My Second Marriage with the Mafia Kingpin-Chapter 18: That Was Close

"Tsk. Damn it," one man in the small hotel’s buffet clicked his tongue. "Can’t believe we’re dumbing everything down because of one person."

"The Young Master is very mature. Who would have thought someone that age would be this childish?"

"That fucking Marshal... sending his defective daughter in here."

Some members of Dominion stayed in the hotel to watch over Ashley in case she planned to flee. It didn’t sit well with them, but it was better than staying in their territory. If something bad happened, they were close enough to provide backup.

As for Lucian and the others, they had left for another arrangement.

"That dummy..." one of them hissed as he turned, his eyes falling on a particular table in the far corner.

There, Ashley sat alone, eating by herself.

"If something happened here, I wouldn’t be surprised if she had a hand in it," he said through gritted teeth.

Another man at the same table spoke, also looking in Ashley’s direction. "Until now, I still don’t understand why the Master is so lenient with her. Aside from that face of hers, she’s just a walking omen."

Dominion had zero tolerance for traitors, and Ashley’s actions didn’t just toe that line.

She crossed it.

But instead of being punished to death, there she was, happily enjoying a dessert. 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

"Did the Master really get seduced by that woman?" another man scoffed. "So many women tried to seduce him, but all of them ended up..."

"Never mind them," another man finally said.

The red-haired one who had been silently enduring his anger toward Ashley finally spoke.

"What I do know is that whatever she did, it’s definitely working in her favor."

Everyone turned to the man, whose hair was dyed red and whose features were rough.

"Red, what the hell?" another man scoffed at the red-haired man named Red. "Don’t tell me you’re becoming Sir Gustav now? Pretending this is all normal?"

Red laughed quietly, the corners of his mouth curling into a smirk.

"Pretend?" he ridiculed. "No."

He leaned back slightly, his eyes still on Ashley.

"I just know there’s an end to everything. And once the Master gets his fill... and gets bored with her," he said with a sadistic smile, "I’ll be the first to snap that little neck of hers."

With that, Red turned his gaze toward Ashley’s chair.

Everyone’s brows rose as they stared at Red, one of the most violent members of Dominion.

Then they shifted their eyes to Ashley, and somehow, they already felt sorry for her.

If Red had already set his eyes on her, her life was truly in danger. The moment Lucian let her go, Red would be the first person to come after her.

And knowing him, it wouldn’t be a pretty death.

Meanwhile, Ashley happily ate her sweets even when she could sense the others’ death glares. She didn’t care, though.

Lucian had left after they were given their keys, but she didn’t tag along anymore. It wasn’t the time yet, because she had other things in mind.

Besides, it wasn’t yet the day Lucian would be ambushed.

"Hmm?" Her brows lifted as she savored her sweet. "How do I find that person, though?"

She cupped her cheek, deep in thought. But instead of dwelling on it, her eyes slid to where her guards were eating. They had taken a table far from her, but she was almost certain they were talking trash about her again.

They always did that — even the maids in the mansion.

But unlike these guys, the maids back in the mansion wouldn’t care if she overheard their gossip. It didn’t bother her at all, as she was used to it.

"Even back in the Di Carpio territory, the maids there were all the same," she mumbled. "If anything, those people were worse."

In the Di Carpios’ household, the maids didn’t only gossip or call her names — they even treated her as if she were beneath them.

All because she was the Marshal’s bastard.

His wife and daughter were not happy that his bastard child had been allowed to live. Her father, on the other hand, couldn’t stand the sight of her, as she reminded him of his stupidity for falling for a prostitute’s lie.

Though it had always been a mystery to her why the Marshal didn’t kill her when she was born, when he found out she wasn’t a boy. But instead, he still took her home, only to treat her like trash.

Ashley’s eyes drifted to one particular member of Dominion — Red.

She studied his spiky red hair and blinked.

"Should I let him die?" she muttered. "...He looks a little scary."

From what she remembered, that particular man would be one of the people who wouldn’t make it back to Dominion after the ambush.

She didn’t know all the members of Dominion, but she was familiar with a few — and with Red’s bright hair, he stood out a lot.

Moreover, in the underground world, aside from Lucian, the boss of Dominion, there were members of the organization who had earned their titles and popularity for all the wrong reasons.

One of them was this red-haired sadist.

From what she heard, the red-haired hellhound of Dominion was someone people should never cross paths with. Once they saw a red-haired man standing on their doorstep, they should start running — and never get caught.

Otherwise, red would be the last thing they saw, not darkness.

"But that is a short journey," she whispered. "Because the psychotic hellhound will sacrifice himself so his boss lives."

Lucian would suffer lasting injuries, but he survived because Red took the rest of the damage, even sacrificing his life to ensure Lucian lived.

Ashley shook her head and looked away.

"Never mind. He looks scary, but I need him."

Lucian had Gustav, but Gustav alone wasn’t enough. He needed someone like Red — someone stubborn and crazy, someone who wasn’t afraid to defy orders when necessary, yet remained utterly loyal.

Ashley idled for a little longer after finishing her bowl of sweets, thinking her guards hadn’t finished eating yet.

Once they finished, she got up and headed to the lobby to return to her room.

But just as she reached the lobby, her steps halted when she saw a person carrying grocery bags all by herself.

The bags were piled so high in her arms that they rose above her head.

Ashley tilted her head slightly and blinked, simply staring at the person carefully walking toward the reception desk.

Then her eyes lifted to the top of the pile, and she started walking.

Meanwhile, the woman carrying the grocery bags took another step, and her heart skipped when she felt the bags shifting in her arms.

The moment she looked up, she saw the bag on top slowly tipping forward.

"Ah—!"

Her body almost moved on instinct to catch it, forgetting she was already holding several other bags.

But just as she did, someone suddenly caught the falling bag.

"Huh?"

The woman froze, her brows knitting together as she looked at the person in front of her.

Meanwhile, Ashley had already caught the bag before its contents could spill. Her other hand steadied the woman, stopping her from taking another step that might have caused the rest of the bags to fall.

Then, slowly, Ashley lifted her eyes to the surprised woman and smiled.

"That was close."