Chapter 23:The Obsidian Circle Awakens.
Chapter 26: The Plan
(Jay Jay's POV)
Keifer was still asleep when I left the room.
The morning light barely touched the halls of the Watson mansion, and for once the place was quiet enough that I could hear my own footsteps.
Which meant it was the perfect time.
Because what I was about to do wasn't something Keifer needed to know yet.
Not until it was finished.
Not until Yuri understood exactly what kind of mistake he had made.
I walked into the small private office Angelo had given me to "study" while Keifer recovered.
The door clicked shut behind me.
Locked.
I pulled out my phone.
Five contacts.
Five ghosts from another life.
The screen lit up with the group call notification.
One by one, they joined.
Savannah first.
Then Sophia.
Olivia.
Amy.
And finally Mia.
The six of us hadn't spoken together like this in years.
For a moment no one said anything.
Then Amy broke the silence.
"So," she said casually, "who are we torturing?"
Typical.
I leaned back in the chair and crossed my arms.
"Yuri."
Silence fell over the call.
Cold silence.
Savannah spoke next.
"The red-haired boy."
"Yeah."
"The one who tried to kill your boyfriend."
"Yes."
Amy whistled softly.
"Oh, this is going to be fun."
Mia sighed.
"Amy."
"What? I'm being honest."
Sophia's calm voice cut in.
"I already started digging into him."
Of course she had.
"What did you find?" I asked.
"Everything."
Her typing echoed faintly through the call.
"Financial records. Phone calls. Private messages."
Then she said the thing that made my stomach tighten again.
"He really did plan the accident."
Savannah spoke quietly.
"Tell us the whole story, Jay."
So I did.
It started five months ago.
Back when none of us knew Yuri had already decided to kill Keifer.
Back when we were all staying at Sir Alvin's house.
That place was supposed to be a safe house.
No one knew where it was.
Not the Watson enemies.
Not the outside world.
Just Keifer.
Section E.
Kuya Angelo.
Aries.
Tita Gemma.
Mam cindy.
And Sir Alvin himself.
We stayed there because of a threat no one fully understood.
At the time everyone thought it was just another enemy targeting the Watson family.
But something about it felt wrong.
Too quiet.
Too patient.
So while everyone else slept—
I started looking.
Sir Alvin's house had an office.
Locked.
But locks don't mean much when you're curious enough.
And I was.
Inside that office I found a hidden drawer.
Inside the drawer—
A folder.
Thin.
Black.
Simple.
But the moment I opened it, I knew something was very wrong.
Because it wasn't just documents.
It was a hit list.
Names.
Pictures.
Locations.
Detailed notes.
And at the very top of the list—
Keifer Watson.
Savannah spoke softly through the phone.
"And the author?"
I exhaled slowly.
"Yuri."
Amy cursed.
"That little bastard."
Sophia continued reading something on her screen.
"The list had multiple targets."
"Yes."
I remembered every name.
Every detail.
Because that night something inside me had gone very cold.
"He wasn't just targeting Keifer," I said.
"He had other enemies listed."
"Business rivals."
"Personal grudges."
People who had crossed him.
People he wanted gone.
Olivia spoke for the first time.
"Why would Yuri keep that list in Sir Alvin's house?"
"He didn't," I said.
Silence.
"I think he hid it there temporarily."
Savannah immediately understood.
"Because no one would think to look."
Exactly.
Sir Alvin's house was the safest place in the world.
Which made it the perfect hiding spot.
Except Yuri made one mistake.
I was curious.
And I found it.
Amy's voice turned dark.
"So he planned it for months."
"Yes."
Sophia added quietly,
"And the accident wasn't random."
"No."
We all knew that now.
"The drunk driver was hired."
"Paid."
"Sent directly to hit Keifer's car."
Savannah's voice sharpened.
"And Jay was in the car."
"Yes."
Another long silence filled the call.
Because they all understood what that meant.
Yuri hadn't just tried to kill Keifer.
He was willing to kill me too.
Amy broke the silence.
"So we kill him."
"No."
My answer came instantly.
Too fast.
Too sharp.
Savannah chuckled softly.
"Ah."
Amy groaned.
"Oh no."
Mia sighed again.
"I know that tone."
Olivia asked calmly,
"What's the plan, Jay?"
I leaned forward slightly in the chair.
Because this was the part I had been thinking about for days.
"We don't kill him."
Amy protested immediately.
"Why not?"
"Because death is easy."
Silence again.
Then I said the words slowly.
"He needs to feel it."
Savannah hummed approvingly.
"Pain."
"Yes."
"Regret."
"Yes."
"Fear."
"Yes."
Amy laughed.
"Oh, I like this plan already."
Sophia's voice came through the speaker again.
"I can track him."
"Already done."
Of course.
"Where is he?"
"Still close to Keifer's world."
Savannah sighed.
"He's watching."
"Yes."
Yuri wasn't stupid.
He wanted to see the aftermath of what he had done.
Which meant he was still nearby.
Still pretending to be innocent.
Still pretending to be a friend.
My hands clenched slightly.
"That ends soon."
Olivia spoke carefully.
"If we're torturing him, we need structure."
"Agreed."
Amy sounded delighted.
"Oh this is getting organized."
Savannah said calmly,
"First we isolate him."
Sophia added,
"I erase any digital trace of what we do."
Olivia continued,
"We make sure no one connects it to the Watson family."
Mia's voice was the quietest.
"And we make sure he survives the process."
Amy groaned.
"Seriously?"
"Yes," Mia replied calmly.
"Pain without death."
"That's the point," I said.
Amy leaned into the call again.
"So what kind of torture are we talking about?"
Savannah answered before I could.
"Psychological."
"Yes," I said.
"First we break his mind."
Sophia added,
"I can make him think he's being watched everywhere."
Olivia continued,
"Then we isolate him socially."
Amy cracked her knuckles loudly through the phone.
"And then I get involved."
I smiled slightly.
"Eventually."
Mia spoke softly.
"And the final step?"
I looked toward the door of the office.
Toward the hallway that led back to Keifer's room.
Where he was still sleeping.
Still recovering from the accident Yuri caused.
Still completely unaware of the storm forming around his former best friend.
"The final step," I said quietly,
"Is regret."
Savannah asked,
"How?"
I answered simply.
"He realizes too late that he lost everything."
Amy chuckled.
"Friends."
"Trust."
"Power."
"Safety."
Sophia finished the sentence calmly.
"And then he realizes who did it."
The call went silent again.
Then Savannah asked the most important question.
"When do we start?"
I looked out the office window at the bright morning sky.
And thought about the hospital.
The coma.
The blood.
Keifer's weak smile when he woke up.
And Yuri thinking he got away with it.
My voice came out cold.
"Soon."
Very soon.
Because Yuri made one mistake.
He tried to kill someone I loved.
And worse—
He thought I was just a dramatic girl who cursed too much.
A girl who kissed her boyfriend every time she called him an asshole.
He didn't know.
He didn't know about the Obsidian Circle.
He didn't know about the six girls from New York.
And he definitely didn't know—
That the girl he almost killed
Was the Queen.