"You mean Tristan has already found Wendy’s channels abroad?" Eliza’s eyes lit up the moment she heard it. She hadn’t expected her eldest brother to be so capable. She and Nolan had been searching for so long without results, and yet Tristan had managed it in just a few days. "Of course the channels were found. Otherwise, how do you think you got those documents in your hands?" Halbert tapped the file Eliza was clutching. "Look closely. What’s this?" "...A file." "I mean keep turning the pages." At his urging, Eliza flipped further. Nolan’s gaze caught on one of the documents. He tapped it. "This one." "This?" Eliza leaned in. It was a photo from a banquet. The faces were blurred, deliberately concealed. Halbert explained, "A tabloid reporter managed to sneak in and capture this with a micro-camera. The banquet was top secret, no public access. Tristan had to pay heavily to buy this single shot off the man." "But with all the faces hidden, how am I supposed to know who these people are?" Eliza wanted names, identities. But the image gave her nothing. "The photo can’t be released. The reporter risked his life for it. Tristan didn’t press him further. Still, it’s clear enough—everyone there was one of Wendy’s members. They hold these private gatherings every few months in certain hotels. The parties are wild, and the focus is Wendy’s experimental drugs." Halbert tapped the banquet hall in the picture. "According to my investigation, this was held in the first-floor ballroom of an international hotel. The last event of this scale was three months ago. Which means the next one should be due. Check the hotel’s schedule. Only certain people could book that space." "Exactly," Eliza said quickly. "If we infiltrate, we can record everything. Once it’s exposed, Wendy won’t be able to survive abroad. Then we can drag her back to Westbrook and uncover the people behind her." "Unrealistic." Halbert shook his head. "Everything you just said is fantasy." "Why is it unrealistic?" "Wendy’s been committing crimes for years. Have you ever seen anyone take her down? No. That proves her influence abroad is beyond your imagination. Even if you record the whole thing and spread it online, as long as powerful people protect her, she’ll walk free." "So you’re saying everything we’ve done has been pointless? That we’ll never bring Wendy to justice, and we should stop dreaming about it?" "You already know the truth," Halbert said evenly. "I don’t need to spell it out. Nolan understands too. There are too many criminals in this circle who never face justice. Their backers are too strong. Wendy is no different." Eliza suddenly felt drained, as if her resolve had been knocked loose. For a moment, she questioned everything she had been holding onto. "Then why give me these files? Just to tell me it’s hopeless?" She stared at him. She knew Halbert had a plan. He was only waiting for her to ask. "It’s simple," he said. "Just one word." "Stop being cryptic. Which word?" "Violence." Halbert’s gaze was steady. "Wendy operates in the black market. Everything she does is in the shadows. If that’s the case, then we can use the same methods against her. She won’t dare call the police. She’ll have no choice but to fight back with her own strength—until she has no strength left." Listening to him, Eliza felt she was seeing him for the first time. It was a solution she had never considered. "But I don’t have any black market ties." "You don’t," Halbert said, his voice calm. "But the man beside you does."