BOUND BY SECRETS

Pongsapak Mansion___

"Where has Santa gone?" Praew asked, her voice laced with anxiety.

"I don't know that kid anymore," Tong scoffed, crossing his arms. "After what he pulled, I couldn't care less."

Joss leaned back on the couch, completely uninterested.

"Grandpa told us not to look for him, so I stopped bothering. He'll come crawling back when he realizes he has nowhere else to go."

Praew turned to Emmy, her eyes pleading.
"Emmy, you must know where he is. Tell me, where is my son?"

Emmy clenched her fists. She knew the answer but kept her head down.
"I don't know," she murmured.

Tong let out a sharp laugh. "Of course you don't. Just like your mother-

Emmy's body tensed.

"Tong," Praew warned, but Tong ignored her, his bitterness spilling out.

"Your mother was so vicious," Tong spat. "And now you-"

"He's back at the university."

The room fell into dead silence as Mr. Niran's voice cut through the tension.

Tong turned to his father, eyes flashing with rage.
"Then what are we waiting for? We should drag him back before he embarrasses us even further!"

Niran's gaze darkened.
"I told you not to push Santa's matter for now."

"But Dad-"

Bang!

The sound of Niran's hand slamming against the table made everyone jump.

"I said, leave it." His voice was dangerously calm.

"But how can we-"

"If you don't want to test my patience, Tong, you will shut your mouth right now."

Tong's face burned with frustration, but he knew better than to go against Niran when he was like this.

Joss exchanged glances with Praew. Something was going on.

Why would Niran, who had always controlled everything, suddenly back off?

And Emmy....she didn't dare meet anyone's eyes.

Something wasn't right.

-----------

Intelligence Bureau***

Perth pov

Perth stood in front of his senior's desk, his posture firm.

"We're not far from the truth, sir. I need to move to Chiang Mai."

His senior frowned. "Why Chiang Mai?"

"Jirawit's son and Pongsapak's son are both there," Perth explained.

"There's turmoil in their families right now. If we get close enough, we can gather valuable information."

His senior tapped his fingers against the desk.
"And why exactly do you think you'd have access to their internal affairs?"

Perth inhaled deeply.

"Because I'm married to Pongsapak's youngest son."

Silence.

"What?" His senior leaned forward, disbelief written all over his face.

Perth kept his gaze steady.
"You heard me."

The room remained still for a moment before his senior scoffed.

"Are you insane? When did this happen? How does this help the mission?"

"It was necessary," Perth stated. "It gives me a hold over the case."

His senior shook his head, trying to process the absurdity of it all.

"You mean to tell me, you willingly got involved with one of our key persons of interest? Do you even realize what kind of risk that is?"

Perth didn't flinch.
"I know exactly what I'm doing."

His senior exhaled sharply.
"Perth, this isn't a joke. You're dealing with powerful families-dangerous ones."

Perth's jaw tightened.
"Which is why I need to be there. The chaos within their families is our biggest advantage right now."

His senior ran a hand down his face...

"And what if they find out who you really are? What if they figure out you're investigating them?"

Perth's lips curled into a smirk. "They won't."

Silence.

Then, his senior sighed heavily. "Fine. Do what you need to. But if this blows up, I won't be able to protect you."

"I won't need protection," Perth said confidently.

His senior shook his head. "God help you, kid. You're playing with fire."

Perth turned to leave, determination burning in his eyes.

And he wasn't planning to get burned.

To be continued... 🖤🤍