My Milf Conqueror System novel Chapter 230

Chapter 230: The Morning Run

[Jake’s POV]

Superintendent Valerie Cho was a creature of habit.

According to the location data Nia had pulled from her phone, Cho ran exactly five miles every morning at 5:30 AM, following a paved trail around the Guia Hill Municipal Park.

It was 5:15 AM when I got there.

The air was cool. It had that early-morning bite to it. The kind that goes straight to your lungs. Mist hung low between the trees. It smelled like wet earth, leaves, and the faint tang of the sea drifting up from the harbor below.

The park was quiet.

No cars. No music. Just birds. A few of them, sharp and loud in the trees. Somewhere far off, a dog barked once and stopped.

I was sitting on a wooden bench near the two-mile mark. The wood was damp. Cold seeped through my track pants immediately. I wore a dark jacket, running pants, and cheap sneakers. I blended in with the handful of early-morning joggers already on the trail. Old men. A woman with headphones. All of them breathing steam into the cold air.

My breath came out in small clouds.

At 5:42 AM, Cho appeared around the bend.

I heard her before I saw her. The steady rhythm of running shoes on pavement. Slap. Slap. Slap. Measured.

She was running at a punishing pace. Her breathing was controlled. In through the nose, out through the mouth. Her eyes were focused straight ahead, not looking at anything.

She wore a dark gray athletic top and black leggings. Sweat was already darkening the fabric at her back. Her hair was pulled back into a tight ponytail. No jewelry. No phone in her hand. Just a small running belt with a water bottle and pepper spray clipped to it.

The morning light was gray. It filtered through the trees in thin shafts. It caught on the sweat at her temples.

As she approached the bench, I stood up and stepped onto the path, blocking her route.

Cho didn’t panic.

Her police training kicked in instantly. She slowed to a halt in two steps. Her stance shifted. Feet shoulder-width. Knees bent. Weight balanced. Her eyes swept over me. Up and down. Assessing. Calculating threat.

The only sound was her breathing. And mine.

"The park is open, but the path is narrow," Cho said. Her voice was calm and authoritative. No strain from the run. "Step aside."

The air between us was cold. I could see it move when she talked.

"Good morning, Superintendent," I said, keeping my hands visible and relaxed at my sides. "I need five minutes of your time."

Her eyes narrowed. She didn’t recognize me from the gala. The suit, the lighting, the persona were gone. But she recognized the tone. It wasn’t the tone of a civilian asking for directions.

"If you have a statement to make, you can make it at the precinct," Cho replied. Her hand drifted subtly toward the pepper spray clipped to her running belt. Her fingers didn’t touch it. Just hovered. "Move out of my way, or I will arrest you for obstructing an officer."

A bird called from above us. Loud.

"You don’t want to do that, Valerie," I said quietly.

Her name made her freeze for half a second.

"If you arrest me, the file on my phone gets automatically forwarded to the Macau Internal Affairs Division," I said. "And a secondary copy goes to the 14K Triad in Hong Kong."

Cho froze.

The mention of the 14K hit her like a physical blow. The color drained from her face. But she didn’t move. She maintained her defensive stance. Her breathing, which had been steady a moment ago, became shallow and rapid.

"I don’t know what you’re talking about," she said. Her voice was tight. Lower now.

I pulled my phone from my pocket. The screen was cold against my palm. I unlocked it and held it out so she could see.

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