Owned by Mr. Lan

Chapter 3

Wang Yibo

When I got the contract from my lawyer, I first read it to make sure he didn’t miss any terms. Pleased with the outcome, I fold it into an envelope then left it on the middle of my desk.

I need to run an errand.

After grabbing my blazer from the back of the chair, I slip my arms through the sleeves. While I button my cufflinks, I stare out the bay window overlooking the garden and I dream about playing with my son or daughter.

A dream I should not have. But I want it regardless.

Tugging the lapels of my suit, I head out of my office in search of Haikuan but instead ran into Haoxuan and Xue Yang, my younger twin brothers. Xue Yang wipes his hand on a handkerchief, staining it with blood.

“Wen Xu is taken care of,” Haoxuan informs me, unbuttoning his ruined shirt.

“Will you do that in your rooms?” I don’t want Xiao Zhan to see them. They are closer in age and she might find herself wanting one of the twins. I know they enjoy threesomes and that isn’t something I want Xiao Zhan to be exposed to.

She’s mine.

Xue Yang’s lips twist in a wicked smirk, his eyes firing with questions. “Why, brother? This is our routine.”

Before I could answer Xue Yang, Haikuan exists in the hallway leading to my wing of the house. “Xiao Zhan has been quiet in your room, Yibo. I’m not sure what she’s up to. I haven’t unlocked the doors.” Haikuan exists in the hallway where my wing is.

“Xiao Zhan?” Haoxuan questions. “A woman in your room? Since when?”

“And you locked her inside? I didn’t know you were so desperate, Yibo.”

I bite back my immediate response. I don’t want to seem affected by their jabs but Xiao Zhan’s quickly becoming a weakness for me, a dent in the armor I always wear. “She’s a means to an end,” I say, which isn’t a lie.

“Yibo —” Xue Yang wraps his hand around my arm to stop me from walking out the front door, Haikuan instantly at my side. “What are you doing?” He searches my eyes for answers he won’t find.

“My room is off-limits, do you understand? She is off-limits. You are not to speak with her. I’ll be back in an hour.”

He wants to fight me on it but releases his hold on me and runs his red-stained hands through his hair. “Fine. Haoxuan and I will wash up but I want you to know that it isn’t the end of the Wens trying to bribe our people. One death isn’t going to change that.”

“You don’t think I know that? One person dead is a warning and another dead will mean war, baby brother.” I tap his face, something he can’t stand.

He scowls, pulling away from me. “I hope you’re prepared.”

“I’m always prepared.” I go to shut the door but stop. “Xiao Zhan is off-limits,” I remind the two troublemakers. “She is mine. Do you understand?”

They both nod before disappearing into their wings. We all have a
separate area of the house.

“Where are we going?” Haikuan asks, walking around the black Mercedes G-Wagon and hopping into the driver’s seat.

After opening the passenger side door, I slide in. The tinted windows conceal us, preventing us from becoming anyone’s target. “We’re going to that shitty motel on the city's outskirts. Do you know the one I’m talking about?”

“I do.” He cranks the SUV and the engine rumbles to life.

Looking at the house, I think of Xiao Zhan and how I’m leaving her alone in a mansion full of monsters.