Jason: You ...? You BASTARD!

Alfred: Hello again!

As you may have guessed, Laura's companion is none other than Jason's father, Alfred Smith, or as he's been called in recent years, Alfred Smithers.

Laura, obviously unaware of the kinship of the two men, looks at them in wonder, first one and then the other, as they look at each other with hatred in their eyes ... In their identical eyes.

Laura: What the hell is going on here, Alfred?

Alfred: It's none of your business, young lady.

Laura: It's none of my business? What're you talking about? Of course, it is. This operation is mine.

Alfred: The operation would have gone to shit if I hadn't warned you about him and convinced you to kidnap him instead of seducing him into helping you steal your stupid painting.

Laura: That stupid painting is a Raphael, you uncouth peasant, and it costs six fucking million dollars.

Alfred: Maybe, but this one is worth a lot more to Harronate's daughter, and her daddy will pay for him.

Laura: But they did break up.

Alfred: Wake the fuck up! Their separation is fake. The fight was a trap. They threw out the bait and you took it like a stupid fish.

Laura: No! That can't be ...

Alfred: Ask him.

Laura turns and looks at Jason, who hasn't taken his eyes off his father. After their confrontation in the garden of Alfred's house, Jason thought he'd never see him again. Laura's voice, full of doubt, but also ... what the hell? Sadness; brings him back from his thoughts.

Laura: Look at me, Jason.

He turns his head.

Laura: Is that true? Did you know who I was from the beginning? Is that why you came up to me?

Jason takes a deep breath and exhales loudly.

Jason: At this point, it doesn't matter. Yes. He's right. I ...

Laura: Why you and not Johnny?

Jason: After all the times he's sent you to hell, you think he'd change his mind that quickly?

Laura: You're right, I guess.

Jason: Listen to me, Laura. Neither you nor your ... partner have the slightest idea what you've gotten yourselves into, but you can still get away with it.

Laura: How?

Jason: Let me go. I promise you no one will come after you. I'll take care of it. I'm going to blame everything on him.

Laura looks at Alfred as if her defenses are breaking down, which of course angers Alfred.

Alfred: Don't listen to him! All he does is lie. That's the only thing he knows how to do. You promised to help me destroy him.

Laura: Yes, but you never told me what he did to you and you hate him so much.

Alfred: He's ... I'm ...

Alfred has a hard time revealing his true relationship with Jason to Laura, so Jason himself decides to make it easier for him.

Jason: He's my father, Laura.

Alfred: Shut up!

Jason: He tried to kill me when I was seven years old, but he didn't succeed and that's why he hates me.

Laura: What?

Alfred: Lies!

Jason: He stuck a knife in my leg and left me to die. That's your partner. A bastard who didn't hesitate to stab a seven-year-old kid ... His own son. His own blood.

The horror and disgust are evident on Laura's face as she looks at Alfred.

Laura: How could you do such a thing?

Alfred: I was drunk. He was screaming ...

Laura raises her hand and turns her head in disgust.

Laura: You know what? Just shut up. I don't want to hear anything else from your filthy mouth.

She throws her bag on the floor and walks towards the cage door.

Alfred: What're you going to do now?

Laura: What exactly don't you understand, Alfred? I'm going to let him go. It was my fault for agreeing to this. I'm just a thief, not a ... Whatever! The operation is over.

Jason breathes a sigh of relief as Laura enters the code, opens the door and steps into the cage. She pulls a small handcuff key from her pocket, but Jason doesn't need it.

Jason: Don't bother.

He frees his hands. She stares at him, but quickly changes her gaze and bursts out laughing as he looks at her completely innocently and shrugs.

Laura: You son of a bitch! You're a Houdini after all.

Jason: Next time, use zip ties.

Laura: I'll keep that in mind, Harry.

They both laugh this time.

Jason: Thank you, Laura, and I'm sorry about ...

She puts her fingers to his lips, silencing him.

Laura: You're good, damn it. Anyway. I expect you to keep your promise.

Jason: I will.

She stands on her tiptoes and kisses him on the cheek.

Laura: Come on! Get out of here and ... Tell Johnny I'm not as bad as he thinks I am and that I'm sorry for everything.

With a nod of his head, Jason walks out of the cage, but then...

Alfred: Where do you think you're going?

Alfred, who's been looking for a way to prevent this exit the entire time Jason has been talking to Laura, stands in the doorway, holding the revolver he found in Laura's bag, pointing it at Jason.

Laura: Put the gun down, Alfred. It's over.

Alfred: I say when and how it ends, bitch. Me. Not you.

Jason pushes Laura behind him as subtly as he can, so as not to irritate Alfred even more, and raises his hands.

Jason: Hey! Hey! Listen to me! Put the gun down. Nobody needs to get hurt. Just tell me what you want and I'll give it to you.

Alfred: It's too late now!

Jason: Life has taught me it's never too late. Tell me what you want. Money? I can give you what you want. Just give me a phone. My family will give you anything you want.

Alfred: Your family, huh? That's what I want, too. My family back. The family you took from me.

Jason: Me? What're you talking about?

Alfred: Don't pretend you don't know. After your visit, my son investigated and found out the truth. He told his mother and she took him away and they left. They just left me alone and broken. They took everything from me and it's your fault. YOU! Then why didn't you die? WHY?

Jason: I'm sorry.

Alfred: Don't be. You said it's never too late. You can die now.

Laura: NO!

But Laura's scream wasn't enough to stop Alfred from pulling the trigger ...

~ AT THE SAME MOMENT ~ IN THE PRINCE'S PALACE ~

The whole family is there, except for the girls Artemis, Cecilia and Lucida and the boys Stefan and Johnny. At Matt's insistence, Sebastian has decided to keep them in the dark until they can see exactly what they're up against.

As you can imagine, everyone is pretty upset, especially Jace, who's been calling Jason's cell phone incessantly but getting no answer.

Jace: Goddamn it! Where are you, Jason? Pray, for Father's sake. Help me find you, son.

Mary: He doesn't know, Jace. We never told him exactly how it all works.

Lois: We shouldn't have left him alone.

Sebastian: He wasn't alone. Tiny and Dog were with him. My mistake was thinking those two would be enough.

Alexander: I wonder how she managed to escape from them.

Sebastian: I don't know. I'm waiting for them to come and give me an explanation.

Jace: No! I can't sit back and wait any longer without doing anything.

Jace stands up and is about to spread his wings, but Matt walks in front of him and puts his hands on his shoulders.

Matt: Jace, wait!

Jace: I can't, Matt. It's Jason. Our own son. Ceci's mate. If something happens to him ... How will I be able to look into my daughter's eyes then?

Matt: John-John is fine. Isn't that right, Elena?

Everyone's eyes are on the little girl sitting next to her brother, holding his hands. She's trying to track Jason down, using the power of the elements through Damon.

Elena: All I can say for sure is that he's alive. Nothing more. Something is blocking me. Something evil. I'm sorry, uncle Jace.

Damon: It's ok, sis. You've already done too much.

Matt beckons Jace to say something to the little girl, but Jace doesn't get a chance. The sound of his personal cell phone silences everyone.

Sebastian: Who's it?

Jace looks at the screen.

Jace: I don't know. Unknown number.

Nicolae: What're you waiting for, Dad? Pick up. Maybe it's Jason.

Matt: Put it on speaker.

The male voice that comes out of the device as Jace presses the button and puts the phone on the table surprises them quite a bit. They were expecting Laura or Jason, not an unfamiliar man.

Alfred: Do you hear me, Harronate? If you want to see your son-in-law again ...

Jace: He's not just my son-in-law, you piece of shit. He's my son and you're a dead man.

Alfred: Put the threats aside because besides your son, I've a gun and there's nothing wrong with me using it again.

Jace: Again? What do you mean again? Where's my son, you son of a bitch?

Alfred: Calm down. He's here and he's fine. Somehow ...

Jace: You ... I'm going to kill you!

Alfred: If you threaten me again, I'll hang up and you'll never see your son again.

Mary puts her hand on Jace's and tells him to calm down. He takes a few deep breaths and ...

Jace: What do you want?

Alfred: Here we go! I want ten million in cash, in small bills.

Jace: Put Jason on the phone. I want to talk to him.

Alfred: No! That's not possible.

Jace: If you want the money, do as I say.

Alfred: You're playing with fire, Harronate.

Jace: You've no idea, you son of a bitch.

A few seconds later ...

Jason: Dad ...?

Jace: Here I am, son. Are you alright?

Jason: Yeah. Yes. I'm ... fine. He didn't ... He didn't ... hurt me.

A wave of joy spreads through the room, but not for long. No matter how hard Jason tries, pain breaks his voice. Mary leans over the phone ...

Mary: Jason ...?

Jason: Mama ...

Mary: Listen to me, baby. We can find you, but you've to pray to us.

But before Mary can explain to Jason exactly what he needs to do, the kidnapper is back on the line.

Alfred: That's enough. The rest when I get the cash.

Jace: Tell me where and when.

Alfred: I'll call you back later.

Jace: No, wait!

But he doesn't wait and ends the conversation. To vent his anger, Jace grabs the phone and breaks it in two with a simple hand gesture.

Mary walks up beside him and picks up the broken pieces.

Mary: Do you think he understood what he'd to do?

Jace: Let's hope so.

Sebastian: Just in case, we've to have the money ready. It's nighttime. The bank ...

Alexander: No problem. I'll call the manager and he'll get us access to the vault.

Lois: What should we do with Ceci and the others?

Mary: We keep them in the dark. If Stefan finds out his best friend has been kidnapped, he's capable of burning down the entire town until he finds him.

Matt: Not to mention what Lucy, who was against the plan from the beginning, will do. If she finds out now how the universe got screwed, there's nothing that can save us.

All the while, right after the phone call, Eva is lost in deep thought. The first one to notice was, of course, Matty, who doesn't let her out of his sight.

Matty: Hey, Barbie! Where are your thoughts going?

The girl raises her head, looks at her boyfriend and takes his hand.

Eva: That voice on the phone. I've heard it somewhere before.

Sebastian: What're you talking about, Eva?

Eva: I'm sure I know who's holding John-John, but I can't ... OH, SHIT!

Jace: What, baby?

Eva: I remembered.

Mary: Then what're you waiting for, baby? Tell us.

Eva: His father.

Now let's see what exactly happened to Jason after the shooting, which fortunately wasn't fatal, and we come to the phone call with Jace ...

Laura: NO!

Luckily for Jason, Alfred's aim is bad and the bullet hits his right leg AGAIN, the same place he stabbed him before. How ironic is that now?

I don't know which of the two hurt Jason more. The bullet that pierced his flesh, or the memories that resurfaced after all these years. Not even Jason himself could give us that answer.

Slumped on the floor, Jason struggles for breath, trying to stop the blood that pours like a fountain from the hole in his thigh. Alfred stands to the side, watching the scene before him like a spectator ... as if he wasn't responsible for the whole mess, when Laura rushes over and kneels down next to Jason.

Laura: What the hell did you do? What did you do?

Alfred: I missed. I need target practice.

Laura: What kind of person are you? How could I've been so wrong about you? Anyway. What's done is done. Now help me sit him down so I can do something to stop the bleeding a little before he loses all his blood.

Alfred: And why would I do that? I shot him. I'm not going to help him now.

Laura: Do you have any idea what his family will do to us if something happens to him? They'll hunt us to the ends of the earth. Come on! Move, damn it!

Jason: Fuck him, Laura. I ... I don't want anything from him.

Laura: I'm sorry, Harry. I'm really sorry.

Jason: I know.

Laura: God damn it! Don't be so nice to me. You're making it a lot worse. Whatever. Come on. Lean on me.

With Laura's help, Jason sits down on a chair and she looks around for a first aid kit. When she finds it, she sits down next to him and begins to carefully cut open his pants.

Laura: That's funny, you know.

Jason: Which one?

Laura: I finally managed to get your pants off like I imagined.

Jason: Is that how you imagined it?

Laura: Not that bloody, but I'll take what I can get. In one piece, you'd never give me what I want.

Jason: You're probably right about that.

Laura: You love her that much, huh?

Jason: She's the one I love the most.

Laura: Lucky girl. What about Johnny?

Jason: What about him?

Laura: He's good with his girl, isn't he?

Jason: More than good.

Laura: I'm glad to hear that.

Jason: Would you do me a favor?

Laura: What?

Jason: When this is all over, try to turn your life around.

Laura: That's not so easy.

Jason: It is if you really want it to be.

Laura: Do you really think I can be good?

Jason: You're good. If you weren't ... OUCH!

Laura: Come on, Harry. Don't be a baby.

Jason: You just took a bullet out of my leg. I think I'm entitled to an "ouch".

Laura: Touché.

At this moment, Alfred snaps his fingers to distract them.

Alfred: Hey, happy couple! Don't you think it's time for the ransom call?

Laura: Not yet, you idiot. I need to stitch up his wound without anesthetic, and I don't think you want Harronate to hear his son screaming, do you?

Jason: Nope. No. You don't have to do that. You just have to cover the hole.

Laura: Are you sure?

Jason: Yes.

Alfred and Laura look at Jason in wonder and surprise, each for a different reason.

Jason: What're you looking at? You want me to admit it? OK then. I'm a coward who can't stand pain and I'm scared to death of needles. Are you happy now?

Alfred bursts out laughing, but not Laura. Pretending to wrap the gauze around Jason's thigh, she leans against his ear and whispers ...

Laura: I didn't believe that nonsense for a second. You're the bravest man I've ever met. There's something else going on. You're waiting for something and that something is huge.

Jason: You can't even imagine.

Meanwhile, Alfred, still laughing, takes out his cell phone.

Alfred: Come on, pussy. Give me your daddy's number.

This time it's Jason who laughs.

Jason: You planned an entire kidnapping without knowing the phone number for the ransom call? Good job, sucker.

Alfred: Don't play with me, kid, because next time I won't miss.

After the phone call, Alfred sits down on the floor and leans his head against the wall. Laura gets a bottle of water out of her bag and after drinking some, she gives it to Jason, who drinks with relish.

Jason: Thanks.

She leans down and pretends to wipe his lips.

Laura: I'm going to distract him. You do what you're told. Pray.

Jason: I don't know how. I've never done it before.

Laura: Try. I don't know what's going on with you or what exactly you are but you have to try.

Jason nods and she gets up and walks over to Alfred. As she sits down on the floor next to him and starts talking to him to keep him occupied, Jason takes a deep breath, lowers his head, and closes his eyes ...

~ AT THE SAME MOMENT ~ BACK TO THE PALACE ~

Eva has told everyone what happened that time at the steakout with Jason's father and now they're all thinking about how best to proceed. They're all talking together until suddenly the angels' eyes start to light up ...

Alexander: What? What's going on?

Matt: He did it.

Mary: Jason is praying.

Matty: So what? Are you listening to him?

Nicolae: Yes.

Eva: Oh, John-John!

The angels stand still for a while, not even blinking, until ...

Jace: I found him. I know where he is.

Eva: Then what're we waiting for? Let's go get him back.

Sebastian: Wait a minute! Nobody move!

Matt: Why, Wolf?

Sebastian: Do you've to ask that, Matt? You're not the only one who heard Jason's prayer. If you did ...

Lois: Then Stef did. Lucy did ...

Mary: And Ceci. Damn it. They're probably just freaking out.

Jace: Let's call them ...

But before Jace can pull out his spare phone - he has several spares. Mary took care of it because she knows how irascible her husband is. - the door opens and Stefan, Lucida and Cecilia rush in, wings outstretched.

Stefan: What the fuck is wrong with Jason?

Lucida: We heard him praying.

Matt: And you flew all the way here. Yeah, of course.

Stefan: What else could we've done? We couldn't figure out where he was, so we left Johnny behind to watch Artemis and flew here.

Lucida: We thought you knew.

Jace: You guys guessed right. We do know, though.

Cecilia: THEN WHAT THE HELL ARE WE WAITING FOR? LET'S GO SAVE JASON BECAUSE AFTER THAT, ALL OF YOU HAVE GOT SOME EXPLAINING TO DO!