The Hayes Estate was as silent as a mausoleum. Richard Hayes sat alone in his private study, a glass of untouched bourbon trembling slightly in his hand.
Outside the tall window, storm clouds rolled slowly across the skyline — ominous, brooding… inevitable.
Just like the mess he had created.
Scene 1 – The Messenger
"He said it like he knew," Richard muttered, eyes focused on the image playing on his private screen — Darren Kairos, standing tall, glaring with a wrath that froze the air.
"But he didn't. He couldn't have known it wasn't me."
Richard clenched his jaw, pausing the video on Darren's furious expression.
The man Darren had confronted at Celeste's birthday party, the one who smugly claimed to be "the one who left them", was not Richard.
He was a proxy — someone Richard paid to test the waters. Someone he thought could gauge the twins without sparking media drama or family conflict.
A mistake.
A stupid, arrogant mistake.
Scene 2 – Regret and Realization
Richard leaned back, the leather chair creaking under him.
"I thought sending someone would give me control… space to read the room."
Instead, he had watched his son — tall, fierce, and unrecognizable — spit venom at the man, furious that his father had the audacity to show up after everything.
"He meant every word…"
"Six months to bring the Hayes to their knees," Richard whispered.
He shook his head.
He should've reached out personally. But he had been afraid. Afraid to see how much they had grown without him. Afraid to look Celeste in the eyes. Afraid that his children — the ones he abandoned — would no longer need him.
Scene 3 – Conflicted Legacy
Richard stood and walked toward the fireplace, staring into the dying embers.
He saw Darren's face again. Strong. Determined. Dangerously competent.
He had expected some resentment. Bitterness, maybe. But what he saw was something else entirely:
A rival.
Not a boy. Not even a son.
A man on a mission.
And worst of all?
A leader.
"Gideon won't stop," Richard muttered.
"And Darren… he's coming for all of us."
Flashback – The Phone Call
Three weeks ago.
"Sir, do you want me to deliver the message as planned?"
"Yes," Richard had said coldly. "Go as me. If they ask, you speak for the Hayes."
"Even if they lash out?"
"Let them. I want to see how far they've come."
Now, the answer was clear.
They had gone further than he imagined.
Scene 4 – The Unspoken Fear
Richard picked up a photo from his desk. A faded shot of the twins, barely five years old, playing in the snow as Celeste smiled in the background.
He touched the frame gently, as if trying to hold time still.
"Darren…"
"You weren't supposed to become this powerful."
"And yet… maybe I always knew you would."
System Notification (Unknown to Richard)
[Surveillance Active: Richard Hayes – Status: Regretful, Unaware of Darren's True Capabilities]
[System Alert – Emotional Profile Logged: Paternal Guilt]
[Secret Event Flag: Future Encounter – Branching Path Enabled]