Never Judge

"Ian!" Nicole was teary eyed as she spotted her husband walking up the docks of Kashmere island.

It had been weeks since they had last seen each other, he had left not long after she had given birth to their youngest son.

She handed the baby in her arms to Camilla, who nodded and encouraged her to run up and greet Ian.

Ian caught his wife as she jumped into his arms and kissed her passionately.

During their time apart they weren't even allowed to contact one another. No calls, no letters, total silence between a couple that loved one another.

"Cedric didn't even tell me we were meeting you today!" Nichole told Ian as their lips parted. "When the businesses started to crash and investors started to drop the stocks they owned I was so worried."

"You should have more faith in us, Nichole!" Cedric called from a far as he walked towards his friend.

Behind Cedric, Miguel Chan, Ian's brother-in-law came running as he was supposed to be at the docks when everyone arrived to make sure no one was injured.

"Let me see if he is alright, Nichole." Miguel said as he gently nudged his sister away from Ian.

"I'm fine Miguel." Ian said as he rolled his eyes.

Miguel refused to take no as an answer, he quickly checked Ian for any physical injuries and was happy to find none.

"You are so dead." Miguel told Ian in an amused tone right before giving the green signal that Ian was alright.

"You know?" Ian asked, shocked that Miguel had found out about his marriage to Nicole.

"Yup, and you are dead when she finds out, brother." Miguel warned with a cheeky smile as he let Ian go and moved on to the rest of the staff that escaped with Ian on the last boat out of the island.

"I'm sending someone back to make sure everyone is accounted for." Cedric told Ian as they walked up the docks towards several cars that were waiting for them.

"Thank you." Ian said as he helped Nicole into the other car.

Ian knew that he and Cedric still had some work to be done and that he needed to complete the mission. They couldn't leave things half baked.

"Ian, go with Nicole." Cedric said as soon he realized that the mission had taken quite a toll on Ian. "I'll handle things from here."

"Are you sure?" Ian was surprised to hear that Cedric was willing to let him go despite how important he was to the mission.

"You deserve it." Cedric said with a smile as he climbed into his car and told the driver to go ahead and take him to the makeshift office that Ray had provided for him.

Inside, Dave and Mae were already hard at work making sure that the right story was sold to the media.

"Was Alexi able to get the right team on Ian's private island?" Cedric asked as he sat down and looked at the different monitors set up in the room.

They had turned it into a command center that simultaneously monitored everything that was slowly falling into place.

"Yes, he was also able to change the name of the owner of the island as well. Mien worked with him on it." Mae informed Cedric as he looked at a screen that showed the body cam of a member of the team he had sent.

"How long till they arrive on the island?" Ian asked as he pointed at the screen.

"Ten minutes." Dave said as he checked their location. "Alexi's team arrived five minutes ago and are investigating the fire as well as trying to figure out who the individuals on the island were."

"Turn up the volume." Cedric said as he pointed at the news channel that was on another screen.

It showed images of Ian's private island as well as the fire that had erupted.

"- we have not been informed if there were any casualties. From the information that we had gathered, the island was owned by a man named William Trent, older brother to renowned businessman Edward Trent." The news reporter said as images of the Trent family were shown on TV.

"Snap up their assets." Cedric ordered Dave who simply nodded and did as he asked.

"We have tried to get a comment from the Trent family, but they have not answered any of our calls." The news reporter said.

"Do we know if anyone was on the island when the fire erupted?" The news anchor asked as he probed deeper into the disaster.

"We checked with local police as well as with the airport at the capital and it seemed like Mr. Trent was hosting quite a party. It included several socialites as well as a few well known businessmen. Right now we don't know what really happened since the police and military have refused us entry on the island." The news reporter informed the anchor.

"I believe we already have a copy of that list that you are now seeing on your screens. It isn't just businessmen, but several key government officials as well, including the vice president." The anchor reported.

"Has my uncle Jose been informed?" Cedric asked Mae, who nodded in response.

"He knew from the start who among his government officials were involved with the Rajas, he was prepared for the news." Mae informed Cedric.

"They are docking." Dave said as he pointed at the screen that showed a live image of the charred remains of Ian's private island.

"What a waste." Cedric commented as he looked at the screen. "I really liked the home Ian had built on that island. Oh well, he can always buy another one."

"Sir, sir." A man said in a frantic tone as he ran towards Cedric's man. "We're missing two."

Cedric turned pale at the news, two? Who could have escaped in time?

Ian's men had drugged and poisoned all the guests. They were all dead by the time the house burned.

How could someone escape that island without them knowing?

"Investigate it!" Cedric shouted. "I want to know who and how. Then we will need all of the ports monitored. I hope they haven't reached shore yet."