Chapter 386 Her Rules
The second rule was never to betray basic decency. The third was never to fight against the innocent.
Even inside the dark web, where hackers had no lines, morals, and limits, Tilda clung to those three rules. That was why she rose above the rest as the queen of hackers. She would never burn her principles for hate. If she did, she would lose everything that mattered.
Nothing she did after that could ever patch things back up.
The hospital room went quiet like the air had been sucked out. Kyla’s heart dropped the hardest. “Excuse me?” “What the hell is this?”
She had been happy when she saw Dominic and Blair safe. Then Dominic opened his mouth and said it was Tilda who saved them. Everyone believed him. No one even tried to argue. “You can’t fucking believe him, can you? That’s obviously bullshit nonsense!”
Kyla’s chest burned with rage. The useless Tilda pulled that off? No way in hell that’s true. That was something even the best in the country could not manage. If that was true, then Kyla’s place in the family was crumbling fast. If she talked about leaving again and asked for Tilda to take her spot, the family would not fight it like before. Shit. That’s probably true.
The Jensons were shifting. They were turning into Tilda’s family instead of hers. Fear pressed into Kyla until she could hardly breathe. She needed a plan. She had to crush Tilda. If she failed, she would lose her home. Tilda would take it away from her.
After Dominic finished his tale, the air in the ward turned thick. Every breath felt like it weighed too much. When the moment came, Kayden and Justin slipped out into the hallway for relief. Justin struck a flame and lit a cigarette. He held the pack out. “You want one?” “Yeah.”
The duo barely smoked. Yet now both were leaning against the wall in the smoking zone. Smoke curled into the air as they pulled deep and slow. Justin let the smoke go with a sigh. “Man, that was… a lot to process.” “You were supposed to meet Genevieve Lichtenstein in a couple of days.” “Forget it. After this, that feels so small it doesn’t matter.” “I never thought Tilda would be the one to save Mom and Dominic.”
Justin pulled again, held it, then let it out slowly. “Tell me something. Do you think she saw them as her family when she did it? Even if it was for a second?” “Justin, I can’t imagine for a second that Dominic might be right, that Tilda didn’t really care about Mom or Dominic. She only saved them because it was her code.” Kayden answered, “You really should get out of your head. Think too much and you’ll come to a lot of conclusions that’ll hurt yourself in the end.”
A moment of silence ensued. Justin stared at him. “Kayden, you sound different. You’ve changed.” “No. I’ve just learned to see through my delusions. Wade’s giving up too, by the way.”
Kayden could not bring himself to speak of what happened in Motrar with Tilda. He only pressed a hand to Justin’s shoulder. “There are plenty of ways to pay Tilda back. But stop clinging to bringing her back to the Jensons. That’ll cut both her and you.”
Justin’s gut told him Kayden had gone through something with her. How else could the brother who once fought hardest for her return step away now? But Kayden stayed silent. Justin had no way to push. His thoughts were already twisted with the song played by the one he once longed for and the pain Dominic and Blair had endured.
“Justin. Kayden.” Santiago walked up the hall. The brothers dropped their cigarettes at once. “Santiago, where is everyone?” “Howard and Wade are with Dominic. Mom has Dad with her.” He stopped close. “Got another? I need one.” They handed one to Santiago in silence.
So on January second, three brothers stood outside Endralsia’s hospital with smoke rising in silence. “To be real, the first time I met Tilda, I hated her. What she did made no sense. She tore into the family. She broke the family company. She hurt more people than I could count. And she dumped her anger on us even though we had no part in it.” “Santiago, stop. Don’t make her look like the villain.” Kayden cut in fast, thinking the hate still sat inside him. “No, listen. Justin. Kayden. There’s more. I fought Tilda once, in that underground arcade. She beat me.”