Mr. Hyde admitted to it, though it did puzzle him: how did Zayn know? He might have been Hayley King’s inferior, but he had always managed to conceal his real identity. The secret was so airtight, not a single member of the Larson family had known about it—not even the late Connor Larson.Until now, when Zayn found out about it somehow. It really brought questions of whether Mr. Hyde had become a little sloppy in preventing little slip-ups.Zayn gave a drawn-out sigh. “I can’t believe you really are one of my mother’s people. Honestly, this is a bolt out of the blue. So… I guess my mom’s marriage into the Larson family was never innocent?”Mr. Hyde read Zayn’s expression and realized that the young man never found any evidence of his connection with the latter’s mother—he was merely accusing out of suspicion. Had Mr. Hyde clenched his teeth and denied Zayn’s allegation, the young man would probably discard his hunch altogether. Mr. Hyde’s admission basically sold himself out.“You
“Answer me, goddamn it!” Zayn snarled, enunciating every word as if his voice was a pounding hammer as he drilled his eyes through Mr. Hyde. Rage was starting to redden his face, and the bloody capillaries crawling at the periphery of his eyes were pulsating dangerously.Mr. Hyde could feel the inferno in the young man’s heart, roaring and threatening to burn everything around him like an active volcano close to eruption. As important a figure as he was, even Mr. Hyde felt fear burbling under his skin as he faced the threat of Zayn’s rage.Still, he answered through clenched teeth, “I don’t know—”That was all it took for Zayn to hurl a punch straight towards Mr. Hyde’s guts.The force was so strong that the poor older man thought he had been hit by a car. He was thrown back, flying through the air backwards in a downward arc, until finally, the floor mercilessly broke his fall.Mr. Hyde had always been good at taking hits, but Zayn’s attack was so crushing that a pained yelp esca
Mr. Hyde stopped himself.The uncanny silence enveloped the spacious gym eagerly at the void Mr. Hyde left behind. Everyone else had left; there were only the two of them.There was no trace of emotion on Zayn’s face. His eyelids shut quietly, his body motionless. He was as unmoving as a man fallen asleep; Mr. Hyde was standing right before him, and still he could not detect any kind of emotional turbulence from Zayn.Time stretched between them. Seconds turned to minutes, and yet Zayn remained in his odd suspension of motions. Had it not been his breathing, Mr. Hyde would have wondered if the man was already asleep.It was only when two faint trails of tears trickled from the corner of his eyes when the older man realized he had been awake. Opening his eyes, Zayn asked, “How… How is she doing now?”Mr. Hyde nodded. “She’s stripped off her freedom, I suppose, but she’s fine otherwise.”There was another drawn-out pause between them before Zayn spoke again. “Is she happy?”Mr. Hy
Prior to this sky-shattering revelation, Zayn would have never thought the truth would be something like this.Sicut In Caelum…Zayn could not help but to roll the name of his tongue once more. Right now, there was nothing he wanted more than to find this organization!He did exactly that, calling all information brokers he currently knew to ask about the organization. To his dismay though, nothing came up. No one knew a single thing about it—no inkling, nothing.It was as he had predicted, though. Lil Hyde would not have been so forthcoming in his answers if his search would be this easy. Besides, Zayn had a hunch that he was going to face this organization very soon in the future—if they managed to locate his mother, then they must already know about him.In fact, Sicut In Caelum might have already begun watching his every move and action. Everything might already be in their line of sight!And if he was being honest—God, the feeling of being watched was pissing him off.At th
“The chairman’s here. Perk up, all of you! If you manage to sweet-talk him, you’ll have it made for the rest of your years. You’d be the talk of the town with your name on everyone’s lips. You could be living the high life, do you understand?!” Peter spurred them on.The starlets’ eyes sparkled and their hearts raced with excitement. They were eager to throw themselves at Zayn and pull out all the tricks they had to win him over.Annabelle was one of them as well. Anxious and excited, she recalled Zayn’s face. She was one of the golden girls in show business who was not involved in any scandals. It did not mean she was uninterested in men or that she did not want someone to depend on. She had worked in the industry for years and knew how complicated it was. If not for her talent, she would have faced the casting couch countless times!Annabelle was well aware that this did not mean she could protect herself forever. When her popularity declined, there would be people waiting to take
Meanwhile, Peter and the rest were dumbstruck as they watched Zayn arrive in a cab. They could not, for the life of them, figure out why someone of his status would take a cab!Adam was stunned, completely befuddled by this, while Annabelle’s eyes glittered as her interest in Zayn had only grown.Glancing at the celebrities as he walked over, Zayn chuckled. “Mr. Kavinsky, was this many celebrities necessary for a meal? You aren’t trying to intimidate me, are you?”Peter seemed appalled by the suggestion, quickly shaking his head and saying, “I would never. Sir, you overestimate me. Would I dare try to intimidate you? I’m more concerned with being neglectful, so I gathered some artists here to keep you company.”He emphasized the word “company” with a knowing look, like his intentions were obvious.Zayn was a man. He knew that Peter was trying to curry favor with him. Once he thought about it, he chuckled. Such was society. Once he was deemed influential and prestigious, people wou
Peter had gone all-out for the evening. He had spent days preparing for the night’s dinner. He had chosen the best hotel with impeccable seats. The dishes also used exquisite ingredients ordered in advance with a famous chef hired to cook them. All of it was just in the hopes of leaving a good impression on Zayn.Since Peter suspected Zayn was possibly one of the Larsons, he was determined to get his support.Zayn was well aware of Peter’s plan and merely smiled, unfazed by it. He was actually quite happy to see so many celebrities. There were two renowned female performers that he had known of for a while. He had watched the movies they starred in and the songs they sang a few years ago.When he was living with the Carters, such people seemed unreachable to him, yet here they were fawning over him and dying to cling to him. It felt rather strange.“Here, sir, let me propose a toast to you!” Peter stood up with a wine glass.The ladies stood up to toast Zayn as well. He accepted i
The other female celebrities there, Annabelle included, got riled up, mentally cursing her for being a shameless b*tch.Wordlessly, Zayn responded with another faint smile. Seeing that, Amelia fidgeted, not knowing what his reaction meant.Right away, another starlet seized the chance. She picked up her glass and plopped herself on the seat next to Zayn, beaming at him. “Sir, here’s to health, success, and endless beautiful women around you. Cheers!”The starlet was a statuesque singer with the remarkable ability to belt out high notes. She was rather famous in the nation as well, having made some popular appearances on numerous talk shows recently. She was a little younger than Amelia and had a chaste look. She usually portrayed an innocent and guileless character on screen.Nonetheless, she was behaving quite aggressively and suggestively towards Zayn.As she walked over, Zayn had instantly picked up the scent of her fragrance. It tickled his heart when she was so close to him.