Thalia did not deny it, though there was a slightly conflicted expression on her exquisite face. “So, it's really Sam ?” Donna asked, looking at her telling expression.
Thalia sighed in resignation and finally replied, “What could I do? He was adamant about meeting you, but you were hell-bent on doing what you wanted, so this was the best solution I could think of.”
Her answer elicited a frown on Tony 's furious face.
Thalia's decision was unacceptable to him, although he was aware that it was a carefully-deliberated one.
Feeling betrayed and infuriated, he questioned, “Did you even think about the consequences, Thalia?”
“If you're referring to Alpha Kilian and your relationship, then I have to say that it was unexpected, but we all know this outcome was inevitable, and I merely sped it up. But if you're referring to something else, then it's even more straightforward. Sam will be as surprised as I was to see you.”
Tony glared at her silently, but the latter was unperturbed as she looked back at him right in the eyes.
Seeing the two in a standoff, Donna and Ben , who were beside them, exchanged glances before Donna chimed in, “Tony, I'm sure Thalia did this with the best intention. I know you're angry, but this is not necessarily bad.”
“She's right,” Ben agreed.
Still looking at Tony , Thalia suddenly felt the hostile expression on his face reminded her of Alpha Kilian .
“Do you guys know doing this without Darknetz's knowledge is considered betrayal?” she asked. Donna whipped her head and stared at Thalia, shocked.
Her reaction was enough to tell Thalia that they were caught unawares.
“I bet none of you read the regulations,” Thalia guessed.
“Who reads that? It's wordy and boring,” Donna muttered guiltily.
Thalia then looked at Ben , who also said he had not gone through the regulations because he had no time for it.
I see. None of them knew anything about it. I guess that makes more sense.
Gazing at the angry Tony , Thalia explained, “Look, Tony , I know you're extremely upset because you feel like I betrayed you, but if you were in my shoes, you would understand that this was the best I could do given the situation. You have to believe me when I say I swear loyalty to Darknetz and you.”
Despite her words, Tony still stood without moving an inch, staring at her with his doubtful eyes.
Since he was not persuaded, Thalia nodded and snapped, “Fine. Decide for yourself if you want to see him or not. I'll go stall him if that's what you want.”
With that said, she turned and walked toward the lawn, above which the helicopter hovered in preparation for landing.
After watching her leave, Donna turned to her eldest brother. “Tony, I think what she said makes sense. After what we've been through together, I can safely say Thalia is trustworthy. We can't just think of ourselves. We should consider her too,” Donna uttered.
“I just don't want anything to interfere with what I'm doing,” Tony replied, turning toward Donna .
“Will you stop if Sam says no?” Ben suddenly weighed in. “If you'll still carry on regardless of his opinion, then what's the big deal about meeting him?”
“Well...” Tony mumbled, frowning.
“The worst case scenario is you offend Sam by insisting your way even if he disapproves, but that's a good thing, isn't it? Both of you can go your separate ways after that, which means you have fewer things to worry about,” Ben reasoned.
“I agree with Ben,” Donna also said.
Tony was beginning to come around to their point of view.
“Tony, Thalia has done so much for us. We can't do this to her,” Donna continued.
Miguel, who had been listening quietly all that while, decided to say his piece of mind at that point. “All right. I might not know exactly what you guys are talking about, but I think Thalia is a good friend. She might be a little outrageous sometimes, but I will never second guess her loyalty toward you guys.”
Tony glared at Miguel when he stuck his nose into their discussion, but Donna quickly interrupted, “See? Even an outsider can tell that much, Tony.”
At that point, Tony felt obliged to explain himself. “I do not doubt her intention. It's just that I wasn't mentally prepared.”
“What about now? Do you feel more prepared now?” Donna asked, gazing at her brother with her bright eyes.
Tony looked away toward the descending helicopter and then at Thalia. She still appeared dashing even when Tony could only see her back.
“Fine. Whatever has happened has happened,” Tony remarked, taking a deep breath. “Does that mean you agree to meet Sam ?” Donna asked to confirm.
“Let's go,” Tony said curtly, walking toward the lawn.
After some contemplation, Thalia looked at him and asked, “I suppose you haven't eaten? Let's get you something to eat. It's my treat.”
Sam narrowed his eyes, observing Thalia. “Tell me. What's going on?” “Nothing.”
“I'm not hungry. I just want to see him.” Thalia was stumped for words.
“Is there a problem with that?” Sam added.
Thalia took a deep breath and finally revealed, “I haven't told him about your visit.”
It was then that Sam understood what was going on. “What do you think you're doing?”
“Could you wait for a bit, Boss? He's not prepared to meet you yet. I don't want him to be caught by surprise.”
Sam scoffed at the reply. “Caught by surprise? Why can't he take a surprise? It's not like he's a kid.” “He is, to be honest...” Thalia murmured.
“What did you say?”
Thalia shook her head at him. “*It's nothing, Boss. Let's get a drink. I promise I'll make this trip worth it for you.”
“Oh. Do you think a drink is enough then?” “I'll do whatever you ask.”
“I don't have any special request. I want to see him,” Sam insisted, still thinking he should meet this person face-to-face since he had put aside all his work for that trip.
This man has got to have something to be acting so enigmatic. “Boss,” Thalia tried persuading.
“I'll go on my own if you refuse to lead the way,” Sam refuted, walking past her. However, after a few steps, he froze where he was, squinting at the three children walking toward him.
“Boss, you should try not to scare him...” Thalia's voice trailed off when she realized Sam had stopped. Slowly turning back, she braced herself for the worst.
“W-What are you guys doing here?” she asked with her brows stitched in a frown when she saw the children, who remained silent at her question.
Miguel looked at the frowning woman and replied in the children's stead, “Well, we didn't want to put you in a tight spot.”
Thalia narrowed her eyes, trying to discern the look on Tony 's face as the boy stared at Sam .
To Tony , Sam seemed more domineering than he had imagined. Although he looked harmless at first sight, Tony could tell he was the kind to be very decisive when he had to kill someone.
Meanwhile, Sam glanced at Thalia with dark eyes, hoping to get answers, but she evaded his gaze.
As if he had understood her body language, Sam looked at the group not far from him.
Having taken a few-second pause, he paced over to them as his shifting gaze drifted from the children to Miguel.
“We meet at last,” Sam said as he pulled his hand from his pocket and reached out to Miguel. Staring at the hand extended toward him, Miguel was so stunned he was lost for words.
When he turned to eye the three children, Donna had her lips pursed and was trying not to laugh aloud when she learned that Sam had mistaken Miguel for Anonymous. In fact, even Thalia was laughing.
“Um, I'm sorry, but I think you got the wrong guy,” Miguel pointed out, shaking Sam 's hand. “The wrong guy?” Sam frowned.
Sensing the tension in the air, he glanced over at the children, who were roughly half his height. “What do you mean?” he asked lowly, trailing Miguel's gaze.
“Isn't it obvious enough?”
Sam glanced at the children again and finally noticed something different about Tony when he cast his gaze on the boy, who had directly looked him in the eye fearlessly as if he was looking at an ordinary man, not someone from Darknetz.
Perceiving the peculiarity of the matter, Sam narrowed his eyes and turned to Thalia as if he was looking for confirmation, but the latter coughed dryly and simply smiled at him.
“What's that supposed to mean?” Sam questioned.
Thalia refused to provide him with the answer he was looking for. She recalled how dumbfounded she was when she first learned who Tony was; she wanted Sam to experience the same.
Now you know how I felt. I'm not going through this alone.
“Well, I don't know,” Thalia said, shrugging with her hands spread out.
Just as Sam was trapped in confusion, Donna smiled sweetly at him and greeted, “Hi, sir.”