CHAPTER 79: DISASTER.

Without waiting for any further comments, Victoria stepped out of the car. Her tear-streaked face, once the picture of vulnerability, quickly morphed into a smug, knowing smirk as she shut the car door behind her with a soft thud.

She then began walking silently down the dimly lit street, her eyes trailing Jamaila from a distance like a predator observing its prey.

Those fools of brothers, she thought, rolling her eyes inwardly. They didn’t even have the guts to accompany me, claiming this street is too dangerous. Instead, they’d rather cower in the car like children. Cowards. A low chuckle escaped her lips.

She tightened her grip on her bag and kept walking, her footsteps soundless against the pavement.

"What exactly are you hoping to find out about Jamaila?" came a sudden whisper close to her ear.

Startled, Victoria flinched slightly but relaxed when she recognized the voice.

"Nothing much," she whispered back to Leo, her tone calm and unreadable. "Just trying to get to know her... and the kind of family she comes from."

She exhaled deeply as she crept a few steps further and crouched behind a parked car, her eyes now fixed on the gated compound just a short distance ahead. Jamaila had just walked through the gate of her house.

SLAP!

The sharp, echoing sound made Victoria jolt. Her gaze darted to the source. A middle-aged woman wearing a black hijab stood with a hand still raised midair, her face twisted with fury. Jamaila had collapsed to the floor from the force of the blow.

"When did you start being promiscuous?!" the woman bellowed, her voice cutting through the silence like a whip.

SLAP!

Another resounding smack followed, this time from a tall, stern-looking man....Jamaila’s father.

"Is this the kind of lifestyle you want to start living now? After all we’ve struggled for just to give you a better life?" the man roared, veins prominent in his neck. "You think because you attend a rich school, it’s time to start running after boys?"

"You’re wrong, Father. And you too, Mother," Jamaila choked out, her voice thick with tears as she knelt on the cold concrete floor. "I only came back late because I was involved in group study. That’s all."

"Oh really?" her father snapped, eyes blazing. "You think we’re fools?"

He pulled out a phone from his pocket and shoved the screen in her face.

From where Victoria crouched, she couldn’t see the image clearly, but she could guess.

"You left this house with your hijab on," he growled. "Yet in this picture, you’ve got your hair out, smiling like some attention-seeking city girl. Is that what you’ve become now?"

"Oops... they already know," Leo muttered beside Victoria, facepalming quietly. "What is she going to do now?"

"You think we’re completely stupid, don’t you?" Jamaila’s mother barked, stepping forward again. "You want us to believe that the same hijab you’re wearing now is what you left home in? Or has it been changed because you lost the other one while doing God knows what?!"

SLAP!

Another hard slap landed across Jamaila’s cheek, leaving a red imprint. She cried out but didn’t resist.

"I only removed my hijab briefly, Father," Jamaila sobbed, her voice shaking. "And that’s because Alpha Auren took it off me out of anger. I didn’t take it off willingly. Please believe me."

"How dare you slander Alpha Auren’s name like that!" her father thundered, voice rising with fury. "That boy is the reason you’re even in that school in the first place! He gave you that scholarship! Do you have any idea how hard your mother and I had to beg for it? Do you know the shame we endured just so you could have an opportunity? And this is how you repay us? You go to that school and start acting like them—spoiled, rebellious, and shameless?!"

"You’re not attending that school so you can turn out bad," he continued, his chest heaving with emotion. "You’re there to build a better life for yourself and for us—your family. Don’t ever forget that."

"Let’s take this inside," Jamaila’s mother interjected, her voice softer now but no less firm. She bent and helped her daughter up, brushing some dirt off her sleeve.

"We want you to succeed, Jamaila," her mother continued as they moved slowly toward the front door. "You know where you’re coming from. You know the life we’ve lived. You are our only daughter, and we want the best for you."

She paused, then added, "Even though those Alphas are spoiled brats, don’t ever cross their path. Don’t provoke them. Don’t associate with them unless it’s absolutely necessary. Do you understand? You lost your hijab once—it shouldn’t happen again. Stay away from trouble, please... for our sake."

With that, Jamaila’s parents led her inside. The door creaked shut behind them and locked with a soft click, leaving only silence in their wake.

Victoria remained crouched for a moment, blinking slowly as she absorbed what she had just witnessed. Then she stood up straight and exhaled deeply.

"Well... that was one hell of a drama," she muttered, her eyes still fixed on the house. "

"I didn’t know my little sister had such a deep interest in neighborhood gossip," came Callum’s voice from behind, startling Victoria so much that she nearly jumped out of her skin.

Leo, who had been invisible the entire time, also flinched.

Spinning around in surprise, Victoria found all three of her older brothers standing just a few feet behind her, each with his hands firmly placed on his waist—expressions ranging from exasperated to mildly amused.

"You actually left the car just to witness the drama between your dear friend and her parents?" Lucian asked, folding his arms across his chest as he let out a weary sigh.

"Are you done?" Theo added with a scoff. "Or do you still want to knock on their door and ask for an encore?"

Victoria narrowed her eyes at them, still trying to calm the frantic beating of her heart. "What are you three even doing here? Weren’t you supposed to be in the car?"

"You really thought we’d just sit there and let you walk down this sketchy street by yourself?" Theo raised an eyebrow and gave another scoff. "The moment you said you needed to pee, I knew something was up."

"This place is not only quiet, it’s crawling with thugs," Lucian added with a resigned sigh. He reached for her hand and held it firmly. "Let’s get out of here before we all end up in real trouble. You know how furious Mother and Father will be when they find out about this."

Victoria gave a small nod, both in agreement and in guilt. Without protest, she allowed Lucian and Theo to hold her hands, and together, the four siblings began walking back toward the car in silence—except for the invisible companion trailing beside her.

"I thought you were supposed to be my guardian angel," Victoria muttered under her breath, her tone sharp and teasing, directed at Leo. "Turns out you’re just a scaredy-cat."

Leo rolled his eyes, although only she could see the expression.

"I’m a wolf, girlie!" he snapped, his voice laced with wounded pride. "You saw me as a cat once, not was one. There’s a big difference!"

Victoria couldn’t help but laugh softly. She could feel the force of his irritation, but it only made her amusement worse.

But their banter came to a sudden halt the moment they reached the car.

They froze in shock.

The chauffeur—who had driven them there—was tied up on the ground, rope wrapped tightly around his torso, his mouth gagged with a piece of cloth. His eyes were wide and watery, panic written all over his bruised face.

The car... was a disaster.

The four tires were completely gone. The windows had been shattered. The front hood was open—revealing an empty engine compartment. Everything of value—rims, battery, even the leather interior—had been stripped during the short time they’d been away.

"What the hell happened here?" Theo was the first to break the stunned silence, his voice shaky. His brain seemed to have just rebooted after the shock.

"This is insane," Leo muttered, crossing his arms in disbelief. His voice was low but laced with sarcasm. "Now this is what you get when you chase after drama instead of staying in the car."

Callum immediately sprang into action, rushing to the chauffeur’s side. He bent down and began untying the ropes as quickly as he could, eventually helping the man back to his feet.

Lucian, on the other hand, looked like a volcano about to erupt.

"Explain what happened here," he growled, stepping forward with fury blazing in his eyes. "Now."

The chauffeur was trembling as he tried to speak, his voice shaky and broken between shallow breaths. His face was bruised, one eye swollen shut, and there was dried blood on his forehead.

"It... it was the thugs," he managed, tears beginning to spill freely down his cheeks. "They surrounded me the moment you all left to follow Miss Victoria. They beat me up so badly... oh heavens, they didn’t even say a word at first. Just attacked!"

Lucian’s jaw clenched so tight his neck strained visibly.

"Thugs? They dared to do this... to us?!" Callum exploded, his voice echoing down the darkened street. "To the Ashford?!"

He slammed his fist into the palm of his other hand, seething. "It seems they all have a death wish!"