11. Chapter Eleven Abby

Chapter Eleven: Abby

I stood rigid in the living room of 118 California, the buzz of Alex's urgent voice mingling with my racing thoughts.

"Look…we have to get Nathan out," he said, pacing like a caged animal.

"Alex, wait." My hand shot up, signaling him to halt. I could almost hear the click of pieces falling into place—my FBI training kicking in amid the chaos. "We need to think this through."

The Zhou siblings were a tight knot of anxiety in the corner, their hushed whispers a low hum against the backdrop of tension. Without Nathan, they seemed smaller, incomplete. I scanned the faces of Justin and Lily, their features echoing Nathan's absence like a silent alarm.

"Every move we've made here hasn't gone unnoticed. You know that, right?" I tried to keep my voice steady, but it trembled with the weight of what we were considering. The risks were colossal; a single misstep could lead us all into an abyss from which there was no return. And I knew from Nathan that Alex was reckless. I couldn’t let him destroy what we’d built.

"I know you’re new to this, but we don't have time for—" Alex began, but I cut him off.

"Listen to me!" I snapped. My pulse thrummed in my ears as I met his gaze squarely. "If we're doing this, we can't afford mistakes. Not with so many lives at stake."

The room fell into a tense silence, punctuated only by the distant hum of the cityoutside. Lily finally cleared her throat and stepped up beside me. “Alex…you need to listen to her. She’s kept us alive. As far as I’m concerned, she’s in charge.”

“She’s not new to this, either,” Justin added. “She knows this stuff. Please, just listen to her.”

Jack rubbed at his stubbled jaw, the lines around his eyes deepening with worry. "I’m with you–and I’m okay with deferring to you on this, Abby,” he said. “But has anyone heard from Evelyn? Maybe she has…”

He trailed off when he saw our faces fall.

“Evelyn is dead,” Derek said, his hand on Justin’s shoulder.

Justin glared at him. “Babe, I told you, I was going to tell Alex.”

“Sorry, it just slipped out,” Derek said, biting down on his lower lip. “I didn’t mean to…I’m…”

Justin’s expression softened, wrapping his arms around his boyfriend. “It’s okay,” he said. “We’re all on edge. I get it.”

Jack’s eyes widened for a second. “Shit, sorry, I hadn’t heard…”

“No one has, as far as we know,” Justin said. “The only reason we know is because Nathan saw it happen…but our dad is keeping it hushed up.”

His words pulled at something raw inside me. Evelyn Zhou had been more than the matriarch of a crime family—she'd been the quiet strength behind it. And now, with her gone, the fracture lines within the Serpents were all too visible. Alex's face seemed to collapse inward for a moment. His fists clenched and unclenched, a battle of emotions playing across his features.

"Sorry, Alex," Jack continued, placing a hand on his shoulder. "I know she meant a lot to you."

Alex shook him off, his eyes gleaming with unshed tears. But he didn’t crumble. It wasn't in his nature. Despite their differences, I could definitely see that this was Nathan’s brother. Instead, Alex straightened up, the mask of resolve sliding back into place.

"Thanks, Jack," he muttered, his voice rough. "We can mourn later. Right now, we have to act."

"What about Kenny?” I asked.

“What about him?” Alex said.

“Well, I don’t think he’s going to help us,” I said. “In fact…I think he’s more likely to kill us. He already tried taking out Justin.”

“Okay…I get why he wanted me dead, but why Justin?” Alex said.

“Oh yeah–another thing you don’t know yet,” Justin said quietly. “He’s not my father. Knuckles is.”

Alex did break then–just slightly, his resolve dropping and showing disbelief…then shock. “Well, shit,” he said. “Then Ba will want all of us dead, huh?”

“Not me,” Lily shrugged. “But he will when he figures out I’m here.”

She was right. We were all fucking scared…for good reason.

"So Ba wanted me dead already, he wants Justin dead…and now he must have figured out that Nathan didn’t kill me, and that he’s been protecting Justin," Alex spat bitterly. "He's probably already plotting Nathan's death–and he’s a sitting duck in county jail. Ba has guards and prisoners all over that place.”

The very idea sent a jolt through me. Nathan—the man I loved, the father of my unborn child—was in dire need of our help, and his own father was likely his greatest threat. I obviously knew that, but hearing it like this…it still scared me.

I wanted to kill Kenny. After everything Nathan had told me about him, there were few things I wanted more.

“So do you have a plan?” I asked. “San Mateo won’t be easy to breach.”

Alex rubbed the bridge of his nose. “No. But at this point, what else are we going to do, Agent?”

I didn’t like the way he used the term Agent –it felt like an insult–but for Nathan, for the child growing inside me, I would walk through fire.

Even if that meant working with Nathan’s arrogant younger brother.

"A prison break isn't a plan, Alex, it's suicide," Lily said, blunt and to the point. “We can’t rescue you again.”

I watched Alex's jaw clench, his brown eyes flickering with the kind of fire that only years of living in someone else's shadow could ignite. "We're not just going to kick down the gates, Lil," he snapped back, his hands forming fists at his sides. From what I’d heard, I knew he was always quick to anger, but today it seemed fueled by desperation rather than irritation.

"Then what?" I demanded, crossing my arms over my belly protectively. If this was about proving something to Nathan or their father, I needed to know now. Because this wasn’t just about them anymore; it was about the future—my baby’s future.

Alex's gaze met mine, and for a moment, the weight of our situation seemed to bear down on him. His posture softened, and he looked away, his voice losing some of its earlier heat. "There's someone who might be able to help us," he said finally. "Someone from the other side of the fence."

"Who?" Lily asked, her suspicion evident.

"Xinyi Lin," Alex's reply came almost reluctantly, as if saying the name aloud gave it too much power.

“Wait,” I said. “Doesn’t she hate Nathan?”

"Yeah…but she hates our father more," Alex said. "And she has connections with people who don’t like him either–the Cranes, and some Yakuza contacts up in Seattle. If anyone can get us inside San Mateo without getting killed, it's her."

"And you trust her?" Lily pressed, her protective instincts flaring up like a warning beacon.

"I wouldn’t go that far. But she hates Kenny, so…”

"Meeting her is risky," I pointed out, the reminder of danger clawing at my throat. "What's to say she won't turn us over to Kenny the moment she sees an opportunity?"

"Like I said, she hates him as much as we do," Alex said.

"Okay," Lily said after a pause that felt like forever. "When do we meet her?"

"Tonight," Alex replied. "Her restaurant. After it closes."

"You can’t meet her,” I said. “That’s insane. Kenny will just see you as sitting ducks.”

Jack, sitting on the perch of the sofa, wearing a stone-faced expression, spoke up. "I'll go. She doesn't know me. I’ll be…less conspicuous."

“Maybe I’m missing something, but aren’t you the heir apparent to the Kensington mafia family of San Diego?” I asked him.

He shrugged, a blunt veneer of confidence that only people like him could muster. "Who said Kensington’s son can't take a trip to San Francisco?"

“You might get away with being this cocky down there, but you have to be careful here. They’ll know who you are,” I said, pacing around the tidy living room. “No. It needs to be someone else.”

"Then who?" Lily's voice carried the weight of her frustration. "You know our father has eyes everywhere. He’ll find out Alex is there in a heartbeat."

I stopped pacing, turning to face them. "I'll go.”

"Abby, no," Justin protested, his dark eyes narrowing in objection. "It's too risky for you."

"Exactly why it has to be me," I countered, meeting his gaze with equal intensity. "Kenny's looking for you, not me. I'm just an art history grad slinging coffee next door. Remember?"

Lily watched us with a mix of appreciation and concernn. She was young, but this life had aged her beyond her years.

"I'll go with you," she offered after a moment of silence that seemed to stretch across eternity. "Xinyi knows me. She trusts me. The women in this life…we get each other."

"Absolutely not," Alex snapped, his tone uncompromising. But there was a tremor there, the fear for his sister's safety clear in his eyes.

"Alex, listen to me," I said, stepping closer to him. "Lily’s presence could make all the difference. Xinyi respects her, and Lily understands the stakes. She's not some naive kid. We were both inducted into the Triad; we’ve got each other’s backs."

"Abby's right," Jack finally chimed in, breaking his silence. "We need to play this smart, and having Lily there is smart."

"Fine," Alex grumbled after what felt like an agonizing eternity. "But you two be careful, okay? Ba's not just our problem; he's a monster to anyone who crosses his path."

"Understood," I nodded, locking eyes with each of them in turn. I knew the game we were playing was dangerous, but we were taking control of the board, one move at a time.

"Let's do this," Lily said, her voice surprisingly steady.

It was settled then.

We would meet Xinyi Lin and navigate through the treacherous waters of the mafia underworld together. For Alex, for Justin, for all of us caught in the crossfire of Kenny Zhou's relentless pursuit of power.

And, most importantly, for Nathan.

And for his unborn child.

For our unborn child.