POV: Jay
We waited.
And waited.
And waited.
It was too quiet for this house.
Too late.
Aries was never this late. Angelo always texted. Aunt Gemma at least called. Even Aries would send something.
But tonight?
Nothing.
The living room lights were still on. Section E was scattered everywhere.
Felix half asleep on the couch.
Blaster using Endrix as a pillow.
Ci-N pacing like a detective in a low budget drama.
David still pretending to study.
Keifer wasn't sitting. He was standing near the window.
Watching.
So was I.
The clock ticked.
Every second louder than the last.
Something is wrong.
Something is very wrong.
Finally.
The door opened.
Every single one of us stood up at once.
Angelo walked in first.
Then Jeana.
Then Aries.
Andy.
Aunt Gemma.
And the last one to enter…
Trisha.
My chest tightened.
I didn't even greet anyone.
I stepped forward.
"Where is Charles?"
Trisha hesitated.
"Um… he's—"
Someone grabbed my arm gently.
"Jay, calm down."
I pulled away.
"How am I supposed to calm down? She took Hex from me. And now she's here alone."
I looked at Trisha directly.
"I've been calling his phone. It's not picking."
Aries stepped closer. "Jay, try to calm down."
He called the maid. "Bring water."
The maid rushed in and handed me a glass.
I pushed it aside.
"Go back to your room."
She left quickly.
Trisha inhaled.
"Jay… Hex is missing."
"What?"
Not angry.
Not screaming.
Just—
What?
I kept him safe there.
Keifer's voice was sharp. "How did he go missing?"
I stepped forward.
"He went to your house. How did he come missing? How could he disappear under your nose?"
Trisha shook her head. "He ran away. I don't even know why. He just left."
"He wouldn't run away without a reason!" I snapped. "What did you do?"
"We didn't do anything," she insisted. "We were very nice."
"Enough."
"Jay, calm down," Jeana said.
"Don't you dare tell me to calm down. Don't you dare ever tell me to calm down."
"Jay, I'm your mother."
"And he is my brother."
"He's not your real brother," Jeana shot back. "He's someone else's son. Someone's abandoned son."
For one second…
One second…
My hand almost moved.
I stopped myself.
"I'm warning you," I said quietly. "You're lucky I have self respect. Never in your life insult Hex again. You talk so much about nothing. Stay out of my business."
"Jay, language," Angelo warned.
I didn't even look at him.
I stared at Trisha.
"You pulled up with fake worry and took Hex. Return him immediately."
Ci-N came closer. "Jay… calm down. We'll find him."
I ignored him.
"How long has he been missing?" I asked Trisha. "When did he disappear? Why didn't you call me?"
She hesitated.
"He… wouldn't listen."
"Why hasn't he been at school?"
"It's been two days."
"What?"
Two days.
Two days.
And no one told me?
"I told Angelo," she said softly.
I turned slowly.
"You told Angelo. Not me."
Angelo didn't take care of Hex.
I did.
"If there is even the slightest wound on my Charles' body," I said, voice shaking, "you and your entire family will regret stepping into my life."
Silence.
"Tomorrow morning," I continued, "my Hex. My Charles. My brother. He better be standing in front of me."
"Jay, we already informed the police," Aunt Gemma said gently. "They're working on it."
"And you knew too?" I asked her.
So I'm the only one who didn't know.
Why?
"I should have been the first to know."
Trisha stepped forward, crying. "Jay, I tried to protect him but—"
"I don't need your crocodile tears. How does a twelve year old disappear from a house with security? He's a kid. I don't care how smart he is. He's a kid to me."
My voice echoed against the high ceiling.
No one spoke for a second.
Then Jeana scoffed softly. "Jay, you're overreacting."
Overreacting?
I turned to her slowly.
"Overreacting?"
"Hex is not a baby. He's very smart. Maybe he needed space."
"Space?" I repeated, laughing once, but there was no humor in it. "He disappears for two days and you call that space?"
Angelo stepped forward. "Jay, enough."
"No. Not enough." My hands were shaking but I didn't care. "You all knew. Every single one of you knew and I'm the only one standing here clueless."
Aries tried to reason. "We didn't want to stress you."
"You didn't want to stress me?" I snapped. "You thought lying was better?"
"It wasn't lying," Trisha insisted weakly. "We were handling it."
"Handling it?" I stepped toward her. "By not telling the one person who actually knows him?"
"He's my son!" Trisha shouted suddenly.
"No no he's not instead he's my brother!" I shot back instantly.
The room felt like it was shrinking.
Jeana crossed her arms. "Jay, you're acting like you own him."
I stared at her.
Own him?
"You don't get to say that,because you two are the same" I said, voice low and dangerous. "You two never stayed up when we had nightmares. You never saw when he was shaking when thunder hit. You don't know how i hide he fear behind Smiles."
The Section E boys were quiet now.
Even Ci-N.
Even Blaster.
Angelo rubbed his temples. "Jay, calm your tone."
"Don't tell me about my tone!" I burst out. "Two days! Two days he's been missing!"
"We already said we informed the police," Aunt Gemma said again gently.
"And you didn't think I deserved to know?" I asked her. "Was I just… what? Convenient?"
Trisha's tears kept falling. "I was scared you'd blame me."
"You should be scared!" I exploded. "You took him. You insisted. You said you'd protect him!"
"I did protect him!" she cried. "He just ran!"
"Why would he run?" I demanded. "Hex doesn't run. He calculates. He plans. If he left, it's because something made him."
Trisha shook her head. "We didn't hurt him!"
"Then what happened?!" I shouted. "Did you yell at him? Did someone threaten him? Did he hear something?"
Silence.
That silence was louder than everything else.
"You're hiding something," I said slowly.
"She said they are not ," Angelo replied firmly.
I looked at him.
"You chose to believe her over me."
"That's not fair."
"It is fair!" I shot back. "When she told you he was missing, you kept it from me."
Angelo hesitated.
That hesitation told me everything.
My chest hurt.
"Unbelievable," I whispered.
Jeana stepped forward again. "Jay, you need to understand your place."
I turned to her so fast even Ci-N flinched.
"My place?"
"Yes. You're not his guardian. You're not his parent."
"I never said I was," I replied. "But I'm the one who was there."
"That doesn't give you the right to threaten people," she snapped.
"I will threaten whoever I want if my brother is missing."
The air cracked between us.
Aries stepped in between slightly. "Jay, please. This isn't helping."
"Helping?" I laughed bitterly. "Standing here pretending everything is under control isn't helping either."
Trisha wiped her tears. "We searched everywhere. We checked cameras. We checked streets."
"And?" I pressed.
"He wasn't on camera leaving," she admitted quietly.
My stomach dropped.
"What?"
"We don't see him leaving the gate."
The room froze.
"So either your cameras are useless," I said slowly, "or someone took him."
No one answered.
I could feel my pulse in my ears.
"You expect me to believe he just vanished?"
Angelo raised his voice slightly. "Jay!"
"No!" I shouted back. "If something happened to him because you wanted to play family—"
"That's enough!" Jeana snapped.
I stepped closer to her.
"You don't get to control this conversation."
"You are being disrespectful."
"And you were and are still heartless!"
The tension was unbearable.
Ci-N tried softly, "Jay… please…"
I turned to him.
"You think I can breathe right now Ci-N ?"
He didn't respond.
Trisha whispered, "I tried to protect him…"
"And failed," I cut her off.
She flinched.
Good.
"Do you know what he fears?" I continued. "Do you know how he thinks?
The realization settled over the room like fog.
"someone planned something," David murmured quietly.
My hands trembled.
Or someone planned it for him.
"Two days," I repeated under my breath. "Two whole days."
Jeana tried again, softer this time. "Jay, shouting won't bring him back."
I looked at her with nothing but fire in my eyes.
"If anything happens to him," I said clearly, "none of you will ever be forgiven."
Angelo stepped forward. "That's enough threats."
"This isn't a threat," I replied coldly. "It's a promise."
Silence swallowed the room.
My breathing felt uneven.
I couldn't think straight.
I needed information.
Action.
Something.
"David," I said sharply. "My phone."
He handed it to me.
I walked to the corner.
Called Hannah.
She picked up immediately.
"Hannah. I'm giving you thirty minutes. Thirty. I want hex location. If not, fire everyone there. I need you, Nathan, Carlos, Miguel. Fernandez house. Now."
"Okay," she replied. "We're coming."
I ended the call.
Turned to Trisha.
"Just pray."
I threw my phone.
It crashed on the floor.
"JAY!" everyone shouted.
I pointed at them.
"Just know how furious I am. Do not talk to me."
Keifer came closer slowly.
"Jay… we'll find him. Very soon. Okay?"
"What if he's hurt?" My voice cracked. "Two days. Who knows where he is?"
He pulled me into a hug.
"Nothing happened to Hex," he said firmly. "He's brave. He's smart."
The Section E boys joined.
A messy group hug.
"We'll find him."
"He's safe."
"Trust us."
Keifer stepped back first.
He wiped my tears gently.
"I know he's safe."
Twenty minutes later—
A knock.
"It's open," I said.
Hannah.
Nathan.
Carlos.
Miguel.
They rushed in.
"We tracked his phone and headset," Hannah said. "We found them on the roadside."
"What?" My stomach dropped.
"I think he left them there," Miguel said.
"He would never leave his phone," I snapped. "What if he was kidnapped?"
"Jay, relax," Nathan said softly.
He reached into his pocket and pulled out candy.
"Take this."
"I'm not in the mood."
He suddenly turned to Keifer.
They whispered.
Keifer nodded.
Nathan handed him the candy.
Keifer walked toward me.
"Jay. Take it."
"I said I'm not in the mood."
He leaned close to my ear.
"If you don't take it, I'll feed you with my mouth."
I immediately grabbed it and shoved it into my mouth.
He smirked.
His hand rested on my shoulder.
We sat down.
After a few seconds, he handed me water.
"Drink."
I did.
The candy tasted strange.
Sweet.
Heavy.
My head…
Why does everything feel slower?
My anger felt… distant.
Sleepy?
No.
No no no.
I looked at Nathan.
"You… did you just give me the—"
Darkness.
Everything went black.
End of Chapter 94.