The Killer Queen

“Ms. Yvonne, what have you been up to lately?”

Yvonne ached all over; her burns on her leg throbbed with every heartbeat, not to mention the bruises from being tossed out by Ulrich!

“I’m recovering. Didn’t you hear about the fire incident that occurred at the Gruber’s? What’s with the call at this hour?”

The thought of the Schnabels being so cruel to her, yet all smiles with Noella and Malvina, soured her mood with a mix of bitterness and envy.

Sure, they considered Noella their darling daughter and treated her well, but what about Malvina? She had seen Ulrich speaking to Malvina in hushed, gentle tones! Was it just because she was chummy with that country bumpkin?

The Schnabels never gave a damn about how she felt. If they had, she wouldn’t have had to slog over to the Gruber place..

“Ms. Yvonne, were you hurt? Is it bad? Without a bit of elbow grease, you’ll lose your spot in the Schnabel family for good!”

Yvonne’s anger flared. “When have I ever had a place in the Schnabel family? They’ve never cared about

me!”

Whether it was blood–related Noella or the unrelated Elara, they had the Schnabels‘ hearts. Their hearts might as well be floating out in the Pacific!

“Ms. Yvonne, go cry on the lady’s shoulder, she’ll surely take you back.”

Sienna?

Yvonne hesitated, torn. “Forget it. Mother doesn’t care about me. She only has eyes for that country

bumpkin!”

The nanny whispered, “Ms. Yvonne, I’m talking about your birth mother, not Sienna. Sienna is blind to your worth, but your real mother would never reject you.”

Duncan.had indeed never once mentioned her mother!

Yvonne’s spirits lifted. “Do you know my mom? Tell me who she is!”

“I’ll give you the lady’s number; you contact her. Just explain things to her, she’ll surely take pity on you.”

Battling the pain in her body, Yvonne was overcome with excitement. Belongs to (N)ôvel/Drama.Org.

“Alright!”

She hung up and made her way to the hospital where the Gruber family was being treated. However, before she could enter the room, she was stopped by several policemen at the door.

“No entry for bystanders, these are high–risk criminals. Are you a Gruber?”

High–risk criminals?

Yvonne nearly bit her tongue and beat a hasty retreat without another word! She needed to keep her distance from the Grubers, lest they drag her down with them.

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Inside the hospital room, Arthur was hanging by a thread, barely pulled back from death’s door, still able to hear the chatter around him. His fingers twitched, desperate to speak, but his throat, clogged with tubes, couldn’t make a sound.

The policeman rattled off a list of the Gruber family’s crimes, down to the exact dates and details!

Arthur’s eyes widened in shock.

They had covered their tracks flawlessly; how could their dark deeds have come to light? Especially with the police knowing such precise details.

“Ah…ugh!”

The police, aware of his condition, packed up their files after their recitation and left with the attending doctors.

Arthur caught their parting words.

“He’s got a ton of Nourishment Pill residues in his system; he probably can’t help with the investigation now. He doesn’t have long. Better he dies here than facing a firing squad.”

Arthur’s eyes bulged, unbelieving. He tried to rise, to demand answers, but he was powerless!

Shocked beyond measure, he passed out cold.

In South Flora Storage, the empty air–raid shelter yawned like a beast’s mouth, its unseen depths veiling

countless sins.

Malvina stood before the gaping maw, facing Ulrich. Her hair was pulled back, and she held out his coat to

him.

“Dr. Schnabel, here’s your jacket back. Thanks for looking out for me. I won’t be returning to the hospital just yet.”

Ulrich didn’t take the coat, his face marred by displeasure. “Have a death wish? Or do you think you’re lucky? Fresh out of a fire and into the underworld immediately? If you can’t afford the hospital, I’ll foot the bill. Come on, let’s go.”

Malvina blinked. “I’ve settled the hospital bills, but thanks, Dr. Schnabel.”

Facing Malvina’s impervious demeanor, Ulrich was irked, yet clueless about the source of his irritation. He was just too darn ethical; that’s why he bothered with this mess!

“Forget it, have it your way! Toss the jacket, I don’t want secondhand charity.”

Malvina wasn’t offended. Her lips curled slightly as she watched Ulrich drive off in a huff.

Behind her, members of the Shadow Dragon Society approached. “Miss, they said if you win just one fight in the underground fight club, they’ll follow you. Isn’t that asking too much? Maybe we should renegotiate, get them to change the terms?”

Although Malvina had learned some self–defense growing up with the Shadow Dragon Society, she was hardly prepared for the brutal world of underground fighting.

But to control the underworld, she needed to play by their rules.

To them, looking after Malvina was one thing; accepting her as their leader was quite another. Why should

14:39

they bow to some greenhorn girl?

“It’s okay, I’ll give it a shot. Worst case, I get locked out, no big deal.”

“Missl”

Malvina smiled, eyeing the jacket in her hands. “If I’m still breathing, make sure I get to the hospital where Dr. Schnabel works. His skills are the only ones I trust to save me.”

Malvina’s expression was cool and detached, as if the Impending challenge was of little concern to her, and as if she had steeled herself for what was to come. Her demeanor was unnerving, enough to give anyone the jitters.

Knowing Malvina’s stubborn streak rivaled that of the old boss, her associate didn’t bother with further attempts to dissuade her and simply nodded before departing

Once alone, Malvina quickly fished out her smartphone and dialed Noella’s number. “Noella, darling! It’s a code red situation! I need a lifeline! Those goons want me to step into the ring next door, throw punches in some shady fight club, and only if I win, they’ll listen to me. But I don’t know the first thing about fighting! What if I get clobbered? Can you imagine how ugly I would look?”

Noella stayed silent for a moment before asking. “The underground fight club near South Flora Storage?” “Yes! Little ol‘ me is about to meet my maker, Noella! Does the Schnabel family have any connections there? Maybe someone could go easy on me during the fight, pretty please?”

Someone was appearing carefree on the surface but a complete mess on the inside.

Noella glanced at a notification on her phone; there was a post on an underground fight club forum calling her out by name, with a tempting reward on the line.

“Hold tight, I’m on my way. I’ll take you there to scope it out.”

“Oh my stars! The Schnabel family really does have someone in there? That’s just peachy!”

Relieved, Malvina felt hope once again.

Noella pocketed her phone and glanced at the dark sky. The Schnabel family had already turned in for the night, and exiting through the main door would wake them.

She deftly swung herself over her balcony railing, slipping into a hoodie to blend into the shadows, vanishing into the night.

As she executed her silent descent, an unexpected thought of Palmer flashed through her mind. A sudden and strange fancy struck Noella, that perhaps the sensation of someone spying on her from her own balcony wasn’t entirely unpleasant.

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