The Grand Ballroom was a sea of expensive suits and judgmental eyes. The Grandfather sat on his dais, a predator in a tuxedo, waiting for the final blow.
"Ms. Mariano," he commanded, his voice echoing. "Authorize the transfer. Delete the Foundation. Now."
Jay-jay stood at the console. She looked at Keifer, who leaned against the wall with his arms crossed, a lethal smirk playing on his lips.
The Foundation isn't being deleted, Sir," Jay-jay said, her voice ringing out like a bell. "But your access to this building is."
She slammed the key. The massive 50-foot screen behind the Grandfather didn't show numbers. It showed a live feed of the Grandfather's private office, where David and Calix were seen throwing his secret files into a shredder, while Josh and Eman were live-streaming his illegal contracts to every news outlet in the UK.
"SECURITY!" the Grandfather screamed. "Get her away from that console!"
"The security is busy, Grandfather," Keifer said, walking slowly toward the stage. "They're currently being briefed by the Metropolitan Police on why their boss is about to be arrested."
Just then, the back doors of the ballroom burst open.
Felix led the charge. He was still wearing the tuxedo Seraphina had bought him, but he had ditched the tie and unbuttoned the shirt. Behind him came the rest of the boys, walking through the elite crowd of London billionaires like they owned the place.
"Section E is in the building!" Ci-N yelled, holding up a tablet that was displaying the Grandfather's falling stock prices in real-time.
The boys didn't stop until they reached the stage. The Grandfather tried to swing his cane at them, but Felix caught it mid-air with one hand, his eyes cold.
"Game over, Old Man," Felix growled, tossing the cane aside.
He turned to Jay-jay. The anger he had felt in the office days ago was gone, replaced by a devastatingly soft expression. Jay-jay stepped down from the dais, her legs trembling.
"Felix... I..."
Before she could finish, Ci-N lunged forward and pulled her into a crushing hug, sobbing loudly into her shoulder. "You're such a bad liar, Jay! We knew! We knew you were hurting!"
Then Eman, Josh, and David joined in, creating a massive huddle in the middle of the ballroom. They didn't care about the cameras or the billionaires watching in shock. They only cared about their Mutya.
"We saw the red dot, Jay," David whispered, his voice thick with emotion. "Keifer sent us the video of the rescue in Cavite. We're sorry we doubted you. We're sorry we let you carry that weight alone."
Jay-jay buried her face in Felix's chest, finally letting out the sobs she had held back for a year. "I thought I lost you guys. I thought I'd never see you smile again."
"You can't get rid of us that easily," Felix said, pulling back to look at her, his hands on her shoulders. "We're Section E. We're the trash that sticks together, remember?"
Keifer walked over, standing beside the huddle. He looked at the boys—the family he had almost destroyed because of his grandfather's shadow. He reached out and put a hand on Felix's shoulder.
"Thank you," Keifer said, his voice raw. "For coming to London. For reminding me who I am."
"Don't thank us yet, Boss," Josh grinned, wiping a tear. "You still owe us for the plane tickets. And I think I saw a very expensive buffet in the lobby that needs to be destroyed."
As the police entered the room to lead the Grandfather away in handcuffs, the old man looked at the group—the King, the Mutya, and the six boys from the Philippines.
"You've ruined everything!" the Grandfather spat. "The Watson name is nothing now!"
"The Watson name is just a name," Keifer said, watching as the doors closed on the old man forever. "But Section E... that's a legacy."
Jay-jay looked at her boys, then at Keifer, her heart finally feeling whole. The London cold didn't matter anymore. They had brought the heat of the Philippines with them.