Vesper's head felt so heavy as he returned to the room where Kalina was filing her nails. She noticed instantly that something was wrong with him. "Hey, are you okay?" She questioned. Vesper lowered himself to the bed. "I'm not. Nothing is okay." Kalina stood up and walked across to meet him. "Okay, what's the problem? Is your grandfather mad at you?" She placed her hands on her thighs. She had given him the idea of going to spend some time with the man, but obviously, it didn't go well. Vesper buried his face in his palms, trying to arrange the words in his head. Then, he let it all out. "I just overheard my grandfather and Lyra talking about his will."For the first three seconds, Kalina was blank, trying to process it. Then, it finally dawned on her. "What?" She flinched. "Are you...Are you being serious?" She scoffed and sat down on the bed next to Vesper. "So.... you're trying to say as old as Mr. Thatcher is, he doesn't have a will?" "Obviously." Vesper shrugged. It sounded strange, but it was probably the bitter truth. "I'm thinking, since my father was his only son, he didn't bother writing a will. But now that he's close to his demise and his grandchildren are all grown up, he dims it fit to share his wealth now." He uttered. It wasn't entirely making sense, but it was the best explanation he could grasp. Else, why else will he be talking about a will now? "This is crazy." Kalina shook her head. "But... does that mean, if your he happens to die without signing that will, then there'll be no separation of property at all?" Vesper shoot her a stare, reading the deeper meaning to her words. "Are you trying to say something else, Kalina?" He asked with a deadly tone. "What? Of course, not! I'm... I'm just trying to say how dangerous it will be if he passes on without getting to sign that will. You're not the only one who might take advantage of it, Nikolai or Finn might decide to take advantage as well. But, it's going to be really messy, tho. Someone strong and powerful can just chose to dominate the family." Vesper could still read the deeper meaning to her words. But he didn't want to think of it, never. Despite how true and tempting it sounded, he couldn't bring himself to think about getting rid of his grandfather. *** Adira and Nikolai eventually got home, and while she prepared breakfast, Nikolai waited in the living room. A movie was being played, but his attention was barely on the TV. He couldn't stop thinking about the scene from the grocery store. He loved how fierce Adira was and how she didn't allow Ophelia get to her. For some reasons, he was thankful Ophelia had gotten those injuries. She deserved a little pain. His phone rang beside him, and glancing at the screen, he discovered it was Na-ri. He wanted to ignore them t, but he's been avoiding her calls since he got there and figured she must be pretty upset already. So, he decided to give her a listening ear. "Nikolai?" She called immediately. "Goodness! Finally, you took my calls. O was beginning to think I'd done something despicable and was no longer worthy to be on the phone wit you." Nikolai gave her enough room to rant. When she was done, he asked grumpily. "What is it, Na-ri?" He heard her sigh and imagined her touching her forehead. "Where are you? I want to come see you.""You can't. I need some privacy." "Privacy? When you're with Adira?" She sucked in a long frustrating breath. "What is going on, Nik? It's been a week now since you left home. Do you seriously not care about my feelings? About the fact that I'll be hurt?" "Stop the emotional act. I don't like it." He stated matter-of-factly, hurting Na-ri even more. "I hope you've not forgotten that you have just two weeks to end whatever you have with Adira. You must not forget, Nik, we're destined to get married. Our families already have that agreement. So, you must never forget." She reached her limit with that. Her words sliced through Nikolai's frozen emotions, forcing him to remember the very thing he's been trying so hard to forget. "You really think I need my parents opinion to do what I want?" He spoke coldly. "I don't give two cents about what agreement exists between our families. If I decide not to marry you, Na-ri, I'll call off the engagement. And you of all people should know nothing can be done about it." He paused to give her enough time to stomach his words. "Don't call me again." He dropped the call and tossed the phone to the table, brushing his fingers into his hair. ****†****† Jared vacated his car and walked towards the house, his hands casually tucked into the pockets of his tailored brown trousers. His shirt was a sleek black turtle-neck, and the combination of the understated colors highlighted his sharp features and casted a subtle aura of coldness around him. He didn't want to be there. He hated being there. He opened the door and walked into the living room without knocking. There he found them all seated - waiting for him. His family, the family he wished he never had. "You're late." Jagger spoke roughly, seated on a long stool beside to the bar counter.The scar across his face was deeper now, giving him an even meaner look. Dropping his gaze to the floor, Jared walked over and took a seat across Lyra, and Yvonne. "A simple apology wouldn't hurt, you know?" Lyra blew out a frustrated breath. "Why? Did I keep you waiting as well? You in a hurry to go take care of your old man?" He snorted, crossing his leg on the other. "Are you being serious?" She scoffed. "I'm being with that old man all because of this family, and it means nothing to you?!" "That's enough." Jagger cut in, tired of their rants already. "I wouldn't want us to spend much time here. So, I'll go straight to the point." He looked at Jared. "First, I must congratulate you on the success of taking over Wyatt's company and handling it so well. I'm proud of you." "Not like I had a choice." Jared muttered under his breath. It wasn't loud enough for anyone to hear. Jagger continued. "Yvonne, I equally want to thank you for your hard work so far and being our informant for years. Though, we're not related by blood, you've proven to be deeply committed, and I must applaud you for that." Yvonne's cheeks flushed as she lowered her head in ecstasy. "It's nothing, sir. You're welcome." She cast a glance at Jared who wasn't looking her way. She didn't have any regrets working for them because her reward was right there in front of her - her dream man. "Lyra." Jagger called. "How is your own mission going? Is the will ready yet?" She shook her head. "Not yet, father. But he said it'll be ready in a few days. I just hope the lawyer is still under your control." "Of course. Mr. Larry will not be foolish enough to risk the lives of his family. He'll be writing exactly what we want. How's his eyesight? It's not getting any better, is it?""No. I make sure he takes the pills everyday to make it worst. I'm certain when he's looking at the will, he'll be unable to read what's written on it. But since he trusts his lawyer so much, he'll believe he must've written exactly what he instructed him to and sign the will." "Good. Good." Jagger bobbed with satisfaction. "This is the last thing we need to do to conclude our final victory. And we must make sure nothing interrupts it. We can't afford to fail this mission, because it's our biggest so far." Lyra smiled. "Of course, dad. I'll never disappoint." Jagger watched with dissatisfaction as they talked about the plan. He knew he was a bad man, he's done harmful things to people. But the people before him were nowhere close to ever being good. He hated that he was a part of them. He hated that he shared their blood. If only he could, he'd wipe them from the surface of the earth.