A day later, at the docks in West Port, Klang.
Shen stepped out of his black sedan and was approached by the port manager.
"Greetings, Mr. Tucker. I'm Muhammad Ali bin Fauzal."
Fauzal extended his hand for a handshake, but Shen chuckled and raised his own hand in greeting instead, surprising Fauzal as he said,
"Walaikum Assalam Wa-Rehamatullahi Wa-Barkatahu."
Shen lowered his hand into his pocket.
"As a Malaysian, we respect each religion. Even I, as a Hindu, respect all religions. No?"
Fauzal chuckled and nodded.
"Agreed. Come, let me show you around the dock, sir."
The two of them walked along the bay as Fauzal showed Shen the shipping containers, cargo cranes, and the stacks of documentation in the office.
After nearly an hour, they shook hands, and Shen was about to leave.
Crash!
A massive container slammed down in a split second, crushing Shen's black sedan. As the smoke cleared, the car was completely totaled.
Clap! Clap! Clap!
A slow clap echoed from Shen's right. He turned and saw a group of dock workers standing side by side, with a white jeep parked at the center. A muscular figure sat on the hood, clapping slowly.
"Hahaha… so it's true my adoptive aunt called you back!"
Shen turned toward the voice—it was Samuel Tucker, his adoptive cousin, the son of his mother's sister, Mabel Tucker.
Samuel hopped off the hood and walked toward Shen in a slow, mocking prowl. He circled him like a predator sizing up prey.
"Ah, dear adoptive cuz. What has it been? Fifteen years? Twelve? None of that matters. Clearly, you didn't expect to meet me, right?"
Shen removed his black sunglasses and brushed the dust from his tailored black trench coat.
"Who are you?"
Samuel's eyes widened.
"Hahahaha… of course. You were gone so long, leaving the Tucker family. Name's Samuel Tucker, dear cousin…"
Shen thought for a moment, then smirked.
"Ah yes… Zac used to call you 'SISSY SAMUEL!'"
Some of the men chuckled at the memory. Samuel's face tightened in anger.
"I mean no offense," Shen continued,
"but you always wore dresses and acted like a girl until the old hag sent you to military school."
He meant Hela Tucker, his grandmother and the current head of the Tucker family.
"And honestly… she did something right."
"Shut it!" Samuel snapped, scoffing. "Listen here, Shen Tucker. I'll say this once. Leave the chairman's seat to Victor, or else—"
"Or else what?" Shen glanced at his watch, unimpressed.
"Heh. A few hours before you came to the port… did you sign any papers for approval?"
"Yeah. They were supposed to go to India—Mumbai."
Samuel laughed.
"What do you think was inside? You approved drugs, cousin. My drugs. A cocaine-like substance."
He clapped his hands, and his men joined in.
"You can't do anything now. Your only option is to resign."
Samuel picked up a sledgehammer and tapped it against the ground like a threat.
Meanwhile, in Mumbai, Samuel's men began unloading crates filled with sealed cocaine. One of his most trusted men, Jubic, called to report. Samuel laughed even louder at Shen.
"Are you done laughing?" Shen asked, digging a finger in his ear as if Samuel's voice was just noise.
"Heh, I won't beat you up. We're family."
With a snap of his fingers, Samuel ordered one of his men forward.
"It's been fun, cousin, but I recommend you resign."
As Samuel turned to leave, a loud boom echoed. He spun around to see his man flying through the air, crashing into a container.
The workers stared wide-eyed. Samuel tore off his sunglasses, seeing the injured man sprawled out. He turned back to Shen, who was dusting his hands.
"Hey, don't look at me," Shen teased with a feigned wince. "He was about to hit me, so I hit him back."
Samuel's expression hardened.
"DEI! Beat him up!"
The workers charged in, surrounding Shen. Calmly, Shen shrugged off his coat and let it fall to the ground.
They rushed him. Shen moved like water—sidestepping, deflecting blows, and dropping men with precise strikes. One by one, they went flying like ragdolls.
Snatching a chain from one of the workers, Shen gave it a sharp tug, letting it rattle and gleam in the light. Then he lashed out, the chain cracking against bodies with a metallic whip-crack. The dock echoed with cries as the men scrambled.
One tried to flee. Shen flicked the chain around his neck, yanked him backward, and slammed him to the ground.
Straightening, Shen rolled his shoulders and loosened his fingers. Now it was just him and Samuel.
"Dei Samuel, vada!" Shen taunted.
"RAAGGHH!"
Samuel lunged with a heavy right hook, then another. Shen slipped past the first, deflected the second. Samuel managed to clip Shen's shoulder, but Shen absorbed it and flowed into counter-movement.
Combining his Wing Chun precision with Tai Chi's fluidity, Shen moved like a coiled serpent, redirecting Samuel's brute force against him.
Samuel's muscles gave him power, but they cost him speed. Shen now had the upper hand.
A chance slipped on Samuel, and Shen used the chain to lock onto his wrist.
Shen dashed forward, sliding underneath Samuel, wrapping the chain around his neck in a chokehold. Samuel struggled, trying to counter, but Shen was faster, weaving the chain tighter.
In one fluid motion, Shen jumped onto Samuel's right knee, launched upward, and delivered a devastating blow to the face. Samuel collapsed, beaten.
Shen exhaled, about to catch his breath.
Sirens wailed. Police trucks screeched to a halt at the dock, and a convoy of FBI vehicles pulled in behind them. Armed officers poured out, guns drawn, surrounding Shen and Samuel.
Every gun was trained on Shen Goddem.
Samuel laughed, his voice cracked with triumph.
"Hahaha! The jinx is up, cousin. You've got nowhere to run and nowhere to hide. Admit your crime."
He thought he had won. But then, in sudden unison, the FBI agents turned their guns—not on Shen—but on Samuel Tucker.
"What the fuck are you doing?!" Samuel roared. "You should be pointing at him! Not me!"
Before he could rage further, his phone rang. He answered.
"Bhai… why did you offend him?" Jubic's trembling voice came through the line.
Samuel frowned.
"The fuck are you talking about?!"
"Bhai," Jubic stuttered, "we're surrounded by hundreds of men with bigger guns…"
Samuel snapped, confused.
"The fuck are you talking about, Jubic? You're in India! Why would I offend anyone in India?!"
But Jubic answered, voice breaking.
"Bhai… they said you offended someone you were never meant to offend. Not in this life, not if you were reborn a thousand times. You won't survive his might…"
"WHO THE FUCK DID I OFFEND, YOU IDIOT?!" Samuel roared.
Jubic whispered the words that shattered him.
"Bhai… you offended someone called Lord Sovereign…"
Samuel froze.
"Who the fuck is this Lord Sovereign, huh? I'll find him myself and put my boot to his face!"
"Bhai…" Jubic's voice quivered, "he's standing right in front of you…"
Samuel's eyes widened. His head snapped up—and saw Shen Goddem lighting a rich brown cigar. Smoke curled from Shen's lips as he looked at Samuel with a smirk.
"What's wrong, Samuel? Cat got your tongue? Or maybe you just got caught in your own net."
The officers around them hesitated, lowering their guns, unsure of what was happening.
Shen strode forward, every step commanding silence. The police and FBI parted, forming a path as if instinctively yielding to him. He puffed another drag from his cigar before handing a pendrive to the commander.
"You see, cousin," Shen said coldly, "I knew exactly what the fuck you were doing."
He tapped the cigar.
"Before I took my place as chairman of the Tucker Group, I had my secretary investigate every single member of the family."
His eyes burned into Samuel's.
"And yours, Samuel… was drug trafficking."
Shen chuckled darkly, leaned in close, and whispered.
"Dei mavane, ni yare, huh? Some local small-time drug lord?"
He sneered, gripping the back of Samuel's neck.
"Bodoh punya chibai. I'm someone who left the Tucker family and built an empire of my own. I am Shen Goddem. Founder of BDG—Black Dragon Group. The Lord Sovereign of both society and the underworld."
Shen's hand tightened.
"If you want to live, you'd better behave like a good little dog with a bone. And if you so much as breathe my title or my real name to anyone… I'll put a bounty on your head across the underworld. Dead or alive. In the eyes of tgw Tucker family, I'm Shen Tucker."
Samuel went pale, trembling as the weight of his mistake sank in. He had offended someone no man could afford to.
"Good doggy."
Shen smirked, patting Samuel's shoulder before turning to leave. He paused mid-stride, glancing back one last time.
"Oh, and about how I found out about your smuggling to Mumbai… let's just say I've had experience in the drug game. This ain't my first rodeo, sissy Samuel."
The FBI stormed in, arresting Samuel and his lackeys. With hard evidence and witnesses, Samuel was sentenced to life in prison, plus twenty cane lashes across his back.
A week later, Hela Tucker received the news while sipping tea among the family. She scoffed at the report.
"Tch. I told him to use my methods. But this? Childish. A brawn with no brains."
Hana Tucker smirked from across the table. She had been right to call Shen Goddem back to restore the family.
"That's my boy…" Hana whispered to herself, relieved her son had risen to the challenge.
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Chapter 13 — End