Day Fifty-Two…
~~*****~~
Nathan's expression turned grim when he heard that. Ethan was not supposed to be there. For goodness' sake, they were currently in the main headquarters of the Syphiruz Mafia.
As much as possible, Nathan didn't want his son to know that he was the leader of this organization. He couldn't let his son discover that he was the leader of a mafia group.
"Why are they here?" Nathan asked.
"They are looking for you." Chantha promptly responded.
Ethan's group was standing outside the gate. They were being confronted by the guards. The guards were blocking them, not allowing them to enter without consent from their Supreme Leader.
Realizing the seriousness of this matter, Nathan decided to cut the interrogation. He already heard enough. Nathan tossed a look at Jane for one last time before he left the white room.
If the effect of the truth serum wore off, Jane would fall asleep. And once she woke up. She wouldn't remember what she said to Nathan. That was the aftereffect of the truth serum.
Nathan was being escorted by Axel. They headed to the CCTV control room first to watch what was happening outside.
Nathan's expression darkened further when he saw Stephen, Aiden, and Black Rose a.k.a Cherry.
'Don't tell me they influenced my son to do this. How dare they?' Nathan gnashed his teeth. He knew that Stephen was hell-bent to protect Phantomflake.
He could no longer tolerate this. They shouldn't have involved Ethan. Because of this, Nathan became more furious. He was already stressed after the interrogation with Phantomflake. And now, another group was trying to intervene with his plan.
'Why do they want to protect a killer?' Nathan couldn't accept this.
But somewhere to the back of his mind, he was reminded that Phantomflake was indeed Shining Star… his old friend. She was under the influence of the truth serum, there was no way she could make up a story. And the surprising thing was all her words were similar to Abigail's words.
"Boss? What are we going to do? The guards are waiting for your instructions?" Chantha asked him again, snapping Nathan out of his deep thought.
Nathan took his time, just watching his son on the CCTV monitor. He could hear Ethan's voice as he bravely faced the guards.
"Bring me to my father, now! I know he is here!" Ethan said in his authoritative voice. He wasn't intimidated by the big guys with firearms.
"Children are off limits here. You should go home. You've mistaken. Your father is not here!" The guard was firm. He wouldn't let them pass through.
"You are lying! I tracked his location. And it led me here!" Ethan insisted.
Now Nathan figured out how his son was able to find this place. He miscalculated it. He had forgotten that his son was a genius who followed in his footsteps in hacking.
"Ethan, step back. Let me talk to him," Stephen finally intervened. Ethan was getting impatient, that's why he began talking to the guards impolitely.
"I'm your Boss' friend. Please call him. We are not here to create a scene or make trouble. We just want to talk to him." Stephen sounded so calm.
On the other hand, Aiden was trying to keep Cherry from causing trouble. If he was not holding her shoulders, Cherry would have punched those guards and attacked them. Just like Ethan, she was getting impatient. She wanted to see her sister Phantomflake as soon as possible.
After a while, Ethan turned to the CCTV camera and faced it. "Dad! I know you are here! Don't hide from me like a coward. I'm not going to leave here unless you show yourself up!"
Nathan could only sigh in defeat while rubbing his temples. Ethan inherited his stubbornness. He was indeed his son.
"I'm going out." Nathan declared, exhaling sharply.
Chantha and Axel could only bob their heads. But before he left, Nathan ordered something from Axel. Axel was utterly shocked when he received Nathan's command. He watched her back with complicated emotions in his eyes.
Chantha didn't hear Nathan's command so she was curious when she saw the look of surprise in Axel's eyes.
"What command did our Supreme Leader give you?" Chantha asked Axel expectantly.
Axel blinked his eyes several times before answering Chantha. "He wants me to draft a contract. It looks like our Supreme Leader decided to spare Phantomflake's life in the meantime."
"What? Oh no! For how long he will keep her alive? Three days? Five Days?" Chantha grabbed Axel's shoulders, shaking his body.
Axel shook his head. "For Forty Eight Days."
Chantha: "..."
And just like that, Chantha lost a bet against Phantomflake.
'Oh no! Looks like I'm in trouble!' Chantha bit her lower lip while putting on a pitiful face. She never had imagined that their Supreme Leader would suddenly spare Phantomflake's life. He had a great resentment toward her. What made him change his mind?
'Perhaps, it is related to Shining Star? They mentioned that name several times inside the White Room!'
On the other hand, Nathan finally headed out, showing himself to his son. Ethan had been throwing a tantrum.
"Why are you all here?" Nathan sounded so displeased when he confronted them.
"Dad!" Ethan ran in his direction. Upon reaching his spot, he hugged his legs and gazed up with a pleading look in his eyes. His mood changed entirely upon seeing his Dad.
"Dad, where is Miss Jane Frost? I wanna see her. Please." Ethan used a different strategy. He tried to use his charm to request something from his father.
Nathan frowned, darting his gaze back and forth between Ethan and his two friends. Aiden immediately hid behind Stephen's eyes since Nathan was giving them a deathly glare.
"Why do you want to see her? Did your Uncle ask you to do this?" Nathan asked Ethan.
But Ethan shook his head frantically. "No Dad. It's my own decision. Don't get mad at Uncle Stephen, Uncle Aiden, and Miss Cherry. I want to meet Miss Abi's good friend. I've heard that Miss Abi is very close to Miss Jane."
Ethan changed his approach. He was now cautious with the words he would utter since no one wanted to believe him.
"Where is Miss Jane, Dad? May I see her?" Ethan put on a puppy-eyed look as he begged him.
"Not now. She is currently resting. You will see her… next time."
Stephen, Cherry, and Aiden were caught off guard when they heard. Was he serious? Did he mean it?
"Promise, Dad? I'm going to see her?"
Nathan fell silent for a moment, feeling conflicted. He couldn't let his son get closer to the murderer of his mother. But he couldn't say no to Ethan.
After careful consideration, Nathan bobbed his head. He didn't want to think about it. He was already exhausted. He felt like every ounce of his energy was drained today.
'How could there be two Shining Star? I have to get to the bottom of this. I'll keep her alive and make use of her. But I will eliminate her if she is of no use to me.' Nathan didn't know if he made the right decision of sparing her life in the meantime. But there were things he needed to investigate first.
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