Though he knew he was at a disadvantage, he wasn’t going to back down.Every breath hurt, and his body still felt fragile. He had only just been discharged from the hospital, still struggling to adjust to seeing with one eye, but there was no way he would let them hit him without fighting back.Backing down now would only make him an easy target later.Otis frowned, confusion threading through the pain.Nothing about him screamed “rich kid.” His clothes were plain, his hair unstyled, and he didn’t carry himself with any arrogance. He had no idea why they kept calling him that, especially when they were all stuck in the same miserable place. It made no sense, unless they needed a reason to pick on someone weaker than them.“Oh, you want to fight, little prince?” The first man, thick-set, with broad shoulders and smelling faintly of stale sweat, bellowed, his voice cutting through the small, oppressive space of the cell like a whip. His fist, aimed high, swung clumsily yet with bru

“They are not listening, Frank! Did you hear him? They’re treating Otis like some common street criminal!” Richard hissed, struggling against Frank’s grip as he was hauled away from Detective Agyei’s desk and toward the exit. “We should have stayed there! We should have demanded to see the sergeant! They can’t just cite some obscure subsection. We’re the ones who hold the power!”Frank didn’t reply immediately. He dragged Richard into a small, relatively deserted waiting area near the main door and slammed him against a cold, tiled wall.“Stop. Yelling.” Frank’s voice was a low, dangerous growl, completely devoid of the smooth legal polish he had used moments before.Frank had only been able to cite those specific law terms because he had initially studied law but didn’t end up finishing, having switched to pursue business instead. Law school had been his father’s dream, and immediately after his father died, Frank had changed course.When Richard tried to protest again, Frank didn'

Frank needed to know who this person was, and even though Harold was sitting across from him, his mind kept circling back to the same question. He kept wondering who Kyle had been with.No one came to mind, and even if Otis wanted to attack someone, he would not choose a person capable of taking down his entire family.Frank’s calm exterior hid the urgency building inside him. He needed the name, and he could not wait any longer.Harold took a slow sip of water before answering.“Frank, the identity of the third party is something you are not going to believe. It is the last person anyone would expect. I did not believe it myself until my contact sent the footage.”Frank did not move. His face, usually unreadable, twitched with impatience.“Enough theatrics, Harold. Show me. I need a name or at least a face.”Harold retrieved his phone, opened the encrypted file, and slid it across the table.A grainy security camera still appeared on the screen. Kyle was sprawled on the pavement, c

Inside the high-tech room where Tedmond was kept, the air was thick with the scent of sterile antiseptic and sweat.The rhythmic, urgent beeping of the monitor had been a constant assault on the ears, but now, a subtle change began to occur.The doctor, leaning over Tedmond with grim determination, wiped sweat from his brow.He had initiated a complex sequence of infusions and counter-agents, battling the synthetic compound ravaging Tedmond’s system. Nurses moved swiftly around him, following his clipped, precise orders.Then, the frantic rhythm on the monitor began to slow. The heart rate, though still elevated, found a more consistent pattern, and the flashing red light on the blood pressure indicator dimmed to a yellow caution. The critical, spine-chilling electronic shriek receded into a rapid but stable pulse.The doctor let out a long, silent exhalation, his shoulders slumping slightly in relief. He stepped back from the bedside, eyes glued to the display.“Thomas,” he said,

Kyle continued his panicked confession. “I owe him, Melody. He saved my life and likely got hurt doing it. But I don’t know where he lives, I don’t know his business. I have no idea where to even begin to find him to make sure he’s okay.”Melody stared at him, her cool detachment dissolving entirely. Her eyes widened, processing the severity of his admission. She was utterly stunned.“You—you didn’t tell me any of this!” Melody yelled, surging off the couch. “You let me believe this was just a simple, albeit violent, kidnapping attempt! You saw him get hurt, and you didn’t tell anyone?”Since her brother had been kidnapped, she had been working with a private investigator to find a way to take Otis to jail, but now she realized someone else was actively handling it without telling them. So far, that person had been using all the evidence of Otis’s crimes to ensure he would be detained, and it wouldn’t be long before Otis faced court.At first, she had thought that person was Tedmon