Chapter 6 Mall Mayhem

• Winona was totally caught off guard by her marriage to Lewis. Not only were her parents pleased with him, but they were also nudging her to hurry up and give them grandkids. Winona had been stressing over-explaining her marriage to her folks. Still, Lewis managed to smooth it all over in just a few words.
• It wasn't until they left her parents' house that Winona finally snapped out of it. She glanced at Lewis, dressed in his usual cheap clothes, and directed him to drive to the downtown shopping district.
• The weather in June was still mild, and the evening breeze brought a slight chill. The shopping district was bustling with people.
• The nearly kilometer-long street was spacious and flat, paved with smooth, clean blue flagstones. Small trees were planted every three meters, with benches every dozen meters for pedestrians to rest. Rows of street lamps added to the modern, high-end feel of the area.
• Winona, dressed in a black, form-fitting outfit that accentuated her flawless, alabaster skin, long legs, perfect hourglass shape, and high-class demeanour, drew countless admiring and envious glances from the crowd. Her captivating beauty and confident air made her the centre of attention.
• It's often said that every beautiful woman has a man who drives her crazy behind her, but this was too much. Noticing the many ogling stares from other men, Lewis's face darkened as he released an intimidating aura, acting as a human shield behind Winona.
• Amid the envious gazes, Winona led Lewis to the west side of the street to the Blue Sky Department Store. She had mentioned wanting to buy him some proper clothes, but now that they were together, he couldn't look so shabby.
• Entering the mall, they were greeted by an array of well-known international brands. Each uniquely designed store seemed to compete in splendour, creating a dazzling display.
• Winona set her sights on a direction and strode confidently towards it, heading for the most famous international brand stores.
• "Welcome!"
• The store assistants greeted Winona and Lewis enthusiastically as they walked in.
• "Sir, Ma'am, how can we assist you today?" one of the salesgirls asked with a bright smile.
• "Do you have anything that would look good on him? I want to get him a few outfits to try on," Winona said, pointing to Lewis with a neutral expression.
• "Of course, please wait a moment."
• The salesgirl hurried off to find clothes for Lewis. She couldn't help but feel a bit sorry for him, thinking, I thought that man was a rich and handsome guy, but it turns out he's just an escort.
• The assistant returned quickly with a massive pile of clothes for Lewis to try on.
• Lewis tried on outfit after outfit, each one looking great on him. The salesgirl sighed inwardly, What a handsome guy with such a great sense of style. It's such a waste that he's just an escort.
• Winona was also amazed, thinking, It's true what they say. Clothes really do make the man. He looks completely different in these outfits.
• "How much for all of these? I'll take them," Winona said decisively.
• "Total comes to 312,000 dollars, but considering your large purchase today, we'll settle for 300,000 dollars," the salesgirl replied with a smile.
• Winona was about to swipe her card to pay when Lewis stopped her.
• "A man shouldn't let a woman pay," Lewis said, pulling out a solid black card and handing it to the salesgirl. "Use this to pay."
• Over the years, Lewis had earned enough money abroad to live comfortably for several lifetimes. The card he handed over was from a European conglomerate, with shares in African mining investments that provided annual dividends deposited into his account. He didn't know the exact amount, but it was substantial.
• After swiping the card, the sales assistant realised she had misjudged him. He was a wealthy and handsome guy, though she felt regretful, knowing he already had a beautiful woman by his side.
• As they were about to leave after paying, a tall, lean, dark-faced young man accompanied by a voluptuous and alluring woman appeared before Winona.
• Winona's expression changed suddenly. How could she bump into this man again by sheer coincidence?
• "Winona, it looks like you're so free today. And bringing a man along to shop is not bad at all. I wonder if Jeffrey will be upset?" the man sneered.
• Winona felt a deep sense of caution towards this young man, as he was none other than Matthew, the only son of Wilson Dean, the current leader of The Lizard. They had met six months ago at a party where he had tried to force himself on her, only to be stopped by Jeffrey. Lewis had recently dealt with Jeffrey, and now reencountering this bully was troublesome. Did beautiful women really always need a man's protection?
• Since they'd crossed paths, whether or not she belonged to Jeffrey didn't matter now. Get her back first, then figure it out. With that thought, Matthew waved his hand, and two burly men in green approached and grabbed Winona, seemingly intent on forcibly taking her away.
• "What are you doing? Let go of me!" Winona shouted.
• Her cries caught Lewis's attention as he paid at a nearby store. His wife was right there, and he was still flirting with the salesgirl!
• Bang! Bang!
• Lewis burst out of the store with a swift kick. The two green-clad men crashed into the mall's glass doors, which shattered with a loud crack. Both men sustained wounds from the broken glass, blood flowing from their injuries, clearly poorly hurt.
• The commotion immediately drew the attention of the store's customers.
• "Wow, that guy is so cool."
• "Confident men are the most masculine."
• "This could turn deadly. Someone, call the police!"
• Lewis held the bewildered Winona, his face carrying a chilling air, looking down on Matthew.
• Matthew's eyes flashed with fear. He knew the skills of Carlo and Rocco. The Mancini brothers, who had been bought over with hefty sums after years of underground fighting, were effortlessly kicked aside by Lewis. He nervously asked, "Who are you? What do you want?"
• Though Lewis wasn't sure what had happened, the two men trying to drag Winona away gave him a good guess.
• Just as Lewis was about to teach Matthew a lesson, Winona tightly held him back, whispering, "He's from the mafia, not just a businessman like Jeffrey. We can't afford to offend him."
• Mafia? Could they be as challenging as those overseas? In Agron, where private gun ownership was banned, local gangs couldn't compare to their more brutal foreign counterparts. Even overseas gangs, let alone a minor gang like The Lizard, wouldn't dare provoke him. Even in the mafia world, the motto 'if you have a problem, let's settle it' held true.
• "What's going on? Who called the police?"
• Just then, several uniformed police officers emerged from the crowd. In the bustling pedestrian street, police were constantly patrolling, so they responded promptly to any distress calls.
• He looked to be the leader with a severe face and frowned as he surveyed the scene. Standing before him were Matthew, the son of The Lizard, and a man with a woman, but he had no idea what had happened.
• Meanwhile, onlookers nearby were chattering away.
• "Those two are injured. We need an ambulance."
• "Those two men deserved to be beaten for harassing the woman."
• "He was defending himself. Otherwise, why would he just randomly attack someone?"
• Listening to the discussions, the lead officer extended his right hand and assigned tasks, saying, "Officer Brian, Officer Robert, you two stay here and wait for the ambulance. Take the injured to the hospital first, and make a record while you're at it. The rest of you, come with me back to the station for questioning."
• Matthew, seeing the police arrive, visibly relaxed his tense and fearful expression. He put on an indifferent look and walked out first with the police. Lewis, on the other hand, held Winona and followed behind them. The crowd quickly parted to let them pass.
• Of course, Lewis had already noticed that the leading officer clearly knew Matthew, and they exchanged a meaningful glance, indicating something fishy was going on.
• A dozen minutes later, Lewis entered the police station with Winona by his side.