The private VIP room reeks of expensive whiskey and suppressed tension. Jiang Heng's long fingers trace the condensation on his glass, but his piercing eyes remain fixed on the trembling man across the table - his sister's boyfriend, now reduced to stuttering fragments of information.

"You're certain?" Jiang's voice is low, dangerous as undertow, each syllable measured for maximum impact.

The man nods frantically. "She won't say for sure who the father is, but the timing... it matches that weekend in Macau when you—"

Jiang slams his glass down, amber liquid splashing across the table. In one fluid motion, he's on his feet, hand wrapped around the man's throat, pinning him against the wall. His biceps bulge against his tailored shirt as he applies pressure, watching with cold satisfaction as the man's face reddens.

"Where is she?"

"I-I don't know! She left the country!"

Jiang tightens his grip, leaning in so their faces are centimeters apart. His breath is hot against the man's ear, voice a venomous whisper: "Find her. Before I decide your sister deserves to raise this child alone... with your dead body as the first lesson in consequences."

He releases the man with a violent shove, straightening his cufflinks as if nothing happened. His phone is in his hand before the door closes behind his whimpering subordinate.

"Track her down," he growls into the receiver, already moving toward the exit. "I want eyes on my woman and my child by sunrise."

The ocean doesn't ask permission to claim what belongs to it. And Jiang Heng? He's just realized he's been starving for something worth drowning in.