Jason Lockwood raised a hand and pulled off his mask. His gaze darkened as he said coldly, "In just a few more days, you’ll be getting out of prison."

The man sat up on the bed, fixing a pair of sullen, dark eyes on Jason Lockwood. The iron chains on his hands rattled with a CLINK... CLINK... sound.

Jason Lockwood spoke, his voice laced with a sinister edge. "Once you get out, I’m sending you straight back to the countryside."

"Heh..." The man’s lips twisted into a cruel sneer.

"Mom and I don’t want to see you ever again! If you have any concern for us, you’ll do as you’re told and leave. It’s for the best—for you and for us."

"Heh..." The man sneered again, the sinister glint in his eyes intensifying.

"I’ll give you a sum of money. Enough to live the rest of your life in comfort."

"You and your mother have been living the high life for all these years, and now you think you can get rid of me with a bit of dirty money?"

Jason Lockwood’s patience snapped. "Then what do you want?" he demanded angrily. "You need to understand something. If you don’t cooperate, Mom and I could both be in danger. You don’t want to see that happen to us, do you, Dad?"

"I didn’t before. But now..." The man trailed off, the smile on his lips turning even more venomous.

Jason Lockwood’s fists tightened, his eyes flashing with menace. "Dad," he snarled, his voice chillingly cold, "if you don’t do as I say, you can forget about ever leaving this prison!"

"Jason, I was just joking. Look how scared you got." The man’s expression instantly changed, the menace in his eyes vanishing as he put on an appeasing smile.

Jason Lockwood slightly relaxed his fists. His tone remained hard and cold. "Dad, you need to understand. I’m telling you to leave for your own good. If you don’t, the Lockwood family will track you down immediately. And when that happens, forget about just you not making it out alive—Mom and I will be dragged down with you."

"I understand, Jason. You can rest easy. After I get out, I’ll definitely listen to you. Wherever you tell me to go, I’ll go."

Jason Lockwood nodded, his eyes filled with suspicion as he looked at the man. He didn’t believe a word he said. ’But he’s still my biological father,’ he thought. ’He couldn’t possibly be ruthless enough to destroy us all.’

The man’s excitement was hard to conceal at the thought of his impending release and seeing the person he longed to see. "Jason, your sister Aria... have you heard anything from her recently?"

Jason Lockwood’s expression darkened, his face growing colder. He looked away and said in a low voice, "No."

"How could you not know? When I went to prison, I gave her your mother’s phone number. I told her to find you. How could there be nothing?"

Jason’s face was grim as he turned his head away, a memory flashing through his mind: ’that phone call over two years ago, rushing to the hospital, the bloody scene he’d found...’ "I don’t know," he said. "All I know is that I haven’t seen her in all these years."

’She disobeyed my orders and acted on her own. She deserved to die!’

’But she was still his own sister. Even though they hadn’t had any contact for years and were like strangers when they did meet.’

’And yet, in the end, he couldn’t stop himself from avenging her. He’d personally designed and orchestrated a car crash. It hadn’t been enough to send them to hell, but he would settle that score sooner or later. Sooner or later, he would make those people pay!’

’His sister had wanted them dead. And so, they wouldn’t be living for much longer!’

Listening to his son, the man’s expression turned ugly. A sinister glint flashed in his eyes, and the hands at his sides clenched into tight fists. The movement sent the chains rattling with another series of sharp CLICKS.

’To be so ruthless to him was one thing.’

’But to be so cold-hearted toward his own daughter—his son’s own sister...’