Olivia said, "Maybe they're still at Villa 1 and just haven't shown up here yet?" Natalie thought a second, then nodded. "Could be." Those three little ones were weirdly stubborn. Nobody else could handle them like she could. Roderick might still be stuck at Villa 1, stomping around pissed off because of them. Cassian said, "Let's go back and check." Natalie answered, "Okay." Olivia squeezed Nadia's hand. "Don't freak out. We'll take the main road that way. Maybe we'll run into them along the way." Then she looked at Natalie and added, "I'll come with you. If Roderick and the others are in trouble, the more of us there are, the better. We can watch each other's backs." Harold and Ghania chimed in, "We're coming too." Natalie had wanted to tell them to stay at Villa 5 and stand guard. But she was reminded of those attackers who'd tossed explosives earlier. No one really knew what they wanted or if they'd come back. Leaving people at Villa 5 might be dangerous too. Better to stick together. So she nodded. "Let's go." They locked the gate and hurried toward Villa 1. They didn't notice that, just a few hundred yards behind them and hidden in the fog, a force of over 200 men was creeping toward them. If they'd left even a minute later, they would've walked right into Godfrey's main force. At that moment, Godfrey was in a foul mood.A few minutes earlier, when he'd stepped into the Hillside Villa District, he'd heard an explosion. It was unmistakable. That was one of their homemade pipe bombs, the kind that sputters and leaves a nasty little kick at the end. He blew up with anger right then. "Son of a bitch! Who the hell set that off early and ruined our timing?!" His first thought was that Lisa had sent someone to stir trouble. He kicked his right-hand man in the shin. "Didn't I tell you to keep the men watching in case that bitch sent someone to sabotage us?" The man answered miserably, "We were watching! When we checked, all of Lisa's people were still in the banquet hall, eating. The seating was counted—no one left." Godfrey barked, "Then what happened?" Then it clicked. "Check our men!" "Yes, sir!" The man spun and ordered, "Roll call by groups!" The count didn't take long. He came back with the result. "Boss, we're down two men." Godfrey's face went hard. "Which two idiots?!" Another man said, "Mark from Team Three, and Kennard from Team Five." Godfrey thought for a moment. The names didn't mean much to him. "Remember those names. When we get back, I want them dead." His right-hand man hesitated. "Boss ... maybe they just fell behind?" Godfrey's brows shot up. "Fell behind? Then who set off that bomb, huh? You?" The man waved his hands. "No, Boss—"Godfrey cut him off. "Don't guess. It was them. We're moving slowly—nobody just fell behind. Those two must've been bought by Lisa, slipped ahead, and stirred things up." He spat at the fog. "This damned fog! It makes us blind—you can't see a damn thing!" Then he barked another order. "When we catch those two traitors, make an example of them. Let's see who else dares sell out to that bitch!" "Boss, so what now ... ?" Godfrey growled, "Move faster!" "But the target's already spooked—" "So what if they're spooked? The fishes know we're coming—that doesn't mean they can get away! Move!" The group surged forward, a dark wave heading straight for Villa 1. Godfrey had planned to send scouts first, but since explosives had already gone off, there was no point—those inside were probably on alert. He decided to rush them, overwhelm them with numbers, and take the place by force. "Blow the gate!" "Yes, sir!" For safety, the explosives van had been kept at the back of the convoy to avoid accidents. After Godfrey ordered it, someone signaled the driver to bring it forward. Meanwhile, inside Villa 1, Natalie and the others had just finished searching every room. "Nothing downstairs!""Nothing upstairs either!" "Looks like they've already left." Nadia started to panic. "We didn't see Roderick on the way here, and now he's not in the villa either. Where could they be?" Natalie frowned and was about to answer when another deafening explosion ripped through the air. This blast was even stronger than the first. Natalie ran to the monitors. On the screen, outside the villa walls, a seething mass of shadowy figures had gathered. Their front gate was already bent and broken from the blast. The attackers had kept their distance to avoid the blast. With the thick fog warping the security cameras, their faces were impossible to make out.