Lawless – Episode 15&16

RECKLESS 2

Lawless – Episode 15&16

→ Chain•Of•Obsession ←

[Book 2 in The Untamed Duet]

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No part of this publication may be reproduced, copied, or reposted in any form, or by any means without a BOLDLY written permission from ME.

Copyright © 2026

Naomi Cindy B.

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★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★

Bend or Die.

That has always been the normal choices for normal humans, but Thiago didn’t expect a loophole…

A Twist.

Cos she twisted, and her laughter filled the room, so spooky it nearly took form as it spilled out of her throat darkly, creepily.

She stopped screaming, stopped yelling, stopped panicking. Her eyes got colder than the polar region, and his face dipped as he watched his woman who now looks psychotic.

“How stupid would you be, Cove Fabio? How stupid? You really think I’m still the clueless, senseless, stupid silly innocent bîtch you met six years ago? No, bastard. I always put plans in place before moving. Plan A, Plan B, Plan C. Even if C fails there’ll still be a plan D to Z!” She barked.

Thiago’s features dipped again, causing his lips to tilt.

But the tilt turned sharper when Stacy suddenly bared her teeth, revealing a cyanide pill in the middle of it.

It has been hidden there before she even got in the car to come here.

Thiago straightened.

“Stacy!” He yelled.

“Go on, push Louis out of that plane. Do it! Push him if you have the balls!! Kill him, and I’ll die right here too! Funny how you think killing my baby would make me want you…fûck you, I’m gonna live long with my baby, and if his life gets cut short, I’m gonna shorten my own life too!”

“Stacy spit out the fuckin’ pill!” He came closer, but she rolled it to her tongue, ready to burst it and swallow.

He froze.

“So what if you tried to abort the baby cos you knew about your family curse? I still don’t care cos you shouldn’t have put the baby in me angrily in the first place! I still remember that night at the cemetery house. You forcefully penetrated cos I sent a note to Jeremy, and as the idiot that I was, I forgave you after you went on your knees! Bare minimum branded as Luxury for my naive self, and you enjoyed watching me get deceived!” She laughed.

Thiago’s eyes stayed wide.

“That same day, my father was killed, and I didn’t even know. I spent my father’s deathday with you and you poisoned me. I disobeyed and went against him because I was stupidly and shamelessly in love with you! Where’s the love now? Gone with the fuckin wind! I wasn’t alone for the six months you left. I had my friends who’re like my sisters. I had Matteo who always visited cos Jeremy told him to do that. I had my parents spirits with me and they protected me. Now what? You arrive like a king of the jungle to do what exactly?”

“To kill my son and claim me like the retarded idiot that you are? Yeah, retarded! Your genius genes only works on computers and academics, not humans. Cos if your brain is working like a normal human brain, you should know no woman in her right senses would ever want anything to do with a monster like you who tried to kill her!!”

“I spent my nine months of pregnancy in the hospital, and I tried jumping off the ward window thrice cos I was tired of living. The hospital had to elevate my ward window to stop me from climbing. Imagine if my friends weren’t with me back then, I’d have died with my pregnancy, and you’d come back to claim my grave?”

“You promised to ruin me, and my stupid, stupid self thought it was a joke. Your half-sister warned me, dad warmed me, my friends warned me, but I was in loooveee. What an idiot I was.” She grinned. “Now that you’ve done as you promised—you’ve carried out your mission of ruining me, let me go!”

Thiago still isn’t saying anything. He just stood there, looking wordless as her sentences hit him.

Stacy looked at the TV again, then she slightly pressed her teeth on the pill.

“Stacy!!” He rushed forward.

“Calm down, and just push my son off that plane, then I’ll swallow this death, and I’ll follow him.” She smiled resentfully at him.

Then she lay back in bed, chains rattling as she turned her back on him, letting her anger simmer.

Thiago watched her for one more minute before storming out of the room. He picked out his phone to call his rogues, but their lines aren’t connecting at all.

He began trying it again.

—

[Monroeville Hospital]

Tania is still unconscious though she got moved to the ward since last night. According to Madame Morano, she’s gonna wake up today, but the time ain’t decided.

So the girls waited for her. They spent the night at the ward with her last night, excluding Stacy though.

Stacy went home last night and hasn’t returned. They thought she was taking care of Louis tantrums again, so they didn’t read meaning to it,but as the day broke, it got pretty serious, do Trinidad offered to go see how she’s doing at home.

She was about to exit when Remo and Frank return. The look on their faces says something is going on.

“What’s up?” Tasha asked behind.

“Y’all didn’t hear nothing?” Frank blinked.

“Stacy’s son was kidnapped from her house last night, and she went for his search on her own. Now she’s missing too.” Remo explained.

“What!” Kehlani and Tasha spranged up, and Trinidad gasped.

“Reid is working on it with the cops, and it’s kinda messy out there.” Frank added.

“The same Reid?” Kehlani asked.

Before Frank could give a response, Trinidad was already racing out of the ward. Kehlani followed m.

“Go on, we’ll stay here with Tania,” Remo told Tasha..

“Ain’t staying in,” Frank said.

“Whatever,” Remo raised his shoulders and entered the ward.

“You can’t leave her side, ok?” Tasha instructed.

“Why not get a note and lecture me? Get out.” Remo glared.

Tasha left with Frank.

Remo sat on the stool beside Tania’s bed, and he instantly reached for his cigar box in his suit pocket.

But he groaned immediately he brought it out, remembering he can’t smoke here and he can’t leave her side. Otherwise, he’d have stepped out to smoke.

“F+k, the hell am I even doing this? Just cos I wanna see the Champz fall? Remo, you’re sick.” He muttered.

“Why am I hearing your voice first after waking?” Tania muttered weakly from her bed.

Remo looked up, nodding when he saw her eyes are slightly open.

“Look who’s up,” he said.

Tania gave a tight-lipped smile.

—

[Estate Road]

Reid and the cops have been rallying around the area and beyond since last night, but there has been no clue nor lead pointing at Stacy’s whereabouts.

The road cameras didn’t even capture how she drove past. It’s like all of these have been pre-planned.

Reid’s hand was in his hair when the girls arrived, and when Trinidad got to him, he nodded.

“Any idea?”

“It’s obvious. Thiago. Who else?”

“Thiago? Isn’t he like…in jail?” Frank blinked once.

“Jail and Thiago? Are they compatible?” Reid said.

“I should have known he’d do this.” Trinidad muttered.

Kehlani came out of the car last, and Reid gave her a short stare which she returned before looking away.

“Jeremy Wolfe was pushed out of the plane to San Francisco, did you hear about it?” Reid asked.

“What!” Trinidad gasped.

“It’s him! Definitely!” Kehlani snapped her fingers.

“Of course it’s that devil. Jeremy shot him when he came to Stacy’s house. That was probably his revenge.” Tasha muttered.

“How sick can a human actually be?” Kehlani muttered.

“He’s not human, stop degrading humans by calling him human.” Reid corrected.

Kane’s car halted right beside that road, and he literally jumped down to meet Reid.

“Why the f+k is every old student of RIDE in the city?” Tasha muttered.

“Heard the news, had to come join.” Kane said.

“This is my case since it’s related to Stacy. You should go to work buddy.” Reid told him.

“No, I’m joining in. I can’t believe I used to adore that sociopath in uni.” Kane insisted.

“You know it’s him?” Reid said.

“Who else would pull this off this cleanly? I knew he was never in jail. I could just feel it.” Kane muttered.

“Jeremy’s body still haven’t been found!” A cop announced from the other side of the road.

“Let’s just try Jeremy’s line,” Reid said.

“He was pushed out of a plane, dude. Wherever he is, he’s dead.” Kane said.

“Still, try his line.” Reid said.

Since Trinidad has his line, she retrieved her phone.

—

[Private Hotel]

Madame Morano woke up to an empty hotel this morning.

Empty because there’s no Trevor.

The guards are the only people inside with her right now, and they’re all converged in the lounge as she sat and smoke silently.

Trevor’s room is empty, and she doesn’t look bothered.

In fact, last night he intentionally told the guards to lessen their tightness on the doors cos she knew he’d try to leave, and he indeed left.

“Smart move, son. Smart move.” She muttered, bringing a tobacco blunt to her lips to have a drag.

Straight to her brains.

A groan shot out of her throat, and her eyes rolled.

“I still don’t understand why you’d allow him to just leave, maam.” A guard asked cautiously.

“I can only deal with him if I have leverage on him, and I have leverage now. For now, let him do what he likes, then I strike when he thinks I’ve forgotten.” She grunted.

No more questions, cos the ringing of her phone took over.

She picked the phone which has ‘Japanese Mafia Baby Daddy’ on screen.

Seeing the caller, she dropped the phone, refusing to pick.

—

[Elmira’s Place]

Max has a cup of crunchy flakes and milk in front of him which he’s munching as he read the early LA news, and he kept grinning.

News of Jeremy’s fall from the plane is everywhere, and the kidnap of Stacy’s child from her house.

“Jeremy should have just stayed in prison. Looks like he came out to just die.” Max commented, mixing his flakes with his spoon.

“That’s right,” Elmira replied, descending the staircase with her phone in hand too.

“Girl, he’s your twin brother!” Max laughed loud.

“And?” Elmira scoffed. “You know I’ve always hated him. Right now, anything that’s not about our wedding or my appearance on Geng magazines, I’m not interested.”

“So who were you talking to last night when I called you? Who were you with?” He asked out of the blues.

“A friend, obviously.” Elmira shrugged, sitting beside him.

“A friend? Male friend?” Max faced her, seriously.

“What do you wanna hear?” Elmira scoffed. “I said a friend! When did you become a nose-poker?”

She took the cup of flakes from him and wanted to start eating, but he snatched it and threw it to the floor, wasting it before dragging her up by her blouse.

“I asked a question! Do not turn it around for me! Who were you with!”

Elmira picked a spoon from the table and shoved it into his arm, stabbing so deep he let her go with a cry as his blood spread on his singlet.

“You do not grab me like that! Even if I’m seeing another man, you shouldn’t have the guts to question me cos your dîvk is useless anyways! You should even be grateful that I’m not cancelling the wedding!”

She stepped back with a scoff, checking her buzzing phone…

It’s Dorian’s text…

Dorian: Same hotel, tonight.

She pocketed the phone and rushed upstairs excitedly, leaving him there.

“Bitch!” Max spat, picking a napkin to douse the blood pouring from his arm. “Bitch!!!” He screamed again.

He fell on the couch, groaning painfully, bleeding.

But despite his condition, he was still able to pick up his phone with the aim of going online, but then he saw he had a new undead text.

He clicked, and it turned out to be pictures of tits.

Text: You like my racks?

He let go of his bleeding arm immediately, forgetting the blood.

“Kehlani?” He muttered, zooming the titties. He grinned. “I knew she still had a thing for me! I knew it! Even my d+k became dead to Elmira cos of her! I just knew it!”

He was still chuckling as he typed an instant reply…

Max: I wanna have them in my mouth right now.

—

[No Sleep Garage]

Matteo slept over in the garage last night, and when he emerged from the garage bedroom with sleepy eyes, the look on the faces of his apprentices already notified him that something is wrong if not everything.

His sleepiness disappeared.

“What’s going on?”

“We didn’t wanna wake you, Boss.” The oldest responded.

“I asked what’s going on?” Matteo’s suspicious stare persisted.

“Your…son….”

“What happened to my son?”

“He fell off a plane, pushed by your former apprentice.” Anita said from the front of the shop.

She’s standing there, her red lipstick matching her red blouse. Neither shaking, nor blinking.

She held her purse to her side, lashes low as she stared at Matteo.

“What are you saying?” Matteo muttered in disbelief.

And Anita instantly tore into the room, throwing her purse at him. He dodged, and the purse hit the wall, but the moment he straightened, Anita hit him in the face.

All the apprentices rushed out.

“Anita!!” Matteo shouted.

“You brought that boy up. You nurtured him, and the first thing he did was pull off your son’s finger. Now he killed him? He pushed him off a plane and we all know it’s because of that Stacy girl. And you’ve been telling me what? Not to hate her? She’s the Genesis of this, and if she’s later found, she’ll die by my hands, then I’ll come back here to kill you too cos you’re useless!” She spat, pushing him back before turning.

She stormed out of the shop, dialling Zendaya’s dad.

“Yeah, Mr. Brown? We need to meet ASAP!” She was talking as she walked.

Matteo fell on a chair heavily, dabbing his face with his palm as if trying to reassure himself and process everything he just heard.

“Jeremy? Dead? Thiago? Back?”

He suddenly stood and rushed out after wearing different sizes of shoes on both feet.

—

[Roxy’s Art Skyscraper]

The exhibition will soon start, and the auction room is already so full down-floor, but Roxy is still at the top floor, admiring her art piece with a champagne glass in hand.

She even poured some of the champagne in the piece, but it didn’t wash off since the paper is waterproof, so it just flowed down.

She’s even feeling the aura of the painting as she stood in front of it. She’s about to make billions again.

“You’re a bad bî+ch, Roxy George.” She muttered, feeling herself to the edge. She laughed shortly.

“Bî+ch, it’s almost time!” Zendaya shouted, scrolling in savagely.

She picked a champagne glass too.

“Time to shake the world again and dominante the art globe!” Elmira shouted, following behind.

She picked the third glass, and they all clinked, their happiness so full.

Zendaya’s is because Max replied her titties pictures. He said he wanted to suck them, and she can’t wait for their first secret meeting.

Elmira’s is because Dorian texted her to meet again tonight. She’s finally gonna bag the Geng contract.

“You Champz are the absolute best!” Roxy grinned at them.

“Tania’s surgery? Stacy’s kidnap?” Elmira said.

“Can we talk about it after my exhibition? Not even that can ruin today for me!” Roxy said.

“Miss Roxy! The people from Macau are here!” A staff reported from the door, and Roxy dropped her champagne glass immediately.

“You should introduce us to him!” Zendaya said.

“No. He’s strictly secretive. No one in the auction room has seen his face before, not even me cos he always wears a fedora hat and he sits behind a curtain at the top. I’ll discuss Stacy’s elimination with him from the other side of the curtain, and I’m sure he’s gonna do something.” Roxy said.

She was already out of the room before age finished speaking.

“Do you think she’s gatekeeping him from us?” Elmira faced Zendaya.

“We’ll find out,” Zendaya replied as they exited.

Their phones buzzed, and they checked what the new info could be, then they exchanged glances.

OBSCURE has been relaunched by the original owner.

“Shelby X owns OBSCURE?” They chorused shockingly.

—

[Dorian’s Mansion]

“Dead? That criminal? Nah.” Dorian said with a scoff as he stuffed his mouth with smokes from a weed pipe in the living room.

He’s still reading about Jeremy’s fall from the plane, and he’s not believing shit till he sees a body at least.

But the cherry on top in all of these is that news is saying it was done by Thiago X, meaning that second bastard is in this city too.

Well it’s his lucky month.

He’s just gonna get two of them at the same time.

He can’t even go live without having a song in place for DIAMONDS, and he’s so damn irritated with everything right now.

He wants the son on his desk like yesterday.

“Did you hear about Stacy’s kidnap?” Angela asked behind him.

She’s just coming out of his bedroom where he fucked her like an animal some minutes ago.

“The thing is…” Dorian raised his pipe at her. “Thiago can have Stacy so far he agrees to be my ghostwriter with Jeremy. After all, I already have Elmira with me. But if he refuses to write for me, then I’ll go for it. It’s pretty simple, whore.” He shrugged.

He returned to his phone, but another news is already on the charts, and he grinned when he saw that. OBSCURE has been relaunched by the real owner…

Shelby X.

“That blind thing? How? The world is so strange.” He muttered.

Angela entered her own bedroom, picking her phone and pacing.

She was staring at the register containing the names of Dorian’s rape victims as his line rang.

But he ain’t picking.

—

[Washington DC, White House]

Kaylee had to hold back the engagement announcement when she heard the news of Stacy’s abduction at noon, and she had immediately deployed agents to LA in search, but even the agents aren’t seeing nothing.

It’s like Thiago entered the deep ground with her or something.

She’s restless in her office as she held the telephone to her ear, receiving the zero clue report from the agents. She slammed the telephone down angrily, and her handphone buzzed on the table.

It’s Mr. Brown.

“I do not have discussion time now, Mr. Brown.” She heaved.

“I know, but Stacy is in Vogue, and my daughter wants her elim—”

“I do not have the time for Vogue discussions right now! Go get some rest, Mr. Brown!” She dropped the call impatiently.

She rose as she called her secrets in, and her chin went up.

“Dial X Lab in Australia again. If she doesn’t pick, dial again and again and again and again!!” She yelled.

“Yes, Your Excellency.” The Secretary picked the telephone instantly, starting the repeat calls.

—

[Australia, X Lab]

The relaunching happened some hours ago after Shelby worked on adding more features to the app, and it’s the best decision she ever.

She’s blind, so there’s no way she’d open the app and read the world’s secret. Also, all users have the choice to put a password on their accounts.

The password data isn’t recorded in the X database, so even the robots won’t know passwords, talk more of revealing it to Shelby.

The app is like the safest anonymous to use right now, and the users even grew massively within those few hours. If there were 91 percent before, they’re now 95.

And the lab has been receiving collaboration proposals from all-over the world. There are thousands proposals which Shelby hasn’t opened, and she won’t open them. No one deserves her collaboration.

The OBSCURE news drowned out the human cryogenics, and her perfection wasn’t blemished.

She still remains the top 1 most successful woman in the world.

Not everyone can do that.

She could hear the celebrations and jubilations going on around the lab walls, and she just stood in her office, holding a glass of pineapple drink.

Pineapple was Nathan’s favorite fruit, and their strong genes made him pass that over to Shelby and Thiago.

Just that Shelby can’t eat it directly. She only takes the juice.

Thiago is the obsessed daredevil who can even eat an unpeeled pineapple. He gets obsessed with things same way she gets obsessed with humans, which is why she’s full of pity for the Stacy girl.

She knew it’d turn out this way, so she warned her severely with blood letters, and she never listened.

Now she heard she got kidnapped by his lunatic half-brother again.

Pity, pity.

Seems he won’t stop till he ruins her totally. It’s her luck.

And the craziest part? He’ll never let go once he sets his mind on it.

He has been fantasizing about her since Stacy was fourteen.

Surprised?

She was fourteen, and his daredevil half-brother was nineteen when he saw her for the first time.

Where he saw her at?

It’s a secret.

But she’s in trouble, isn’t she?

Big trouble.

Her phone rang behind her again for the fiftieth time, and she turned around as if she could see the phone.

Behind her, Mio stood. She has been silent all through.

“Kaylee is a persistent sinner, isn’t she?” Shelby sighed.

Mio brought the phone to Shelby, and she picked the call slowly.

“Finally decided to pick up?” Kaylee’s authoritative voice said.

“You’re gonna have to abort that authority from your voice if you’re gonna speak to me.” Shelby stated.

It took a while before Kaylee talked again, maybe after toning down the highness of her voice.

“I have lots of questions, but I’ll ask the most important one. Do you have any idea where your brother might be hiding right now in LA?”

“I had my lab in LA keep an eye on him. Of course I know where he is, but I won’t tell you.” Shelby said.

“Shelby!” Kaylee snapped.

“Told you not to talk too loud,” Shelby muttered and hung up.

Behind, Mio smiled lethally, liking Shelby more.

—

[San Francisco, MasterD Club]

Different sins goes down in the club only at night, and Jeremy counted himself lucky that he came at daytime. He escaped the noise.

It wasn’t hard to locate. He just followed Angela’s descriptions.

He stopped by the door first, taking in the whole place.

The club is silent except for the few bouncers around.

He wanted to insert his hands into the front tummy pocket of his pullover, but his hands met emptiness cos he’s not wearing a pullover anymore.

[Earlier This Morning]

Jeremy knew Thiago’s style is to do more than anyone expected.

He’s aware that Thiago loves making the silliest comebacks, so he has been cautious since the shot he gave him at Stacy’s mansion.

And he wasn’t wrong, cos immediately he got to the airport, he felt eyes—like he’s being watched.

He’s not a detective, but jail taught him so much about, and now he has imaginary eyes all-over his body.

He knows when he’s being watched.

A dumb motherfucker wouldn’t kill ten criminals in jail, would he?

He wore a nose mask, a face cap, a pullover and joggers to the airport, and the moment he felt the eyes on him, he switched to plan B.

He still has twenty minutes left before his flight to San Francisco, so he looked around for alternatives.

He found one in form of a man entering a washroom.

He entered the washroom too, and thankfully, his eyes measurement wasn’t bad.

The man has same body proportions as him, and since his clothes are expensive, the man didn’t argue when he told him to switch clothes and ticket with him.

Jeremy booked first class while the man had economy ticket, so he was overjoyed to take Jeremy’s ticket too.

He left the washroom dressed as Jeremy, and he entered the flight in place of Jeremy.

Jeremy waited in the washroom for the flight to take off, and that was when he came out.

Luckily for him, there were two flights to San Francisco, and he had booked two tickets for both flights, so he just entered the next flight…

To San Francisco.

[Present Time]

Jeremy smirked, sighing.

RIP to the poor man who died for him. Thiago’s two dogs must have thought he was the one they pushed off the plane.

Foolish rogues.

He walked to the main entry room where two heavy bouncers are stationed.

“I need to see the boss here,” Jeremy said straight to point.

“30 Grand.”

He pulled out an envelope of 30 Grand and pushed it into their hand, then he was allowed in.

“You’re Jeremy Wolfe.” The tall huge man said immediately his eyes met with Jeremy’s.

He looks like Schwarzenegger on the couch he sat on.

No one is in with him, and he’s not doing anything either.

He’s just staring keenly at him like he has been awaiting his coming.

“You look like you’ve been expecting me,” Jeremy sat without being told to, and the man scoffed.

“Angela called before you came here,”

“Same Angela Degraw?”

“Do you know another Angela?” The master deadpanned.

Jeremy went silent.

“I wasn’t the former MasterD of this club. I only just bought this club last year, so I’m the new master. I used to run a tattoo shop down the closed road.” The master continued.

“You’re the tattooist?” Jeremy’s brows clustered.

“Lucky you, isn’t it? You met two in one.” The master inched up. “I managed a tattoo shop back then, and Dorian came to draw tattoo on the day of his accident. He raped a girl till death, and I have the extra footage.” He said.

“What of the girl he raped here? Angela said there’s a living victim among his victims and she was raped here, and she’s still alive.” Jeremy said attentively.

“Like I said, I just took over this club last year, so I have no idea what happened before then, but….”

MasterD paused, giving Jeremy a meaningful look.

“What?” Jeremy muttered.

“I found an interesting piece of laptop key in the room where the raping happened that night,” MasterD whispered, bringing out the laptop key in a foil wrap.

“The room has been secret shut down since the rape happened there, so this laptop key belongs to whoever the victim was cos there’s no reason for Dorian to come to a club with a laptop. His victim was probably a computer addict,”

“A computer addict? And she’s currently in Los Angeles?” Jeremy’s eyes shadowed.

“Yes, cos Angela mentioned that Dorian said she smelled like citrus back then, and citrus perfume was popular in Los Angeles. She’s definitely someone from Los Angeles.” MasterD said.

He relaxed on his chair, giving the laptop key to Jeremy plus the footage of the rape at the tattoo shop.

“How much do I have to pay?” Jeremy asked calmly.

“Angela covered your 1.5M info bill even before you came. You can leave.” MasterD said.

Five minutes later, Jeremy stepped out of the club, getting his phone out.

He wanted to text Angela, but his phone began buzzing again.

It has been buzzing nonstop with calls and he understands.

They all probably don’t believe he’s dead in Los Angeles, and they’re trying their luck.

It’s an unknown line calling.

“Who’s this?” He picked.

“It’s Trinidad!” The voice came urgently.

“Trini? Are you ok?” Jeremy frowned.

“No. Not at all. I was so scared that you’re dead, and Stacy and Louis also got kidnapped yesterday so it was triple shock for us —”

“Rewind!” Jeremy snapped. “Who and who got kidnapped?”

“You heard me right. Thiago took Stacy and —”

Jeremy hung up.

He was in a taxi in the next minute, directing the driver to the airport for his flight back to Los Angeles.

He dialled his helpline.

“What is it this time, Jeremy?”

“The secret cameras I planted on the skyscrapers along the estate road, connect me to their feeds from yesterday!” Jeremy said.

“You got what you went to San Francisco for?” The helpline responded.

“Yes! I have it so connect me to the cameras I need to know where he took her to!” Jeremy snapped.

“How were you able to predict he’d do this to the point of planting cameras on skyscrapers?” The helpline asked.

“I shot him, and when he’s wounded, he plans with his blind anger, so he’s predictable to me to a point. Also, he said it that day that the next time they’d meet, Stacy would be the one to find him, so it was obvious. Connect me!” Jeremy snarled.

“Fine, coming right in!” The helpline said and went off.

The camera feed filled Jeremy’s feed immediately, and he watched with the speed at 2×

Before he arrived at the airport, he already saw what he wanted.

—

[Los Angeles, Baby Treatment]

It was 7 p.m.,

Scott sat alone at the table, surrounded by plates of untouched desserts that now felt like they’re mocking him.

The soft glow of the lights did nothing to warm the emptiness settling in his chest. He looks like a child left behind, forgotten in a place that wasn’t meant to feel this lonely.

Kane was the one so insistent yesterday, dragging him into this dinner plan, promising food, promising time together.

And now… nothing.

Just silence.

Scott glanced at his phone again.

7:02.

He’d been here since 6:30, which means it has been thirty-two minutes of waiting. Thirty-two minutes of watching the door, of lifting his head at every footstep, of hoping pathetically that the next second would be the one Kane walked in.

It wasn’t.

His thumb hovered for only a moment before dialing Kane’s number again.

Fifth dial, actually.

The call rang and and rang and rang.

No answer.

Scott swallowed hard, staring at the screen like he could force it to change.

Nothing. Not even a message. Not even an excuse from Kane.

A bitter unwelcomed thought slipped into his mind.

Was yesterday a lie?

Kane said he came back to LA for him… but if that were true, would really really leave him to be sitting here alone cluelessly like this?

Now he’s suddenly feeling like he doesn’t matter.

His chest tightened.

Slowly, he lowered the phone onto the table, then his hand curled into a fist, fingers digging into his palm until it hurt.

—

[Trinidad’s Place]

The house is maddeningly silent, as if no living thing exists within its walls.

Yet, something lingers—an unseen presence that refuses to be ignored.

Trinidad has been gone since last night with no sign of returning.

She likely has no idea there’s a visitor waiting for her inside.

The stillness deepened in an almost suffocating manner until the faint sound of footsteps broke it.

It was slow as it descended the staircase with soft, deliberate clicks.

A shadow appeared first, stretching beneath the glow of the chandeliers. It sharpens, and then, a moment later, its owner steps into the light.

Trevor.

As intimidating as ever.

His Italian heritage is more pronounced now, his features cut sharper, more defined.

The fitted black shirt and trousers clung to him, sculpting his biceps and triceps, giving him an effortless, commanding presence as he descended.

Halfway down, he stopped, and his steps fade into silence.

He stood there, still, his gaze sweeping the house as if measuring.

He has been here since he left the private hotel last night.

No doubt his hot-tempered mother will retaliate for his disobedience, but that thought barely touched him.

He doesn’t care.

He only wants to see her—his T-girl.

Consequences can wait.

At twenty-two, he is the brilliant heir to the Morano Empire in Italy.

The alliances his mother prides herself on? Many of them exist because of him.

Yet, she still treats him like a boy, like someone who needs to be guided, corrected, controlled.

That conversation… she’s not ready for it, but he is.

He has done enough for her.

Now, it’s time to carve something out for himself—to breathe in a different air, to belong somewhere beyond his mother’s eyes.

To feel Trinidad.

And so, he waited.

He’ll stay right here… until Trinidad returns

—

[Estate Road, 8PM]

Frank is still here with Tasha and the girls, Reid, Kane and cops.

Though, Kane and a good number of cops are on the third round of city search right now.

No one has left this road, and since Jeremy’s call went through with Trinidad, their hope got rekindled.

Jeremy said he’d handle it. Though, they have no idea how he’s gonna do that, they’re counting on him.

Tasha called Remo to ask about Tania’s health, and she moved further to talk to him.

Kane brought his phone out of his pocket, seeing Scott’s call.

His eyes widened.

The dinner date!

Kehlani’s eyes met with Reid’s, and they couldn’t look away.

Trinidad is tapping her boot on the floor impatiently.

Frank is speaking with his dad on phone too.

Everyone is caught up in one way or another, and that was when Jeremy’s car whizzed past on the tar.

Reid and Kane were the first to sight him, then Trinidad.

“Jeremy!!!!” They screamed, but he’s not stopping.

He was already far gone, so they packed themselves in their cars and followed him too.

They chased.

And Jeremy?

He’s not planning to stop.

He’s sure they’ve lost him, and his red lights are all flashing dangerously as he stepped on the gas completely.

He got on this drive immediately he landed back in LA, and he’s not touching the brakes till he arrives at the rendezvous.

His tyres were screaming under the rims, brakes sliding easily under his palms like his plaything.

He drove like a madman.

—

[Thiago’s Castle]

When Ten and Eleven arrived with Louis, Thiago already lost all patience. He was sitting like a time bomb in front of the room he chained Stacy in, and he’s chewing gum again, smoking together with it.

Louis isn’t talking, isn’t acting stubborn like his normal self, he’s just staring at them like a lifeless figurine. Seems the serum he was injected with is still in his system.

“Why were your phones unreachable?” Thiago talked, each word measured to come out with a certain amount of venom.

He’s not even looking at them.

“No idea, but the phones of everyone lacked network in the plane like something sucked network. Even the business class people.” Eleven explained, holding Louis’s wrist.

“We waited for your orders to push him, but we got none, so we returned.” Ten said.

“Take him to the other room,” Thiago stood, and they obeyed, dragging the little boy along.

Thiago calmly opened the door of Stacy’s room and stepped in.

She’s sitting up now, looking messy with the hair and rumpled clothes. Her eyes are slightly drowsy, but he could still see the protuberance of the cyanide pill on her cheek.

“Your son is back. Now spit out that tooth,” he stretched his palm forward to place below her chin.

She attached her teeth to that hand, giving him a hard bite which made him bleed.

His jaws grinded, but he said nothing, he only squeezed his face as the pain mixed with the pain coming from his bandaged arms.

His blood stained her teeth before she let go, and she snorted.

“Let me and my son go…”

“Go where?” He sat beside her again, cupping her chin with his fingers. “This is your home, and your son’s. You’re coming back to Australia with me.” He whispered, unlocking the chains from her body.

Stacy gulped, and the rogues rushed inside, both panting…

“There’s an intruder!” They reported fast, impatient.

“Intruder?” Thiago stood.

He followed them out of the room to the core room, and on the computers, they saw Jeremy driving into the castle in his car, and he’s not chilling at all. He looks like he’s gonna drive into the castle which he did.

He drove into the wall of the castle, crashing that side of the wall before getting down gallantly.

Cove led the way out of the room, and his rogues nearly followed, but he held them back.

He locked them in the core room and went out alone.

This confrontation is his.

Getting to the frontage, he met Jeremy just jumping out of his car in the middle of the walk wreckage.

Jeremy’s smirk was insidious, sinister than his normals.

He didn’t wait.

He began waltzing close, demeanor resembling death’s.

“You’d wish you didn’t come,” Thiago smiled creepily.

“And you’ll wish you didn’t kidnap her and her son!” Jeremy spat, going for him roughly.

Jeremy hit first, but Thiago was already moving.

The moment Jeremy lunged, Thiago twisted aside with a brutal pivot, his bandaged arm still strong enough to redirect the attack.

Jeremy’s fist grazed his jaw instead of breaking it, but Thiago retaliated instantly. His knee slammed hard into Jeremy’s ribs.

A dull crack.

Jeremy staggered back, breath hitching, but not for long.

He straightened slowly, eyes sharpening.

Learning.

Thiago came again, faster this time, swinging a vicious hook.

Jeremy barely ducked and grabbed Thiago’s wrist mid-swing.

He twisted the wrist sharply, forcing a grunt out of him.

Not enough.

Thiago drove his forehead forward.

It was brutal.

Jeremy’s vision flashed white as their skulls collided.

He stumbled, blood already trickling from his brow.

Thiago grinned. “You’re not walking outta here…”

Jeremy surged forward again, cutting him off with a savage body blow.

Then another.

Then another.

Each blow is calculated, mirroring Thiago’s earlier rhythm.

Jeremy’s photographic memory is starting to work.

Adaptation.

He learned Thiago’s earlier moved and used it against him.

Thiago noticed, and his grin faded.

Jeremy grabbed a broken chunk of stone from the collapsed wall and swung it hard.

Thiago raised his arm to block.

Bad choice.

The stone smashed against his already bandaged forearm. A raw, animalistic scream tore from him.

Jeremy didn’t pause.

He drove his shoulder into Thiago, ramming him into a cracked pillar.

Dust rained down around them as the structure groaned.

Thiago, breathing heavily now, reached behind and yanked loose a jagged metal rod from the debris.

He swung it.

Jeremy leaned back, but not enough.

The rod sliced across his side, and blood spilled instantly.

Jeremy hissed, stepping back, one hand pressing his wound.

Thiago advanced, eyes completely unhinged now.

“You bleed. Good.” He muttered.

He thrust the rod forward again, but this time, Jeremy caught it mid-air.

Both men froze for a split second, locked in a dead struggle, metal trembling between them.

Then Jeremy twisted hard.

The rod ripped from Thiago’s grip, and Jeremy reversed it instantly, driving the blunt end straight into Thiago’s stomach.

Once.

Twice.

Thrice.

Thiago coughed violently, dropping to one knee, but even then, he lashed out, sweeping Jeremy’s legs.

Jeremy crashed to the ground, and Thiago pounced.

They rolled across the rubble, fists flying, elbows cracking, bones slamming against stone.

Jeremy took a punch to the face from Thiago, then another one.

His lip split open, but then…

He saw it.

He saw the pattern.

Thiago’s injured arm.

Thiago’s hesitation.

The slight delay before he guarded that side.

Jeremy trapped that wounded part of Thiago’s arm and snapped it back.

A sickening pop echoed, and Thiago screamed louder, broken.

Jeremy slammed his head against the ground once.

Twice.

Three times—until the fight started draining out of Thiago.

Still, Thiago tried to rise.

Jeremy stood over him, chest heaving, blood soaking his shirt.

Thiago staggered to his feet one last time, swaying, eyes still burning with that same murderous insanity.

Jeremy didn’t rush.

He stepped forward slowly. Coldly.

Thiago swung weakly at him, but Jeremy sidestepped and drove his fist straight into Thiago’s throat.

Silence.

Thiago froze, eyes wide before his body gave out completely.

He collapsed hard onto the broken ground.

He went still.

Jeremy stood there for a moment, breathing like a storm, staring down at him.

“You should’ve stayed hidden,” he muttered.

Thiago didn’t get up again.

Jeremy looked up, and right there, stood Stacy with cold tears spilling over her face, and relief in her eyes.

Jeremy’s breaths turned shallower.

“I swear I wanted to stay away from your business like you said, but I was afraid he’d do something to your…

That was all he could say before Stacy moved from where she stood.

She walked over Thiago’s body on the ground before she got to Jeremy, throwing herself into his arms in a glad hug which made Jeremy gasp.

At first, he was dumbfounded, but that only lasted a second before it shook off…

Slowly, his arms took her too, hugging her back protectively.

TBC.