacted Hector Hayes, and they had agreed that the Adler Family would take full responsibility for the incident.

Hector Hayes would provide Kenneth Adler with a cache of weapons and supplies to get him to the neighboring province, where he would lay low until the situation cooled down.

According to their plan, Kenneth Adler was supposed to leave Anworth today, but he couldn’t bring himself to do it. He had to avenge his son before he left.

The henchmen nodded eagerly, their eyes flashing with unconcealed greed. They were just street thugs who had started living the good life thanks to the Adler Family after the disaster; of course they would hang on Kenneth Adler’s every word now.

They waited quietly in the van. A few minutes later, the security guard they had bribed began his shift at the main gate.

The guard quietly waved them through, and the van, carrying the seven men, drove silently toward the villa district under the cover of darkness.

As they neared Area B of the villa district, the henchman in the passenger seat pointed ahead, using the streetlight to indicate a property. "The Summers family lives up there in B16. It’s the one with the completely sealed-off yard."

Kenneth Adler narrowed his eyes, studying the villa with a sinister gaze. ’The yard is totally sealed off. Forcing our way in might be tricky...’

Austin Hale, however, looked at the familiar villa with a storm of emotions. He knew this place all too well.

He had come here before to try and make peace with Melody Summers. Right in front of this very villa, he’d been dragged away by police and security guards!

Remembering the humiliation, Austin Hale gritted his teeth. ’Finally, it’s my turn to get revenge!’ 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

The seven men had planned to split into two teams. Kenneth Adler would lead three henchmen to personally storm the house, while Austin Hale and the other two would stand guard outside.

Kenneth Adler said to Austin Hale, "Son, you and two others will stand guard outside. I don’t care if it’s Roman Rhodes or another member of the Summers family—if anyone comes out of that villa, you open fire immediately. Riddle them with bullets!"

But Austin Hale frowned. "Dad, that Melody Summers is sly. It’s too dangerous for you to go in. Why don’t I lead the charge, and you wait out here?"

’I really want to kill Melody Summers with my own hands,’ Austin Hale thought, ’to watch her grovel in terror at my feet!’

Kenneth Adler snorted in disdain. "Just a bunch of women and old folks. What danger could there be? It’s settled. I’m going in, you’re on watch outside."

It wasn’t just Austin Hale who wanted to kill Melody Summers with his own hands; Kenneth Adler also wanted to personally kill the woman responsible for his son’s death.

The thought of his only son’s gruesome death made him wish he could just launch a missile and blow the entire residential complex to kingdom come.

Kenneth Adler slapped Austin Hale’s shaved head. "You keep a close watch on every exit and avenge your brother!" he said in a low voice. "Once the entire Summers family is dead, all the assets I have stashed away are yours to inherit. Understand?"

Austin Hale was so thrilled the veins in his neck throbbed. He nodded. "Dad, rest assured! I won’t let a single one of them leave here alive!"

One of Kenneth Adler’s men used a special tool to cut through the electric fence. The four of them nimbly scaled the wall and landed on the second-floor terrace.

As a shrill alarm began to wail, they relentlessly hammered on the terrace’s patio doors. In less than a minute, they finally shattered the bulletproof glass and scrambled into a room on the second floor.