In a third-year classroom, the door slammed open. Every head turned. The girls whispered and smiled as Enzo strolled in, flanked by two lackeys.
"Welcome back, boss," one lackey chirped. "School was lonely without you."
"We kept them in line while you were gone," another added.
Enzo ignored them, dropping his bag on his desk and walking to the front of the room. He surveyed the class, his eyes landing on Jake, who sat in the corner with his eyes closed and his posture perfectly straight, seemingly indifferent to the world.
Enzo gestured to his lackey, who promptly locked the classroom door.
"Everyone, listen up," Enzo said, his voice cold. The room went dead silent. "We have a trip tomorrow. I expect every one of you to be there."
The students nodded quickly.
"We're going to hunt them all," Enzo added, a dark edge to his voice.
In the middle of the room, a girl with white hair sat with her legs crossed. She looked at Enzo with a look of pure boredom. Enzo didn't care. He sat down, casting one final, predatory glance at the Jake, who's eyes were closed.
School hours ended, and a sea of students began to pour out toward the gates. Madison peeled away from the crowd, heading toward the secluded area behind the building. Allen trailed her silently until she raised a sharp hand, gesturing for him to stay back. He nodded, slipping behind a thick oak tree to keep watch.
Madison walked ahead to find a boy waiting. He was visibly trembling, his hands fidgeting at his sides as she approached.
"Hi," Madison said, her voice soft, offering a small smile.
"H-hi," the boy stammered, his voice thin and unstable. He took a sharp breath, bracing himself. "Madison, I like you. Please... please be my girlfriend!"
Allen, watching from the shadows, felt a genuine pang of sympathy. I hope she says yes to you, brother, he thought.
"I appreciate you telling me that," Madison said gently. "But..." She trailed off.
"Can I ask why?" the boy whispered.
"To be honest, I'm just not interested in dating right now. Not with everything going on."
The boy nodded slowly, looking at his feet. "I already knew it was no use," he muttered to himself, though a sad smile touched his lips. "Okay. Take care of yourself, Madison."
As the boy walked away, Allen sighed. Another rejection. He began to step out, but a flash of movement caught his eye—several third-year students were slipping into a dark, narrow alleyway nearby. His eyes narrowed. Sensing something wrong, he followed them, sticking to the shadows.
In the depths of the alley, Enzo stood on a raised concrete ledge, his back turned to the entrance.
"...our main targets are Mr. Henry, Allen, Madison, Sophia, Daisy, and that brother of hers I didn't even know existed," Enzo was saying. "The plan is to—"
He stopped abruptly. His eyes caught Allen's silhouette reflected in the glass of a discarded bottle. Enzo's lips curled into a jagged smile. "Looks like we have a visitor."
He turned around slowly. "Come out."
Allen stepped into the light, his expression stony. "So, you're planning something, I guess I have an idea about what you are trying to do."
Enzo laughed, a cold, hollow sound. "I want to kill you all for the humiliation you caused me."
Allen didn't flinch. To his surprise, Enzo simply waved a hand toward the alley exit, dismissing him.
"Why are you letting me go?" Allen asked, his voice low. "You have your men here. You could try to take me down right now."
"I'm letting you go because I can kill you whenever I want," Enzo replied with chilling confidence. "I'm not the Enzo you remember. I'm saving you for the school trip. I'll need someone to entertain me when I get bored."
Allen stared at him for a long beat, then nodded. "Then I'll see you at the trip."
As soon as Allen vanished from sight, one of the lackeys stepped forward. "Boss, why let him walk? We had him."
"We're too close to the school; people pass by here constantly," Enzo said, his eyes gleaming with a sick sort of pride. "Besides, I chose this spot on purpose. I wanted him to see us. I wanted to lure him here so I could tell him the truth to his face."
"But how did you know he'd be here?"
"The letter," Enzo explained. "I had an underling put a confession note in Madison's locker. I knew she'd come, and I knew Allen would follow her like a stray dog. I lured him here so Madison would be left completely alone with my other man."
The lackey swallowed hard. "Sir... what is he doing to her?"
Enzo's smile widened. "You'll know soon enough."
Allen sprinted back to the clearing behind the school. Madison was still there, standing perfectly upright.
"Madison!" he called out, breathless. She didn't turn. "Let's go."
She remained motionless. Panicked, Allen moved closer and gripped her shoulder. His blood turned to ice.
Madison was rigid, her body locked in a horrific state of paralysis. Her eyes had rolled back, showing nothing but a terrifying, milky white, and trails of fresh blood were leaking from the corners of her lids, staining her cheeks.
"What happened?" Allen screamed, his mind racing. I shouldn't have left her!
He frantically called for an ambulance, his hands shaking as he eased her onto a nearby bench. Within minutes, the sirens wailed, and Madison was rushed away.
At the hospital, Allen paced the sterile hallway. The heavy doors swung open as Madison's grandfather—the Former Chairman—and Yuri rushed in. After a frantic check at the reception desk, they found Allen standing outside the emergency ward.
"What happened?" the Chairman demanded, his voice cracking with age and worry.
"I don't know," Allen said, his voice hollow. "I found her paralyzed. Her eyes... they were completely white."
"Where were you when this happened?" Yuri snapped, her voice trembling with a mixture of rage and fear.
"Calm down, Yuri," the Chairman urged.
"I was lured away," Allen admitted, looking at his hands. "I thought I was tracking the threat, but they wanted me away from her."
"I won't forgive you for this," Yuri sobbed, her eyes filling with tears as a bodyguard handed her a bottle of water.
The Chairman sighed and placed a heavy, steadying hand on Allen's shoulder. "Don't worry, Allen. You made a mistake, but we cannot change the past. Just be more careful from now on. Do you understand?"
For a second, the warmth of the gesture calmed Allen's racing heart. But the peace was shattered as the doctor finally emerged from the ward.
Yuri and the Chairman lunged forward. "Doctor! How is she? How is Madison?"