Xander remained silent.


    The man had a point. His father could be a lot of things—apathetic, dismissive, neglectful—but was he really capable of murder?


    For years, Xander had been certain—absolutely certain—that Xavier had been the one who killed Arabe. The police report, the fingerprints, everything had pointed in that direction.


    But now... things weren’t adding up. Why was he suddenly here in Radiantia, using his father of someone that he didn’t do. Xander almost believed that he’d been put in a trance.


    However, there was this inkling feeling that something wasn’t right. And what if...what if Xavier was right? What if their father had been the one to murder Arabe and pin the me on him?


    Xander didn’t think he would be able to forgive himself if something like that ever happened. He’d taken Xavier’s love away from him because of his hatred towards his brother. If everything he’d been told was a lie and he was harming Xavier for absolutely no reason, Xander didn’t think he would be able to take that regret.


    He was afraid.


    He sighed, feeling a wave of exhaustion wash over him.


    "Forget it."


    Mr. Wace blinked, caught off guard.


    Xander exhaled slowly, his expression unreadable. Why am I even here?


    He looked up at his father onest time, searching for... something. Some kind of confirmation. Some kind of sign.


    But all he saw was a carefully constructed mask.


    "I spoke without thinking," Xander said, the words surprising even himself.


    Samantha’s head snapped toward him. Even Bruce looked slightly taken aback.


    Mr. Wace, on the other hand, only narrowed his eyes, his gaze shifting between his son and Bruce as if trying to decipher if this was some kind of trick.


    "You don’t go around using someone of murder," Mr. Wace said after a long pause, his voice tight. "Be careful with your words, Xander."


    "I know," Xander murmured, ncing down.


    And for a moment, he almost believed it.


    **


    Xavier sat at his desk, fingers moving swiftly across his keyboard.


    His screen was filled with data—blueprints, schedules, confidential reports—all rted to the Regalith sex trafficking ring.


    It had been days since Izara had taken them down to see the horrific reality of what was happening under the city’s pristine surface.


    Xavier had seen a lot of darkness in his life, but what he saw in Regalith had sickened him.


    He had spent the past few days digging deeper, uncovering the extent of the royal couple’s crimes. The more he uncovered, the more he realized—Regalith wasn’t just corrupt. It was rotten to the core.


    A voice interrupted his thoughts.


    "What are you doing?"


    Kace’s voice was casual, but when he leaned in to get a look at Xavier’s screen, his eyes widened.


    "Wait. Isn’t this Regalith?"


    His reaction earned a sharp nce from Maxwell, who had been seated across from them.


    "It is," Xavier replied, his voice steady.


    Kace frowned, taking in the disturbing images and files spread across the screen. "You’re investigating them?"


    "I was able to confirm something," Xavier said. "The royal couple of Regalith aren’t just involved in sex trafficking. They’re the ones running it."


    Kace stiffened. "What?"


    "And they’re not trafficking women," Xavier continued, his voice colder now. "They’re trafficking men."


    A heavy silence settled over the room.


    Kace looked stunned. Maxwell’s expression remained neutral, but Xavier didn’t miss the way his fingers twitched slightly.


    "Those sick bastards," Kace muttered, shaking his head. "And you’re saying no one knows about this?"


    "No one dares to speak because they fear for their life," Xavier replied. "But that’s about to change."


    Kace’s hands curled into fists. "We need to expose them," he urged.


    "We will," Xavier said. "But there’s something else."


    Both Kace and Maxwell turned their attention fully toward him now, waiting.


    Xavier leaned back in his chair, his fingers tapping idly against the desk.


    "You remember Fiona?" he asked, his tone deceptively casual.


    Kace frowned, trying to recall the name. Maxwell, on the other hand, stiffened just slightly.


    "Yes," Kace said. "She’s the girl from high school, right? The one who might’ve seen what happened to Arabe the night she’d been killed?"


    Xavier nodded.


    "She finally decided to talk."


    Silence.


    Kace and Maxwell exchanged a nce.


    "What do you mean?" Maxwell asked carefully.


    Xavier’s gaze didn’t waver.


    "I mean, she was a witness to Arabe’s murder," he said, watching them closely. "And she knows who really did it."


    Maxwell’s jaw tensed and Kace’s expression twisted in shock. However, Xavier didn’t seem excited about the truth which could only mean it was something they perceived as good news.


    Xavier’s lips curved into something that wasn’t quite a smile.


    "I never killed Arabe," he said. "It was our father."


    The room felt too quiet.


    Kace looked like he’d just been punched in the gut. Maxwell, however, was more than surprised.


    "That’s impossible," Kace muttered. "Dad wouldn’t—he wouldn’t do something like that..."


    But his voicecked conviction.


    Xavier leaned forward, resting his elbows on the desk. "Think about it, Kace. Father has been meeting up with Bruce behind our backs. He’s been hiding things from us for years. Fiona has no reason to lie, and the pieces are finally falling into ce."


    Kace swallowed hard, his shoulders slumping. "This is insane."


    Xavier barely spared him a nce before turning his attention back to Maxwell.


    "And what do you think?" he asked, watching him like a hawk.


    Maxwell took a breath, his face unreadable. Then, finally, he said, "If this is true... then Mr. Wace needs to face justice." His tone was about to stutter but he managed to say his words wlessly."


    Xavier’s eyes narrowed slightly.


    Was that genuine? Or was he covering his tracks?


    He couldn’t be sure. Not yet.


    "After we handle Regalith," Xavier said, "we take care of this."


    Kace nodded, his jaw tight. "He needs to pay for what he’s done."


    "Agreed," Maxwell said.


    For a while, they discussed their uing mission in Regalith, making ns to expose the royal couple in a way that the world wouldn’t be able to ignore despite their status and make sure they were served proper punishment.


    Eventually, Kace excused himself to call Alice who used to be Anastasia’s makeup artist back when she was still an actress.


    Maxwell stood as well, saying he needed the restroom.


    The moment he left, Xavier opened hisptop and switched to the live security feed he had nted earlier.


    One camera showed Kace on his phone with Alice.


    The other showed Maxwell in the restroom.


    Texting someone.


    Xavier’s jaw tightened.


    At that same moment, Xander’s phone vibrated back at where he was with Bruce, Mr Wace and Samantha.


    He pulled it out, his expression unreadable, but the moment his eyesnded on the familiar name, <i>Fiona</i>, something in his chest tightened.