Chapter 548 - Finally Declared War
"Yes!" Lance said firmly.
Although Marc was indeed his most valued grandson, who had received the most careful guidance and the most resources of the Kingstons, he wouldn"t hesitate to give Marc up if he was compelled by circ.u.mstances.
However, he couldn"t give Marc up in this situation!
Just as Marc said, if he handed him over to them now, everyone would think he was afraid of Edmund, and the Kingstons would become a laughing stock from now on!
The families who had close friendly ties to the Kingstons or were reliant on them would probably despise them from the bottom of their hearts and then turn their backs on them.
The series of terrible consequences that would be brought about by this was what Lance absolutely dreaded.
So in comparison, he would rather directly go to war with the Coles and other families because that would at least give him a 50% chance of changing the situation for the better. If the Kingstons ended up in the worst-case scenario, they could seek help from the Huttons.
He was certain that the Huttons would help them since this situation was resultant from the Kingstons helping them deal with Lucas!
The thought of it made the determination in Lance"s eyes intensify. "We can compensate Lucas Gray with five million dollars for the mistake my grandson unintentionally committed. I think this should be more than enough to offset the life of that countryside woman! If you"re still not satisfied, I can increase the price and make my grandson apologize to him too."
In his opinion, giving him a ma.s.sive sum of five million dollars in exchange for the death of an insignificant old woman was already an expression of the Kingstons" utmost sincerity.
Everyone knew that it was impossible to bring the dead back to life, so regardless of how big of a ruckus Lucas kicked up, it would be futile, as there was no way Karen could come back to life. Instead of forming a feud between the two families without standing to gain any benefit, he thought that it would be much better for Lucas to just leave with the money so that they could all be at peace.
Unfortunately, he was bound to be disappointed.
Lucas didn"t care about the five million dollars. Instead, he merely said sneeringly, "Are monetary compensation, an apology, and an insincere promise to ground your grandson for half a year the only solution you can come up with to solve this issue?
"I don"t accept it. Since you can"t show your sincerity, I"ll do it myself!"
Then Lucas stepped forward toward Marc.
At the same time, the man in black who had been standing behind Lance and didn"t have much of a presence silently stepped in front of Marc to s.h.i.+eld him.
Edmund"s heart skipped a beat, and he hurriedly held onto Lucas"s arm before persuading softly, "Lucas, don"t be impulsive! The Kingstons have many elite subordinates. You"ll definitely be at a loss if you charge forward rashly!"
Alexis also hurriedly chimed in, "Yes, Lucas, just listen to my grandfather! We won"t harm you!"
As a top family in San Francisco, the Coles naturally knew quite a lot about the Kingstons.
For example, the man in black with a scar on his face, who was now s.h.i.+elding Marc, was the Kingstons" most esteemed and competent powerhouse. He had impeccable martial arts, and even Edmund was intimidated by the bloodthirsty look in his eyes.
A thin man like Lucas wouldn"t be able to last a few rounds against this man in black with a scar on his face.
Moreover, the black-clothed bodyguards of the Kingstons were all staring intently. Once Lucas moved, they would definitely swarm forward together, putting Lucas in an extremely dangerous situation!
Seeing that Edmund had stopped Lucas, Lance couldn"t help having a tinge of smugness on his face. "Indeed, you still don"t know what the wisest decision to make is, huh? The five million I promised you is a ma.s.sive sum that many can"t get even after working hard for an entire lifetime!
"As far as I know, that mother-in-law of yours is just an uncouth and foolish woman who"s extremely mean-spirited. She was always hostile to you, so I reckon you don"t really care much about her. Even though my grandson killed her, you don"t actually have to take revenge for her.
"Moreover, you"d be making a huge profit from the compensation I"m willing to give you. Haha!
"As for the apology, that"s no big deal. Marc, apologize to Mr. Gray!"
Lance was full of contempt for Lucas"s behavior, which he perceived as an act of standing up for his mother-in-law whom he didn"t care about. He thought that Lucas was just out to make him compensate for Karen"s death.
Before long, Marc apologized, "I"m sorry. I didn"t mean to hurt your mother-in-law."
His att.i.tude was extremely perfunctory, and just like Lance, he also felt that Lucas was just putting on an act for the sake of getting monetary compensation.
Lucas was furious yet amused by their arrogant att.i.tudes, which left a terrible impression on him.
"The Kingstons" sincerity is really "breathtaking". In that case, why don"t I just kill Marc Kingston now and then compensate you with five million dollars? This matter will then be settled. How does that sound?" Lucas mocked.
"Looks like you want to do this the hard way!" Lance stared at Lucas with a sullen expression. "That mother-in-law of yours was just an ignorant woman. How can she compare to my grandson?
"I"m willing to give you five million dollars in compensation only because of Mr. Cole. Don"t push your luck!
"How can my grandson"s life be comparable to a lowly woman"s?"
He bombarded Lucas with scoldings. But before Lucas even said anything, Edmund immediately flew into a rage.
"Lance Kingston, don"t go overboard! I"ve long said that Lucas is my life savior. Insulting him is tantamount to insulting me! Since you insist on protecting that grandson of yours, I hereby announce that the Coles are officially declaring war on the Kingstons!"
Alexis said without hesitation, "Yes, Grandpa!"
Then she took out her phone and made a few calls. "The Coles have officially declared war on the Kingstons. You must annihilate them regardless of what it takes!"
Although she was only in her twenties, she also carried the domineering aura unique to the Coles, just like her grandfather.
Lance didn"t expect Edmund to actually be so hot-tempered as to declare war on the Kingstons just because of his conflict with Lucas.
But since things had come to this point, he had long been mentally prepared to go to war with the Coles when he chose to protect his grandson. He gritted his teeth and said, "Sure, let"s go ahead then. Do you think the Kingstons are afraid of you? I hereby announce that the Kingstons are declaring war on the Coles too!"
"Yes!" The rest of the Kingstons immediately acknowledged and gave out instructions to get ready.
Tension immediately arose in the yard, and everyone was full of aggression.