“Welcome back home!” Jake greeted his family cheerfully. They had just returned to Hawaii after their impromptu 2-week trip to Japan. “I missed you, Daddy,” Victoria said and hugged him. “I missed you too, pumpkin. Did you enjoy your trip?” “Yes! Aunty Aoki taught me how to use makeup.” “My little sister is obsessed with makeup,” Megumi explained. She handed James to his father and the baby giggled deliriously when Jake blew bubbles on his big belly. “Man, it’s so good to have you guys back,” Jake sighed. “I was almost dying of boredom.” “So, is everything settled?” Megumi asked him in a low voice. “Yes. Everything has been resolved. I believe we have nothing more to worry about,” he assured her. “Then it’s safe to say that our lives are about to be normal again?” “Define normal,” he joked and she laughed. “Daddy, Meg and I have been talking about my 8th birthday party. I want it to be a pool

Despite his looming court appearances, Jake threw a big party to celebrate James’ first birthday. Megumi’s family flew in from Japan to participate in the festivity.“You better throw me a bigger party for my birthday,” she told him with a pout.“We could fly to the moon to celebrate yours,” he joked.“That wouldn’t be bad but I think a trip to Jamaica would be perfect instead.”“Consider it done.”“Yay!”“What’s the good news?” Victoria asked when she saw Megumi jubilating.“We’re travelling to Jamaica for my birthday.”“Cool!”“When she said ‘we’, she meant me and her. You and James are not invited,” said Jake.“What!”“It’s called a beacation, darling,” said Megumi. “it’s for grownups only.”“That

“The doctor says you have tuberculosis. Are you aware?”Stephanie nodded slowly while avoiding Jake’s gaze.“How long have you had it?”“Nearly a year now. I had some other infections too that cost me loads of money to treat before the TB began. I’ve been in and out of hospital for months.”“What other infections are you talking about?”“I – I caught some nasty STDs from someone I was seeing. I got the TB from him too. We ended things when my condition began to get serious.”“Wow… it’s a miracle Michael doesn’t have any of that.”“I’ve been very careful to protect him from my sickness.”“What do you do for a living in the Caribbean?”“Oh, this and that… I worked as a receptionist in a hotel for a few months but stopped when the male guests wouldn’t stop hitting on m

“What are we going to do now?” Megumi asked quietly when three hours passed and there was still no sign of Victoria returning home.Jake was stewing on the floor where he sat beside his desk. He had instructed his P. A. and secretary to channel all business calls to Pierce. The only phone call he wanted to receive now was from Emilio, telling him that he is sending Victoria back home to where she belonged.After waiting a couple more minutes, he picked up his phone beside him and called Emilio.“My friend!” Emilio answered cheerfully.“Where is my daughter?”“She’s on her way to meet me here in Italy where I’m going to kill her and cut her little body into small pieces and ship them back to you in America.”Jake felt physically sick by the gruesome image that his former Italian pal had just painted. Losing Victoria to one of his enemies was his worst nightmare and it was already hap

Jake was pumped full of adrenaline as the jet landed in Maine. The Portland jetport was a short distance from the port where his daughter was about to be shipped to Italy.“Let me handle things from this point,” Shadow said. “I know Emilio’s men and I can spot them on the dock easily.”“So, what am I supposed to do now? Sit back and watch?”“Just stay out of the way as much as you can. We must keep a low profile and scan the place properly before making any move.”“Fine. Do your thing.”They rode a taxi to the largest seaport in Maine. Getting in was nearly impossible because they didn’t have the required IDs. Jake had to introduce himself to the security and tell them that he had an appointment with someone at the docks.“Your name seems to just open doors everywhere we go,” said Shadow as they were allowed in. “Must be nice.”Jake chuckle