When the day arrives, Tadeus returns to his father's house where he puts on the suit and shoes chosen by him. Gustaph tries to stay close to Tadeus to encourage him, but the man seems inert, with a cold expression that somehow complements his features, his eyes, and his dark hair very well.
Upon entering the room, which consists of white walls and nothing but black leather furniture, Tadeus takes a seat next to his father on the sofa as he asks him to and pours himself a glass of vodka, but Edwin takes it away from him. — Thank you, son — he says. Gustaph is sitting in an armchair to Tadeus' right, and on the large sofa in front of Coyote is an older man — We hear you — Edwin says.
— The Animal makes deliveries every month to a port on a private island south of the continent. Always in an unregistered submarine that crosses the Atlantic Ocean to Europe, where it is transported by plane to Greece — says the man — Right now, he's in Greece because he discovered the chip I planted as a distraction. If you can get the Raptis brothers to get rid of the Animal, you'll be able to make your rivals take advantage of his vulnerability.
— I thought the information was about the Animal's next delivery — says Tadeus, still looking at the bottle of vodka, then raising his gaze to the man in front of him.
— Yes, that's what it's about —Edwin replies — He'll give us information about the Animal's next delivery when the time is right.
— What are we doing here if there's nothing concrete yet? — Tadeus asks as he pours another glass of vodka and drinks it quickly before his father can do anything.
— Thanks, Minos. You can go — says Edwin. A couple of men escort the Greek man out of the room — Enough! — Edwin scolds, snatching the second glass of vodka from Tadeus' hands — You'll go to Greece and make sure our partners get a sample of our product — says El Coyote. Tadeus stands up and heads for the door — Otherwise, the police will find out what you did.
— I think it's best to give him some time — Gustaph remarks — He's pretty shaken up by what happened, and we don't want him to lose control.
— Stay with him. Make sure he doesn't commit suicide — Edwin orders sighing wearily.
Gustaph looks at him strangely, but says nothing and leaves. The following week, Tadeus has no choice but to work from his father's mansion because he is forced to remain under surveillance until they obtain new information about the next delivery. Gustaph visits him occasionally to make sure his friend is feeling better, but he remains quiet after the news of Dove Bales' disappearance following the attack on the private residence.
Despite his isolation in the mansion, Tadeus doesn't let Alexander's calls go unanswered, and they talk constantly throughout the day.
— I've missed you so much, sweetheart — Alexander says — I'll be back in a couple of days.
— I thought you had really abandoned me.
— I'll take a flight tomorrow afternoon.
— Okay — Tadeus replies, and they end the call after talking for a while.
<<<>>>
Next day, Tadeus returns to the TV station's offices to record a couple more episodes of his show. It's already nighttime by the time he finishes recording, so he has dinner with Gustaph — How are you feeling?.
— I'm fine — Tadeo replies — It seems that the woman had no one else but Alexander, but he doesn't seem to care.
— Probably, it'll never be known what happened to her.
— But I will — Tadeus replies, pouring himself more wine.
— You should stop drinking so much. Drowning yourself in alcohol will only make the conflict in your head worse.
— Is that what you think? — Tadeus asks in a monotone voice — When I'm drunk is the only time I'm not thinking about that woman.
— Then you're not thinking about your sister either — Gustaph remarks — There will be nothing left to remember after a couple of months if you keep this up.
Tadeus sighs and continues eating. This time he spends the night in his apartment, knowing that Alexander will be returning. In the morning, his sister Yenedith tries to talk him into eating something or taking a shower, but he doesn't want to eat due to his lack of appetite, much less get out of bed. The sound of the bedroom door opens, followed by the soft touch of a warm hand on his head makes him turn over in bed and see Alexander — Your sister told me you haven't left your room in days.
— What are you doing here? — Tadeus asks confused, surprised. He feels an intense heat on his face.
— I called you, but she answered instead — Alexander says with a slight smile and gives him a quick kiss on the lips — Did you miss me that much?
Tadeus exhales sharply, smiling genuinely as he sits down in front of him. At that moment, Yenedith enters the room with a bowl of soup, which Alexander takes. When she leaves the room, he begins to feed that afflicted soul, wiping the tears from his eyes after each spoonful.
Once he finishes eating, Alexander combs Tadeus' hair back with his hands and caresses his cheeks with his thumbs for a few seconds, about to say something, but decides against it — I'll wait for you outside.
After a long shower and much deliberation about whether or not to go out, Tadeus goes to the living room where he finds him sitting and talking to his sister. It seems incredible to him that this man is the same man who would be capable of ending his life if he found out what he had done.
— Are you two in a serious relationship? — Yenedith asks, trying to figure out what he's thinking.
— Well, isn't it pretty obvious? — Alexander says.
— Oh, sorry! Bad question — Yenedith says with a mocking tone.
— Did you want to talk to me? — Interrupts Tadeus with his eyes focused on his sister.
— Yes — Alexander replies and stands up — It's been nice talking to you, Yenedith.
— Whenever you want — she says, giving Tadeus a quick glance — Go ahead, you don't have to stay here for me. I'm leaving too.
Alexander grins at them both and heads for the exit, followed by Tadeus.
— You haven't said anything — Tadeus comments when they reach the parking lot. He stops before getting into the car.
Alexander has his hand on the door handle when he says — I want us to go out for something to eat, or we can walk along the boulevard if you like. I miss talking to you.
Tadeus gets into the car without further ado, but just like the walk to the parking lot, the entire car ride is silent until they reach their destination — I saw on the news that Dove is missing — Alexander says — Are you okay?
— What, why wouldn't I be okay? — Tadeus replies.
— There were a lot of victims and too much damage. Apparently, they broke into houses while people were sleeping. I was worried about you.
— But we already talked about that on the phone. Nothing happened to my building — Tadeus says.
— I just wanted to see you in person and make sure you're okay — Alexander says, getting out of the car as soon as they arrive.
They enter the restaurant and order — Are you okay? I imagine they took a lot of valuable things and... Dove, I assume you're close to her.
— Don't worry about me. I can replace everything they took, and as for Dove Alexander remarks — Obviously I'm concerned someone might have done something to her, but I'm not a detective. I can only hope that the authorities do their job.
Tadeus wants to ask a few more questions, but decides not to. The less that is known about the lives of that woman and her husband, the easier it will be to justify their deaths as inevitable. If it hadn't been him, it could have been anyone else — What are you thinking about? — Alexander asks.
— I hope your business went well — Tadeus replies.
— Yes, everything went well. I'll be able to sell the medicines to other European countries, just as my father always wanted.
— That's a big step forward for the pharmaceutical company.
— It sure is! Come with me, I want to celebrate with you — he says, reaching out to touch his hand.
— Of course — Tadeus says with a forced smile.
— Is there something you're not telling me? — Alexander asks, genuinely concerned. Tadeus could be in danger if the attack was carried out by one of his enemies looking for a weakness, but he feels relieved to see him safe and unharmed.
— I'm fine, it's just that everything that happened seems a little unbelievable.
— I know. If you hadn't invited me to your house, I might have been hurt — says Alexander, kissing the back of Tadeus' hand.
After thatsm they both go to a luxurious hotel to spend the night.