Chapter 2 Two

-- Hao --

The sterile scent of antiseptic filled the waiting area outside the emergency room. The weight in my chest felt heavier with every second that passed. I sat in the corner, silent, unmoving-barely breathing-as I waited for news.

Angela, her voice hoarse from crying, rushed forward the moment Klaus emerged. "Doctor," she called out, her hands trembling. "How's my daughter?"

Apart from Jazz's friends and my men, no one else was here with us.

Angela hadn't informed anyone from the Casanova Mansion. She was afraid that if they knew-her aging in-laws and Jazz's nanny Nana Pasita-something might happen to them from the sheer stress of it all.

Jaime didn't know either. He wasn't in Manila-off in Negros for the Smart City Project.

Not that it would have mattered. He never cared about his daughter.

She had called her brother, but Nakago was in Japan. It would take him at least four hours to arrive, though he had assured her that he was on his way. Stay strong, he had told her.

But how can a mother stay strong when her only daughter is at death's door?

I know she would trade places with Jazz in a heartbeat. Sell her soul to the devil if it meant keeping her alive.

I would, too.

"Klaus," I called out, my voice barely above a whisper.

I must've looked like hell-because I felt like hell.

"How is she?"

"She's stable," Klaus answered, his voice steady but tired. His lips curved into a small, reassuring smile, but I could see the exhaustion in his eyes. "But we'll keep her in the ICU for now. There's something I need to check first."

"I need to see her." I stepped forward, but Klaus blocked my path.

"Not now, Hao." His tone was firm. "We need to monitor her for twenty-four hours. If she remains stable, then you can see her. I've assigned my best people to watch over her-you have nothing to worry about."

I had no choice but to nod.

Klaus Freehely is one of the few people I trust.

I couldn't think straight right now. So Lantis took it upon himself to make the necessary arrangements. Jazz's friends refused to go home, so he secured a VIP suite for them to rest. It would be the same room where Jazz would be transferred once she left the ICU.

The door to the VIP room opened.

"Angel," Nakago's voice was steady as he stepped inside.

Angela turned to him, and the moment she saw her brother, the dam broke again. She rushed into his arms, sobbing uncontrollably.

"What did I do wrong, brother?" she choked out. "Did I raise her the wrong way?"

"Shhh," Nakago soothed her. "You did nothing wrong. You raised her the best you could."

His gaze swept across the room.

I sat in the corner, unmoving. I could hear him take a sharp breath.

He knew.

He knew that the demons in my head were awake again. Lurking. Waiting.

I had kept them quiet for the past two years-for Jazz. But tonight, they were screaming.

Nakago guided his sister to a vacant bed. "Get some sleep," he urged.

She shook her head.

Jazz's friends were already asleep on the sofa bed, exhaustion finally catching up to them.

"Angel-" Nakago started, but the door opened again.

Klaus.

I immediately stood up, ready to question him, but his sharp gaze was locked on Nakago.

"Teacher, I heard you arrived," Klaus greeted, bowing slightly out of respect. "There's something I need your second opinion on."

My stomach twisted.

"About what?" I demanded.

Klaus hesitated. For a second, I saw uncertainty flicker in his eyes. Then, without another word, he made a small hand gesture-a discreet sign that Nakago had taught only a few of his students.

Nakago's expression darkened.

"Stay here. I'll be back soon," he told Angela. Then he turned to me. "Stay put, Hao."

I clenched my fists but didn't move.

I wanted to follow them. I needed to know what was so urgent that Klaus required Nakago's second opinion. The secrecy, the tension-it made my blood run cold.

Minutes passed. Then an hour.

They hadn't returned.

And my mind was unraveling.

'WE'RE GOING TO LOSE HER!!!'

'I TOLD YOU TO LOCK HER UP!!!'

'WE SHOULD CHAIN HER SO SHE CAN NEVER LEAVE US AGAIN!!!'

The voice in my head was screaming. I was barely holding onto my sanity.

The only thing keeping me from tearing this entire hospital apart was the fact that she was stable.

That she could still wake up.

Then, finally-

The door opened. Nakago stepped inside, nurses trailing behind him.

"Take their blood samples," he ordered.

"What's happening?" Lexi's voice, thick with sleep, rang from the other side of the room. She rubbed her eyes, confusion clear in her expression.

"Doctor?" Lantis called out, immediately stepping between the nurses and his sister.

Even Angela looked alarmed.

"Brother-?"

"Heroin was detected in Princess' system," Nakago stated. "It's what caused her cardiac arrest."

The room went deathly silent.

"Oji, we don't do that," Yui protested.

"Then you have nothing to worry about," Nakago replied in a cool tone.

It was against his duty as a doctor to order a drug test without consent.

But right now, he wasn't just a doctor.

He was a man willing to do anything to protect his family.

Lexi, Yui, and Simon didn't hesitate. They rolled up their sleeves, allowing the nurses to draw their blood.

Then I noticed it.

Vonn had gone pale.

My body moved before I could think.

"You bastard!!!" I snarled, my hand wrapping around his throat.

"Hao!" Lantis was on me in an instant, trying to pull me off.

Vonn gasped for air, clawing at my grip.

"AGH!" A sharp pain exploded in my neck as Nakago struck a nerve point. My grip loosened, and Vonn collapsed onto the floor, coughing violently.

I stumbled, but the moment I regained my balance, I lunged for him again-

"ENOUGH!" Nakago caught me in a chokehold, restraining me.

"Let go of me! I'm going to kill that bastard!" I fought against him, my blood roaring in my veins.

Lantis dragged Vonn away.

"Vonn... please tell me you didn't give her that," Angela's voice wavered.

"Tita... no... I swear, I would never do that to her," he gasped, still holding his throat. "I admit I've used before-but I would never give her that. I never even let her drink more than two glasses of alcohol."

"Menteur!!!" I roared. "I'M GOING TO FÙCKING KILL YOU!!!"

"I SAID ENOUGH!!!" Nakago's grip tightened, forcing me still.

He knew.

He knew that if he let me go, I wouldn't stop.

I would kill him.

Then-

"Doctor Freehely!"

A nurse burst into the room, eyes wide as she took in the chaos. Her voice shook as she uttered the words that changed everything.

"The patient is awake."