Outcast Queen: Her Return from Hell novel Chapter 100

"Who are you?! Tell your men to stop immediately!!"

Marcus was caught between shock and fury. The sight before him struck terror deep into his bones—the elite guards his family had hired for a fortune were now slumped on the floor like dead dogs, howling in pain.

Even if they were ex-military, against overwhelming numbers and raw, unadulterated street violence, they crumbled instantly.

"Who am I?"

Phoenix slowly raised her eyes, her gaze cutting through the chaotic crowd to pin Marcus down.

There was zero warmth in her eyes, only a bone-chilling, palpable intent to kill.

She shielded Meredith behind her. Her voice was flat, yet carrying an unshakable weight: "I'm the one who protects her. Understand?"

"Protects her?" Marcus let out a cold sneer, a sinister glint flashing in his eyes. "I don't care who the hell you think you are. If you touch someone from the Miller family, be prepared to pay a massive price."

"Well look here, pretty boy. Are you blind?" Leo turned around, the heavy flesh on his face twitching as an aggressive, menacing aura rolled off him. "Get the situation straight. Right now—we're the ones making you pay."

"Leo, fall back."

"Yes, boss."

The previously terrifying Leo instantly reined in his aggression, stepping respectfully back to Phoenix's side.

Phoenix stepped forward, the sharp click of her heels against the floor echoing clearly, sounding like a countdown to execution.

She had a slender frame, looking almost fragile, but the presence she commanded was like a towering mountain, suffocating in its sheer weight.

Marcus had operated in Cloudhaven for years and had a vast network, yet he couldn't place this woman no matter how hard he searched his memory.

"I didn't want to interfere in Merry's family drama. But you crossed the ultimate line. Trying to harvest her kidney just to keep a half-dead old man breathing?" Phoenix stopped three paces from him, her eyes narrowing slightly as a cold light sparked. "You deserve to die."

"She has Miller blood! She owes this family! Saving her grandfather is her absolute duty!" Marcus roared, trying to mask his rising panic with false bravado.

"Oh, her duty requires a forced organ harvesting?" Phoenix looked at him like he had just told a pathetic joke and slowly shook her head. The next second, she shot forward, grabbing Marcus by the collar and violently jerking him forward until he stumbled. "Since you put it that way, I don't mind sending that old bastard to his grave a little early."

"Are you cursing my grandfather?!" Marcus's pupils shrank, his teeth grinding in absolute fury. "The Millers are a top-tier family in Cloudhaven! You mess with us, and you'll..."

Slap!

A crisp sound sliced right through his threat.

Phoenix didn't waste a single breath. She just backhanded him across the face.

The force snapped Marcus's head to the side, sending his gold-rimmed glasses flying through the air to shatter against the floor.

He clutched his stinging cheek, utterly stunned.

This arrogant, untouchable brother of hers was now forced to his knees at her feet like a common prisoner.

For someone as prideful as Marcus, this was worse than death.

"Merry, like I said, I'll make them pay for every ounce of suffering you went through." Phoenix looked down at Meredith, her voice instantly softening. "Now, go hit him. As long as you don't kill him, I'll handle whatever fallout comes our way."

Meredith's eyes lit up instantly. Her face flushed with adrenaline, and her breathing hitched. "Can I... really?"

Phoenix reached out, resting a hand on Meredith's trembling shoulder, the warmth bleeding right through the fabric. "Merry, don't forget what you had to survive to get here. We are monsters who crawled our way out of hell. Is there anything in this world scarier than that place?"

Hearing those words, the lingering fear in Meredith's eyes vanished, instantly replaced by sheer, freezing anger.

She stepped forward, looking down at Marcus from above.

"Meredith Miller! You have Miller blood in you! Are you trying to rebel?!" Marcus screamed furiously. "If you dare lay a finger on me, I will never let you live in peace!"

Meredith didn't say a single word. She just raised her hand high and swung it down across his face with everything she had.

Slap!

That single slap left Marcus seeing stars and completely shattered his arrogance as her older brother.