BAM! BAM! BAM!

Half an hour had passed since they entered the shooting club. Aiden sat on the sofa to the side, his expression growing grim as he watched his uncle Sam.

Was his uncle just using him as a spectator to show off his skills?

His initial enthusiasm had waned, and now he watched his uncle shoot at the red dot on the target with precise accuracy for what felt like the nth time.

He huffed in anger and turned his head to the side, crossing his arms across his chest. Sam noticed his nephew's frustration and chuckled quietly before silently moving towards him. Squatting down in front of Aiden, he gently caught his chin to make him face him.

"Is my little guy angry?" Sam asked gently.

"Adults are not to be trusted, Uncle Sam," Aiden said bitterly.

Sam looked at him in amusement and ruffled his hair playfully. "You're too small for this activity," he teased.

Aiden pouted and replied, "Daddy said the same."

"Is that so?" Sam asked, then picked him up and carried him towards the shooting range. He placed the gun in Aiden's small hand and securely wrapped his palm above his nephew's hands.

"Don't tell anybody about this, okay?"

Aiden's eyes gleamed with excitement as he nodded vigorously. Focusing on the red dot on the target, he pressed the trigger. The bullet shot forward, hitting near the red dot.

"Not bad, little guy," Sam praised his nephew with a smile.

When the clock struck eight, both of them exited the gun club and drove towards the Grey's mansion. The guards opened the door for Sam, as they had already collected the details about their madam and her friends and relatives.

Sam carried Aiden inside the mansion, where the butler greeted him and took Aiden's backpack from his hand before guiding him to the couch in the hall. Before informing the madam about their arrival, he ordered the maids to serve refreshments to them.

Aiden didn't wait for the refreshments as he climbed the stairs and ran towards the master bedroom to look for his mother.

He gently knocked on the door, receiving no response he opened the door lightly and peeked inside. But finding no sign of his mother, he stepped into the room and began searching. At the same time the bathroom door opened, and Siren stepped out.

Upon seeing Aiden tiptoeing and searching for her, a smile graced her lips unknowingly. 

"Mother!" Aiden exclaimed, running towards her and hugging her legs. Siren caressed his hair and guided him to the bed. 

Kneeling down in front of him, she asked, "Did you enjoy your time with your uncle?"

"Yes," Aiden replied, obediently spouting every lie just as his uncle had taught him.

 "Uncle Sam took me to the ice cream shop, the baseball court, and we had fun with the claw machines." Despite feeling guilty for lying to his mother, his uncle had assured him that they would go to the long-range shooting spot next time.

Siren slightly frowned but didn’t question him further. Instead, she told Aiden to freshen up and do his homework. Aiden nodded his head, kissed her cheek, and rushed out of the room.

Siren tidied herself and descended the stairs. She saw Sam seated on the couch, crunching on the biscuits that the maids had served him.

"Where did you take him?" Siren asked as she took her seat on the couch, narrowing her eyes at him.

"Ice cream, baseball, claw machine," Sam replied in one breath.

"Like I would buy that. Don’t teach him any nonsense," she warned him, taking a piece of biscuit and putting it in her mouth.

Sam raised his hands in surrender. After a few minutes of silence, he asked her, "What’s next?"

Siren shifted her attention from the empty plate before her to Sam and said with a dangerous edge in her voice, "Send the video to him."

Sam blinked his silver eyes, a hint of concern flickering in them. "Are you sure? Don’t we need to do anything else?"

"He's already a half dead rat in a snake's grip. All we need to do is to starve the snake," she said, a chilling smile playing on her lips.

The next day, Carlos sat in his cabin, poring over the case files left by Douglas. Meanwhile, Craig was upset upon discovering that one of the renowned lawyers from his firm had fabricated evidence against an innocent person. 

Taking swift action, he gathered a press conference where he publicly apologised on behalf of Douglas and announced that he would personally take care of the affected girl's education and living expenses.

Craig was initially very hesitant to hand over the pending cases left by Douglas to Carlos, especially given the scandalous scandal Carlos was caught in. However, upon Gloria's persistent push, he eventually agreed to it.

Suddenly, Carlos's phone flashed, indicating the arrival of a new message. He leisurely took his mobile and opened it with a swipe, but his expression turned to a frown upon seeing the message from the anonymous sender. With a sense of apprehension, he opened the message to find a link to a video attached.

Curiosity piqued, he clicked open the video and watched it intently. His pupils dilated as he saw Gloria on the screen. As the video unfolded, sweat trickled down his forehead, and his breath became short. Feeling overwhelmed, he loosened his tie and stood up from his chair, his heart pounding in his chest. He strolled towards the window, desperately trying to fill his lungs with air. 

He was scared.