"Finley, hold on," Leopold said, his voice urgent. "I'm taking you to Larissa. I'll beg her to give you the antidote."
He carefully laid his brother down in the back seat before jumping back into the driver's side, buckling his seatbelt, and speeding toward the Judson estate.
...
Thirty minutes later, Leopold was carrying Finley on his back at the main gate. He remembered that they had returned their key fobs when they moved out, so he had no choice but to shout at the guards inside. "Open the gate and let me in!"
The guards recognized him as Leopold, the former second young master, and the man on his back as Finley, the eldest. But they also knew that both had been cast out by Kiernan Judson.
They ignored him.
"I said, open the damn gate!" Leopold roared, his frustration mounting.
One of the guards gave him a cold, dismissive look. "Without orders from Mr. Kiernan Judson or Ms. Larissa Judson, we can't let you in."
Leopold kicked the iron gate, the clang echoing in the quiet night, but the guards remained unmoved.
He fumbled for his phone, intending to call Larissa. But as he held it in his hand, a wave of shame washed over him. He didn't even have his own sister's number saved.
He felt a pang of regret so sharp it took his breath away. But he couldn't just stand by and watch Finley suffer. He shook his brother gently. "Finley, do you have Larissa's number?"
With the last of his strength, Finley managed a nod. "In... my phone..."
Leopold quickly found Finley's phone, used his brother's thumbprint to unlock it, and scrolled through the contacts until he found Larissa's name. He dialed, only to be met with an automated message: The number you have dialed is not in service.
She had blocked Finley's number, too.
Of course she had. They deserved it. All of it.
A gut-wrenching cough wracked Finley's body, and he spat out a mouthful of blood before finally succumbing to the pain and passing out.
"Finley!" Leopold cried in terror.


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