Eric couldn't believe their good luck in capturing Sydney so quickly. Aiden would have no choice but to succumb to his whims and fancies, with her as a hostage. He no longer needed his complex plot to eliminate the Reiners.

"So, what are your plans for her? Can I try her out first?" William inquired, his face beaming.

Eric gave a withering look at William. 'What an Idiot! Soon he and his entire family would be rotting in hell! And all he cares for is getting laid.' Eric thought with great satisfaction.
He gave William a cunning smile. "First, let us wake up our little whore."

"Eric, this...this whole thing is getting out of hand! You... you never said there would be innocent lives involved!" Marilyn stammered, wringing her hands nervously.
If only she knew that Eric was a psychopath who would be killing off so many people, she would never have agreed to join his mad plan. All she wanted was Aidan.
"Marilyn, you agreed to join us, don't you want Aiden? You're not backing out now, are you?" William glared at Marilyn.

"Yes, I agreed! I assumed you meant ruining the company! Not murdering people!" Marilyn argued fiercely.

William was about to give her a piece of his mind when Eric stopped him.

"Don't be dumb, Marilyn. An offence is an offence! It's still a crime whether you poison their beverages or kill someone. Do you think Aiden would welcome you if he knew you were trying to smear their names? It's too late now to back down. Let's tie up all the loose ends and live happily ever after. Just a couple more days, please?" Eric said lightheartedly.

"Now, I'll let you have the honour of waking up our sleeping beauty." He instructed Marilyn.
Marilyn bit her lower lip, she hesitated. Eric barked at her. "DO IT!"
Marilyn sighed and moved closer to the chair in which Sydney was restrained. She cautiously sprinkled some water on her face from the bottle that was lying nearby. Sydney remained still.

"AGAIN!" Eric yelled even louder.

As Sydney groaned, Marilyn leapt and splashed the rest of the water on her. Marilyn backed away, refusing to look at Sydney. Marilyn jumped, then splashed the rest of the water on Sydney as she finally groaned. She felt a numbing pain in her nape almost immediately. Sydney tried to stroke her neck with her fingers but realised she couldn't since her hands were bound. That startled her, and she quickly opened her eyes and looked about.

Why am I here? What...what's going on?" She cried desperately.  Then she focused her gaze on the man standing next to Eric. It was William and Marilyn. Leah, who was tied to the chair next to Sydney. Made some muffled noise to draw her attention.

"Leah!" Sydney shouted when she turned her head towards the noise.
Mike was saying the truth. Eric was indeed holding Leah hostage. Then her eyes fell upon a slumped body next to Leah. It was Rob and, from the looks of it, he had died hours ago.
She let out a loud gasp and turned back to them. "What do you want with me? I have done nothing wrong to you. Why are you doing this to me?" She asked, her voice rising in panic.

Eric was smiling maliciously at her. He nodded at Marilyn, who seemed to have forgotten her empathy. She strolled over to Sydney, then slapped her across the face with her hand, repeatedly and savagely. The slaps caused Sydney's head to spin from side to side. Her lips were tingling with blood.

"This is for removing Aiden from my life!" Marilyn spoke to her in hushed tones. William smiled at her, while Eric gave her a calculated smile.

"It's my turn to have some fun with her?" Will vigorously stroked his hand.

"What are your plans for her?" Eric inquired, a sinister grin forming at the corner of his mouth.

"I've been dying to try a bite of her round, delicious ass..." William explained.

Eric encouraged, "Go ahead, I'd like to watch."

"NO! Don't come near me!" Sydney yelled with disgust.

William approached her and ran his hands over her breasts, mauling them through her blouse. Then, with a rip, he tore her blouse down in the middle, scattering the buttons. Sydney was screaming at the top of her lungs now, pleading for him to stop. Wendy could only cry in her gag, looking helplessly on, as William crudely assaulted Sydney.

"Enough!" When Fiona's voice roared, William came to a halt, turning back to face the newcomer.

"Why are you here, mom? I asked you to keep an eye on Aiden and the old man." William shouted angrily at his mother.

"Oh shut up! You stupid boy," Fiona shouted back. She didn't have the heart to see her son doing the same thing which his father did.

"Aiden knows about your involvement," Fiona said.

"What did you say? Does Aiden know? What else does he know? Did he follow you?" Eric asked Fiona, a little excitedly.

"I'm not sure!" But he came to me this morning asking for William, claiming that the police were looking for him for the murder of some Emily." Fiona narrated the meeting.

"I knew this moron would make a mistake!" Eric grumbled. "But don't be concerned; we've got this bitch! Aiden would go to any length to obtain her."
He pulled a long whip from his bag, his eyes flashing with anger at Sydney.

"Wha...are you going to do ? No! Please don't !" Sydney shouted once more.

"Hey! It's my turn to have some fun!" Will protested loudly.

"Get away, Will!" warned Eric. Something in his voice told William not to argue with him. Marilyn and Fiona looked horrified now. An evil aura surrounded him.

Eric swung the whip down on Sydney without saying anything, flogging her entire body with all his might. Sydney screamed in pain and begged him to stop. Even William was shocked by his cruelty for a brief period. Leah was whimpering piteously behind her gag, tears streaming down her face. Fiona finally dashed over to Eric and snatched the whip.
Fiona merely desired a happy life for herself and her son. She had no desire to kill anyone in order to attain her purpose. She never wanted her son to become a killer or a criminal. It was due to the pain of seeing her husband's debauched lifestyle which drove her towards drugs. Unfortunately, William had turned out to be exactly like his father.

"Stop it! Aiden would kill you all if she dies!" Fiona said, grabbing Eric's hand.

"Hey! Hey! Knock it off, you two! Mum stop it! Eric, don't you think it's time we gave a call to Mike and check on him, instead of bickering over this little bitch?" William interrupted them. He was trying to divert Eric's attention away from his mother.

Eric glared at William and Fiona, then threw the whip down and reached for his mobile to call Mike. Then suddenly he threw the mobile at Marilyn.

"You call him," he commanded.

Marilyn shook and dialled Mike's number. When she heard Aiden's voice instead of Mike's on the other end, she froze for a moment.

"Aiden. It's not what you think....Eric made me do it..."

Eric immediately grabbed the phone from Marilyn.
He instinctively knew that Mike had been busted. This meant a change of plans.
He could finish this sooner, move back to Spain and start a new life for himself. Eric exchanged some heated conversations with Aiden, gave him the address of the warehouse, then cut the call.
He then turned to his gang. "The plan has moved up. Let us prepare ourselves. We have an honourable guest coming, it's...SHOWTIME!" He announced with a wicked grin.

"You were not trying to help me get Aiden, you have been using me all along!" Marilyn screamed.

Eric raised an eyebrow at her. "What do you mean?"

"Aiden knows I am also involved, he would never accept me now. You have ruined everything." Marilyn shouted hysterically.

"How smart you are, Eric smirked.

" As I mentioned earlier, you have no other choice but to do as I say."

"NO. I am done with you, I am leaving." Marilyn said with finality and started to move towards the door.

Eric took out a gun and a shot rang in the warehouse. William and Fiona looked on in horror as Marilyn's body slumped down on the floor.

"Anyone else having second thoughts?" Eric turned to Will and Fiona, with an evil smile.