Rebirth in the Apocalypse: Third Time's a Charm



"You're late," came the very irritated voice as soon as Mao Jing and the others entered the club.

"There was an issue," replied Wang Chao, walking up to Li Dai Lu and giving her a gentle kiss on her forehead. "How much time do we have before the club opens?"

"It will open when I say that it opens," snapped Li Dai Lu, clearly not happy. Mao Jing was worried about how she was going to react when she learned that they hadn't actually completed their mission. "And what issue? Are you okay? Do I need to kill someone?"

"No, no. Nothing like that. But we are going to return the kid back to his family," answered Wang Chao as he wrapped an arm around her waist. He brought her over to one of the booths in the back and sat her down. 

"What are we getting in return?" she asked, turning her attention to Mao Jing. He swallowed hard, trying to figure out how to spin it so that it came out better than, 'We were getting nothing back.'

"Potentially an enemy, potentially someone that you can get along with," shrugged Wang Chao, sliding into the booth beside her. "I guess it depends on how well you get along with the head of City I."

"Gong Hao Zhi is the head of City I?" she asked, confused.

"No," said Liu Wei, getting in on the conversation. "His wife is."

"Huh, that's unusual."

"Yeah, and apparently, the kid is from the first marriage, so she isn't all that happy with him. I figured that since she pissed me off, I would return him to her completely unharmed. I don't want to be anyone's knife," explained Wang Chao.

"You keep calling him a kid, but he is probably around your age, you know that right?" chuckled Li Dai Lu, and the warning bells that were going on in Mao Jing's head since they had left the Gong Family residence were finally silenced. 

"Please, I can't remember a time when I hung out at fight clubs for the fun of it," scoffed Wang Chao. 

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"No, you were probably the one running the betting ring. I can see it now. If you had to be amongst your peers, you were at least going to take them for every dime that you could," I said with a laugh. Having all four of my men around was making me feel a lot better and much more relaxed.

"She knows you so well," smiled Liu Wei, looking at me but talking to Wang Chao. 

"How could she not?" answered Wang Chao. "But I should point out that Mao Jing handled himself well. I don't think that there is going to be an issue leaving him in charge of the fight club."

I turned to look at Mao Jing, biting my tongue at the shocked look on his face. "Perfect, because I have no idea what I am doing," I said with a nod. "Go do what needs to be done before the doors open."

"Of course, Boss," he said before he turned around and walked over to the bar. 

"He was worried that you were going to take away his manager's position if he returned without a ransom for you," chuckled Wang Chao. 

"You made the call; why should I take it out on him?" I asked, confused.

"Because he didn't actually know who we were when he took us with him to the Gong Family," answered Liu Wei. "That pain in the ass, brother of mine, only told him to take me with him and didn't explain anything."

"Ah, no big. It got sorted out in the end," I smile, trying to suppress my yawn. "But when are you going to tell me about this wife of his?"

Liu Wei and Wang Chao looked at me as I yawned again, my jaw making a popping sound with how big it was. 

"You okay, little one?" asked Wang Chao, pulling me into his arms. 

"Yeah, it is just one of those days that it is hard to wake up," I shrugged. I didn't consider it that big of a deal. I had always assumed that in at least one of my lives, I was a house cat because if left to my own devices, I would be sleeping 20 hours a day.

"Why don't you pop into your space and get a good night's sleep?" asked Liu Wei, looking at me with concern as he wiped a stray tear from my cheek.

"I'm fine, really," I assured them. "Just need a cup of coffee or something."

"How about instead of a coffee, you have a cup of hot chocolate? That should pick you up," smiled Wang Chao. 

I wrinkled my nose at that idea. "No, a cup of coffee will be just fine," I said with a shake. "But quit stalling. Tell me what is going on with this wife."

"She claims that she is the head of the City, and as far as I can tell, she is. Well, it's either that or she is completely delusional; it really could go either way," chuckled Wand Chao, pulling me deeper into his arms. I rested my head on his shoulder and stared off into space.

"Does she have a power?" I asked, once again holding back a yawn. I really should go into my space to sleep, but there was always some psychological barrier keeping me from leaving my men, even for a moment. It was almost like if I turned my back for a second, they would disappear.

Stupid, I know, but that's where my mind was at this moment.

"Fighting," replied Wang Chao after a moment's pause. "She has the same power as Liu Wei. How about we all go into your space?"

"What?" I asked, confused, my brain not able to follow the jump in conversation. 

"I know Liu Wei is exhausted, even if he would never really admit it out loud, and Chen Zi Han could also use a nap. Why don't the five of us go into your space, and we can all take a nap together? We will be back before anyone could even blink," continued Wang Chao.

I turned to look at Liu Wei with narrowed eyes. "Are you really that tired?"

"It is annoying to have someone that can read your mind around all the time," grumbled Liu Wei. "But yes, unfortunately for me, he is right. I am exhausted. I feel like we haven't had a good sleep since we left the cabin. I am practically counting the days until we can go back."

"If we are talking about nap time, I volunteer!" called out Liu Yu Zeng as he and Chen Zi Han approached the booth. I looked at the two men who looked bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. I couldn't see where they were tired, but maybe they could just hide it better than I did.

"Fine, four against one isn't fair, you know," I grumbled out loud, but there was no way that the guys didn't know just how happy I was that I could have the best of both worlds.  Blinking my eyes, the five of us appeared inside the kitchen of my space.  "But you talked me into it. Let's go to bed."

I climbed out of Wang Chao's lap and started to make my way upstairs and into the master bedroom. Over the past few years, the guys and I had changed a few things around in my space, including installing an Alaskan king-sized bed in the master bedroom. 

Luckily for all of us, the house itself in my space shifted to accommodate the extremely large piece of furniture. The guys had also changed their rooms into nothing more than an office with a closet, preferring instead to spend their nights in my bed when we were in my space.

And let's face it, I wasn't complaining.

With our cabin in the mountains, there wasn't much need for my space, but the five of us all agreed that we needed to have it prepared for when we left our sanctuary and returned to the real world. 

"We'll be right now," called Chen Zi Han from still in the kitchen. "I am claiming the spot under you."

"Oh no," I chuckled, not bothering to slow down my pace. That bed was calling my name, and there was nothing keeping me from answering. "You know that is a first come, first served position."

"Wait for me, Princess; I will make sure that I am there first," answered Chen Zi Han with a chuckle of his own. 

I waved my hand as I stepped onto the landing of the second floor and walked straight into the master bedroom.

I knew that there was something that they wanted to talk about, but I also knew that they didn't want me to worry about whatever it was. I would give them their time alone before I smacked them upside the head for trying to keep something from me. 

But first… Sleep.

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