The party had finally died down.
Music off. Lights dim.
The place that had been loud and chaotic an hour ago now felt oddly quiet.
The only people left were Liam, Ethan, Mark, Emma, Regina, Nathan… and me.
I was leaning against the wall, arms crossed, wondering how my life had somehow turned into a constant episode of R4 chaos.
Regina suddenly cleared her throat.
"Ethan," she said sweetly, tilting her head slightly. "I want to go home. Can you take me?"
Ethan didn't even blink.
"You should ask Mark."
Ouch.
Regina's smile twitched.
Before she could argue, Mark walked over, grabbed her wrist dramatically, and started pulling her toward the door.
"Come on, princess. I'll take you before you melt the floor with that attitude."
"Mark! Let go of me!" she protested as he dragged her along.
Liam watched them leave and rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
"Huh… I should learn that move."
Emma laughed softly.
"I'll teach you."
He nodded seriously, like this was an official training opportunity.
Nathan then tapped my shoulder.
"I'm heading out."
I smiled and nodded. "oh, have a great day. Goodnight."
He waved once and left.
And suddenly…
The room was quiet.
Too quiet.
I turned around.
Ethan was still there.
Standing near the door. Arms crossed.
Face blank as always, like someone had pressed the emotion off button.
"Sooo…" I stretched the word out. "When are you leaving?"
"Now."
I sighed dramatically.
"Great. Let's go."
He raised an eyebrow slightly.
"You can go with Jake."
I blinked.
Excuse me?
"If you don't want to take me then fine," I snapped. "I'll go on my own."
And before he could say anything else, I stormed out.
The night air hit me immediately.
Cold.
Very cold.
My clothes were still damp from earlier, and the wind cut right through them.
"Fantastic," I muttered, rubbing my arms while walking down the quiet street.
Streetlights flickered above.
The road was almost empty.
Just my footsteps echoing softly.
I had barely walked a few minutes when suddenly—
Something covered my nose and mouth.
A strong scent filled the air.
"What—"
My head spun instantly.
My legs felt heavy, like someone had turned gravity up.
The streetlights blurred.
I tried to move, but everything felt slow and distant.
Then darkness swallowed everything.
Not long after…
A motorcycle stopped nearby.
Ethan stepped off, his eyes scanning the street.
Then he noticed something strange.
A van.
Parked for only a moment.
Two men quickly lifting someone inside.
His eyes sharpened instantly.
"Hey!"
The men rushed and slammed the door.
The van drove off fast.
Ethan stared after it for half a second before pulling out his phone.
He dialed quickly while walking back to his motorcycle.
"Someone just took her," he said calmly.
But his voice had an edge now.
"I'm following."
The motorcycle engine roared to life.
Inside the van…
My eyes slowly opened.
My head felt fuzzy.
Like I had taken a very bad nap.
I blinked a few times and realized something unfortunate.
I was sitting between two men.
Great.
One of them wore a dark mask and sat stiff and straight, looking serious and silent like a professional bodyguard.
The other one…
Oh no.
The other guy had his finger halfway up his nose.
Digging around like he was searching for treasure.
I stared at him.
"Wow," I said slowly.
Both men looked at me.
"You kidnapped the wrong person."
The nose-picker froze.
The masked guy sighed quietly.
I sat up straighter.
"First of all," I continued, "this was a terrible choice."
Silence.
"I talk a lot."
The nose-picker looked worried.
"I complain even more."
The masked guy rubbed his temple.
"And I get extremely annoying when I'm bored."
The driver glanced nervously in the rearview mirror.
I kept going.
"Also, basic kidnapping etiquette usually includes snacks. Or water. Or at least not sitting next to someone mining for gold in their nose."
The nose-picker quickly pulled his hand away and looked embarrassed.
The driver groaned.
"Why is she talking so much?" he muttered.
"I don't know," the masked man replied quietly.
"I think she doesn't understand the situation."
I leaned forward slightly.
"No, I understand perfectly," I said brightly. "That's why I'm explaining why this is a bad idea for everyone involved."
The nose-picker looked like he might cry.
"Can she stop?" he whispered.
The masked man finally turned toward me.
"If you continue talking…" he said slowly, clearly losing patience.
"…our boss will deal with you personally."
I blinked.
"Boss?"
Well.
That sounded new.
And definitely not good.
The van slowed.
Then stopped.
I looked around through the small window, trying to figure out where we were—but honestly? It could've been anywhere.
Some abandoned place in the middle of nowhere.
Dark. Quiet. Suspicious.
"Finally," I muttered. "Did you guys get lost or something?"
The van door slid open.
Cold air rushed in.
"Out," the masked guy said.
Before I could even move properly, they grabbed my arms and dragged me out.
"Hey! I can walk!" I protested. "You know, normal human behavior?"
They ignored me.
Typical.
We walked into some dim warehouse-looking place.
Metal walls. Concrete floor.
The kind of place where absolutely nothing good happens.
Then I saw it.
A cage.
A literal metal cage. Big enough for ten people.
"Oh come on," I said. "You guys couldn't at least upgrade to a room?"
They opened the cage door and practically threw me inside.
I hit the ground with a painful thud.
"Ow!" I groaned, grabbing my arm. "Okay wow—rude!"
The cage door slammed shut with a loud CLANG.
I slowly pushed myself up, wincing.
"That actually hurt," I complained, dusting myself off.
Then I grabbed the bars and glared at them.
"Alright. New question. Why am I here?"
Silence.
"Seriously," I continued. "This has to be some kind of mistake. Do you even know who my brother is? You should probably let me out before he finds out about this."
The nose-picker rolled his eyes.
"Keep your mouth shut."
"Wow," I said. "Such professionalism."
The masked guy stepped forward slightly.
"You must not Know right?"
My brows furrowed.
"What Must I know.....Not know whatever... what is it?"
He stepped aside.
My breathing slowed.
Then—
I saw someone standing in the shadows.
My eyes widened.
"Nathan…?"
My voice echoed in the room.
"You…?"
Nathan stepped forward slowly.
And then he smiled.
A wide, amused smirk.
"Are you surprised?"
"Of course I'm surprised!" I shot back, gripping the bars tighter. "You were just at the party!"
He chuckled softly and walked closer to the cage.
"You're probably wondering why you're here."
"Yes," I said flatly. "That would be the logical question."
Nathan tilted his head slightly.
"Your father," he began calmly, "is the man who destroyed my family."
I blinked.
"What?"
"He shot down our operations. Shut everything down. Sent my father to prison."
The words hung in the air.
I shook my head slowly.
"That doesn't make sense—"
"My father is out now," Nathan continued, ignoring me. "And he wants revenge."
My stomach tightened.
"Revenge… on who?"
Nathan's eyes darkened slightly.
"Those four boys."
I froze.
Jake.
Ethan.
Mark.
Liam.
"They're doing exactly what your father did," Nathan continued. "Taking down our systems. Ruining our operations."
My mind spun.
Then I blinked slowly.
"Wait… so… You're..."
I pointed at him. "You work for… your father?"
Nathan smirked.
"Yep."
"All this time...?"
Nathan Nodded
"Yes meeting you at the library was intentional just to get to know you... Gain your trust and then trap you" He smirked, "That turned out pretty well."
I frowned my face twisting in anger.
He stepped aside.
My eyes slowly followed his movement.
At the far end of the room was a large chair.
Almost like a throne.
A man sat there in the shadows.
He lifted his head slightly.
A slow smile spread across his face.
In his hand—
Was a photograph.
My photograph.
He studied it for a moment before looking directly at me.
"So," he said calmly.
"You're the key."
My chest tightened.
"Good," he continued, his smirk widening.
He leaned back in the chair, still holding my photo.
"Now those four boys…"
His eyes gleamed with satisfaction.
"…will finally understand what's coming."