his weakness

sixty one

N O L A N

"Fucking hell, that's crazy." Chase tries to express himself, but his true feelings remain hidden behind a well-crafted facade. Kenzie's disappearance has taken its toll on him, just as I expected. I know he must feel the same resentment toward Kieran that I do—for putting her through so much agony and distress, all because he couldn't move past one miscommunication from years ago.

"He's calling me." Vanessa looks down at her phone, continuously buzzing in the palm of her hand. I don't want to forgive him at all, I don't care if he realised his mistakes. It's too late now.

"Pick up, and put it on speaker." Uncle Mario demands. After Vanessa finished telling the group everything, I could see the pain in Uncle Mario's eyes. He wants his son back, very badly but he knows it'll never be the same. He knows himself that it's too late. On the other hand, Vanessa thinks there's still space for redemption.

"Hello?" Vanessa breaks the silence between all of us as we stare at her intently. Chase places his hand on her thigh in a way to comfort her. To let her know he's here for her. I wish I could do the same for my Kenzie.

"Have you found anything out?" Hearing his voice after so long irks me in a way I knew it would. For Nessa, I want to bury this hatred for him but it seems almost impossible.

"No, have you?" Her voice trembles. She feels uncomfortable since everyone's attention is on her.

"Kenny's not involved at all. He hasn't been for a while. We did have a plan in mind but now that I'm gone, it'll be impossible for him to do anything. I can try to find out about her whereabouts but I can't guarantee that."

Vanessa gives me a confused look, silently asking, 'Should I tell him?' I give a subtle nod. It's a good idea to put him to use—I know Kieran's good with his research.

"We already know where she is. We're leaving soon."

"Where?"

She gives me another look to confirm, and I nod again.

"Barbados."

"What on earth is she doing there?"

"Someone took her. We don't know who."

"Shit. Alright, I'll do some research. I'll get back to you if I find anything out. But Ness- Vanessa, you guys need to be careful and well prepared. It's a dangerous country so the facilities they must have, whoever took her, must be super advanced. I can send over some of my people if you want." I'm sure we'll be fine. We might not be a large army in numbers, but mentally, we can accomplish what 100 people could.

"Do you want to come?" Vanessa asks and my eyes widen at her suggestion. How am I supposed to be face-to-face with him and keep myself from hurting him?

I hear Uncle Mario sigh.

Chase looks supportive of Vanessa's choice.

The rest look ready to bring back Kenzie home.

"I don't think that's a good idea." Yes. It's not.

Vanessa gives me an apologetic look, but I respond with a glance that says, It's okay,' even though it's not. I'm nowhere near ready to be around him, especially after finding out he's been dedicated to destroying my life for the past few months.