"What do you mean, we've been robbed?" Ray asked, looking at Mason anxiously.
"Forget it," Mason replied. "Let's go back upstairs and take a look."
They decided to take the stairs this time, for fear that Leroy would still be guarding the elevator. So, they climbed the stairs, panting heavily as they went.
When they reached the presidential suite, they found that Leroy had already gone. The room was a mess, and there were traces of blood on the ground, but there was nobody there.
"Oh my god, what happened?" Ray asked, his jaw dropping. "Do you think that Leroy had already killed Jerry?" His heart sank, and his entire body trembled at the thought.
"Impossible," said Mason. "Leroy has the mental capacity of a child. Even though he's incredibly strong and capable of killing, have you heard of him actually killing anyone? At most, Jerry is injured, but I'm sure he's alive."
His eyes lit up as an idea came to him. After checking over the room once more, they went down to the front desk of the hotel and asked the receptionist for anything he knew about who had come and gone from that room. He also got him to pull up the surveillance video and watched it.
According to the video, Jerry had never left the room, and neither had anyone else. The footage showed Leroy going in to the room for a while, and then coming out to block the two of them. After that, there was nothing. There was no footage of them taking the stairs, or the elevator, or going out the front doors of the hotel.
"Forget it," Mason said, sighing in defeat. "Let's go back and get the family to help."
They hurried back home to find a quiet house; it was already the middle of the night.
Their mother, Zoe, would probably be asleep already, but Ray stood outside her room with his ear pressed to the door to see if he could hear any movement.
"Who's out there?" she shouted from inside the room. "Just come in. Don't be creeping around outside my room!"
Zoe was a mean old woman, and she was in charge of the family. Every decision made had to go through her first.
Ray cleared his throat and then spoke with a trembling voice, "Mother, Jerry is—"
"What happened to Jerry?" Zoe asked before he could even finish the question.
She had heard the quaver in Ray's voice and shuddered. Too many things had happened to the descendants of the Rimmer family recently. Two of her grandchildren, Billy and Mikey, had been killed in tragic circumstances, and she couldn't bear the thought of anything happening to Jerry. No matter how mean she could be at times, he was still her flesh and blood.
"Jerry's been taken by Leroy Warner," Ray said hastily.
"Leroy? That devil?" Zoe shouted. "What happened? Get the hell in here and talk to me!"
Ray opened the door and entered her room. He told her everything that had happened that night, and she did not take the news well.
She was seething as she said, "Leroy took Jerry away? That bastard! What about the engagement between Jerry and Janet? That was an agreement to bring our two families together. What are they up to? Take me to the Warner home!"
Just as they were preparing to leave, the security guard at the door ran inside in a panic. He whispered to Ray, "Jerry's back."
"What? He's back?" Ray was shocked and turned to his mother. "Mother, please go and rest. Jerry is back, so there's nothing to worry about. I'll go and talk to him."
The security guard pulled Ray's sleeve again and said, "Leroy, Janet, and a young man came back with him!"
"Huh?" Ray was confused. "What is Leroy playing at? Is this some kind of game?"
Zoe opened the door, and her old eyes flashed with anger. "Come. Let's go and find out. Let's see how much trouble Jerry has gotten himself into."
"Mother, Leroy is dangerous," Ray pointed out anxiously. "Should we call more people?"
"It doesn't matter," she said assuredly. "There may be only one grand master in this family, but Leroy still wouldn't dare cause any trouble in my house." She walked out of the door with her head held high.
She came from a big family that was experiencing a period of hardship. She had learned how to be tough, and she still had great power, but her sons were still worried about her in her old age. They ran over, and each took one of her arms to support her.
When she arrived at the gate, the first thing she saw was Jerry kneeling on the ground in a miserable state.
In front of him, a young man stood with his hands behind his back. He raised his head and looked at the plaque on the large door, and his eyebrows were furrowed, as if he was studying something.
Behind them were Leroy and Janet, who were here to watch the show. They didn't understand why Alex had brought them to the Rimmer family home, but they were excited to find out.
"Dad! Grandma!" Jerry cried out when he saw them. He felt so ashamed that he wished the ground would open up and swallow him.
Ray saw the state Jerry was in and ran over to him. He kneeled beside his son, checking him over, and then he turned and shouted at Alex, "Who are you? Why did you come here? Why are you causing all this trouble?"
Alex didn't even look at Ray. Instead, his eyes fell upon Zoe. He could feel that she was the one who held the power in the Rimmer family.
Leroy and Janet were dumbfounded. This strange man had beaten up this woman's grandson, and then had brought him to kneel at the entrance of her house. Even Leroy would never do such a thing.
Didn't the man know that the Rimmer family was untouchable in this town? Everyone knew that Zoe had a bad temper and was the most powerful woman around. She wasn't afraid of anyone or anything, but most people were wary of her.
"I asked you a question," Ray said impatiently. "Who are you exactly? And why have you done this to my son?"
It was obvious that he was trying his best to suppress his anger, but this whole situation was so strange that he was having a hard time doing so. He wanted more than anything to rush over and beat Alex to a pulp.
Alex glanced over at him with an expression that sent chills down his spine. "I'm looking for my mother," he said.
"Kid, are you crazy? What does your mother have to do with our family?" Ray asked. But before Alex could answer, he suddenly thought of something.
"Flora!" he said, as his eyes widened.
Alex stared at Ray knowingly. As a reincarnation of a powerful warrior, Alex had a very low opinion of blood relations.
In past lives, he had experienced countless trials and tribulations. In this life, he only wanted to make up for what he owed in his previous life, especially to his mother. Therefore, when Alex stood in front of his mother's family's home, he didn't feel any kinship with them at all. All he felt was an incomparable longing for his mother.
Ray looked at Alex with a sneer and said, "This is how you treat your family?" He pointed at Jerry.
"I don't have to acknowledge you all," Alex replied. "Just send my mother out. Since you've raised her for so many years, if you give her to me now, I'll leave quietly."
"What if we don't let her go?" Zoe took a step forward to face Alex, when all of a sudden, the large plaque beside the door that said Rimmer Residence, fell down and landed by her feet, making a cracking sound.
"Heavens! This guy is going crazy!" Janet blurted out, and then she covered her mouth in surprise.
Leroy was also in shock. Even he wouldn't do something like this.
"You!" Zoe pointed at Alex and shouted, her face contorting with anger. "You think you can come to our house and bully us?"
Alex shook his head. "I'm only here to find my mother, and I have no intention of arguing about it. If you don't give her to me, I'll destroy your family right now."
He raised his hand, and a large lion statue near the door exploded with a loud bang and turned into a pile of dust.
Zoe had never suffered such humiliation, but at least she still had her family by her side.