Back in the living room Mr. Salvatore sat comfortably, accepting the tea with a pleasant smile.
"Thank you, Mr. Sinclair" he said, lifting the cup.
William sat across from him, eyes sharp despite his calm face.
The room was quiet. Salvatore took a sip, smiling and then another. He but the tea cup down with a 'THUD' his smile stiffening.
"…Where are they?"
William didn't answer immediately. His eyes flicked to Eleanor, who gave him a nod.
Salvatore noticed, and his face darkened. His cold smile stretched wider for a second—then disappeared completely.
"Search the house!" His men behind him moved immediately.
Heavy footsteps thundered through the house as they spread out, opening doors, pulling drawers, and knocking things aside without care.
"Hey—! What the hell are you doing?!"
Victor stumbled out from the hallway, his head still bandaged and shirt half-buttoned. He looked between them, confused and furious.
"What the hell?!"
No one answered him as they went tearing through the house. Eleanor stepped out slowly to stand behind her husband.
After several minutes, they came back shaking their heads.
Mr. Salvatore's jaw tightened. "Where are they?!"
His hand moved slowly to his waist, resting against the gun tucked beneath his coat, when police sirens echoed.
Salvatore's expression shifted again in annoyance. He glanced at William, his lips curling slightly.
"The Chairman will hear of this."
....
Too engrossed in their conversation, Little Roe and Azrael didn't seem to notice her presence.
She looked, and Luka offered her a smile, but she scowled.
He was the one who had the contract made! He was the one who helped him trick her!
Valerie took a deep breath to calm herself. Little Roe seemed to love Azrael's attention, but it was probably because he was like a new toy to him.
There was no way he could replace her. He took out a bottle of milk from his little backpack and, to her surprise, started drinking it.
Whenever Valerie was around, Little Roe would always insist on drinking milk in her lap, playing with her hair.
Little Roe took the bottle out from his mouth, frowned as if finding something amiss. Valerie was about to take him, but Azrael handed him his phone!
Once he was scrolling some cartoons on the loudspeaker, he didn't even notice Valerie was fuming at both of them.
Just then, Little Roe reached up unconsciously, looking for her hair.
She expected him to come to her, but he started playing absentmindedly with Azrael's coat button instead!
Valerie felt irritated and immediately snatched the phone. "He has no screen time today." She slapped his phone on the console.
Both of them stared at her. She quickly looked out of the car in embarrassment.
It was so childish! What is wrong with her!
After a while, Valerie felt a tug on her hair and turned to see Roe clutching her hair in his sleep, and a tiny smile spread on her face.
He must have dozed off after drinking milk. She took back his bottle and wiped his face when she felt hot breath fanning the side of her face.
She froze before angrily deciding to ignore him.
"Is this postpartum jealousy?" he whispered, his lips touching her ear. "I read physical intimacy helps."
Valerie shuddered and quickly turned to her side.
Roe's bottle. How could he—right now—say something like that? After everything that had just happened inside? The least he could have done was… be courteous to her family; instead, he was provoking them!
"Don't talk to me."
She turned her face away.
Azrael's gaze followed her, the corner of his lips twitching faintly.
He reached out, fingers brushing against a stray lock of her hair.
Valerie flinched instantly, yanking it back, twisting her body, pressing herself further into the corner near the door—as far from him as humanly possible.
In the front seat, Luka's eyes flicked to the rearview mirror, and he immediately put up the partition.
…What the hell was he even looking at?
His boss—Azrael Hawthorne. The same man who made CEOs sweat just by breathing the same air—was sitting there, watching his wife like this. He seemed almost… whipped.
Luka blinked fast, then forced himself to look back at the road.
Azrael leaned back slightly, gaze lingering on her profile.
"Now you are making me scared you're gonna smash my head through the window?" he teased.
No. She clenched her fists tightly. Her brother called her his toy because of him, and he's joking about her humiliation?
He tilted his head, chuckling. "If you had dodged from your end even a little, he could lose his eye or… were you aiming for his eye?"
She turned to him with a glare.
The smirk on his face deepened.
"Are you mad at me, sweetheart?"
She just scowled at him before turning away.
"Valerie."
Azrael's eyes darkened. His hand came up, cupping her chin, trying to turn her face toward him.
Valerie slapped it away.
'PTAK!'
The sharp sound echoed in the car like a gunshot.
Even Luka flinched, his hands tightening on the wheel.
Damn! Did boss… no, he wasn't the type to. Then… did Madam…?! Shit, it was bad!
Luka cursed under his breath. The air inside the car dropped.
He didn't hear anything after that.
Silence stretched, thick and suffocating, like it could be sliced with a knife.
Then Azrael's voice broke the tension. "I must have indulged too much?"
Valerie stared back, holding her breath.
He slowly grabbed her jaw, his hold tightening. His cold eyes had her rooted to her place.
"You're pretty, sweetheart," he said quietly, voice soft, controlled. "Just not pretty enough to make me cater to your handlers."
Valerie jerked his hand away, her head snapping toward him.
"…What?" Her brows drew together in disbelief.
She glanced at Roe sleeping in his lap. Then back at Azrael. "…What did you just say?"
In that moment, he looked like he was carved from stone. "Did you expect me to fall over myself, giggling, talking about the weather after they used my child to reel me in?"
The car slowed and stopped at a red light.
Valerie stared at him for a long beat, and something… clicked.
So that's what this was. That's what he'd been thinking the entire time.
She scoffed, turning sharply. Her hand reached for the door handle, ready to open the door and leave, when his hand shot out.
She jerked back, almost falling on him. "Let go!"
She tried to struggle. Gripping her arm, he yanked her back, pulling the door shut.
"Lock it," he coldly ordered through the partition, his eyes piercing into hers.
Luka froze for a fraction of a second, then pressed the button to lock all doors.
He didn't know about anything else, but one thing was for sure: Mrs. Hawthorne could go toe-to-toe with his boss when it came to her temper.
Valerie glared back at him before he let her go with a jerk.
She shot one quick look at the partition before casting a glance at her sleeping son. Her teary eyes met his burning ones. "I have never ever done anything wrong to you, but every time I have met you, it ended in one-sided hurt and humiliation for me. Today… you just had to swallow your pride for one hour and show them I was living with dignity, but you sat on your high horse like you were doing some charity! Do you have any idea how I lived after you slapped that check on my face?"
Her voice broke. "How can I be mad at Victor? He called me your toy because you treat me like one."