Chapter 411

Jareth froze, his jaw slack. It took him several seconds to snap it shut.

"Thad, have you ever noticed you're a total masochist?" He shook his head in disbelief. "You're practically begging to be whipped. At this rate, you'll be handing over your entire wallet, and I'll be stuck paying for every damn outing."

"Haven't you been footing the bill all along anyway?" Thaddeus replied without missing a beat.

True enough. Thad was a homebody—work, gym, boxing, repeat. Jareth couldn't recall a single time Thad had initiated plans. It was always him dragging Thad out, driving to the Abernathy estate to pry him loose. But Jareth didn't mind. Not one bit.

Losing his father young had taught him the value of love. Thaddeus? The guy had everything and nothing all at once.

So Jareth made it his mission to inject some joy into Thad's life. Even if it was fleeting, even if it was just stupid outings—anything to keep the shadows at bay.

"Jareth, I like it when Evadne bosses me around."

Thaddeus' lips curled into a soft smile, his eyes crinkling at the corners. "It means she cares. I'd let her handcuff me to her 24/7 if she wanted. For Evadne, I'd surrender my freedom in a heartbeat."

"Jesus, man, you sound like a total freak!" Jareth shuddered, rubbing his arms as goosebumps erupted.

"You're too rebellious to understand." Thaddeus smirked, nudging him. "Lucky for you, Mari's gentle. She'd never dream of ordering you around. Who else would put up with your nonsense?"

"Hey! I've got women lining up like crops in a field—endless options!" Jareth huffed.

"Oh? Should I be congratulating you?" Thaddeus' gaze turned icy.

Jareth gulped, backtracking instantly. "No, no, I didn't mean—"

"Let me make this clear," Thaddeus cut in, voice low. "If you ever hurt Mari, Evadne and I will end you."

Jareth threw up his hands. "I swear on my life! Mari's it for me. Only her. Forever. Or may lightning strike me, the Fairhaven Group crumble, and I die penniless in a ditch!"

Silence.

"...I'll even get a vasectomy!" Jareth blurted.

Thaddeus finally cracked. "Fine. I'll ask Evadne. She knows some good doctors."

Jareth's face fell. He looked ready to cry while Thaddeus fought a smirk.

The mood shifted as Thaddeus' expression darkened again. Jareth hesitated before asking, "What's with your dad suddenly wanting to see Cynthia?"

"No idea. Some midlife crisis, probably." Thaddeus' jaw clenched. "Twenty years of pretending she never existed, and now this? Half-assed remorse is worse than indifference."

Jareth lit a cigarette, exhaling slowly. "You're ten times the man he is, but... well. Like father, like son."

Thaddeus' face went stormy. Trust Jareth to twist the knife.

"I know I messed up. I failed Evadne once. Now? I'd give her everything. Even my life." Thaddeus rubbed his temples, his mother's suicide flashing behind his eyelids. "Frederic? He's selfish to the core. He never loved my mom. He doesn't deserve forgiveness. Neither do I."

Jareth sighed, heart aching for his friend. Then his phone rang, shattering the heavy air.

"Report," Jareth barked, putting it on speaker.

"Mr. Fairhaven—bad news!" The agent's voice was frantic. "Just as Mr. Abernathy suspected, Ward's got a whole damn cartel waiting in Country T! These guys are connected—government, business, you name it. Drugs, arms, murder—they're untouchable!"

Thaddeus and Jareth exchanged grim looks.

They'd expected trouble. Not a full-blown warzone.

"Where is that bastard now? Don't tell me you lost him!" Jareth growled.

"Our teams tailed him to Star Island. He boarded a yacht. We engaged, but—" The agent swallowed hard. "His reinforcements came out of nowhere. Heavy artillery. Two of our men... didn't make it."

Jareth's fists clenched, veins bulging. These were his best men. His family.

"You're certain it's Star Island?" Thaddeus' voice was arctic.

"Positive. We scoped it after retreating. His yacht's docked there—no other landmass for miles. He's there."

"Good work. Leave the rest to me." Thaddeus' tone softened. "You'll be compensated."

"You're going in alone? Those guys are animals!" the agent protested.

"They're ex-mercs. You're outgunned."

"Thad, no!" Jareth grabbed his arm. "You die, and Evadne? Mari? They'll never forgive me!"

"I survived Zenithia's warzone. I'll survive this." Thaddeus smiled faintly. "Evadne's waiting. And my mom... she's watching."

Elspeth's real prison wasn't house arrest. It was withdrawal.

Two days without Victor's injections, and she was unraveling. Every escape attempt had failed. Frederic had turned Windermere into her gilded cage.

"Mom?" Glynnis knocked, tray in hand. "You need to eat."

Silence.

The unlocked door made her blood boil. The Abernathy staff were already writing Elspeth off.

Inside, the room was pitch black. Then—a moan.

Glynnis dropped the tray. Elspeth writhed on the bed, limbs rigid, face ghostly pale.

"I can't—I can't take it," Elspeth whimpered, clawing at her own skin.

"Mom?!" Glynnis backed against the wall, terrified.

"Find Victor. Now." Elspeth crawled to her, eyes wild. "I need my medicine!"

"You're an addict! That poison is killing you!"

"GET IT FOR ME!" Elspeth shrieked, yanking Glynnis' skirt. "If I fall, you fall! Frederic will discard you like trash! Mari has Jareth—what do you have? Only me!"

Glynnis paled. The truth hit like a slap.

She fled into the night, speeding toward the hospital. Rage burned through her. Why did Mari get everything? Why?!

Victor was packing when his phone lit up. Evadne's name made him smile.

"Ms. Ashbourne."

"Still in Elmsworth?"

"Yes, but—"

"Stay. Glynnis is coming." Evadne's voice was silk over steel. "Elspeth's desperate. Give her all the drugs she wants."

Victor paused. "Wouldn't cutting her off hurt her more?"

"Victor," Evadne chuckled, stroking Thaddeus' robe, "I'm no philanthropist. Let her drown in it. The deeper she sinks, the harder she falls."

The brilliance of it struck him. Clean Elspeth up now, and she might slip away. Keep feeding her addiction? That was a noose tightening.

As Evadne hung up, headlights pierced the hospital windows. Glynnis had arrived.