FOUR

LOGAN OFFICE

Waking up to the sound of the door being opened, Cho sat herself up.

"Sorry if I woke you up,-" Logan made his way in. "Feeling better?"

"Much, thank you,- And sorry for falling asleep on your sofa,-" she said.

"No, don't be,- You've been through a lot,-" He sat next to her. "I've put your uncle under the missing person's case, and my team and I will be the one in charge,-"

Cho sighed in relief.

"Today we'll bring in Hugh Jordan,-"

"What about the people who broke into my house?" she asked.

"They've been caught and identified, but I'll give you the details later,-"

A slight pause followed.

"So,-" Cho spoke again.

"Hm?"

"How, how were you even there last night?"

"Oh, well, I was patrolling around your area and saw a couple of suspicious people wandering about your house, so,-"

"So that's how you got me on time,-" She continued his words.

Logan hesitantly nodded.

"I must've been lucky,-"

Cleared down his throat, Logan looked away. As his face started flushing red from the thought of her finding out he was following her to her house and even stayed there until the incident took place, he immediately stood.

"I'll, I'll go meet my teams for any update,-" Logan left the room. "God, that's embarrassing,-" said him under his breath, leaning against the closed door. "So you're a stalker now huh?"

Sighed, Logan looked around. Sean and Daniel, along with some of the officers were nowhere to be seen except for Jeremy, who was buying some drinks from the vending machine nearby.

"Jerry?"

He turned around.

"Where are the others?"

"Oh urm, they left,-"

"Where to?"

Logan's phone buzzed.

"One sec,-" He answered it. "Logan's speaking,-"

"Logan?"

"Yes Sean?"

"It's about Hugh, Jonathan, and Fred,-"

"What about them?"

"Hugh is dead,- And the other two were reported missing,-"

Logan's eyes rounded. "What?"

JORDAN RESIDENCE

Put on a glove, Logan crouched next to Hugh's body and examined it.

"Caused of death, hit by a blunt object at the back of his head,-" reported Sean.

"Murder weapon?"

"Missing,-"

Logan looked up. "Missing?"

Sean nodded. "Time of death, Wednesday, about 3 am,-"

Logan recalled the time of Dominic's last seen. It was a 6-hour difference.

"So Jonathan was reported missing two days before Dominic and Fred one day after?" he concluded it.

Sean nodded. "Yes,-"

"And they were also the last people who were contacting Hugh?" Logan tried to connect the dots. "Same with Dominic?"

"Yes,-" agreed Sean. "Strange isn't it?"

"Yes, very,-"

Logan's cell phone buzzed. It was a message from Cho.

'I'm on my way home now,- Just letting you know,-'

Noticing his anxious gaze, Sean spoke again. "Is everything alright?"

Logan looked up from it. "Yes, yes, but, I gotta go,- I'll see you at the station,-"

VALENTINE RESIDENCE

When Cho reached the front door, she flung it open—and froze.

The sight before her was a mess of overturned furniture, shattered glass, and broken decorations scattered across the floor. For a moment, she just stood there in the doorway, motionless.

"How could this even happen,-" she whispered, her voice barely audible.

Slowly, she stepped inside and began to clean up the wreckage with trembling hands. But as she worked, her vision blurred with tears she could no longer hold back. Her breath hitched.

She crouched down, wrapping her arms tightly around her knees, and buried her face between them. A quiet sob escaped her lips, then another, until the silence gave way to the sound of her heartbreak.

"Come back to me, Uncle Dom…" she wept, her voice raw with desperation. "Please…"

Tears spilled freely now, mixing with the fragments around her—each drop heavy with longing for someone who once made this house feel like home.

***

Wiped away her tears as she continued cleaning, Cho heard a couple of knocks upon her door. Her heart skipped a beat. She stopped cleaning and hesitantly headed to the door while pointing the end of the broom stick towards it.

"Who's, who's there??"

"It's me, Logan,-"

She sighed in relief. "One sec,-"

Puts away the broom, she gets the door. Saw Logan, she managed a smile.

"Hi,-"

Smiled back, he looked around. The house now was half-cleaned. "Need a hand?" he asked.

She shook her head. "Come in,-" Cho took him to the sitting room. "I'll get you something to drink,-"

"No, don't trouble yourselves,- I'm not thirsty anyway,-"

"O,kay,-" She sat next to him. "Any news?"

"Yes,- It's about Hugh Jordan,-"

"He knows where my uncle is?"

"No,- We actually didn't even manage to bring him in,-"

"Why?"

"He's dead,-"

Cho's jaw dropped. "What?"

"He died two days ago, 6 hours after your uncle's last seen,-"

Lowered her gaze, Cho fell silent. There were a lot of things he needed to tell her, but seeing her shaken, he lost for words.

He moved closer. "You're alright?"

Cho shook her head.

"It's ok, take your time,-"

She looked up. "There's something else you want to tell me didn't you?"

"It can wait,- One thing at a time,-" he said calmly. "Anyway, with that aside,-" He looked around one more time. "Are you really going to sleep here tonight?" 

Even inside her head it was really not a good idea given that most of the house was still a mess and not to mention the trauma of someone might breaking in again in the middle of the night, but where else could she go?

"Why don't you stay at my house?" he suggested..

Cho's eyes widened. "What?"

"I sleep in the office most of the time, so I think you can stay there for a while,- And it's a lot safer too since it's inside the police residence,-" he continued.

"Well urm,-" Cho looked away, considering.

Logan spoke again not long after. "I'll take that as a yes,-"

He stood. Cho's eyes followed him.

"I'll wait for you in the car,-"

And he left.

"Wait, what?"

WINCHESTER RESIDENCE

"Come in,-" Logan took her to the living room. "Wait here,- I'll clean up my room a bit,-"

Logan vanished through the stairs. Cho looked around the house. It was neat and cool with a bit of classic touch design furniture inside.

"His design taste is similar to Jared,-" she said to herself.

Logan returned to the living room and headed towards Cho who was peering upon his album collection.

"Do you like music?" he asked.

"I do, but not so much to buy the album,-"

Logan grinned. "The room is ready,- You can use it however you want,-"

"Thanks,- But are you sure it's ok for me to stay here?"

"Of course,-"

"No one will get mad? Your example girlfriend for example?"

"No, don't worry,- I don't even have one,-"

A slight smile carved upon her pale complexion face. "Then I'll go settle in first,-"

"And I'll be heading back to the station,- Just ring me if you need anything,-"

Cho nodded.

***

Done settling herself, Cho reached her cellphone and three numbers crossed her mind. Searched for them, she called the first one but it left unanswered. As she was about to call the other two, she stopped and laid herself on the bed.

"No, I can't involve them with things like this,-" She put her arm over her eyes. "But I really need you three right now,-"

BUSINESS CAMP, GEORGETOWN

Cedric reached into the box where all the participants' phones were stored and retrieved his own. He checked for any calls or messages, and the moment he saw a missed call from Cho, a flicker of concern crossed his face. He slipped the phone back in and picked up another box labeled 'Wet Tissues'. Then he turned and strode out of the store room. Outside, his butler stood watch—poised and composed in a dark, tailored suit, his neatly trimmed beard giving him an air of dignified authority.

"Charles," Cedric called, his voice low but firm.

"Yes, Young Master?" the man replied with a slight bow of his head.

"Check on Cho,- She called, but I'm unable to call back because of the camp's rules,-" Cedric's eyes narrowed slightly. "Do it now, and update me,-"

"Will do, Young Master,-" Charles said without missing a beat. He gave a crisp nod and turned to carry out the request.

***

Cho slightly jolted as a couple of knocks were heard coming from the door. She immediately opened it. Noticed her sleepy looking eyes, Logan furrowed.

"Sorry, are you asleep?"

"No, no I just spaced out,-"

"Oh,- Well urm, I brought some dinner, so, I wonder if you wanna eat together,-"

"Yeah, yeah I love to,- But you go first,- I'll be there in 2 minutes,-"

"Alright,-"

Logan left. Get back inside, Cho grabbed her phone and started upon their numbers again.

"No, no I got this,-"

Cho took a deep breath, walked into the bathroom, and stood before the mirror. She smoothed her hair, adjusted her clothes, and gave herself one last steadying look before stepping out of the room. As she made her way down the stairs, her foot suddenly caught on one of the steps.

"Ah—!"

She stumbled forward, but before she could hit the ground, Logan appeared in a blur and caught her just in time. She landed in his arms, her breath hitching as she looked up—and their eyes locked. For a moment, time seemed to pause as the world fell away around them.

"Are… are you alright?" Logan asked softly, his voice laced with concern.

Cho didn't answer at first, her heart pounding too loudly in her chest to hear anything else. She blinked.

"Cho?"

"Y-yeah?"

"Are you alright?"

"I'm, I'm okay," she said breathlessly. "Thank you…"

Holding her steady, Logan wrapped an arm around her and gently lifted her. He carried her the rest of the way down, then carefully set her back on her feet at the bottom of the stairs.

"I hope you like chinese food,-"

They sat themselves around the dining table.

"Help yourselves,-"

They began to eat their meal.

"So, you're living alone?" asked Cho.

"Yes,-"

"Your parents?"

"I lost them when I was 19,-"

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that,-"

"It's ok,-"

"You don't have any other siblings?"

"Nope, just me,-"

Cho took a sip of her ice tea.

"I lost my parents when I was a young one too,-"

"How young?"

"My mother died after giving birth to me and my father died when I was 8,-"

"Oh dear, I'm so sorry,-"

Cho shook her head.

"So you've been living with your uncle since then?"

"Pretty much,-"

A slight pause followed.

"Anyway, will you tell me what you're about to tell me yesterday?"

"Sure, if you're ready,-"

Cho nodded.

"Alright,- Other than Hugh, we found another two suspects that might be connected to Dominic's disappearance. They are Jonathan and Fred, as they were the last two people who made contact with Dominic. But both of them were also reported missing a couple of days before him,-"

Cho whispered a gasp.

"And for the people who break into your house, they say they're being paid by someone to find something,-"

Cho put her hand over her mouth, in disbelief. "Who, who paid them?"

"They said they didn't really meet that person. He or she only left an envelope along with some money,-"

"What were they looking for?"

"A flash drive,-"

Logan took out his phone. Dived into it for a moment, he handed it to her with an image of a light blue lightning-shaped flash drive on the screen.

"It looks like this,-"

Cho took a close look at it.

"Has Dominic ever shown or mentioned it to you before?"

"No,-" She handed the phone back to him. "Uncle Dom never brought up anything related to his work whenever he's at home,-"

"I see,-" His gaze turned slightly intense. "I'm not trying to scare you or anything, but I'm afraid, your uncle might've been involved in something he shouldn't,-"

FORSYTHE YACHT

"Eva,-" called Landon as he made his way to the front deck.

She turned around. "Yes Landon?"

** Landon Blackwood (59)

- Eva's right-hand man / butler and has been alongside her since she was a child. He sports a neatly groomed mustache and a subtle goatee, adding to his classic charm. His hair is dark, thick, and styled into a voluminous, swept-back look with an undercut, giving him a modern yet timeless vibe.

- Has an intense presence and often creates a sense of fear or unease in others. **

"You might wanna see this,-" He handed her his laptop. " Cedric informed me there's a new inquiry with Dominic's name popped up in the Westfield police database,-"

"Ced?"

"Yes,- You know how Cho would never call any of them during summer breaks?"

Eva nodded.

"Cho called him,- And when I logged into the database, I found this,-"

Landon hit 'Enter' and a file on the screen opened. Dominic's picture was attached upon a missing person form.

"Apparently he'd been reported missing about 2 days ago,-"

EPILOGUE

Dominic unpacked the last of the books from a box labeled Office and began arranging them neatly on the shelves in the corner. As he alphabetized the titles, one of the books slipped from his hands and fell open on the floor. A photograph fluttered out and landed beside it.

"Hm?"

He crouched down and picked it up. It was a photo of a young man in his mid-twenties, beaming with joy as he held a tiny puppy out in front of him. The warmth of that smile struck Dominic like a blow to the chest.

His knees gave way, and he sank to the floor. Cradling the photo in his hands, he stared at it, his vision beginning to blur.

"I'm sorry for not believing in you back then, Damian..." he whispered, his voice thick with regret. Tears welled in his eyes. "And now your daughter has to bear the consequences."

Pressing the photo to his chest, he closed his eyes. "If only I had stood by you… If only I had been there with you… maybe you'd still be alive today." His fingers curled tightly around the edges. "I'm sorry, Damian. I'm so, so sorry..."

Tears traced silent paths down his cheeks.

Unbeknownst to him, a pair of dark brown eyes peeked through the small gap in the doorway. Sensing he was no longer alone, Dominic quickly wiped his face and turned around.

He found Cho standing there, quietly watching him. Straightening himself, he tucked the photo back into the book, slid it onto the shelf, and stepped out to meet her.

"Yes, sweetheart? Are you hungry?"

The ten-year-old girl gave a small, hesitant nod.

"Me too," he said with a soft smile, scooping her gently into his arms. "Let's head down to the kitchen—I'll fix us something to eat."

He cast one last glance at the shelf, his gaze lingering on the book that held the photograph. Then, without another word, he carried Cho downstairs.