Chapter 308: Eyes Opening
"Madam, it seems the news was delivered to a few of the guards in the main residence. Ten people received the message about the master’s collapse..."
Ashley listened to Betty’s voice through her earpiece as she worked on her laptop in the living room.
"Thanks, Betty," she replied after listening to the report.
Without waiting, she ended the call and listened to the other reports.
Khan had already reached out, telling her they had taken Lucian to a safe place. Meanwhile, Gustav was conducting his own investigation into who the assassins were and which group they came from.
She had also sent Lucian’s medical records to Raka, but he hadn’t responded. She could only hope he was already on it.
Now, Ashley was watching the underground movement and was supposed to go through all the documents Gustav had dropped off at her place — all of Lucian’s work and some papers he had yet to review.
"It’s only been the second night, but everything is piling up," she sighed heavily.
Since the beginning, everyone had been saying it was only a matter of time. But deep down, she was aware that time was not plentiful. From the movements in the underground, she could tell that some of the gangs and organizations that used to fight each other were calling a truce.
Others were breaking this truce. Probably because they were picking sides.
"Not to mention, Interpol is getting intel," she whispered.
Because right now, Ashley had managed to get inside Interpol’s servers. Based on what she found, Interpol had already caught wind of what was going on in Dominion.
"There are only two things they’d do," she whispered. "Catch Lucian and lock him up, and make sure Dominion would not be able to rise under another power."
No wonder the police had been seen at the school to get Julius.
Not just the criminals of the underground, but even those on the other side were racing.
Ashley drew a deep breath and glanced at her phone to check if Raka had sent a message. He had only just read it.
"Never mind that," she whispered to herself. "I..."
Her voice trailed off when the sound of a rotor suddenly reached her ears. She furrowed her brows and looked up. The sound was faint, but familiar.
Confused, Ashley tapped her laptop to temporarily shut it, then marched toward the front door. Just as she was about to peek through the peephole, the side door suddenly burst open.
"Madam!"
She looked back to see Nolan’s ashen face — eyes wide, breathing jagged, shoulders heaving.
As soon as she saw the horror on his face, Ashley’s expression darkened. "Nolan, what’s going on?"
"It’s Dominion, Madam," he breathed out. "It’s... Dominion."
The lines on Ashley’s face deepened as she moved to the window and slid the curtain aside. The first thing she saw was a chopper hovering over the neighborhood. Then, a light.
A bright light beaming down on one particular home in the neighborhood.
The one that stood out the most in the area.
Betty’s home.
Then, cars came racing down the street, all headed toward Betty’s house.
*****
Betty locked herself in the master’s bedroom, hurriedly closing the windows and curtains. Her mind went blank as her body took over.
"What’s going on?" she wondered to herself, edging close to the curtain to check. "Why..."
Her breath hitched as she caught sight of people approaching the house’s main gate. Her pupils dilated, her complexion turning ashen.
When she had moved in, Ashley had told her a few things — that in this neighborhood, this house stood out like a sore thumb. People would automatically assume that Lucian, Primo, and Ashley lived here.
"Are they here... for the young master and the madam?" Betty’s voice shook as she stepped away from the curtain.
Her entire body shivered as sweat dripped from her forehead. Her wide eyes darted across the room before she gulped.
Betty had no idea who these people were or how they had gotten past Dominion’s security. But one thing she was sure of: if she could do something more for Ashley, she would.
With that thought in mind, Betty rushed to the closet and searched for anything she could use. She threw on a robe and a bonnet, then hurried to find a face mask to cover herself completely.
Even if it only bought Ashley one second — if she could buy her one second by pretending to be her — then Betty mustered a lifetime of courage, looked at herself in the mirror, and made sure this disguise would hold.
*****
Meanwhile, in the Black Dragon Corporation...
Gustav stood in the middle of the underground parking lot, not moving an inch. Bodies were sprawled on the floor, blood visible on each of them. But it was not Gustav who had taken them down.
It was the people now holding him at gunpoint, one of them standing at a distance with his hands clasped behind his back.
"Gustav, the High Chamber simply wants to have a word with you," said the slightly older man with a malicious smirk. "I advise you not to resist. These are the High Chamber’s orders. Otherwise, things could get bad... just like what happened to Lukas."
Gustav’s eyes sharpened as he scanned the men pointing their guns at him. Not all of them were from the High Chamber. A few were from their side of Dominion — men who answered to those under Gustav.
"The High Chamber simply wants to put things in order, given what happened to the Black Dragon," the man continued. "Do not worry. The madam will be joining you shortly."
Gustav breathed out, keeping his composure.
"I will go," he said, raising both hands. "But the second I find out something happened to the young master, you’ll regret not killing me now."
*****
Raka slumped onto the couch after spending some time with his son.
"Finally, some rest," he chuckled as he poured himself a glass of wine. But before he picked up the glass, his eyes slid to his phone. "Right. She sent me his records."
Maybe it was his conscience — he had kept harassing Lucian without knowing the man was dying. So even if he knew there wasn’t much he could do, he still wanted to check.
"It’s been a while since I diagnosed someone," he muttered, leaning back with his phone and wine in hand. "But if he were at end-stage, I would’ve noticed it."
Raka might have shifted his focus to developing this miracle drug, but he used to be one of the best diagnosticians in the country. Which was why his wife and family had been so disappointed in him for leaving such a successful career behind for what they called crazy research.
Raka hummed casually as he sipped his wine, then reached for his laptop to pull up the records for a bigger, clearer view. He skimmed through what Ashley had sent him until he reached Lucian’s X-ray.
"Huh?" His brows furrowed as he leaned closer to the screen. "What the — what is this?"
"This isn’t
Confused, Raka reached for his phone and tried to call Ashley. It rang endlessly, even after three more attempts.
*****
At the same time, Khan paced back and forth in the ward where they had taken Lucian. He had heard what was going on in the neighborhood and been told to stay with Lucian.
"I didn’t expect they’d make such a bold move," he muttered, running his hands through his hair, uneasy about what to expect next.
But mid-step, he paused at a faint movement in the corner of his eye. Slowly, he turned his head until his gaze landed on the bed — catching Lucian’s fingers twitching.
And when Khan lifted his gaze, all he saw was Lucian’s eyes opening.