LOGINJaneI couldn’t stop touching Hudson’s face. His skin was cold and clammy, and every shallow breath he took rattled in his chest. I kept my fingers on his cheek because it was the only way I could be sure he was still here.“Stay with us.” I whispered. Behind me, Theo made a small broken sound. He was standing in the middle of the room with his arms wrapped around himself, staring at the dark stain on the concrete where he and Hudson had been lying. Hudson’s blood.Julius reached him before I could. He scooped Theo up against his chest and turned his face into his neck so he couldn’t see.“Don’t look, buddy. Look at me. I’ve got you.”“Is Hudson going to die?” Theo asked, his voice muffled and shaking.“No,” Julius said. His voice was rough, but it did not waver. “We’re taking him to the doctors right now.”I wanted to believe him so badly that I did.The head of security appeared in the doorway with a cut bleeding above his eyebrow and his weapon lowered. “Sir, the paramedics are
HudsonThe darkness had become familiar. I floated in and out of consciousness, each time surfacing to pain so severe it made me wish I could sink back under and never wake up.But I couldn't. Theo was still here. He was still curled against my side, his small hand gripping my bound ones like I was his lifeline. I was his lifeline. I was all he had.I didn't know how long we had been here anymore as the days had blurred together. The beatings had stopped, not because they were showing mercy, but because I think they realized I was too close to death to be useful for information anymore.My body was shutting down. I could feel it happening, piece by piece. My breathing was shallow and wet, each inhale sending sharp agony through my chest. Several ribs were definitely broken. Something inside me was bleeding. I could taste blood constantly now.The hunger had passed from painful to a distant, dull ache. My body had stopped demanding food. It was conserving what little energy I had lef
JuliusThe warehouse complex looked even more imposing up close. What had appeared on satellite imagery as a cluster of abandoned industrial buildings revealed itself as something far more organized and dangerous."Sir," My head of security whispered through the comm unit in my ear. "This isn't a simple operation. Look at the patterns. These are professionals."He was right. Through my night vision goggles, I could see guards moving with military precision, weapons held properly and communication devices visible. This wasn't some hastily assembled kidnapping crew. This was a coordinated operation."How many?" I asked quietly."At least eight on the perimeter. Probably more inside. Thermal shows multiple heat signatures in the main building, but we can't get a clear count."I looked back at the vehicles where Jane waited. She was staring at the warehouse, her face pale in the darkness, her hands clenched into fists. I had made her promise to stay with the backup team until we secured t
JuliusI hadn't slept in days. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw Theo's face and heard Hudson's broken voice promising to protect him. The coffee had stopped working hours ago, but I kept drinking it anyway, fueling myself on pure desperation and rage.My study had become a war room. Multiple screens displayed security footage, records, phone logs and satellite imagery. My team worked in shifts, but I never left. I couldn't. Every second that passed was another second my sons were out there, suffering."Mr. Armstrong." My head of security, appeared in the doorway at midnight His face was haggard, but there was something different in his eyes. "We have something."I was on my feet instantly. "What?""The messages on Hudson's phone. We traced the remote access back through seven different VPN layers. Whoever did this is good, but they made one mistake," He pulled up a screen showing a complex network map. "For exactly forty-seven seconds during one of the transmissions, the VPN co
Hudson I lost track of time somewhere between the third and fourth beating.The room they kept us in had no windows and no natural light. The only way I knew days were passing was by counting the meals they brought Theo. One meal a day, usually. Sometimes two if they were feeling generous.They never brought me anything.On what I thought was the second day, one of the masked men shoved a bowl of something that looked like soup and a piece of bread through the door. Theo scrambled for it immediately, his small hands shaking."Eat, buddy," I said from where I was slumped against the wall, every breath sending sharp pains through my broken ribs. "You need your strength."Theo ate half the soup, then brought the bowl over to me, his face determined. "You have to eat too. You're hurt worse than me.""I'm fine." I lied, my voice hoarse. "That's yours. You eat it all.""But Hudson—""Please, Theo." I forced myself to sit up straighter, ignoring the way my vision swam. "I need you to stay s
ClaireI sat in the small apartment I had secured months ago, watching the news coverage on my laptop with a glass of wine in my hand and satisfaction warming my chest.The Armstrong family was finally suffering the way they deserved.The news anchor's face was serious as she described the kidnapping. "Theodore Armstrong, son of billionaire Julius Armstrong, was taken from his home four days ago along with Hudson Armstrong, the victim's half-brother. Police are investigating Hudson's possible involvement in the abduction."I smiled, taking a sip of wine. Perfect. Everything was going exactly according to plan.My phone buzzed and it was a text from one of my inside men."Security team still chasing ghosts. PI found the IP trace but it dead-ends at the cafe like you planned. They have nothing."I typed back quickly. "Good. Keep me updated on any developments. I want to know the moment they find anything."I set the phone down and leaned back in my chair, looking around the modest apar
HudsonI straightened my tie in the bathroom mirror, checking my reflection with satisfaction. I was perfectly composed and there was not a strand of hair out of place. No one would ever know I had just spent the last twenty minutes balls-deep in my fiancée's best friend.Maribel emerged from the
JaneMy eyes locked with Julius’s and in that moment, I saw my own desperation reflected back at me.“Please,” I whispered, my hands sliding up his chest to frame his face. “Please make me forget. Just for a few minutes. Make me forget Hudson. Make me forget—” My voice cracked. “Make me forget eve
JaneJulius froze. For one terrible, endless moment, his lips were still against mine and his body was rigid with shock. I had made a mistake. A horrible and irreversible mistake. I was kissing my fiancé's father. The man who was supposed to become my father-in-law in less than twenty minutes. Wh
JaneJulius Armstrong's piercing grey gaze locked with mine, and I didn’t think it was possible, but the humiliation grew even worse. It wasn't enough that I had caught my fiancé fucking my best friend minutes before our wedding. It wasn't enough that Hudson had kept going, had mocked me and had







