"You said someone wants to silence him. If it really came to that, your words 'I'm no immortal'. How can I manage?"
"I know you can! Compared to your dainty twin brother, you're a prodigy at escaping life and death situations, after all." Tairon finally emptied his glass, so Zane poured him another.
"Prodigy, my ass." He retorted. "Now, where is he? He told me to meet him, but he didn't show up."
"Well..." Tairon downed the drink before continuing, "he disappeared. As to how, I don't know."
Zane gave him a disappointed look. "Man, you're getting rusty," he commented, half joking. "The infamous intelligence gatherer isn't so intelligent anymore."
Pissed, Tairon picked an ice cube from the bucket and threw it at Zane, who avoided it while laughing, still making fun of him.
"Your mouth, really. What if someone's listening?" He warned.
The omega gave him a disbelieving look. "You think I'm dumb? I know you already took care of that." Tairon was known for his meticulous personality. He always checked his surroundings for hidden bugs and cameras, even in non-confidential situations.
A long silence enveloped the whole room. "You must stay on guard," Tairon broke the silence, earning a look from Zane. "This is just my speculation. The shooter this morning was aiming for the alpha you were with, not for you. The two of you have different foes."
"He'll deal with his, I'll deal with mine."
"As if it's that simple."
"What do you mean?" He was asking that to distract Tairon as he secretly pressed the room alarm, which was connected to the club services.
"The alpha is also your foe. He despises Kaisen, and since you're taking his place, that would mean he despises you too."
Looking back, he remembered something. "That reminds me, he said something about me, Kaisen rather, to confess. It's only you I can ask this, the internet doesn't have answers."
Tairon leaned back on the sofa. "Figures. After your twin's engagement with Zenon Acosta, the Acostas cleared everything related to that incident to avoid the media."
"What incident?"
A knock surprised them both. Zane had called a waiter through the alarm. He ordered another two bottles of alcohol and waited until they arrived.
Popping the cap open and pouring into his and Tairon's cups, he asked again. "What incident?"
"Aren't you drinking too much? You were shot just this morning."
"Alcohol heals all wounds, didn't you know that? Now proceed about the incident."
Tairon could only sigh in defeat. This friend of his had drunk almost two bottles already since they shared the second bottle. Although he hadn't shown any signs of getting drunk, he worried it might affect the wound recovery. If only he didn't have any important thing to do in that bar, he wouldn't have told Zane to meet with him there since he was pretty much acquainted with how heavy a drinker this guy was.
"It was exactly five years ago when Kaisen was still in the modeling industry—."
"Whoa, he's modeling?" Zane interrupted, shocked at the same time feeling proud. "He really made use of our omega beauty. And then?"
Tairon stared at him with a blank face. "He was a rising star, and so was Cassian Everhart. She was an omega from a rich foreign family. Both being omegas, people saw them as rivals in the modeling industry as well as in love. They liked the same alpha."
"Cringe," Zane couldn't help but comment.
"No further interruptions, Z. So, Cassian became Zenon's girlfriend, after a few months, his fiancée. A few days after the announcement of their wedding, Cassian got into a car accident, which, after an investigation, was ruled a murder."
"And my twin was a suspect?"
"There was no evidence that Kaisen actually did it. He wasn't found guilty. But those on Cassian's side, her supporters, friends, most importantly, Zenon, didn't believe that. Before the incident, Cassian and Kaisen got into a heated conversation, which someone took a picture of." Tairon slipped out a photo and slid it across the table.
Zane reached out for it. In front of the person Zane recognized as his twin, was a female with long wavy blonde hair. Her back was to the camera, so it was hard to see her face, but it was clear as day that they were arguing.
"After the incident, the company couldn't deal with Kaisen's issue and fired him. Which also happened to be the day your father died due to a cardiac arrest. He also received death threats. This series of events took a toll on Kaisen's mental state, which resulted in his numerous attempts at suicide.
He received treatment for three years abroad and returned when the company your father founded was hanging by a thread. Zenon's father was an old friend of your father, and he proposed a deal to Kaisen in exchange for a billion dollars, enough to save your father's company from bankruptcy.
The contract must be handed to you by Ms. Jang. She's your stepmother, by the way."
The drink got stuck in his throat. After a few coughs, Zane managed to make a word. "Is that for real?"
"Of course not. She's your aunt from Korea. She's a distant cousin of your father, and they're the closest among his other family."
It was Zane's turn to throw him a cube of ice. Tairon laughed thinking back to Zane's reaction seconds ago.
"I was just checking if you're still listening," he said, still laughing.
"Hell I am!" Zane remarked.
"You should check it once you get home. I don't have any idea about the conditions on it. Don't worry, I'm working on searching for your long-lost twin brother. He hasn't left the country yet. That, I assure you."
Zane just gave him a few nods, feeling relieved by Tairon's words. He knew Tairon was true to his words, and so he never doubted him.
Feeling a bit stressed because of all the information in a single night, Zane drank straight from the bottle, emptying the content of it.
"Are you really trying to get drunk?" Tairon asked, pulling the empty bottle from Zane's grasp.
"It's called 'having a drink.' Why don't you try?"
Placing the bottle on the table, he answered, "No, thank you. I still have work to do."
"Right," stretching out the word to tease Tairon, which only earned him a death glare.
"Where are you going?" Tairon was alarmed when Zane suddenly stood up and walked to the door after a moment of silence, afraid that he was already drunk. It wasn't that he really hated taking care of his drunk ass friend, but he just couldn't stand Zane's pheromones whenever he did.
"Chill, just the restroom," Zane clarified, holding out a hand to tell Tairon to calm down.
Tairon let out a 'tsk' and slumped himself on the sofa. "If you pass out, I'm dragging your ass outside the club," he threatened. But it only earned a laugh from Zane.
The loud music once again was heard when Zane exited the VIP room. People were drinking, dancing, and some making out in some darker spots in the corners. He passed by one of them on his way towards the restroom.
There wasn't anyone when he went in. After doing his thing, he went straight to the sink to wash his hands when three big drunk honks entered.
The first guy who entered spotted him. "Lookie here! A beauty," he announced, earning his colleagues' attention.
Zane, not even half worried, just gave them a glance. He felt a little lightheaded; the alcohol must have hit him a little already. So he splashed a couple of water on his face to sober up.
Earning no reaction from him, the three were agitated and so they went near where Zane was. One of them even put his arms around Zane's shoulder, pulling him.
"Aw, don't ignore us like that. Why don't we have some fun?" The guy that had his arms around Zane said while the other guys laughed in agreement.
All three of them were taller than Zane, mentioning the fact that they had larger builds than Zane, who had a slender body. But that didn't scare Zane; rather, he was irritated by the strong stench of alcohol coming from them.
"How do you like the idea of being handicapped?" Zane questioned. His voice was devoid of any expression, and there was a hint of threat.
The three men paused. "Aren't you being arrogant?" The guy standing behind him said, drawing his head near Zane.
Zane stopped himself from rolling his eyes in irritation. That asshole's breath smelled awful; he wanted to throw up.
"Vin, lock the doors. We have to teach our new friend a lesson," the guy holding him ordered, and the guy beside him silently went to the door.
'Lock it. It works for me either way.'
Zane stood there motionless as he observed the guy walking away from them. But once the click sound was heard, he grabbed the arms that were wrapped around his shoulders. Moving swiftly, he managed to twist them on that guy's back, earning a wince of pain from him.
It was a surprise attack. Although there was an obvious difference in body build, they were taken by surprise by how this small frame moved so quickly.
"You!" The guy that was standing from behind was ready to attack Zane when suddenly he felt his body tremble, his legs lose strength, as did the other guy, the name's Vin, far from them while covering his nose.
"You... this pheromones..." Vin stuttered, not even sure of what was going on. It couldn't be an alpha pheromone as the guy didn't have the characteristics of an alpha. If he could release pheromones, then he must be an omega, but no omega smelled this dangerous.
Zane released the guy he had twisted his arms with. His face was devoid of any expression. In fact, he was frustrated at having to release his pheromones because he didn't like the consequences after it. As if he had a choice right now.
The pheromones released had grown even thicker, and the three alphas in the room were starting to feel breathless. How come a mere omega overpowered alphas like this?
Simple, that's because he's no mere omega. It is a common fact that omegas are fewer than alphas in numbers. There aren't enough omegas for all the living alphas in this generation. However, what's even rarer was the existence of dominant omegas, with only one over a hundred.
Zane opened the faucet, washed his hands once more, and let the water run as he listened to the grunts, the breathless pants, and the pleas of the people with him.
After a few minutes, the three men passed out. Zane's body was strained by the sudden release of excessive pheromones. His legs wobbled, and his sight blurred, gripping on the sink for support.
He had just made a cool moment; he couldn't pass out now. Zane was on the verge of losing consciousness when he heard the door lock click followed by the sound of it swinging open.