Victor stood frozen, his face ashen, his mind aplete nk.


    "Mr. Schwartz..." The director on the phone hesitated, the horrifying reality of the situation dawning on him. He nearly bit his tongue off. "It must be a


    misunderstanding! I''ll handle it right now, Mr. Schwartz."


    He hastily ended the call and, with fumbling hands, immediately dialed Victor''s number again.


    The phone vibrated in Victor''s pocket, the screen lighting up with the director''s name. He trembled,cking the courage to answer.


    Hayden simply plucked the phone from Victor''s pocket and put it on speaker.


    "Victor, what the hell are you doing?" the director''s furious voice red from the speaker. “What imposter? That is Mr. Schwartz! You let him go right now, or else—”


    "I''ll handle the rest," Hayden cut in coldly. "As for my presence in Era City tonight, you know what to do."


    "Yes, sir,” the director said, his voiceced with terror. "I haven''t received any calls tonight. I know nothing about your whereabouts, Mr. Schwartz."


    "Good." Satisfied with the answer, Hayden hung up and tossed the phone onto the floor in disgust. He then pulled a sanitizing wipe from his pocket and began meticulously cleaning his fingers.


    It took a moment for the reality to fully sink in for Victor and the captain. This man wasn''t a fake. He was the real Hayden Schwartz. And the woman with him... was likely his wife. Which meant his son had tried to harass the mother of Shanley.


    Dear God! How could his worthless son have caused such a catastrophe? Not even the entire Garner familybined could afford to pay this price.


    Victor''s world went dark. With a loud thud, he copsed to his knees before Hayden. "I was blind... I failed to recognize you. Please, forgive my ignorance this once."


    The captain, seeing how things were going, immediately knelt beside him, holding


    out the wallet with both hands. "Mr. Schwartz, your... your wallet..."


    He was finished. This time he had truly picked the wrong fight.


    In an instant, every other man in the room dropped to his knees.


    eto


    Hayden tossed the used wipe into a trash can and took his wallet, turning it over in his hand. "The apple," he began slowly, "doesn''t fall far from the tree. It''s because of an arrogant,wless father like you that a degenerate con like yours is waning loose."


    Victor listened, not daring to breathe.


    "He harassed my wife. Was I wrong to kick him?" Hayden looked down at Victor, his


    voice dropping to an impossibly cold register.


    "No," Victor choked out, trembling. "He deserved it. You were not wrong, Mr. Schwartz."


    “Please, give us another chance,” he begged. “I swear I will reflect on my actions and teach my son a lesson."


    "I already gave you a chance."


    Hayden slipped the wallet back into


    his pocket, his tone soft but filled


    with


    menace. "Let''s do this.


    Whatever you nned to do to me,


    you will now do to your son


    What? Break his leg?


    "Mr. Schwartz," Victor stammered, his face bloodless as he pleaded for mercy, "we


    truly know we were wrong. Please, spare him this one time."


    "You were wrong," Hayden affirmed, his voice a low, deep rumble. "And this is the punishment. You should be grateful that my wife has taken to prayer these past few years, she can''t stand the sight of blood."


    He idly twisted the wedding band on his finger. "Otherwise, it wouldn''t be just a leg.


    You''re a smart man, Victor. You know which is the better option."