For a long while, the room was wrapped in the uneasy rhythm of silence, everyone caught between disbelief and the strange weight of the Lewis siblings’ words.Jack lifted his head, his voice low but steady — the kind of voice that belonged to a man who had held something too long in the dark.“There’s more you don’t know,” he began. His eyes moved from Jackson to Andrew, then briefly to James before settling back on the floor. “My father… he has allies. Not just businessmen. Not politicians. Men in foreign suits. I saw them with my own eyes — Russians, Israelis, Chinese — meeting him behind closed doors, here in the capital. They came to our house like shadows, no press, no announcement. They weren’t here for the presidential elections. They weren’t here for trade. They came for one thing: you, Jackson.”The words hit like a crack of thunder.James bristled immediately, crossing his arms tight across his chest. “Convenient. You expect us to believe you suddenly grew a conscience and

The moment Celestine stepped into the house, the air hit her like a weight — heavy, strange, and charged. It wasn’t the same warmth she remembered from childhood, nor the quiet grief of an abandoned home. No, this was different. An energy that crawled beneath her skin as though the walls themselves had been holding their breath, waiting for her to return.The floor creaked beneath her steps as she moved through the narrow hallway, past dust-covered picture frames and furniture draped in white cloth. Every corner seemed to whisper of another life, one she had left behind too soon.Without fully thinking about it, her feet carried her to her old room. The door stuck slightly, the wood warped with age, but she pushed until it groaned open. The space inside was bare — the bed gone, shelves stripped, curtains ripped from the rod — yet the ghost of her presence lingered.Her gaze drifted to the far wall, to the old wooden trunk shoved into the corner. She recognized it instantly. Mr. Sulli

The dagger gleamed in the light of the chamber, its edge a mirror of cold intent. Tyler’s fingers hovered just above the hilt, trembling, his breath shallow as though the very air had turned poisonous. The mark etched into his forearm — the Replica’s brand pulsing faintly, like a heartbeat caught between obedience and rebellion.Victor watched him with expectant calm, now seated high on the chair which was specially meant for him—one that seemed to drink in the light. His voice was smooth and almost coaxing.“Take it. This is the moment, Tyler. The proof of your loyalty. One life, one act, and you belong to something greater than yourself.”The weight of the order hung in the room heavier than the stone walls. Tyler stared at the dagger, the reflection of his own pale face staring back at him from the polished steel. He thought of the faces Victor wanted erased — friends, brothers, people whose only crime was standing in the path of this empire of shadows.His hand closed into a fis

“I followed you,” Jack admitted, his voice low, careful, as though the walls themselves might betray him. “When you left Sky Tower. I know I shouldn’t have. I’m sorry. But something told me not to let you out of my sight.”Celestine’s lips parted, the diary still trembling in her hands. Her eyes darted past him to the shadows outside, suspicion and fear colliding in her chest. “Followed me? Why?”Jack’s gaze flicked to the window, then back to her. His voice tightened. “Because there’s a car parked outside. Been there since you came in here. Judging from how long it has been parked there waiting, I’m convinced they’re here for you.”The blood drained from Celestine’s face. Her hands gripped the edge of the diary so tightly her knuckles turned white. She moved quickly, pushing past Jack and peering through the cracked blinds. The moment her eyes landed on the sleek black car idling by the curb, her stomach dropped. Recognition struck her like lightning.Her whisper was a shiver. “That

James studied Samantha, his arms crossed, his gaze narrowing at her sudden boldness. “You expect us to take your word for that?”Samantha pushed off the doorframe with a shrug as she entered. “No. I expect you to use your head. If Jack wanted to hurt Celestine, don’t you think he’d have done it already instead of vanishing without a trace?”James stepped forward, his voice sharp. “Or maybe that’s exactly why he vanished. So no one could see it.”Samantha’s smile flickered, her eyes glinting with something unreadable. “You always were quick to judge, James. Maybe that’s why you never saw how close danger really was when it stood beside you.”“Enough!" Andrew immediately intervened. "We don’t have the luxury of fighting each other right now. Jack is gone. Celestine is missing. And Emily—” He turned to Jackson. “—Emily is suddenly back in the picture after months of silence. We need answers, not arguments.”Finally, Jackson exhaled. “You’re right. We need answers. And if Emily’s suddenly