Maniptive. Backstabbing.


    That''s pretty much how Yvonne summed up Dan these days—a jerk always scheming against her, never missing a chance to throw her under the bus.


    As soon as she hung up on Xander, Yvonne was already heading straight for ck Gate, not wasting a second.


    Meanwhile, Xander''s expression was...plicated, to say the least.


    "Dan snatched Susanna?"


    Shawn blinked. "Wait, what? Seriously?"


    "He wouldn''t, would he?"


    If Dan had really taken Susanna, then what was all his previous plotting about? None of it made sense anymore.


    Xander narrowed his eyes, feeling a strange emptiness settle in his chest.


    Shawn asked, "So, are we still going to ck Gate?"


    "Of course. Why wouldn''t we?"


    There was no way they''d skip this.


    "And keep looking for Susanna. Just... don''t let Hull''s people catch on."


    Xander figured if Hull found out about any of this, it would be a whole new mess.


    And just like that, Yvonne''s theory started to make sense to Xander too-Dan must''ve taken Susanna to frame Yvonne.


    Kyle nodded. "Got it."


    He hurried off to get things in motion.


    Once it was just Xander and Shawn left, Xander drummed his fingers rhythmically on the table.


    Shawn sighed, "Man, this is a real pain, huh?"


    It had taken him a second to process it all, but now that Xander had Kyle on the hunt for Susanna, Shawn realized just how tangled this was.


    If Dan really did snatch Susanna while Yvonne had her, and there was no proof, Susanna''s mom would be after Yvonne, and so would Hull.


    Xander closed his eyes briefly. "Yeah, it''s a mess."


    Shawn grumbled, "Why''d Yvonne even get herself involved in all this, anyway? Now it''s a nightmare to exin."


    Xander snorted, "Why else? For her precious little sister."


    Susanna was Ste''s best friend. If Ste hadn''t asked, Yvonne wouldn''t have bothered.


    Shawn didn''t even argue with that he knew how fiercely protective Yvonne was of Ste.


    But still... was Xander actually


    nning to help Yvonne clean up the mess? That wasn''t like him. Usually,


    if drama was swirling around


    Yvonne, Xander wouldn''t even look her way.


    But here he was, headed for ck Gate too.


    And just like Yvonne, he didn''t suspect for a second that Hull might''ve been the


    one to take Susanna.


    Last time, with The Night Owl incident, it was just Yvonne who pointed the finger at Dan, making him take the fall. This time, both Xander and Yvonne were pinning it all on him.


    Even their search for Susanna was focused inside ck Gate-might as well have hung a sign on Dan''s back.


    On the ne, Shawn mused, "If this blows up, Susanna''s mom might just go toe- to-toe with the whole Murray family."


    If she found out Dan had taken Susanna, she''d tear the Murray family apart.


    Xander just chuckled. "Sounds good to me."


    At this point, it didn''t even matter if Dan was actually behind it.


    “Just make sure, when Hull gets the news, all his angernds squarely on Dan. Not Yvonne."


    Shawn blinked. "So... we''re shifting all the me to Dan?"


    "Exactly. What''s the alternative? You want himing after Yvonne? Is anyone giving Susanna back? Didn''t think so."


    No matter what, Susanna was missing. If everyone believed it was Dan, Hull would go after him instead of Yvonne.


    Shawn just shook his head. Dan had been carrying the me for everythingtely. Now he''d be taking the fall for losing Susanna, too.


    Not that it made sense for Dan to have taken Susanna-doing so would only hurt him.


    Meanwhile, Yvonne finally arrived at ck Gate''s headquarters in Littaciri.


    She''d been here before,st time breaking in for a joint job with Nn.


    But the moment shended at the airport, Dan got word.


    He stubbed out his cigar, a cold edge to his voice. "What the hell is she doing here?"


    Even in the dim study, his dangerous energy was obvious. Carroll tensed, ncing at his boss.


    "Not sure yet. But she brought Chloe with her, and they''re tracking your location," Carroll reported quietly.


    Chloe-Yvonne''s information


    specialist. The same woman who once tracked down the president of Yornd in under an hour, then sold


    the intel to the highest bidder.


    If Chloe wanted to find someone, she was like a bloodhound—you couldn''t hide


    from her, no matter how hard you tried.