The billionaire's only desire-Chapter 45: New villain

"Where is Fredrick Hathaway?" Dalton’s eyes scanned Aiden’s living room with a stormy intensity.

Aiden frowned, his gaze fixed on a specific spot in the middle of the floor.

"I left him here. He was tied up with chains, and his ankles and wrists were securely bound. Where did that bastard go?" Aiden burst open the doors of every room in search of Fredrick Hathaway but to no avail.

"You let him go," Dalton approached Aiden with his fist raised. He was so furious. That bastard has escaped after all the pain he caused Maya.

Aiden flinched. "I swear I... Man, he was bleeding from his arm, caused by the bullet I shot through it, and he was half unconscious. He was so weak that there was no way he could have escaped."

Dalton lowered his raised fist. "Let’s check your CCTV cameras," he suggested. He followed Aiden to the security room.

Aiden sat down at the desk, which held three computers, while Dalton hovered over him. The only sound in the room was the clicking of the mouse as Aiden sifted through the CCTV footage.

"There!" Dalton prompted Aiden when he noticed a timestamp.

Aiden paused. "Christ!" Three men dressed in black appeared in the footage. One of them was tapping into Aiden’s house security code. Seconds later, the door burst open, and they entered the house.

"They knew the password," Aiden said, staring at the computer screen with his eyes wide open. "How?"

A few minutes into the footage, the men who invaded Aiden’s home emerged with Frederick Hathaway, who was slung over one of their backs. Dalton and Aiden exchanged a silent glance.

"It’s either a foe of ours or an enemy of his," Dalton said. He was not pleased with either option.

Dalton straightened his posture. "Find out what happened here," he said as he strode out the door.

Terrence was also not outside where they had left him. The only evidence left behind was a trail of his blood. Those men in black had taken him too.

● ● ●

Maya was asleep when Dalton quietly entered the room. He sat beside her bed, disappointment eating away at his heart.

A chaotic anger was brewing inside him; he wanted to lash out and punish himself physically. He felt he had failed Maya. Her abuser had gone scot-free, taken by those men to only God knows where

Dalton took Maya’s hand and caressed it gently. He made a promise to himself: he would find Fredrick Hathaway, no matter how long it took.

Maya stirred, and Dalton reluctantly let go of her hand, fearing that she might fully wake up.

However, Maya’s eyes slowly fluttered open. "You’re back," Her voice drowsy. A faint smile spread across her face.

"Sorry for disturbing your sleep," Dalton said, gazing at her with worried eyes.

Maya shook her head. "I’ve slept enough," she yawns.

"Where did you go?" she asked.

Dalton didn’t know how to answer. He never lies.

Maya shot him a knowing smile. "Don’t tell me; I know."

Dalton raised his eyebrows. "You do?"

She nodded. "If you killed them, that’s fine by me. I never want to see their faces again." A chilly anger laced her tone.

Her words intensified his feelings of guilt, anger, disappointment, and determination to find Fredrick Hathaway and his son to kill them.

Oliver walked in. "I told you not to disturb my patient," he grunted. He turned his attention to Maya. "How are you feeling now?"

"Less bad," she replied.

"Good," Oliver remarked.

"Based on the images from the CT scan, I have concluded that you need a lot of rest. This means no work for you, including cooking, for a month," Oliver told her.

"What!" Maya sat up straight, straining her muscles in the process.

"A whole month?" she exclaimed. "What about my sous chef job? I just started it!"

"Uhhh... I have already gotten in touch with the restaurant," Oliver said.

Maya blinked at him. "Really?"

"Yep, and they agreed to give you a month off."

Maya sighed. "They are replacing me, right?"

"No, they care about you a lot, and they were scared that your health was deteriorating and that they might lose you. They are praying for your speedy recovery." Oliver shot her an assuring smile.

"Your brain barely recovered from your traumatic brain injury, yet you returned to work and began overworking yourself while getting less sleep. I’m concerned that if you continue like this, your brain could completely shut down, which could result in either death or a stroke that could leave you paralyzed."

Dalton felt a pang in his heart. "Death? A stroke? Why didn’t you inform her that she needs a break from work after you ran tests on her during our visit to the hospital?"

A guilty expression hit Oliver’s face. "I thought the medication would be manageable, and I did tell her to rest," he said, giving Maya a scolding look.

Maya lowered her head. "I had to work."

"You are going to heed Oliver’s advice," Dalton said firmly to her.

Maya huffed. "Fine, I will."

"From now on, you’re getting 9 hours of sleep, even after the one-month break. It’s a miracle you are still alive after all the stress your brain has gone through, your body is still able to function. You are very lucky, Maya. You are a rare case.

Maya grinned. "I have a guardian angel."

Oliver chuckled. "Sure you do... Get some rest." He placed a book on her lap. "I hope you enjoy reading."

Maya’s eyes lit up. "Wow, a fantasy book! That’s my favorite genre."

"Dalton, you are leaving with me," Oliver said as he grabbed Dalton by the shoulders and nudged him out of the room before he could protest, leaving Maya to read peacefully.

"Don’t be so clingy; she doesn’t need to see your grumpy face all the time," Oliver playfully remarked.

Dalton couldn’t respond; he was interrupted by a notification beeping from his phone.

It is a message from an unknown number: "Go beyond the maze and look up."

Dalton remains calm and shows no reaction to the text. "I’m going out to do something," he alerts Oliver as he strides off in a hurry, eager to get outside.

He didn’t hear Oliver respond. Once he was outside, he turned on his heel and soon found himself exiting the maze. In the field, a helicopter was rising into the air, taking off. Suddenly, two body bags were tossed out of the helicopter and fell right at Dalton’s feet.

He quickly opened the zipper of one bag to find Fredrick Hathaway inside. He was dead. Dalton inspected Fredrick Hathaway’s naked body, which was covered in cuts, ugly open wounds, and burn marks. His head was split in two, with his brain peeking out.

Frederick Hathaway was tortured before he was killed. Dalton felt a slight sense of satisfaction, but he was too angry that he didn’t get to see Aiden torture and kill Fredrick Hathaway. Instead, someone else did that.