Book 1: Sancta Labyrinthus

Chapter 3

“Father is not dead!” Victoria heard herself yell. A few of her relatives turned around at the commotion, and she lowered her voice. “Where is Father?”

The mysterious male smirked. “Very good, Miss Knowles. You are quite the perceptive one. Your father is indeed alive. Well, in a way.”

Victoria didn't like how the man spoke. It was as if he was mocking her, spiteing her with cryptic messages.

She could sense Alistair stiffening beside her. “Where is he?” he asked quietly.

“He's living a half-life, half-death,” the male explained.

“What does that even mean?” Victoria snarled. “If you're not going to tell it to us straight, kindly buzz off.”

Victoria regretted her words instantly. This stranger here was her last hope, the key to unlocking all the mysterious disappearances in her life, and she had let her tightly-strung emotions get ahold of her.

The man seemed to know it. He wasn't playing right into her hands.

Shrugging, he tucked his hands into the pockets of his blazer. “Understood, Miss Knowles. I'll take my leave now.”

He turned to leave, but Alistair, in a sudden uncharacteristic movement, made a grab at his arm. His sapphire eyes were haunted. “Wait. Don't go. Tell us: Where is Father now?”

The man looked at Alistair impassively, and Alistair dropped his arm as if he had gotten burned. “Your father is with us.”

“What do you mean, Father is with you? Who are you?” Victoria pressed. “Just bloody return him to us already!”

“Unfortunately, Miss Knowles, that might be… Rather difficult,” the man told her. Victoria felt her hands curl into fists as adrenaline coursed through her bloodstream. How dearly she wanted to land a punch right on the man’s snarky, cocky face, and beat the answers out of him.

Your father is indeed alive.

Well, in a way.

He's living a half-life, half-death.

What the hell did that mean?

“Where’s Father?” she demanded through gnashed teeth, barely suppressing her rage. “If you’re keeping him hostage—”

The man interrupted calmly, as if she had said nothing, “We can offer you the opportunity to see your father again.”

Victoria’s head swam, as redness began to creep into her vision. Was this blackmail?

“How much money do you want?” Alistair wanted to know.

The man laughed. “We don’t care about money. That’s not what we want from either of you. Congratulations, by the way, about becoming millionaires so young.”

“Where’s Father?” Victoria spat. “What do you want from us? Who are you?”

The man smiled. “We would like you to join our cause. What you’ll get in return? Revenge on those who had wreaked havoc on your lives years ago, and power like no other.”

“Revenge?” Victoria straightened. Was he referring to the brown-haired man? It wasn’t difficult to figure that they would’ve hated him – after the news of the snake broke, the police swiftly investigated their mother’s unnatural death and told them that they believed their mother had been a host to the snake, and Park Jae-Ki had been assisting the snake all along.

But revenge was now impossible. There was no point, she thought. The snake was dead, and Park Jae-Ki was dead, according to the news. The religious madman that had bombed the airport a week ago had probably died in the explosion as well.