Neo didn't move at first.
The docks felt the same. The air smelled the same. The ocean moved the same.
But nothing was the same.
He could still hear it.
Welcome home.
Aiden stood slowly, brushing invisible dust from his sleeves. His expression had already reset calm, composed, unreadable.
Neo hadn't. "Found them!!"
Boots rushed toward them. Men in suits flooded the dock with immediate speed.
"Are you both alright, sir?"
Aiden answered before Neo could even blink. "Yes. Just got turned around. Take us back to the office."
One of the guards stepped closer. "Mr. Neo-"
"He's fine," Aiden cut smoothly. "We'll walk to the car. Get it ready."
The guard hesitated, then nodded. "Yes, sir."
They walked.
Not too fast. Not too slow. Controlled.
The ocean breeze brushed against Neo's face but he barely felt it. His mind replayed every detail the mansion, the staircase, the four new faces standing like they'd always existed.
Weapons.
That's what D'uther called them.
Aiden opened the car door but didn't get in immediately.
"Neo." Silence that was all that was heard.
"Look at me." Neo finally turned.
His eyes were colder now. Sharper.
"He's going to move," Neo said quietly. Not emotional. Not shaken. Just certain.
"Yes," Aiden replied.
"He wants something." "He always does."
Neo let out a slow breath. "Two more."
Aiden's jaw tightened slightly. "Yeah."
The final pieces.
They both knew what that meant.
If D'uther was gathering them, it wasn't nostalgia. It was war preparation.
The car engine started. They got in.
As the docks faded behind them, Neo leaned back against the seat, eyes fixed ahead.
"He thinks we're still his."
Aiden glanced at him briefly. "Are we?"
Neo's lips curved not a smile. Something sharper.
"No." And Silence filled the car.
But it wasn't calm.
It was the kind of silence before something detonates.
The car rode into the underground garage smoothly, the heavy steel doors parting with mechanical precision as the vehicle descended into the dimly lit space below the building. The faint hum of the engine echoed against the concrete walls, headlights briefly washing over polished floors and parked cars that cost more than some men made in a lifetime. It was quiet down there too quiet for a place that housed power the way this building did.
As soon as the car stopped, Aiden stepped out first.
He didn't wait for Neo to move.
He rounded the vehicle and opened Neo's door himself, his hand firm on the edge before gently gripping Neo's forearm. Neo stepped out, but there was a slight delay in the movement as if his body was responding a second slower than usual. His posture was upright, but his eyes… his eyes were somewhere else.
Aiden didn't make it obvious.
He slid an arm around Neo's back under the pretense of steadying him from the slight incline of the parking floor. To anyone watching, it looked casual. Familiar. Protective, but not alarming.
But Aiden knew.
Neo wasn't fully present.
Maybe it was shock. Maybe it was anger. Maybe it was the resurfacing of something he had buried so deep that even mentioning the name felt like reopening an old surgical scar that never healed right.
The elevator doors were already open by the time they approached. One of the stationed guards nodded respectfully and pressed the button for the executive floor without being asked. The doors slid shut with a soft metallic glide, sealing them inside the mirrored space.
Neo leaned back slightly against the wall.
His reflection stared back at him.
For a second...just a second he didn't recognize himself.
Aiden watched him carefully but didn't speak. Not yet. He knew when to push and when to let silence do its work.
Outside the elevator, one of the guards who had accompanied them to the garage stepped aside and pulled out his phone. His brows were drawn together slightly, unease flickering across his face.
He dialed.
Lucas answered on the second ring.
"Sir," the guard spoke in a low voice. "Something happened at the docks."
A pause.
"They're back. But… Neo isn't acting the way he was this morning."
On the other end of the line, Lucas didn't ask unnecessary questions.
He simply hummed once in acknowledgment.
A sound that meant he had already begun calculating. The call ended.
The elevator doors opened with a quiet chime.
Aiden and Neo stepped out.
The hallway leading to Lucas' office was long, sleek, lined with dark paneling and subtle lighting that cast clean shadows along the floor. Their footsteps echoed faintly as they walked. Neo's pace was steady, but his mind was miles away.
When they reached the office doors, Aiden pushed them open without knocking.
Inside, Lucas was seated behind his desk, posture composed, fingers resting lightly over a closed file. Across from him sat Kellan, one leg crossed over the other, leaning back slightly but alert enough to notice the shift in energy the second the two of them walked in.
Kellan's gaze immediately moved to Neo.
He didn't look physically harmed.
But something was off.
Aiden guided Neo forward just enough before letting his arm fall naturally to his side.
"We completed the survey of the dock," Aiden began, tone controlled. "Security rotations are intact. Incoming shipment route remains unchanged. No visible disruptions."
Neo opened his mouth to continue.
But the words stalled.He inhaled.Stopped.
His throat moved slightly as though he was rearranging thoughts that refused to align.
Lucas didn't interrupt. He watched.
Carefully.
Kellan leaned forward slightly in his seat. "Neo, are you okay?"
The question lingered in the air longer than necessary.
Neo nodded quickly. Too quickly.
"Y-yes. I am."
But his voice lacked its usual steadiness.
Lucas' eyes flickered briefly not to Neobut to the monitor on his desk.
Then back to him.
"Tell me what happened within the nine minutes the dock cameras twitched."
The words were calm.
Direct.Precise.
The room went still.
Aiden's head turned slightly toward Lucas, surprise barely concealed. "You noticed."
Lucas' gaze didn't shift. "I notice everything that concerns me."
He leaned back slightly in his chair.
"So tell me, Neo."
Neo stood there.
Silent.
His fingers slowly curled inward at his sides.
His shoulders slumped just slightly, and his hair fell forward, shadowing his eyes. When he finally spoke, his voice was hoarse, lower than usual. Not weak. Just… strained.
"W-why did he come back…why"
The question wasn't directed at anyone in the room.
It was directed at history.
Kellan frowned slightly. "Who are you talking about?"
Neo swallowed.
He lifted his head just enough for his eyes to be visible through the strands of hair.
"I met him."
His voice steadied by force alone.
"We met him."
Aiden didn't look away.
Neo's jaw tightened slightly before he forced the last word out.
"Lucas… my fa-" He stopped himself.
Corrected it. "D'uther."
The name settled into the room like something heavy and ancient.
Lucas' expression didn't explode.
Didn't crack.
But something in his eyes sharpened instantly.Understanding.Not confusion.
Understanding.
And that was worse.
Because it meant he had been waiting for this possibility all along.
The air inside the office shifted.
Not dramatically. Not loudly.
But enough.
Lucas didn't move at first. He didn't interrupt. He didn't react the way most men would when a name like that entered the room. His fingers remained loosely laced on top of the desk, posture composed, gaze steady on Neo.
But his eyes sharpened.
Kellan straightened in his seat. "D'uther?" he repeated, slower this time, as if testing the weight of the name. "You mean-"
"Yes," Aiden cut in quietly, stepping slightly closer to Neo without making it obvious. "That D'uther."
Neo's breathing had grown uneven again, not panicked restrained. Like someone trying to hold back something volcanic. He kept his gaze lowered, hair falling forward, hands curled loosely at his sides as if he didn't trust them not to shake.
Lucas finally leaned back in his chair.
"Start from the beginning," he said calmly.
Not loud. Not demanding.
Controlled.
Neo swallowed before speaking, forcing the words out in order. "We were at the docks. I stepped away from the main gate. I remember turning because I thought I heard something… and then nothing. When I opened my eyes, we were in a van. Clean. No markings. No restraints." His jaw tightened. "They weren't there to hurt us."
"They were precise," Aiden added. "Timed. Professional. They knew exactly when to return us. Nine minutes."
Lucas' gaze flicked briefly toward the window before returning to Neo. "And they took you where?"
Neo hesitated again not because he didn't remember, but because he remembered too clearly.
"A mansion," he answered at last. "Spotless. Guarded but subtle. Old money type. He was waiting."
"And he spoke to you," Lucas pressed.
Neo nodded slowly. "Like nothing changed. Like I had just come home from school." His lips curved faintly, but there was no humor in it. "He called us his future. Said we were all still his."
Kellan frowned deeply. "All?"
"There were four others," Neo continued, lifting his head slightly now. His voice had steadied, but something colder had replaced the shakiness. "Three men. One woman. Around our age. Positioned like trained assets. He's building something."
Aiden exhaled through his nose. "He's assembling heirs."
The word lingered.
Lucas stood up then, walking around the desk slowly. Not pacing calculating. He stopped in front of Neo, close enough to read every micro-expression.
"And what did he want from you?" Lucas asked quietly.
Neo met his gaze fully this time.
"He wanted to see if I'd flinch."
"And did you?"
A silence stretched between them.
"Yes," Neo admitted.
The honesty in it made Kellan shift uncomfortably.
Lucas, however, didn't look disappointed.
He studied Neo for a long moment before speaking again. "Your father doesn't move without intention. If he revealed himself now, it means he believes the board is ready."
"He said two more," Neo added. "He's waiting on two more."
Aiden's expression darkened. "Which means once they're in place, whatever he's planning begins."
Lucas turned away slightly, walking back toward the desk. Sunlight from the afternoon filtered through the tall windows, casting long shadows across the polished floor. The city below moved as usual unaware that something older and far more dangerous had resurfaced.
When Lucas spoke again, his voice carried weight.
"He didn't come back for reconciliation," he said evenly. "He came back because he believes he can reclaim territory."
Neo's hands slowly unclenched.
"He thinks I'm unfinished business."
"No," Lucas corrected, turning back toward him. "He thinks you're leverage."
That landed harder.
Kellan leaned forward. "So what now?"
Lucas didn't answer immediately. He looked at Neo not as a subordinate, not as an asset.
As a partner.
"Now," Lucas said carefully, "we stop reacting."
Neo's eyes narrowed slightly.
"We prepare," Lucas continued. "If D'uther is gathering heirs, we gather intelligence. Every mansion fitting that description within a fifty-mile radius. Financial movements tied to his old network. Any resurgence in dormant accounts."
Aiden nodded once. "I'll handle that."
"And Neo," Lucas added, voice lowering slightly, "you don't get to spiral."
It wasn't harsh.
It was grounding.
"He resurfaced because he believes you still belong to him. The worst thing you can do right now is prove him right."
Neo held Lucas' gaze for several seconds.
Something steadied inside him.
Not comfort.
Alignment.
"He won't take anything from me again," Neo said quietly.
Lucas' expression softened just barelyalmost imperceptibly.
"Good," he replied. "Because if D'uther wants to start a war in broad daylight…"
His eyes hardened.
"…we'll make sure he understands who actually owns this city now."