Day Sixty-Four…
~~*****~~
Joker brought Marco and Veronica to a secret hideout, provided by Vincent. Veronica started treating Marco's wound. She pitied him because he suffered a lot from the torture. But Veronica was clueless that Marco also received an order from Vincent and Helena to eliminate Abigail that day.
Marco didn't confess nor mention the couple. He made them believe that Veronica was the real mastermind. But in reality, Marco was just following Vincent's order.
Joker decided to call Vincent, informing him that he was done with his task. "This is the last time I'll comply with your request. I'm free from you now. I returned the favor."
"You became an enemy of the Syphiruz Mafia. Why don't you officially join our organization?" Vincent tried to recruit him.
"No, thanks," Joker promptly responded. Betraying Syphiruz was enough. He couldn't join another organization because this would add to his guilt.
Vincent just let out a soft chuckle. "Your former comrade will hunt you down. Are you not afraid?" He kept taunting him.
"I'll manage myself. It's my problem. Not yours. I just called you to inform you that I'm done with your task. Don't contact me anymore." Joker was firm with his decision.
Joker reminisced about the moment he encountered the leader of King Stallion Mafia. Joker fell in love during his mission in Country R. He was only twenty years old at that time. Though he hadn't seen his face, Vincent was the one who helped him save his woman.
Her life was put in danger because of Joker's mission. She was kidnapped by a notorious gang in Country R and Joker was cornered. That was the time Vincent came into the picture. He helped Joker survive and rescued his woman.
But the rescue mission didn't go as they planned. The woman got hurt but she survived. She found out that Joker was a member of a mafia group. Joker chose to stay away from her for her own safety. Vincent was the one who helped the woman live comfortably in Country R. That was Joker's request. He was still in love with her. But unfortunately, the woman had already married someone.
Vincent just let Joker do what he wanted. Besides, he was done using this man. He was even thinking if he should eliminate him. But thinking about the Syphiruz Mafia, he didn't feel the need to kill Joker. The Syphiruz Mafia would be the one to destroy him.
Vincent was good at manipulating people. He could turn a friend into a foe. He always used someone's weakness to take advantage of them. He could play them on his palm, making them do what he wanted.
When Joker hung up the phone, he immediately left the hideout. The chase would begin now. He could tell that Syphiruz Mafia would launch a manhunt against him. He knew he did something wrong but he didn't have the courage to surrender.
Meanwhile, Veronica was done tending to Marco's wound. Marco smiled at her because Veronica was surprisingly gentle toward him. She was taking care of him.
"Don't look at me like that. You are smiling like a fool," Veronica complained.
But Marco burst into a husky laugh. "I'm just grateful because you are safe."
Veronica was taken aback when she heard that. Marco almost died from the severe torture, but here he was, still thinking about her safety.
"I've decided. I will be joining hands with the King Stallion. I will destroy Syphiruz. I already gave up Nathan. He can never be mine…" Veronica looked down when she said those words. She felt a pang of pain deep inside her heart.
Marco, on the other hand, rejoiced because of Veronica's decision. She was finally letting go of Nathan. Unable to contain his happiness, he lifted her chin and sealed her lips with a deep passionate kiss. Veronica didn't resist. She even responded to him, matching the intensity of his kiss.
*****
[ At Vincent's Villa… ]
Helena's mood finally improved. She was back to her cheerful self. She even played with Mia while Vincent was talking to someone over the phone. She had no idea what was going on. When Vincent approached them, he motioned for her to follow him. He needed to talk to her.
"Mia, your Uncle is calling me. Can we continue our game later?" Helena asked Mia. She forced a smile. But little did Mia know, Helena was just pretending to be kind in front of her.
"Okay, Auntie. I'll wait for you and Uncle. Let's do swimming!" Mia said excitedly.
Helena just nodded her head, maintaining her fake smile. Soon, Helena followed Vincent to his room. She was having some naughty thoughts when they entered the room. However, Vincent seemed like he was not in the mood.
"What's wrong? You look serious," Helena asked him.
Vincent was unaware that he looked like that. In fact, he had been in this bad mood since he couldn't trace Jane at all. She was not even answering his call and now her phone was switched off.
"Nothing. There is something I want to tell you. Nathan captured Marco and Veronica." Vincent informed her.
Helena just raised her eyebrow when Veronica's name was mentioned. "So?"
"I helped them escape. They are staying in one of my hideouts here." Vincent was staring at Helena intently, assessing her reaction.
"Hmm, are you expecting me to give you a reward for saving that woman?" Helena sneered at him as she moved closer to him. Helena placed her hand against his chest."
But Vincent caught her hand. "No. I'm just telling you what happened today. Anyway, I'll be going out. Can you look after Mia on my behalf?"
"Where are you going?" Helena pouted her lips in disappointment. "Don't leave me alone here. I will be bored. I'm tired of playing with her," she complained.
Vincent was not in the mood to appease her. "Mia is my niece. She's important to me. Can you treat her well as if she is your own?"
Helena was stunned because Vincent talked to her like that. He was acting so cold and distant. She could tell that Vincent was not in a great mood. She wondered what triggered him today.
'Did I do something that offended him?' Helena mused to herself.
"Alright. I'm sorry. I will take good care of her. But please come home early. Okay?" Helena didn't want to anger Vincent. She knew the consequences if Vincent was mad.
"Thank you. I'm leaving now. You can visit Veronica if you want to." Vincent mumbled before giving her his credit card. He gave her money to spend while taking care of Mia.
He planned on tracing Jane, finding her current whereabouts. What if Helena did something to her already? He gave her authority to mobilize some of his men. This was also one of the reasons he was not in the mood.
"Okay. I'll visit her and be a 'good sister'," Helena said sarcastically.
Vincent just frowned at her last remarks. "Be careful. You can't trust her. She is obsessed and madly in love with Nathan." Vincent reminded her.
Helena just giggled and said, "I know. My– I mean Monica's crazy sister."
He stared at her for a moment. 'But I know the craziest one…'
It did not take long before Vincent stepped forward to leave. But Helena stopped him again.
"Are you just leaving without saying goodbye? Kiss me," Helena demanded. She wanted to make sure that she was not the reason why Vincent appeared to be grumpy today.
Vincent concealed his emotions as he grabbed her by the waist. He pulled her head and kissed her hungrily. He was rough as he claimed her lips in a savage conquest. When he drew back, Helena was already catching his breath.
"I'll be back," he plainly said before turning around to leave.
Upon leaving his villa, the first thing he did was check on Jane in the private villa bought by Nathan. That was the only place he knew.
*Twenty-five minutes later*
Vincent arrived at the villa. But there was no sign of Jane. The house was empty.
'Where did she go? How can she disappear right after attacking Helena?' Vincent couldn't figure out where Jane was hiding.
'There is only one way to find out. Nathan. I have to tail Nathan. She might be working under the Syphiruz Mafia now. And she might be staying in one of their headquarters.' Vincent started to speculate.
Vincent tried contacting Joker again. He would like to ask him whether he saw Phantomflake in the headquarters. However, Joker already blocked his number.
Vincent's expression darkened further because he could no longer contact Joker. "Well. I have no choice left. Black Rose is the closest person to Phantomflake. I should find her."
Vincent changed his tactic. Now, he was going after Black Rose. He was very determined to know what happened to Jane. He had a bad feeling about her sudden disappearance.
Vincent made a blunder today. He had forgotten that Nathan installed security devices in the vicinity of the villa. He was captured by one of the cameras. Nathan would eventually find out that Vincent dropped by his villa.
The source of this c𝐨ntent is freewe(b)nov𝒆l