The second he reached the table, the man with the green beard sat upright and smiled. "We all have guns, Van," he said. "But we choose to keep them away."
"What are you doing here?" Van was not in for an exchange of pleasantries. He did not invite this man and could only wonder how he had made it past his security unchecked. He would have to fire someone for that later.
Dustin Mayweather, the man with the green beard, simply stared at the others seated across the table with him and said, "The most powerful man in the state hosted a party and did not care to invite his old-time friend. How did you think I felt when I found out? I thought perhaps you forgot, so I showed up myself so that you would not feel bad when you realized later what you had done."
Van remained silent. He was not quite sure why he was tolerating all of this madness. He drew the vacant seat and settled in momentarily. "Whatever it is that you are looking for, you will not find it here, so leave before this dinner turns into a shootout."
"A threat?" Dustin raised a brow. He leaned forward and whispered, "I am down for that. Oh, and I see that our little target lives with you now. When will you hand her over?"
"To who, you?" Van almost laughed. He snapped his fingers at one of the waiters, and a glass of wine was brought to him. "Let it go. I do not work for you. I do not work for Luther. I do not work for anyone, so I am not obliged to release her to any of you. If I want her to stay in my home for as long as she lives, then that is what will happen."
"Pfft!" Dustin scoffed, sipped from his glass, and continued, "She will find out sooner or later. Do you think I did not see the cringe romance that you two were pulling off there, pinning her against the wall and looking into her eyes? She is not a weak woman, Van. She will learn the truth and kill you. You had better hand her over now, or kill her silently because she will never like you. This is not a fairy tale."
"Enjoy your dinner." Van stood immediately and walked away from the table, leaving his glass behind.
"Your father misses you, just know that!" Dustin hollered.
Van stopped in his tracks for a few seconds, but he did not turn. "I wish I could say the same," he simply whispered and continued until he was out of the dining room.
Meanwhile, after Jade had left, she did not go straight to the conference room, not with her face soaked with tears and her makeup ruined. Every step she took further away from her father's killer provoked a sense of condemnation within her. He had just shown up and ruined everything. Her plans to escape this mansion, to be free from whatever trap this was, had been destroyed, and worse, she did not get a chance to exert her revenge.
"Van was right," she thought to herself, standing in a secluded corner along the corridor. "What could I have accomplished with a fruit knife? Why did I not grab Van's gun from his pocket and shoot that murderer while he was still in my face? Jade, why do you have to be so stupid? Why?"
"You really shouldn't be standing around here."
A familiar voice came from her right, and no, it was not Van. It was John, the last person she wanted to see. Jade did not need words, the way she looked at him alone was enough to say what was on her mind.
"You are insane, you know that, right?" John continued annoyingly. "I just thought I should mention it." With that, he turned and walked away while Jade contemplated whether he deserved death quicker than her father's killer, because he was getting under her skin frequently.
The second he was gone, she went back to crying, or rather trying not to cry too much to avoid ruining her makeup any further. She leaned her back against the wall and drew a breath while thinking of the best possible line of action. Given the circumstances, Jade had already kissed her escape plans goodbye the second she saw Dustin enter the mansion, and by goodbye it meant she no longer intended to leave.
And with the way Van had replied to her earlier, it sealed the deal. He knew something about her parents' death and she wanted to know what he knew. Whether he was involved or not, she was going to find out soon. But the question was how?
While these thoughts filled her mind, she saw Van approaching. It was safe to say that she was not too far from the elevator leading to the conference room. The second their eyes met, he paused and his shoulders dropped, and Jade? Well she had nothing to hide anymore. He could not blame her for breaking down this way, could he? She was not like him, who knew how to mask all kinds of emotions.
"Why are you still here?" he asked, continuing forward. "I thought I said you should go to the conference room"
Jade swallowed, then replied, "I couldn't. I'm sorry." She was about to break down again, and Van was certainly not having it. He wanted to yell at her to stop this childish behavior, but his mouth felt too heavy, so he simply stood there looking at her.
"Your makeup is even ruined," he pointed out. It was unrelated, but was all he could figure out to say. "Do something about it and…"
Before he could finish speaking, Jade closed the distance between them and wrapped her arms around him. It happened so fast that he was not even sure how to react.
The embrace should have been warm, but it was not. He could feel her chest rise and fall rapidly, and was that her heartbeat? Yes, he noticed that too. And worse, the cry. She was sobbing right on his shoulder like he was her father, and as if that was not enough, Jade made a request.
"Will you do it on my behalf?"