CHAPTER 71: BLOOD DOESN’T LIE

Edmund turned his head toward Silas, eyes narrowing with interest.

"I know the three of you went to Bianca for a date and punished the rat. But I did not know you went fishing too."

Silas let out a low laugh as he loosened his tie. "Just say fate dragged us right into the middle of it. We were not planning anything, but trouble has a talent for finding us."

The Leopard rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "I see. Then the information was right after all. Diablo must truly believe Vincent is important to her plan."

His voice dropped. "Did you find him?"

Silas shook his head. "Not yet. The bastard is fast, and the part of town where we cornered them barely has working CCTV. A perfect rat hole."

"But I am certain he already slipped into our territory. I will track him."

"Good." Edmund leaned back, smoke curling from his lips.

"I want him alive. It will satisfy me to watch that Devil choke when he realizes he lost the important chunk for his plan."

A sudden rattle of metal echoed sharply through the room. Both men turned their attention to the corner where the giant was coming to.

Victor groaned as pain surged through his skull, and he blinked rapidly, trying to regain focus.

Cold cuffs bit into his wrists when he tried to move. The room was dim and smelled like rust and piss, and as he lifted his head, his expression twisted with disgust when he recognized the silhouettes watching him.

"Gilded Leopard." Victor hissed. "Let me go or do you want to start a war?"

Edmund’s lips pulled into an amused smile. He lifted his cigar and dragged slowly, letting the silence itself become a blade.

"It has already started. Your brainless boss burned my Blackshore arenas. He is the one who raised the flag first."

"What?!"

Victor stared, eyes wide with genuine shock. He spat curses in Russian, voice shaking with rage.

Silas scoffed softly. "Seems he does not trust you either. Interesting. I wonder how your crew is still breathing at this point."

He turned toward Edmund. "Do we need to squeeze information out of him?"

Edmund held Victor’s gaze for a long moment. He knew this mountain of a man would rather die than talk.

Loyalty twisted into stupidity was a familiar sight. But information about Mikhail’s interest in Lucien mattered more than pride.

"I am not interested in Diablo’s business. Ask him about Lucien. He might know what his plan is." Edmund stood, brushed ash from his coat, and walked out without another glance.

Silas crouched in front of the bars and smiled like a man greeting an old friend. "Looks like we will be spending a lot of time together. Let us try to be civilized."

Victor barked a laugh and spit in his face. "I will never give you anything."

Silas wiped the spit slowly, smile intact, eyes glinting with quiet danger.

"We will see."

***

Vincent’s eyelids fluttered as a pounding ache rippled through his skull. His vision swam while he tried to steady his breathing.

The surface beneath him felt wrong. It was too soft and luxurious. When the low hum of an engine reached his ears, realization punched him hard. He was lying on the seat of a moving limousine.

"What the hell..." he muttered, pushing himself upright.

A voice floated across from him, calm and strange in its warmth. "Awake at last. You should have a sip of champagne. It might make your headache less painful."

Vincent’s eyes snapped to the opposite couch. An older man sat there with a beautiful woman straddling his lap, her perfume thick in the air.

He was holding a glass of champagne, fingers relaxed and confident. His hair was silver, combed neatly, and his eyes were sharp and icy blue. The same blue as Vincent’s.

Without hesitation, Vincent grabbed a bottle from the nearby table, smashed it against the side panel, and pointed the jagged edge toward the man.

"AAAAHHHHH!!!"

The woman screamed and stumbled away, scrambling to the corner of the car with tears streaming down her cheeks.

The old man hardly blinked. He simply smiled like he had been waiting for this exact reaction.

"Who are you? Why the hell did you kidnap me? What do you want?" Vincent shouted.

"Such manners. Did Bianca never teach you to speak politely to your elders?" The old man took another sip, lips curling.

"Ah, right. You are under Lucero now. Savages rarely raise gentlemen."

Vincent’s grip faltered as confusion clouded his expression. Elders? None of it made sense.

He never knew his biological father or a single relative from either side. His mother shut down any attempt to ask, refusing every question with cold silence.

All she ever told him was simple and firm.

"No way. My mother said all of her family and my father’s family are dead."

The old man’s laugh filled the limousine like a knife dragged against glass. "She hid everything. My foolish daughter. Always too sentimental."

He leaned forward slightly, eyes gleaming. "Let me introduce myself. I am Ulrich Karzen from the Abyssal."

Vincent froze. The name hit him like a punch to the ribs. The Abyssal was the most feared organization in Astrix before Lucero overtook them.

They were wiped out after a brutal war that left cities burning and families slaughtered.

"I am from Abyssal?" Vincent whispered, stunned.

Suddenly every memory of hatred and violence toward him crashed together. Every insult hurled at him as a child, every beating yelling that he was an enemy bastard.

The way his stepfather once broke a man’s jaw for spitting that same phrase. His mother must have been hiding his bloodline all along.

The broken bottle slipped from Vincent’s fingers and rolled away. His mind spun, blank and numb.

Ulrich stood with a slow, unhurried motion and reached into his coat. He pulled out a pistol and shot the woman without looking at her.

Her scream died instantly. Blood pooled across the white leather seats as the silence thickened.

Ulrich looked back at Vincent, still smiling softly. "I know this is sudden. But after hearing how you betrayed Lucero, I feel certain you are my grandson. You have the blood for ambition."

He tilted his head. "So tell me. What if I offer you the leadership of Abyssal in exchange for your cooperation?"

Vincent’s eyes widened. He heard rumors once. Abyssal was not just ruthless. They were monsters.

The whole country shook under their rule, while Lucero’s reign was almost peaceful by comparison.

He could not believe any of this. Not until now.