Lloyd stared across the table, his eyes locked onto Mason’s as the words echoed in his mind.“How’d you like to be mayor?”It felt like a slap... Almost too unbelievable to even hear Mason say it.Lloyd’s breath caught for half a second. He leaned back, eyes narrowed, unsure if Mason was joking.But Mason wasn’t laughing.Lloyd blinked... "You can’t be serious"Mason didn’t answer, he just raised an eyebrow, as if offended that Lloyd wasn't taking him seriously."You’re serious?" Lloyd pressed, incredulity rising "You actually want me to run for mayor?""Why not you?" Mason said calmly, sipping from his glass "You’ve got the brains, you're a very Persistent man, you've got the spunk, and I believe that you can very convincing when you decide to say more than one sentence"Lloyd shook his head firmly "I don’t care about Hilburg’s politics... I never have, all I want is to finish what I started... to root out the ones who killed our family, that’s it"Lloyd then gave his uncle an even s

The clock on the wall ticked steadily, each second tapping into Lloyd’s nerves like a drumbeat. He stood near the hallway mirror, adjusting the collar of his charcoal-grey dress shirt and straightening the cuffs of his tailored jacket. The fabric clung just right across his shoulders, structured and sharp.From the bathroom, Lisa’s voice called out, slightly muffled through the door "I’m so sorry, dear! I swear I’ll just be a few more minutes!"Lloyd smiled faintly, his arms folding across his chest "Take your time. We’re early"She responded with a laugh "You always say that when I’m running late"This was true, Lloyd always tried his best to protect Lisa's feelings, but he was indeed frustrated by how long it took her to get ready, no matter the situation.Lloyd couldn't complain though, if it made her happy that's all that was good for him, plus he was nothing if not a patient man, and if patience was what it took for Lisa to bring out the full extent of her external beauty, then

Inside the softly lit campaign trailer, Lisa paced between the couch and the small desk, holding a printed speech in one hand and a pen in the other. Her hair was pulled into a neat bun, and a nervous but determined look danced across her face. Lloyd stood across from her, arms folded, watching her carefully."Alright" she said, stopping mid-step "So the introduction, I start by thanking everyone for coming, acknowledge Eve, and then jump into the reforms we want to see""Not bad" Lloyd said, walking toward her "But maybe consider shifting the gratitude a little, put the emphasis on the people first, they’re the ones who are going to vote for this change"Lisa scribbled a quick note "Okay... people first, got it, what about the part where I talk about Eve’s policy on policing?""That line about 'restoring balance between protection and privacy'...it's good, but it’s vague" Lloyd said "People want clarity, try saying something like, 'We’ll rebuild a system where law enforcement prote

The heavy smoke from overturned food stands and burning equipment still lingered in the air as Lloyd ducked behind the remnants of the main stage, Lisa’s semi-conscious body cradled against his chest. In his mind was only one single string of thoughts were.."WHERE THE FUCK IS MORTY"He had called him almost 10 minutes ago, and he had promised to order the cops back to the scene, but since then he hadn't seen anything, not a call, not any new police presence, the cops who retreated didn't even return... And even worse than this was the fact that the gun men had been wreaking havoc this entire time, something like 20 people were dead at this point.The only thing that was holding them off were some of the more local security services that Eve was prudent enough to hire, but half of them were already dead, and Lloyd knew it wouldn't be long before all of them were.He pulled out his phone, fingers trembling with rage, and hit Morty’s number for the third time... For some reason, his p

The sky had darkened to a deep charcoal hue by the time Lloyd arrived back at the Francis family estate. The streetlights flickered on one by one as his black sedan glided silently into the driveway. He shut the car door gently and ascended the front steps, tension still pulsing through his veins like a persistent drumbeat.His mind was a swirl of fury, frustration, and calculation. He had learned more than enough during the meeting at the Grimshade Bar...too much, in fact. The faces of Morty, Jacob, and Ivan lingered in his thoughts, particularly Morty’s hollow expression after revealing the truth about his father.As he stepped into the house, the familiar scent of warm wood and polished furniture did little to soothe him. A maid greeted him quietly in the hallway, but Lloyd gave only a slight nod as he made his way toward the bedroom he shared with Lisa.The door was slightly ajar.He pushed it open slowly and immediately froze.Lisa was on the bed, curled up with a pillow clut