Emperor of Havoc: Chapter 30

The roar of my bike splits the night as I tear through the city like a man possessed. I lean into the curves, the tires hovering on the bleeding edge of control with each sharp turn.

They took her.

They have her.

A million black, venomous thoughts churn through my brain as I race toward the seaport where the warehouse attack took place. All I know is that one of the Ishida-kai men there managed to call one of the top waka gashira at our compound, croaking something about an ambush. That someone had taken Katarina.

My chest tightens with every second that passes.

She didn’t even tell me she was going to a fucking meeting with the goddamn Triads—let alone at night, in an old warehouse. I’m sure she knew if she had, I would have tied her to the nearest immovable object rather than let her walk into that.

But she did.

And here we are.

I’ve barely killed the engine as I swing off the bike, momentum still carrying it forward slightly. My boots hit the ground hard, and I’m already running.

The scene that greets me in the warehouse stops me cold.

The floor is slick with blood, and bodies are strewn everywhere—Triad and Ishida-kai alike. An acrid, coppery scent fills the air, mingling with the tang of fear. Faint groans and labored breathing tell me that not everyone is dead, but the scale of the carnage is enough to make my fists clench and my stomach turn.

“Takeshi-sama!” One of the Ishida-kai men waves me over as I scan the room, looking for Kat. His face is pale as he crouches beside a fallen figure.

It occurs to me that I’m the de facto leader of the Ishida-kai right now. Katarina has been taken. Kolya is in the middle of the first surgery on his back—he had been put under before news of what happened here could reach him. Ryu, who I know came to this meeting with Katarina, is either also missing, or amongst the dead.

That leaves me.

It hits me just how differently I’m reacting to this situation now compared to how I would have before, when she was just a means to an end. When settling the bad blood between our families was only part of my plan.

Before, a situation like this would have presented the ideal scenario for me to enact my vengeance on a man who is currently completely vulnerable, knocked out on an operating table.

But now isn’t before. Now, there’s something on the line far more important to me than revenge.

Katarina.

I have to get her back. And I need to do it before those motherfuckers who took her hurt her, or even think about touching her.

I jog toward the man who called me over. My gaze drops to the body he’s kneeling beside.

Li Fan, the leader of the Jade Dragons, is propped up against a stack of crates, his expensive suit soaked with blood. He’s breathing, but barely. His hand trembles as he clutches his side, his dark eyes flicking up to meet mine.

“Takeshi-san,” he wheezes.

I crouch beside him, my gaze darting over his wounds. “Who did this?” I snarl. “Bratva?”

He grits his teeth, his other hand pointing weakly. I follow the motion, frowning when I see the smear of blood he’s trying to draw my attention to.

“I tried…” He coughs, blood staining his lips. “Tried to protect her.”

His words are a punch to the gut, but I force myself to focus. “Who has her?!”

“Sergey…Vorobev.” His voice is little more than a hiss, but the words land like a bomb.

“Fuck,” I snarl.

Li Fan groans, his strength ebbing away as he lifts his arm slightly. My eyes widen when I see the numbers scrawled across his forearm in his own blood.

Fuck me, it’s a license plate number.

“Smart bastard,” I mutter, locking eyes with the fading Triad leader. I turn to the Ishida-kai man crouched next to us. “Get him help, now,” I growl. “Quickly.”

The man nods curtly as I pull away, grabbing my phone and stabbing the contact for the best hacker I know.

Luckily, she also happens to be married to my cousin.

It rings twice before she answers. “Hey, Tak⁠—”

“I need your help,” I growl. “Now.”

Freya sighs heavily. “Hi, Freya. How are you, Freya? It’s been such a long time since I fucked off to Tokyo. Freya. We haven’t hung out since, Freya. How⁠—”

“FREYA!” I roar. “They have Katarina!”

The levity evaporates from her tone. “Shit, Tak,” she hisses, instantly all business. “What do you need?”

“A license plate tracked. It should be tied to Sergey Vorobev”

“Send it to me,” she says, her voice sharp.

I snap a quick photo of Li Fan’s arm and text it to her. “Quickly, Freya.”

“On it,” she replies, and the line goes dead.

I glance back at Li Fan, who’s struggling to keep his eyes open. “You did good,” I tell him gruffly, though the words feel hollow.

He grunts, smiling weakly as an Ishida-kai man applies a makeshift dressing to his wounds.

I stand, my mind racing as I take in the rest of the room: the bodies. The blood. The sheer chaos.

So—this is what being in charge feels like.

I start barking orders to the remaining Ishida-kai men. “Find out who’s still breathing,” I growl. “And someone get a fucking cleanup crew in here.”

My chest feels tight as I glance toward the warehouse doors. Somewhere out there, Katarina is in the hands of men who would love to see her broken—or worse. The thought sends a cold, murderous fury through me.

Just then, my phone buzzes.

It’s Freya.

“Got a hit on the plate,” she says without preamble.

“Where?” I demand.

“On its way to Chiba. I did some digging: there’s a warehouse there owned by a Vorobev shell company. Looks like they’ve used it before as a stopgap safe house. Sending you the address now.”

“Thanks, Freya,” I growl curtly.

“Tak,” she says before I can end the call. “Be careful.”

I don’t respond. Instead, I just turn to the nearest man and relay the information. “Let’s go,” I bark, fury roaring through me. “Now.”

I mount my bike again. Chiba is less than an hour from Tokyo. But they’ve got a head start.

And God only knows what those Russian motherfuckers might do to her before I can get there.

I don’t care how many men Sergey has. I don’t care what kind of trap they might have waiting for me.

I will find Katarina. And I’ll eradicate anyone who’s harmed a hair on her head.