Outside, the crowd of onlookers, hearing these sounds, couldn’t help but spin wild theories.
“Are the people at Fcon Hotel really that brazen? Setting off firecrackers to celebrate?”
“Of course, they have the nerve to do that. All the big shots from our city are there. Who in their right mind would dare mess with them?”
“True, they’re downright impressive. They’re able to sit at the same table as Saint Dragon Business Association, the international titan, and even dared to set off firecrackers. That’s something only someone with extraordinary status could pull off.”
“Wait, maybe it’s not firecrackers. Doesn’t it sound more like gunshots?”
“So many gunshots?”
“I don’t think so. Did you hear that helicopter? Those must be firecrackers greeting the helicopter.”
“Yeah, that makes more sense.”
“…”
No one will ever know what really went on inside. All of these were just their guesses and wild speculations.
—
At Georgia’s home.
The moment she stepped inside, Georgia headed straight for the shower. She scrubbed at her skin as if trying to erase not just the blood but the horror that clung to her.
Now, she sat curled up on the sofa, trembling violently, her arms wrapped tightly around herself. The gruesome scenes she had just witnessed replayed in her mind, over and over.
Beckett-a living, breathing man-had died right in front of her. And not just him. So many others were wiped out in an instant.
She had always thought of herself as strong, a well-educated, capable woman who had navigated the cutthroat world of business. But nothing in her life had prepared her for such raw, unrelenting carnage. How could she possibly accept it? Fear clawed at her chest, and an inescapable darkness settled deep in her heart.
Kayden approached her, with a glass of water in hand. He knelt slightly, holding the water out to her. “It’s over now. It’s all behind you,” he soothed.
He had said those words countless times tonight, trying to break through the wall of shock surrounding her. He understood how alien this must all seem to Georgia.
In her world, this country was a sanctuary of peace, untouched by the chaos of war. Yet now, that illusion lay shattered. This land was no longer the tranquil haven she believed it to be. It was a battlefield, where people fought and died, where titles of kings and generals were forged in blood. How could someone like her possibly accept it all?
Georgia reached for the glass, but she didn’t drink. She simply held it, her vacant eyes staring into the distance.
Kayden sighed and sat down beside her.
For what felt like an eternity, the two sat in silence. Then, slowly, Georgia’s gaze shifted. Her wide, tear-brimmed eyes lifted to meet Kayden’s face.
Her pupils quivered, catching the light like faintly shimmering orbs, as though her fear, confusion, and desperation were all battling for dominance in their depths.
Kayden held her gaze. His eyes were calm and kind, radiating a quiet strength meant to anchor her. No words passed between them, but his steady presence seemed to say what she needed most: You’re safe now.
Some things he could use his inner strength to help Georgia with-fear, for example. Whenever she was scared or tense, Kayden would take her hand, channeling his internal strength to sweep those emotions away like a calming tide. But not this time. This time, Georgia had to face it herself, to understand and come to terms with what had just happened.
“Kayden,” she finally whispered, her voice trembling, “was what just happened… real?”
Without a moment’s hesitation, Kayden nodded. “It was real. Everything you saw, everything I told you-it’s all true.”
Her gaze wavered, flickering like candlelight caught in a breeze, and then her expression clouded with worry. “Does that mean… every day, you’re surviving in that kind of merciless world? A place where it’s either your death or someone else’s?”
Kayden nodded again. “Yes,” he didn’t deny it.
Pain filled Georgia’s eyes as she looked at him. Her lips quivered as if she wanted to say something more, but instead, she threw herself into his arms, burying her face against his chest.
“Thank you, Kayden!”
His embrace wasn’t broad, but it held a warmth that melted away the chill in her heart.
Kayden had expected reproach or perhaps anger from Georgia, but her response left him stunned. How could she be so understanding? At this moment Kayden was grateful that she married this woman who had stood by his side for three years.
To the outsiders, Georgia seemed blessed, married to a man who was almost mythical in his strength and prowess. But to Kayden, he was the fortunate one-for finding a woman who had transformed his life.
If it weren’t for Georgia’s tender softening his heart, Kayden might have killed Jason the last time he came home. Gently, Kayden lifted his hand and ran it softly down her back. “Thank you,” he murmured. “Thank you for trusting me, for holding on to your faith that I didn’t lie to you.”
Georgia nodded slightly, her thoughts swirling. If only she could hold Kayden like this forever, she thought. The idea filled her heart to the brim, and she pressed herself even closer to him.
It was as if she wished to dissolve into his embrace, to make this moment eternal. She wanted time to stop, wanted to remain by his side, always.
The faint, lingering scent of her body wash curled around him like an intoxicating perfume. Kayden couldn’t help but greedily breathe it in. His arms tightened around her instinctively, as if he were afraid she might slip away.
In the small, dimly lit room, they held each other close. It was as if the world outside had vanished, leaving only the two of them in their own private universe.
After a while, Georgia seemed to remember something. She wriggled free from Kayden’s arms. “Oh! I almost forgot-I have something for you!”
She stood and disappeared into the bedroom. Moments later, she returned, clutching a small bottle and an envelope.
Her expression was curious yet tinged with mystery as she approached Kayden and placed the items in his hands. “This is from an old fortune teller. He told me to give it to you. Said it’s something you need. I have no idea what it’s for, but… it feels kind of mysterious.”
Kayden turned the bottle and envelope over in his hands, inspecting them with a furrowed brow.
As Georgia recounted her encounter with the strange fortune teller, Kayden listened intently. When she finished, he exhaled a soft sigh. His eyes narrowed slightly as his thoughts drifted.
He wasn’t entirely surprised at the existence of fortune telling. After all, Seclela had always been a place where such mystics roamed. With thousands of years of history and culture, it wasn’t shocking that someone had inherited these ancient, arcane traditions.
Metaphysics had been shrouded in such an air of mystery that people dismissed it as superstition. Yet in ancient times, it was revered as a cornerstone of culture-practically a national treasure. Many towering historical figures were masters not only of astronomy and geography but also of divination and fortune-telling, the very essence of metaphysics.
Take that blind old fortune teller, for instance. With nothing more than a touch of someone’s hand, he could divine their fate, and his predictions were surprisingly precise. The man clearly had real talent. In the entire expanse of Seclela, individuals with such uncanny abilities were astonishingly rare.
After quietly observing the bottle for a moment, Kayden asked, “Did he tell you his name?”
Georgia blinked, momentarily at a loss. The brutal scene of Beckett’s death had nearly swept the old man’s name from her mind. But then as if struck by a sudden flash of clarity, she exclaimed, “I remember now! He said his name is Maverick!”
What?
Maverick! It’s him!
Shock rippled across Kayden’s usually composed face. He muttered the name to himself, “The Sage Doctor, Maverick Quinn!
The saying couldn’t be truer: What you seek tirelessly may elude you, but fate has a way of delivering it right to your doorstep. He had scoured the East for any trace of Maverick, only to come up empty. Who could have imagined that Maverick would appear here, in Hiphia?
Maverick stood shoulder to shoulder with Cael Gabor at the pinnacle of traditional medicine. He was as elusive as he was legendary. His actions were always cloaked in a mystique that left others marveling, scratching their heads, and yearning for answers.
“Do you know him?” Georgia asked, her voice laced with curiosity. It was the same question she’d asked about Maverick, now posed to Kayden.
Kayden shook his head slightly. “Not personally. But I’ve heard of his name.”
Georgia shrugged, a faint smile curling her lips. “That’s exactly what he said about you. He told me I’m the thread connecting the two of you. He also said that in this lifetime, you two might never meet face-to-face. That’s why he entrusted me with these things, to pass on to you.”