"Come on, Cye, You said you would come with us to their house-warming party," Rowen stated as he walked up to him.

Cye kept his back turned, "I changed my mind. Instead of going to some stupid party, I'd rather be out looking for my sister. It's going on over a week and no word."

"Look, I know you're worried about Kaye. We all are, but you need to take a break. You've been going nonstop..."

Cye whirled around. His eyes lit with anger. "I'll keep looking until I find her!"

Rowen put his hands up, palms facing Cye, "We will find Kaye. You know we will. It'll be a matter of time. At the moment, we don't have any leads to go on. Besides, what good will you do her if you run to the point of total exhaustion? You're going to run yourself into the ground with the pace you're going."

Cye lifted a fist towards his friend, "I don't care! Kaye is out there somewhere!"

"Hey, take it easy, Cye. Calm yourself, alright. I think there's something else bothering you besides looking for your sister."

He lowered his fist and looked down to the floor, "Gomen. You're right. I guess I still feel resentment towards Kento for the stunt he pulled when he married Sana. I haven't gotten over it yet."

Rowen laid a hand on Cye's shoulder and gave a reassuring squeeze, "It's going to work out." He then removed his hand, "Who knows, it might be possible we'll get lucky and get some lead while we're there."

Cye looked up at him and raised a brow, "Seriously? Do you think Sana might have something to do with Kaye's disappearance? If so, then why wouldn't Kento say anything?"

Rowen shook his head, "No idea about him, but I was trying to be optimistic about the situation. Hey, crazier things have happened. Especially with us involved."

He gave a small smile, "Yeah, I guess you're right. Thanks."

Rowen smiled back, "Anytime. Anyway, after hearing what Kento's father told us about Shen and Shigong. It makes me think there is way more to Sana than we know. This opportunity will allow us to find out for sure. I'll tell you what, we'll hang out for a couple of hours. If we don't find any information at the party, we'll leave."

Cye thought over what he said, "Fair enough. But don't expect too much if you think I'm going to talk with him."

"Hey, all I'm asking is for you to come with us. You don't need to talk if you don't want to."

"You're a tough negotiator Rowen. But a fair one."

Rowen smirked, "Hey, I do what I can. So let's get going before Ryo and Sage drag us downstairs."

Ryo and Sage stood at the bottom of the stairs. They could hear Cye and Rowen's conversation. "Hey! You two coming or what? It's getting late!"

Cye chuckled, "Speaking of the devil. Yeah, we're coming!" He walked along with Rowen to the main floor.

Sage raised a brow at them, "About time you two decided to join us."

Cye gave a sheepish expression, "My fault."

Ryo nodded, "Don't worry about it. Let's get going." The four walked out of the manor and got into the jeep. Sana and Kento's new place was clear across the other side of the city. It was going to take some time to arrive. So the ride there was in silence most of the way.

Cye glanced at his friends. He could see they were a bit tense. Cye understood the reasoning. "Look, I want to apologize for not being myself."

Sage glanced back in the rearview mirror, "You don't need to apologize Cye, you're going through a lot right now. We don't blame you for how you feel. Any one of us would more likely feel the same way if we were in your shoes. We've been through worse situations than this, and we came out just fine when everything was said and done. So we'll figure this out too. Hang in there."

Cye nodded, "I know, you're right. We will. I'm not thinking straight. I'm a complete wreck about all of this. It isn't like Kaye not to send some word. No phone call, no text, no email, nothing. It's like she vanished into thin air. Plus, with Kento..."

Ryo turned halfway in his seat and looked at him, "You feel like he betrayed you. Cye, there's nothing wrong with what you believe. But I've been thinking, and this whole situation doesn't make any sense. Kento isn't the type of person to make a betrayal like this. We've all known Kento for a long time. You've known him the longest, Cye. Deep down, do you honestly believe Kento would want to hurt Kaye as he did on purpose?"

Cye leaned back in his seat and looked up at the roof. "No. At least not on purpose. But it doesn't make it any easier to take. Plus, after I watched the security feed, it made me realize I should have gone to pick up Kento with her. Then she wouldn't have to find out on her own."

"Maybe, but we can't make up for what happened in the past. We need to figure out how to handle the situation as it is now." Ryo pointed out as he turned back around in his seat.

Rowen decided to switch the subject a bit, "Has anyone talked with Mr. and Mrs. Rei Faun?"

Cye sat back up in his seat, "I talked with them this morning. They were pretty determined about not going tonight. Mr. Rei Faun said they're still not on speaking terms with Kento. He hasn't spoken with them either since he paid a visit to their restaurant."

Sage took the next turn and headed out towards the city limits sign, "Maybe it's for the best. They more in likely need more time to process before they can talk things out again."

Ryo chuckled, "I never saw a family so stubborn."

Cye shook his head, "You haven't seen half of it."

Rowen blinked in surprise, "You're kidding about seeing half of the stubbornness, I mean."

"Nope. I'm not kidding. Someday you'll find out some crazy stories."

Sage smirked as he saw the giant mansion up ahead. "I Can't wait to hear about those stories. Look, we've arrived."

The four Ronins took in the sight as Sage started to get closer. "This is bigger than Mia's. How can Sana afford a place like this?"

Rowen shook his head, "No idea, but from what I've seen so far as we passed the main entry, they have a pretty sophisticated security system. Top of the line, next-generation stuff. I've seen this type mentioned in research papers. Nothing has been made for the public yet. Well, as far as I heard anyway."

Ryo frowned, "It makes me wonder what else is Sana hiding from us."

"No idea. It isn't like we can come right out and ask. We'll get thrown out without even having a chance to look around the grounds." Sage pointed out as he drove up to the cul-de-sac. Someone stood outside and motioned for Sage to park. Sage nodded and pulled over to the side. The four stepped out of the jeep. Sage handed the attendant the keys, and they walked inside the mansion.

Rowen whistled as he was taking it all in. "Wow, this is massive."

"Almost need a tour guide to get around." A familiar voice piped in from behind. "Hey guys, glad you could make it."

The four turned around and saw Kento approach them with Sana by his side.

"Thank you for the invitation," Sage said, giving a curt nod.

Sana returned the nod, "Our pleasure. We appreciate all of you coming. Please, follow us this way."

Kento glanced at Cye and did an internal cringe when his best friend looked away from him. 'He's still pissed at me. I can't say I blame him. I wish there is a way to let the guys know what's going on. But if I do, then Sana or one of her assassins will harm Kaye. I hate this.' Kento turned his focus forward and saw Ammon as he approached them.

Sana stopped as she yanked Kento's arm a bit to have him stop as well. "Gentlemen, may I introduce my son, Ammon." She looked over at him, "Ammon, these are Kento's friends, Cye, Ryo, Rowen, and Sage."

Ammon raised a brow at them, "Yeah, hi." He turned his attention towards his mother. "Can I go now? I have things to do."

Sana narrowed her eyes at her son, "Ammon, you are rude to our guests."

"Look, this is your shindig, not mine. It isn't like you need me here anyway."

"Ammon!"

Kento glanced between the mother and son, "Hey, if he doesn't want to hang around, then he doesn't need to. It's not a problem."

Ammon was surprised a bit by Kento. He didn't expect him to stand up for him at all. "I can fight my own battles, thank you very much. I don't need you to come to my rescue."

"Ammon! Show some respect! Kento is your stepfather!" Sana shot back at him.

"I didn't ask him to be! You decided for yourself to make him one!" Ammon growled, "Forget it! I'm out of here!"

"Ammon! Ammon! Get back here right this instant!" Sana demanded in an angry tone.

"Let him go, Sana. He's a kid. He's blowing off some steam." Kento replied, "He'll come around when he's ready, not before. You can't force this on him."

Sana closed her eyes and sighed. She turned halfway and gave the four an apologetic look. "Gomen, it was unnecessary for you to have seen such an argument. It is supposed to be a party. So please, let's go and enjoy the festivities." She tugged on Kento's arm, and the two of them lead the four farther inside the mansion.

Ryo, Cye, Sage, and Rowen glanced at one another. "Wow, a kid? What's with his story?"

Rowen shook his head, "No idea. I wasn't going to say anything, but with what just happened, I might have to reconsider."

"Reconsider what, Rowen," Cye asked as they continued to follow.

Rowen glanced ahead and saw Kento and Sana were far enough ahead of them, so they wouldn't hear him. "After Kento and Sana arrived at Mia's, and she dropped on us the news about her and Kento's wedding. As well as the story Mr. Rei Faun told us about Shen and Shigong, I did some checking."

Sage glanced at him, "Checking? Don't you mean snooping?"

Rowen raised a brow, "Checking, snooping. It's the same thing. Don't you want to hear what I found or not?"

Cye studied him, "What did you find, Rowen?"

"During my first search, nothing seemed out of sorts on the first couple of hits. But then I decided to go into the dark web, and I found out more than I bargained for, and none of it was good. Most of their businesses are fronts for something or another. But the Jade Thorns is what Mr. Rei Faun assured us they are assassins. Their main base is in China."

Cye blinked in surprise, "Wait, what? It doesn't make any sense. How did Kento get involved with them in the first place? He wouldn't dirty his hands with people who take lives for sport."

Rowen shook his head, "No idea. But we can't let Sana know we suspect who she is. It's too dangerous, and we don't know the entire story. Or how it all ties in together."

"Do you believe she's somehow forcing Kento to be with her and do what she says?" Sage surmised as the four of them made it to the living room for the central area of the party. He saw him a nod and then closed his eyes and sighed. "Well, I guess we'll have to play along too. I know it isn't what you want to do, Cye. But we have no other choice."

"I understand, but it doesn't make things any easier," Cye replied in a quiet tone.

"We'll make Sana and the Jade Thorns pay. I give you my word. Just be patient." Ryo declared under his breath.

Cye nodded as he felt lost in trying to decide what to think or believe. It wasn't right, none of it. He never saw anyone have this tight of control over Kento. Even during the Dynasty Wars and all the others they faced afterward. It was such a mess. He had no idea of where to start to make things right again. The main thing Cye knew is he had to keep it together. Because if he lost it, then he would lose everything and everyone in the process. He knew there was no way he could take a gamble.