The golden light of the sun bathed the yacht in a warm glow as Zen and Sinclair continued to lounge, the conversation momentarily lulled into silence. The distant sounds of the marina and the soft hum of the waves were the only noises that filled the air.Suddenly, Zen’s phone buzzed on the table. He glanced at the screen and saw Rosalia’s name flashing. With a sigh, he picked up the call, putting it on speaker."Tom," Rosalia's voice was smooth, teasing. "It's been ages since we last caught up. What’s keeping you so busy that you can’t spare a moment for an old friend?"Zen smirked, leaning back and letting his gaze wander over the horizon. "Well, it’s been a bit busy around here.""Come on," she pressed. "I don’t believe you’ve been that buried in work. I was thinking we should have a proper catch-up. Maybe dinner? You owe me that much after bailing last time."Zen chuckled. "Dinner sounds nice, but I’ve got something better in mind. Why don’t you come by and watch my students’ pres
***FLASHBACK BEGINS**Zen sat in the passenger seat of a large 4x4 truck, his hand loosely gripping the gun resting in his lap. The vast desert stretched endlessly before him, barren, quiet, and soaked in heat that made the horizon waver. His eyes scanned the nothingness, trying to find something — anything — but there was nothing. Only silence. Kelvin, his friend and fellow soldier, sat behind the wheel, whistling absentmindedly before turning to Zen with a smirk. “Why are we even here, man?” Kelvin asked, half-laughing. “Who attacks a desert? We’ve been staring at the sand for hours.”Zen, his face expressionless, shrugged. “Orders.”“Orders, my ass,” Kelvin chuckled. “You’re too serious. It’s like you’re waiting for something to crawl out of the sand and attack you.”“Anything can happen,” Zen replied, his tone was flat but with an underlying sense of certainty.Kelvin shook his head, grinning. “Yeah, and pigs might fly too. Come on, be serious for once and stop acting like a kid
***FLASHBACK CONTINUES***Zen sat in the back of the taxi, the low hum of the city barely cutting through the driver’s nonstop chatter. The cab swayed gently as it passed through winding streets. Zen stared out of the window, his mind lost in a thousand thoughts. The gun from earlier now felt like a distant memory, though his grip on control never wavered. But the driver? The driver wouldn’t stop talking.“You know, I’ve driven all over the city,” the driver said, his excitement was palpable. “But never, not once, have I ever been inside this estate! You rich folks, man, you live in another world.”Zen glanced at him, expression unreadable, but the driver didn’t seem to need any encouragement. He was talking enough for both of them.“And who would’ve thought,” the driver went on, practically bouncing in his seat, “that I’d be the one to finally get through those gates! All because I got to carry you, huh? It’s crazy! All those years of driving the same streets, looking up at those big
***FLASHBACK CONTINUES***Zen clenched his fists, his eyes were still fixed on the cracked statue as he struggled to steady his breath. The rage inside him simmered, but he knew he had to pull it together. Clearing his throat, he turned back to Keisha, who still knelt on the ground, her head bowed. “Stand up,” he said, his voice was rougher than he intended.Keisha rose to her feet immediately, her eyes meeting his without hesitation. Zen ran a hand through his hair and exhaled deeply. “Sorry you had to see me like that... in such a sour state.”She didn’t respond right away, her usual stoic expression never wavering. It was clear she’d been by his side long enough to know better than to comment on his emotions. Still, there was a flicker of concern in her eyes.Zen straightened, forcing his voice to remain calm. “Who killed him?”The question hung in the air for a moment, the weight of it making the silence unbearable. Keisha lowered her gaze slightly. “I don’t know,” she admitted.
***FLASHBACK CONTINUES***Zen stepped back inside the mansion, his mind racing as he approached his grandfather. If he was going to uncover the truth behind Tom’s death, this was the only way. He found his grandfather sitting in the dimly lit room, the old man’s gaze steady, waiting for Zen’s answer.“Yes, I will be Tom,” Zen said, his voice was low but firm.His grandfather's lips curled into a slight smile, with a glimmer of relief in his eyes. “Thank you for receiving the family,” he said quietly, his tone carrying both gratitude and exhaustion. “You’re doing what is necessary, Zen.”Zen’s chest tightened at the mention of his real name, but he swallowed the discomfort. From this point forward, he was no longer Zen. He was Tom, the quiet, unassuming brother who had barely made a mark on the world.His grandfather slowly rose from his chair and pointed to a set of worn-out clothes folded neatly on a chair in the corner of the room. “Those are some of Tom’s old clothes. You’ll need t
***FLASHBACK CONTINUES***Zen gripped the mop tightly as he moved across the living room floor, his eyes scanning the grand room. The thought of living Tom’s life, the strangeness of being in his brother’s shoes, sat heavily on his shoulders. He pushed the mop rhythmically, lost in thought about the reality he was now forced to accept.Suddenly, the front door burst open, and the sound of heavy footsteps filled the air. "I’m home! Get me some food! Where are the chefs?" a loud voice called out, breaking the quiet of the mansion.Zen looked up from the floor, startled by the sudden intrusion. His eyes landed on a man with an arrogant smirk plastered across his face. Paul, Tom’s brother-in-law. Zen recognized him from pictures among the one’s at his grandfather’s place, though they had never met in person. From the look on Paul’s face, he didn’t seem the least bit interested in Zen—or rather, Tom."Wait up! Look at the floor—I’m mopping," Zen called out, his voice was firm but polite. H
****FLASHBACK CONTINUES***Zen stretched out on the mattress, his back uncomfortably pressing into the tiles underneath as it compressed under his weight. He stared up at the ceiling, trying to reconcile the life his brother Tom had lived with what he was now enduring. It had only been a few days since he’d taken on his brother’s identity, but the constant mistreatment gnawed at him. He wasn’t sure how much longer he could keep up the façade without snapping.Malia’s glare still lingered in his mind, the way she had looked at him when he mistakenly jumped on the bed. Her words echoed in his head, "I think the accident really did a number on you," she had said coldly. "You’ve forgotten where you sleep." She pointed to the pitiful mattress on the floor without a hint of sympathy, her face etched with disdain.Now, lying on that very mattress, he couldn't help but feel a growing disgust for the situation his brother had been trapped in. How had Tom lived like this for over four years? M
***FLASHBACK CONTINUES***Zen stepped into the garden, relishing the brief moment of solitude. The sun hung low in the sky, casting a warm glow over the lush greenery. He took a deep breath, inhaling the scent of blooming flowers, trying to shake off the suffocating atmosphere of the mansion. Just as he was beginning to unwind, his mother-in-law, approached him, her expression unreadable."Tom!" she called out, her voice sharp against the serene backdrop. "I’m glad I found you. I have something important to discuss."He turned to face her, forcing a smile. "What is it?"She stepped closer, her demeanor shifting from stern to almost conspiratorial. "I’ve been thinking about your future here. I want to gift you a piece of land in Santa fizzo."Zen raised an eyebrow, skeptical. "That sounds generous. What’s the catch?""No catch, just a gesture of goodwill, you do clean a lot," his mother-in-law insisted, gesturing towards a nearby table laden with papers. "I’ve prepared the documents fo