All Chapters of The Strong-Willed Sean O'Connor: Chapter 321
- Chapter 330
403 chapters
CHAPTER 321
The Handler, a man named Jerome, was celebrating.He was a mid-level fixer, typically coordinating smuggling runs and moving high-value assets.Receiving the commission to set a ten-million-dollar bounty from the Boss was the biggest break of his career.He sat in a slightly bright, private back room of a high-end bar, nursing a thirty-year-old scotch.His phone, a custom-encrypted device, rested on the polished wood table. It was his direct link to the largest bounty board on the dark web.Ten million.Enough to buy a nice retirement home in the Caribbean. The target was just one man, and the job was simple.He picked up his phone, grinning, and refreshed the bounty listing for confirmation, already planning how to spend his cut.The screen refreshed.Jerome’s grin froze. His eyes widened, his heart slamming against his ribs like a trapped bird.The amber liquid in his glass trembled, then spilled onto the table as his hand shook uncontrollably.The initial ten-million-dollar bounty
CHAPTER 322
Dr. Havel cut him off, his voice low and urgent. He knew what Sean was going to ask for, and he didn’t want him to worry or act with unnecessary urgency."She's up, Sean. She's been awake for almost an hour. Stable. But you need to hurry."A wave of pure, potent relief washed over Sean, so powerful it almost buckled his knees.He ignored the aching exhaustion and the lingering adrenaline.'She’s awake.''She’s awake.'The edge of his lips curled into a side smile.He started toward the door, but Dr. Havel placed a restraining hand on his arm."Wait. Sean, you've been... outside," Havel said delicately, his eyes flicking over the dark trench coat. Even beneath the coat, he could detect the faint, coppery scent of the city and the residue of conflict that clung to him."You need to shower first. She asked for you, but she’s going to scold you and worry if you look like you've been running through a war zone."Sean paused, instantly acknowledging the necessity. He couldn’t smell blood o
CHAPTER 323
Cold dread, sharper than any blade, sliced through Sean’s relief.He had calculated every variable. He had hunted the kidnappers, neutralized them, and broken the thugs who dared to follow him. In his mind, the perimeter was a fortress of his own making.Yet while he was out dealing with those he could see, someone had slipped past him and come to see his sister, without his knowledge."Who?" Sean asked.The word was clipped, vibrating with an edge he couldn’t quite suppress.Fury burned beneath it.He hadn’t been able to stop them from taking her the first time, and now he was going to have to deal with another breach and find another building they could use, immediately.His sister’s hand trembled slightly in his."I don't know. Dr. Havel was outside, but he didn't stop them. He didn't even mention it to you?"A dark fury began to simmer in Sean’s chest.Havel had stood in the hallway, talked about showers and decontamination, and said nothing."Did they say who they were?" Sean lea
CHAPTER 324
“Someone came here, and you told me nothing,” Sean said, eyes glued to Dr. Havel as he leaned against the doorframe of the man’s office. “Mind telling me why?”Dr. Havel didn’t flinch at the accusation. Instead, he slowly swiveled his chair to face Sean’s icy gaze, his expression weary but calm.“I didn’t tell you because they usually come,” Havel replied, his voice steady. “Every week, like clockwork, someone from that group slips in. They check the vitals, verify the security, and leave without a word. I assumed it was your protocol.”Sean gave a sharp, curt nod, the tension in his jaw loosening slightly. “I thought so. I just wasn’t expecting them to let themselves be seen.”Straightening, Sean stepped away from the doorframe, his presence still heavy in the small room.“I’ve finished speaking with her for now. She needs to rest.”Havel watched him closely, tapping a pen against the edge of his desk.“And? Is she truly fine? Liana tends to hide her pain from the nurses, but she te
CHAPTER 325
The crowd stopped instantly.Dozens of eyes fixed on the tall, dark-clad man who appeared to be wrestling a wallet away from a helpless, blind victim.They looked at Sean as if he were a criminal, someone daring to steal from a blind man, someone who might hurt him next.Noticing the hostile stares, Sean’s brows twitched, his eyes darkening softly. Though he was irritated by the man’s behavior, he still wanted to give him a chance to explain himself.“He’s taking it! Please!” the man screamed again, his blind eyes wide with a terrifying, calculated light.The old man didn’t stop. He threw his head back, wailing to the sky while his fingers remained locked around the leather.“Help! My life savings! He snatched it right out of my hand!” the man cried, his voice cracking with practiced desperation.Sean stood perfectly still.The noise of the city seemed to fade, replaced by the sharpening focus of a man who realized he was standing in a trap. He looked down at the stranger, his eyes co
CHAPTER 326
The silence in the plaza didn’t last. It fractured into a low, buzzing friction as the truth settled into the minds of the onlookers.Murmurs filled the space again.“He… he ducked,” the woman who had thrown the bottle whispered, her voice stripped of its earlier fury. “He looked right at his hand.”“He’s not blind at all,” the man with the phone muttered, slowly lowering his device.The collective embarrassment was palpable.A cold wave of shame washed over the people who had been calling for Sean’s head just moments earlier.“We were fooled,” someone said, sounding more insulted than apologetic. “The old man played us like a violin.”Sean’s brows drew together in a deep, heavy frown. He felt no vindication, no satisfaction… only irritation.These people had been ready to tear him apart over a lie. Their sense of justice was as flimsy as the old man’s dark glasses.He glanced at the youth still sitting on the pavement, clutching his bruised ribs. The boy refused to meet his gaze.“So
CHAPTER 327
Sean looked at the man. He was certain Dr. Havel had informed him that someone would be coming to inspect the buildings to evaluate whether they were suitable and finalize the purchase.Yet judging by the way the broker spoke and carried himself, it was obvious he hadn’t been paying attention to calls he should have answered.“No, but—” Sean began, his voice low.“Then we have nothing to discuss,” the broker snapped, cutting him off. “I don’t care how you heard about the Sterling property. We don’t deal with walk-ins, and we certainly don’t deal with people who look like they just walked off a construction site.”He looked Sean up and down, his gaze lingering on the damp coat and the clean hospital scrubs visible beneath it.To the broker, Sean looked like a common thief or worse, a corporate spy trying to hijack a deal already in motion.“You’re probably one of those opportunists who swoop in to steal deals from legitimate buyers,” the man continued, a sneer curling his lip. “That pr
CHAPTER 328
Alister froze. His hand fell away from the elevator button, and the blood drained from his face so fast it looked like he might faint.Sean’s grin widened.He remembered it clearly now.That night when he’d been climbing the hotel in pursuit of the organ harvesters and the men who had helped kidnap Liana. As he scaled the building, he’d glanced through several windows, catching fragments of other lives unfolding behind glass.On the fourteenth floor, through the window of a luxury suite, he’d seen this man.Alister Grayes lounging comfortably while another woman sat on his lap, laughing as he ignored his wife’s incoming calls.‘He was mocking her,’ Sean recalled. ‘Laughing about her being stuck at home while he spent her family’s money.’“You were quite loud that night,” Sean said, his voice sinking into something dangerous. “You really should close the curtains when you’re being unfaithful, Alister. Especially when you’re insulting the woman whose name is actually on the bank accoun
CHAPTER 329
The silence in the lobby was crushing, broken only by Alister’s ragged breathing. His face shifted from ghostly pale to a sickly, mottled red.“Genevieve! Honey, wait!” Alister stammered, his polished shoes skidding across the marble as he rushed toward her. His trembling hands reached out. “It’s a misunderstanding! A complete misunderstanding! I didn’t mean any of it—I was just… I was playing along with him!”He jabbed a shaking finger at Sean, desperate to redirect blame.“This man… he’s a criminal! He was trying to shake me down for the Sterling property. I was lying to fool him, to lower his guard! You know I love you. You know I’d never think those things about you.”Genevieve didn’t move.She stood like a pillar of salt, her gaze locked on him with terrifying intensity. Her jaw was clenched so tightly the muscles in her neck stood out.Alister mistook her silence for hesitation. His instincts kicked in… manipulate, charm, control.He grabbed her waist, fingers digging in as he
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Sean didn’t even look down at him. To Sean, Alister’s threats were nothing more than the buzzing of a fly that had already been swatted.‘He still thinks he has the power to threaten people,’ Sean thought, his eyes remaining fixed on Genevieve. ‘He doesn’t realize he’s already a ghost in this building.’Genevieve looked from her sobbing, pathetic husband to the stone-faced man standing before her.She straightened her jacket, her professional mask sliding back into place, though her eyes remained hard as diamonds.“You said you were here on business,” she said, ignoring Alister’s screams. “Which property?”Sean shifted his weight, his gaze flicking briefly to the guards holding the broken man on the floor.“Aren’t you going to take care of your personal family matters first?” Sean asked, his voice devoid of emotion. “I can wait. I’ve already waited longer than I intended.”Genevieve let out a short, sharp breath that was almost a laugh, though there was no humor in it.She adjusted he