Chapter One Hundred and Fourteen

...

"Good evening, viewers. A new Hero was revealed in the Gauteng province of South Africa earlier this week, but today showed that not all Heroes are unbreakable. A warning for younger viewers or those with sensitive stomachs: this is not a pleasant sight," Brian Anderson said with a serious expression, turning his attention to the news feed.

The TV showed the South Africa news anchors briefly before focusing on an amateur video of the hero and villain fighting. The hero, named Angel for their pure white wings, was fighting against Four Arm. Angel was shown carrying Four Arm up into the air, reminiscent of a classic Jetstream move where she carried her opponents into the air and dropped them from a dizzying height to incapacitate them.

Angel was flapping their wings hard when Four Arm cried out in fear and used their extra set of arms to grab at Angel's wings. Even with the poor video quality, the snap of hollow bones was heard clearly. The feathers plummeted to the ground just as fast as the hero and villain.

A sickening crunch was heard, someone crying out in fear or revulsion and the camera went wild as the person recording ran over to where the two had fallen.

The screen was filled with bright red blood and mangled feathers and broken bones. A sound of retching could be heard and then the screen went blank.

Brian Anderson's face returned and he looked pale, even under his makeup. "It seems that Angel has fallen, but they took the villain out with them, so their death was not in vain. While the ad break is on, we here at the studio will observe a minute's silence for the hero lost to us in action. We hope you will do the same at home."

...

Victor couldn't help his nerves nor his excitement. He had spent a week thinking about this (probably longer, if he was being truly honest with himself), and he had determined that he was finally ready to have sex with Connor.

He was going to visit Lexie and then he and Connor had a date where Victor planned on announcing that he was wearing the right shirt. Maybe while Connor was drinking, just to ease his own tension and to see how Connor would respond.

Smoothing down the blue shirt - he'd ensured to take the tag off, no matter what Honey had said - Victor headed into the hospital to visit Lexie and see her mohawk in person.

An hour later, Victor was practically pushed out of the hospital by nurses who needed to do their rounds since visiting hours had ended twenty minutes earlier. Lex and Alex had promised to visit that weekend with an update on Lexie, who had rolled her eyes fondly at her boys and offered a chocolate to Victor before he was led over to the elevators by the nurse.

Victor stepped out of the hospital, chewing and swallowing the last of the chocolate, and checked his phone to see a text from Connor on his lock screen.

Looking forward to seeing you tonight, darling. Give Lexie my love & say hello to Lex and Alex for me.

Victor unlocked his phone and opened the text message to reply. A squeal of tyres had him looking up reflexively. A van stopped short in front of him, illegally parked and crooked to boot. Figuring it was an emergency, Victor stepped aside and looked back to his phone.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you."

The voice had his blood running cold. He looked up again, the van window open and a gun pointed at his face. The person holding the gun was none other than Cara. She was wearing her hair tied back and a broad-brimmed hat to hide her face and red hair from the hospital cameras. His fingers went numb at the sight of her, really here and in the flesh, and he dropped his phone to the sidewalk with an unfortunate smashing sound.

Cara grinned at the sound and wince that flitted across Victor's face. "Saves me the trouble of doing it. Get in, sweetheart."

"What? No! I'm not going anywhere with you; you can shoot me," Victor said, doubting she would shoot him in broad daylight in public.

If she did, then being in front of a hospital had to be the best place to be shot, surely?

Cara rolled her eyes and picked up a phone with her free hand, dialling a number. "You're making me do this, Victor, just remember that."

Victor should run. He should just go back into the hospital and call the police and -

A loud and bright giggle came from the phone, one that he recognised immediately as Elijah.

"They are adorable twins, Edith. Would you get me a drink, please? Playing with these dears has made me quite parched," Greta said pleasantly.

There was a moment of silence and then a wailing sound could be heard as if a small and chubby leg had been pinched extremely hard. Elliot wailed in pain and Elijah soon followed.

"Don't! Stop hurting them! I'll... I'll come with you, just don't hurt them."

Cara indicated to the van's sliding door with the gun. "Get in first."

Swallowing hard, Victor forced himself to move the few metres between his position and the van. He opened the door and climbed inside, his body feeling like a block of wood and his blood feeling like ice. "How could you hurt your own children like that? You don't deserve - "

"Oh, shut up. I didn't hurt them, Greta did," Cara said, rolling her eyes. She turned in her seat to face him and grinned, broad and mean. "Put your belt on and then put that bag over your head or I'll get Greta to do worse than pinch them."

"They're just babies!"

"Yeah, and pinching them is nothing compared to what she will do. Hurry up; I'm illegally parked here."

Victor eyed the gun warily. Could he grab it from her? Could he hurt Cara and get away?

Cara grinned like she knew what he was thinking and cocked the gun, her finger on the trigger. "Just try it, sweetheart. I've been itching to shoot someone for months."

Victor believed her. He swallowed hard and put his belt on. He slipped the black bag over his head. The material wasn't thick and he could still see. He certainly wouldn't tell Cara that.

Victor realised he could smell something. The scent was thick in his nose. He tried not to gag at the pungent smell.

Was it sweat, fish, urine, or a combination? Ammonia, Victor realised.

He wanted to throw up. His vision started to go hazy. Victor only felt relief and a second later he was unconscious.

Cara tore the bag off Victor's head when his chin hit his chest. She threw the bag to the end of the van, as far away from her as possible, then put the gun on the passenger seat and drove away before the parking inspector could reach her.

It was time to put her brilliant plan into action.

...

Edith opened the door with a smile, her smile fading when she saw Greta standing on the step. "What are you doing here?"

"That's not a very nice way to greet one of your oldest friends, Edith," Greta admonished lightly, smiling.

"Let me rephrase: what the fuck are you doing here, you old cow?"

Greta laughed as though she'd told a great joke and stepped aside so Edith could see out to the street. Mrs. Quinton - who didn't even live in this neighbourhood - was walking her dogs. If 'walking' meant she was watching Greta and Edith's exchange while her greyhounds attempted to pull their owner down the street, of course.

Edith's neighbours were busybodies, which she knew well since she used them and their information in her betting pools regularly, and she could see at least three of them at their windows, watching just as carefully as Mrs. Quinton.

"I just wanted to see a familiar face, Edith. I thought we could have a chat and I could meet those adorable grandsons of yours. I've heard all about them," Greta said with a beguiling smile.

Edith honestly didn't want Greta in her home, but there were too many people watching. Mrs. Quinton alone would probably tell the entire societal club that Edith had refused Greta entry to her home when she hadn't done anything to her. Technically, it was true, but she still didn't have to like the woman.

"Come in."

For the rest of her life, Edith would regret saying those words.

Of course, she didn't know that yet and simply led Greta through to the lounge room where Elijah and Elliot were playing with their toys. When she'd left them to answer the door, they'd been playing by spatially manipulating their elephant and giraffe toys to drop on each other's head, to the wild giggling of both. Now, however, they were both holding their toys in tight chubby fists. If Edith didn't know any better, she'd think they were holding them like weapons.

"Oh, aren't they sweet?" Greta cooed.

She spent a good five minutes lavishing attention on the twins, though neither one let go of their toys. An uneasy feeling started to building in Edith's chest, despite the fact that she couldn't see anything wrong

Maybe it was a reaction to Greta being nice? she mused, trying not to laugh out loud at the thought.

There was a buzzing sound that had Edith looking at her phone on the coffee table, but the screen was black and not receiving an incoming call or text.

Elijah giggled, the sound usually reminiscent of when he saw his father, and Edith didn't have a chance to wonder what was going on because Greta gave a small puff, as though exerted.

"They are adorable twins, Edith. Would you get me a drink, please? Playing with these dears has made me quite parched," Greta said pleasantly.

Edith didn't want to go, didn't think she should, but a guest had asked for a drink and she had to oblige. She nodded and left for the kitchen, figuring she could be a little petty and give Greta tap water. The bitch didn't deserve sparkling, Edith mused.

There was a wailing sound from the lounge room and forgetting about Greta's drink, Edith ran back to the room just in time to see Greta pinching Elijah's leg, Elliot bawling beside his brother. The awful churning feeling in her stomach almost made Edith double over in pain, but her grandbabies came first and Edith forcefully pulled Greta away from them.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing?" Greta exclaimed, struggling and failing to get out of Edith's grip.

Edith couldn't verbalise an answer and instead wrenched the front door open. It was such an abrupt action that Mrs. Quinton almost fell over her dogs as they barked at the unexpected noise.

"Never. Come. Near. My. Family. Again!" Edith snapped.

Greta finally straightened herself as Edith practically threw her out the door. "It's a free country, Edith, you can't - "

SLAP.

Greta paled and clutched her cheek, shocked at Edith's strength. In the background, she was sure she heard those little brats giggling.

"I will do so much worse to you if you come near any of my family ever again. That goes for you, too!" Edith yelled at Mrs. Quinton, who flushed bright red and hurried down the street with her dogs.

Greta turned on her heel and left without a word. It didn't matter, after all. So long as Cara had done her job, then Edith and her words meant nothing.

Edith waited, watching to ensure Greta really left before she went to check on poor Elijah and Elliot.

...

Connor looked to his phone for the time, trying not to jump to conclusions. Victor had texted him earlier in the day stating he had a surprise; maybe the surprise was that he would be late?

His phone rang a moment later and Connor answered it warily, wondering why Honey was calling him. "Honey?"

"We don't have much time. Your night's been cancelled; you need to come to the Hive."

"I'll wait for Victor and bring - "

"You can't, Connor. He's been kidnapped."

Connor went still at her words, blood turning to ice and his mind going blank. A foghorn sounded before he could get lost and Connor winced at the sound, paying attention to Honey's words once more.

"Snap out of it! Victor needs you and you need to come to the Hive before something happens. I just... He's my best friend and my brother, Connor, I can't lose him. Not now, not... please."

Hating how her voice broke, Honey covered her mouth with her hand. She could see everything Cara and Greta would do to Victor and while some of it was in different threads of reality, it didn't make the knowledge any worse. The things they could do to him, the things they would do to him, the things they might do to him, all of it blurred in her mind.

No, wait, that was her eyes blurring with tears. Stifling a sob, Honey forced herself to breathe. They would get Victor back, she knew that. Whether they got him back in one piece or not... She pushed the thought away abruptly and turned her attention to the phone call once more.

"I'll be at the Hive in ten minutes. Are the kids already there?"

"I'm picking Wendy and Donny up on my way there. We'll be there in fifteen. They've started planning already, just... don't let them act until I'm there, okay?"

"Are you sure you're okay to drive?"

"Are you?"

Connor couldn't really answer that truthfully so he just said goodbye. Offering some vague excuse to the waiter, Connor ignored the attempts to keep his business and left the restaurant, heading to his car and out to the Hive.

...

Greta clenched her jaw when she saw Victor tied to the chair. Turning on Cara, she slapped the stupid woman for daring to go against her and her plan. Her own cheek stung as a reminder of Edith's forceful eviction from her house.

"Ow! What the fuck?!"

"You were supposed to get the boy! Why is Victor here? We can't get a ransom with him; he was the one we were planning to ask the ransom from!" Greta snapped, ignoring the girl's look of betrayal as she pressed her cool prosthetic to her red cheek.

"Oh, please, Edith would pay hand over fist to get her son back. She's richer than Victor, anyway."

"Yes, and like I told you last time, your stupid plan won't work. Her money is in shares and property! There's no way she'll get the amount of money we want in the timeframe we've put in the ransom letter! It's a Friday."

"Hyacinth can help; she can override those sorts of things as a prominent Maxville judge," Cara said.

Greta didn't think that would honestly work, but her cheek was still stinging. She would be lying if she didn't take pleasure in the thought of hurting Edith in return. "Well, it's not like we can un-kidnap him now. Everything else goes according to my plan, understood?" Cara didn't nod immediately as Greta expected her to, and she narrowed her eyes at the redheaded girl. "What?"

"I want him to repeal the super restraining order," Cara said, her words firm despite the blood she could taste in her mouth.

Greta clenched her jaw and fists tightly. She forced herself to count to ten and relax, especially as her face hurt even more when she clenched her jaw like that. "You selfish girl, you - "

"Mrs. Quinton's reports showed Craig as hanging around Layla and Warren the most," Cara interrupted, ignoring Greta's barbed words. "Hurting Victor hurts Craig, and hurting him means that Layla and Warren will be hurt, too. He's either in a relationship with them or really good friends. Real friends are hurt when their friends are hurt," she added.

Greta thought about it carefully, and as she did, phantom thorns pricked along her skin. That was good enough for her. Breathing through the pain, Greta nodded. "Fine. Do you have everything ready?"

Cara smiled and indicated to the assortment of knives, power tools, and torture devices. "We're ready to start as soon as he wakes up."

...

"If you don't calm down, I will fight every single one of you and believe me, I will goddamn win!" Connor snapped, blocking the training arena doorway as all twelve kids argued with him to go out and find Victor.

Realising that his Papa was serious and just as affected as the rest of them, if not more, Ryuu moved to stand beside him. "We have to wait for Honey. She'll be here in three minutes."

Craig shifted and let out a roar, destroying several dummies in a matter of seconds.

"Can we try to focus on why someone would want to kidnap Victor? He's rich, certainly, but he's not the richest person in Maxville," Ethan pointed out.

"It's 'cause of Craig. Remember, that old woman was following him around? She needed to know when Craig would be out and away from Victor," Zach said, frowning when the others looked at him. "What? Isn't it obvious?"

"No, not really. But you're right. Gimme a sec," Adam said, unlocking his phone.

"We're going to need more than this if we're going to fight; we don't know what we're up against," Grant said, reviewing their meagre supply of arsenal on the table.

"I believe I can be of assistance," Ethan said, drawing out several water drops from his arms.

"Why are you carrying the ingredients to make C4?" Ryuu asked. "Not why-why, I get that, but what if they mixed together? It's not exactly a stable concoction."

"I keep the ingredients in separate limbs to avoid them combining."

"How do you know what the ingredients are to make C4?" Connor asked his son, eyebrows raised.

"I read Fight Club and it has the ingredient list," Ry said with a shrug.

"Huh, that's how I found out, too," Ethan said.

"Explanations and evil book club later; we've got to save Victor first," Jewel said. "I can go in as Gemstone. Damages are covered by the state, then."

"We don't know where Victor is, he might not be in the state anymore," Robin said.

"Can someone get the screen going? I've found the footage from the hospital. It's where his phone is," Terrence added.

Layla pressed a button on the remote, a large white screen lowering from the ceiling. Warren took the semi-melted remote from her, setting it down next to the knife collection Zach had brought to add to their arsenal.

"You okay, hippie?"

Layla shook her head. "Craig's in so much pain, he's blaming himself. I don't know how to help him."

"We'll help him by getting Victor back and burning whoever took him to fucking ashes," Warren said fiercely, their joined hands bursting into flame.

Layla nodded. "I can do that."

...

Victor woke up slowly, his head pounding and his chest tight. Remembering what had happened all too clearly, he wondered what would happen now. He heard a beeping sound that reminded him of Lexie's heart monitor in the hospital and realised that something was clipped to his finger.

Taking stock of his situation, Victor found he was seated in a chair, his arms tied to the armrests on either side of him, his chest bound against the backrest. A table was nearby, covered in an assortment of power tools and knives, with the heart monitor sitting beside it. The steady beeping noise jumped wildly when he saw the paraphernalia of potential weapons.

A door opened and closed. Victor looked over to see Cara standing there, watching him with a look of anticipation. She smiled broadly when he looked at her, and it was an oddly genuine smile, one he hadn't seen on her face in years. Her smile wasn't enough to distract from the fact that she was wearing a bright pink plastic poncho.

"Good, you're finally awake. We can get started," she said, tapping a rhythm on the iron wall.

There was a long moment of silence and then the door opened and Greta walked in wearing a blue plastic poncho.

"What do you want from me?" Victor asked, his voice raspy from breathing in a concentrated form of ammonia.

"We want your mother's money," Greta replied.

"And the super restraining order to be lifted," Cara added, Greta trying not to glare at her in front of their hostage.

Edith would pay, of course, but Victor shook his head at Cara's stipulation. His head hurt, the headache blossoming into a sharper pain that made his eyes ache. "No," he rasped through the pain.

"What did you say?" Cara asked, her voice sharp with anger.

"No. You'll never go near the twins again. You let her hurt them! You'll hurt them!"

Cara's eyes narrowed at his words. "It was a pinch, for fuck's sakes. If you weren't such a wimp, you'd know that they could handle much worse. A pinch is nothing," she said, moving forward to pinch Victor's arm herself. "See?" Cara said, rolling her eyes when he flinched back.

"That's nothing; we'll be doing so much worse to you," Greta said, walking across the plastic-lined floor to pick something up from the table. "Let's get started, shall we?"

...

Honey arrived with Wendy and Donny, tapping Connor's shoulder to let them pass. Wendy slipped past, holding Donny's hand tightly as her boyfriend caught the worried thoughts from everyone and the anguish from Craig and Connor. Before Honey could say or do anything, Connor pulled her into a firm hug. She burst into tears against his chest at the unexpected action.

"I've found it. It's Cara," Adam said, interrupting Grant and Zach's argument about the kidnapper's identity since the van and hat hid their features and face from the cameras.

The van itself had been dumped, the car switch happening without a camera in sight and no way to know which car to follow at peak hour.

"What?"

"I was focused on Craig, so I didn't see it. She never mentioned his name and I should have checked the hits on her. I just thought it was Greta bitching about her, since it came from her area code."

"Adam, you're not making any sense. Breathe and try again," Layla said, gently resting her hands on his cloth-covered shoulders and subtly squeezing the brand on his left shoulder.

A rush of warmth flowed through Adam's body as a result and he inhaled and exhaled deeply, nodding his thanks. "Greta and Cara have been working together; they kidnapped Victor. The phone records show calls to Maxville Police Station from a burner number, but the conversations don't state names, which is why I didn't pick up on it earlier. I think Cara said her name once and then only ever referred to her father by his prisoner number or 'Daddy'. I need to add the number to my system."

"Where are they?" Connor asked. He barely understood what Adam was talking about, but focused on the fact that he knew who had taken Victor.

The camera from the hospital showed the gun pointed at him, so it wasn't voluntary. If Cara or Greta had hurt a hair on Victor's head, he would tear them to pieces.

"I don't know, it's never mentioned."

"Let me look at the transcripts; Cara might've said something in code that you wouldn't recognise," Craig said, looking vaguely human as he held out a... paw, talon, claw... for Adam's phone.

"Don't go slimy, dude. I like this phone," Adam said, handing it over.

"Like Terrence wouldn't make you a new one in a second flat," Craig said dismissively, already scrolling through the log.

"We need a map for Maxville and Westville on the screen. They're the most likely within driving distance, especially with a van like that," Grant said, taking the tablet and redirecting the screen to a map.

"Warehouse districts, somewhere he wouldn't be heard if he screamed," Zach said, Grant nodding in agreement.

"Greta owns a storage unit in Westville," Honey said, wiping her tears as she pulled away from Connor's embrace. "Sorry about your shirt."

"Don't be sorry. Where's her storage unit? Are you sure that Victor's there?"

Honey took the tablet from Grant and moved to the Westville side of the map, zooming in to a set of storage units. "I'm almost positive. I... I've seen the corrugated iron and I think there's a sign for the units. It could be a setup; she probably knows my power, though I never confirmed anything."

"Give me my phone. I'll check her phone's GPS. Eth, look over her purchase records," Adam said.

"How far back?"

"Everything. I don't want to overlook anything that could be important. If those units are a decoy, we can't risk it. We'll find him, Cee," Adam promised, stroking a hand through Craig's curls briefly before using both hands to send everything to Ethan and looking at Greta's phone GPS.

...

Victor's breath caught in his throat as Greta picked something up from the table and turned to him. Relief filled him when he saw she was just holding a phone.

"Here, I put the text in for you," Cara said, offering a small rectangle to her.

Greta squinted at the small screen on the device. Seeming satisfied, she nodded and pressed a button on the phone, pressing another button so the speaker was on. The ringing noise filled the room around them, bouncing off iron, amplifying the noise and making Victor's headache worse.

"Hello, Harland residence," Edith answered with a smile.

Greta pressed play on the device and a computerised voice sounded the words written on the screen. "We have your son. We want twenty million dollars for his return. If you get the police involved, we will kill him. If you don't agree, we will send him home to you in pieces. Do you agree to the ransom demands?"

"I... of course. I thought he was with... " Edith cut off sharply and forced herself to breathe. "I want proof that he's there with you. If this is some sick joke, then I'll - "

Greta held the phone to him, Cara holding a knife against his throat, silently daring him to tell her their identities.

"Hello, Mother. Are the twins okay?" Victor asked.

"They've been upset all afternoon, they were hurt by that old bag, Greta, and - "

The knife pressed firmer against his throat and Victor was sure that Cara had nicked his skin. "They're going to hurt me, Mother."

"Do you agree to the ransom demands?" the computerised voice asked again.

"Yes, I'll get the money. Please don't - " Edith's voice cut off as Greta ended the call.

She put the phone and device on the table, taking a knife instead, Victor's heart beating fiercely at the sight. "She agreed to pay, why are you doing this?" he asked, realising they both still intended to hurt him.

"She's not going to pay. She doesn't have that kind of money available, and she didn't even ask how to deliver it to us or what her timeframe was," Greta said with a scoff.

"Then why'd you ask her for a ransom if she knew she couldn't pay?" Victor asked, though he already knew the answer before they could respond; the knowledge settling in his stomach like lead. "You want to hurt me."

"Hurting you will hurt him which hurts them. They all could have prevented this and they didn't," Greta said, pleased at the thought.

"Him?"

It wasn't Connor, since he doubted either woman even knew about Connor, but then who? Craig, he realised abruptly. Hurting Craig would hurt Layla, who Greta hated. If Layla was hurt, then Warren would be hurt, too. It would be more likely that he would be pissed off than hurt, though. Pissing Warren off didn't seem like a good idea at the best of times, and Victor had to wonder if they'd really thought this through.

"It seems excessive to hurt Craig through me," Victor admitted.

"He can't reverse the super restraining order, can he?" Cara snapped, her knife sawing away at his shirt sleeve.

Some part of Victor's mind latched onto that scene because he had a hysterical thought that this definitely wasn't how he had planned on having his shirt ripped off tonight.

Cara took the sleeve and a chunk of his forearm with it, and Greta did the same on the other side, ripping the fabric free from his tied arms. They returned the knives to the table, taking up jumper cables and clipping an alligator clip on each remaining sleeve, the metal cool against his skin.

Victor was torn between his desire to know what they were doing and to never know what they were doing. He didn't get a chance to ask as Cara pushed a small generator into view, placing the other end of the jumper cables to the generator.

The heart monitor started beeping faster as Victor's heart slammed in his chest. Fear made his mouth dry. He couldn't beg even if he wanted to.

Cara snickered at his heart rate. "We haven't even turned it on yet, you wimp."

"I'll do it; this needs finesse," Greta said, waving Cara away from the generator before the stupid girl turned it up to eleven on the first shot.

Cara pulled a face but stepped away, watching carefully.

"I used to work at a hospital, you know. Then that little bitch came along and they put me on compassionate leave without even asking if I wanted to, and when it was over, they fired me. Said the hospital was running smoothly without me, patients had complained about the extra doses of drugs they'd been getting, that it hadn't happened since I'd left. I was clearing up hospital beds faster than any doctor or cure ever did."

Victor frowned, wondering where the hell this was coming from.

"It's all her fault... Hurting you hurts them," Greta muttered, turning the generator dial from zero to one.

Victor's body writhed, jerked by an electrical surge through his limbs. He wasn't sure if he was screaming or if the noise was just in his head.

Greta turned the dial off and both she and Cara watched as Victor heaved for breath, his body trembling against the binds.

"That was one; this thing goes up to fifteen, sweetheart," Cara said, grinning.

"I think you'll give up the twins by six, and by nine, you'll beg and pay us to stop. We won't have to call your mother then," Greta said.

Cara scoffed. "Please, he's not going to last that long. He'll do both by five."

"Let's find out, shall we?" Greta suggested, turning the dial up to one again.

This time, Victor was sure he screamed aloud.

...

"Yes, I'll get the money. Please don't hurt him," Edith said, already talking to the dial tone. Not sure who else to call, she dialled Connor's number.

"Edith, are you okay?"

"Is Victor with you?"

"No, he's not. He didn't turn up for dinner, either."

Edith hadn't wanted to believe it, had wanted to think it was nothing but a cruel joke, but she felt tears spring to her eyes at Connor's words as the truth hit hard.

"I'm going to find him, Edith. I promise," Connor said.

She didn't know how he already knew, but Edith believed him. She couldn't help saying, "They've threatened to hurt him, Connor. Bring him back in one piece. Please."

"I'll try. Are you okay?"

"No. I've got to look after the boys though, Victor asked about them..." Edith trailed off, frowning at the realisation. "It was Greta."

"Cara, too. She had a gun; she was going to shoot him," Connor added.

Edith didn't respond, too caught up with her thoughts.

She had let Greta into her house, Greta had hurt the twins, which had somehow led to Victor being kidnapped. It was all her fault.

...

End of the hundred and fourteenth chapter.

Thanks for reading; I hope you liked it!