"Where?!" Cassius demanded, his voice burning with anxiety.


    "The underground parking garage at his old hospital," Aaron replied, his voice trembling as he fought back his fear for their mother.


    "Is he still there?!"


    "No, he''s gone. We tracked his GPS and searched the area, but all we found was his phone dumped in a trash can."


    Aaron''s voice cracked. "Cassius, he might be in serious danger. I''m having my team pull all the security footage from the hospital entrances and the surrounding streets. We''re trying to figure out where they took him as fast as we can!"


    Cassius''s tall, imposing frame shuddered violently. He nearly dropped the phone.


    So earlier, when he had tried to call Chasel, the man had probably wanted to answer. He had wanted to hear his voice! But by then, he was already being restrained by his kidnappers,pletely helpless.


    "Don''t panic," Aaron urged, momentarily setting aside his own devastating pain tofort his older brother. "There are cameras all over the streets now. Whoever took him didn''t have time to erase the city''s footage. We should be able to lock onto their escape route soon. You have to stay calm. If you fall apart, the whole family will lose control. I''ll handle Chasel''s case, and don''t worry about Mom. Remember, you''re talking to a top-tier detective here."


    "Who..." Cassius pressed a hand to his burning forehead, struggling to drag air into his lungs. "Who would want to hurt him? He does his own thing and can be a bit headstrong, but he is gentle and kind to his core. He doesn''t have enemies."


    Aaron paused, his tone darkening. "Maybe they weren''t targeting him."


    Cassius froze, a cold realization shing in his eyes. "If they weren''t after Chasel... then they have to be after me."


    While both scenarios were terrible, if the kidnappers were targeting him, it meant they were using the man he loved as leverage. They either wanted his life in exchange or were going to force him into some twisted deal. If that was the case, they wouldn''t kill Chasel right away.


    Even so, every passing second counted. The longer it took to find him, the more dangerous Chasel''s situation became!


    "Either way, Cassius, just wait for my update," Aaron said firmly.


    ...


    Back at theb, Hans and the subordinate Alexia had assigned walked down the corridor toward Elsie''s room.


    Suddenly, Hans stopped. "072,e here for a second."


    In The Genesis Lab, employees never used real names. They went strictly by numbers. Everyone''s background and identity were kept entirely confidential. This was & was caught by


    fail-safe. If atanization could


    the police the


    sever ties instantly, preventing the captured employee from ratting out the rest of thework. After all, theb was a heavily guarded, underground operation.


    For the grunts here, there were only two superiors: Hans and Alexia. Both were Sir''s right-hand deputies. As long as Sir remained in power and didn''t abandon them,


    they were practically untouchable.


    Hans wlessly dodged the security cameras, leading the man into a deserted


    corner.


    "What do you need, Hans?" 072 asked, looking confused.


    "I need you to cancel the injection for that woman," Hans said tly. He had never


    been one to mince words, preferring to cut straight to the point.


    072 looked bewildered. "What? I can''t do that. Ms. Alexia gave the order. If I don''t follow through, she''ll kill me!"


    "072. No, I should call you Julian Ford."


    Hans fixed him with an intense,


    unblinking stare. "I looked into your background. I know exactly why you joined this organization. You came here to save your father, who suffers from Alzheimer''s. You bought into Alexia''s lies, thinking that''s you” worked yourself to the bone for


    them, you''d get a bottle of their miraculous, priceless cure once it


    was developed."


    Julian''s jaw dropped. He stood there,pletely stunned, unsure of how to react.


    For the longest time, everyone here


    had only ever called him by his number. His father had forgotten him, and with him being his only family left in the world, there was no one else to use his real name He


    had almost forgotten it himself Hearing Hans say out loud sent a rare,forting warmth through his cold, isted reality.


    "But what if I told you," Hans said, taking a step closer, his gaze turning somber. "That this ''new drug'' never existed in the first ce? What if this entireb is just a bottomless pit, a meticulously crafted scam?"