All Chapters of The Heir Behind Bars: Chapter 381
- Chapter 390
412 chapters
Chapter Three Hundred and Eighty-One
The morning arrived with an unnatural stillness, as if the city itself had paused to watch the storm Nathan knew was coming. The drizzle from the night before had stopped, but the streets glistened with residual rain, reflecting neon signs that buzzed faintly in the early light. Nathan, Cassandra, and Liam drove through the empty avenues in silence, each absorbed in their own thoughts.Nathan gripped the steering wheel tighter than necessary, his jaw tense. “We have to be precise,” he said finally, voice low but sharp. “One mistake and it all unravels.”Cassandra, sitting beside him, nodded. Her hands were folded in her lap, fingers tapping lightly. “We always are precise,” she replied. “The difference now is stakes. They’re personal.”Liam, in the back seat, leaned forward slightly. “Personal makes it dangerous,” he said. “Because it’s not just business or revenge anymore. Someone knows exactly where to hit.”Nathan didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he let his gaze sweep over the p
Chapter Three Hundred and Eighty-Two
The city had not yet fully awakened when Nathan, Cassandra, and Liam arrived at the edge of the industrial district. The streets were slick from overnight rain, a mirror reflecting the rising sun’s pale orange streaks through the skyscrapers above. Nathan’s black SUV rolled slowly, engine low, as if even the vehicle knew the stakes were higher than usual.“Empty streets make people complacent,” Nathan muttered, more to himself than to the others. “They think nothing can happen to them here.”Cassandra’s eyes scanned the buildings lining the street. “And that’s when it hits hardest,” she said. Her tone was calm, but Nathan caught the tight grip on her steering wheel, knuckles pale.Liam leaned back in the seat, arms crossed. “You really enjoy walking into danger, don’t you?”Nathan glanced at him, lips tight. “It’s not enjoyment. It’s necessity. If we hesitate, we lose control. And control is the only thing anyone like us has.”Cassandra exhaled slowly. “Control is fragile. And someone
Chapter Three Hundred and Eighty-Three
The city had barely begun to stir when Nathan, Cassandra, and Liam reached the edge of the industrial district again, though this time it was under a new tension—a quiet, predatory sort of calm. Streetlights reflected in puddles along the cracked asphalt, and the mist from the earlier drizzle hung in low clouds, curling along fire escapes and metal scaffolding. Nathan’s eyes scanned every shadow, every flicker of movement, like a predator anticipating its prey.“This feels different,” Cassandra murmured, voice low, her fingers tightening around Nathan’s arm. “Like someone’s been waiting… watching.”Nathan didn’t respond immediately. Instead, he let his gaze trace the perimeter of the empty warehouses, the closed gates, the faint outlines of stairwells and doorways that could conceal any number of threats. Finally, he said, “They’re not just watching. They’ve prepared. Every move we’ve made—they’ve anticipated it.”Liam’s arms were crossed, but his jaw was tense. “Prepared? Then we bet
Chapter Three Hundred and Eighty-Four
The warehouse interior was a maze of shadows, stacked crates, and rusted machinery. Nathan’s boots made no sound on the wet concrete floor, his eyes scanning every dark corner. Liam followed, his senses alert, muscles coiled. Cassandra walked slightly behind them, her hands resting near her jacket pocket, where she kept a concealed weapon—just in case.“This place is too quiet,” Liam muttered, his voice barely audible over the hum of the overhead lights. “Even for early morning.”Nathan didn’t answer. He already felt it—the presence of someone waiting, watching them from somewhere deep in the shadows. Not an enemy they had encountered before, not someone from the board or rival families. This was someone calculated. Precise. Dangerous in ways that didn’t announce themselves.Cassandra’s whisper cut through the tension. “Nathan… do you feel that?”He nodded subtly. “Yes. Someone’s baiting us.”They moved deeper into the warehouse, each step deliberate. Crates were stacked impossibly hi
Chapter Three Hundred and Eighty-Five
The warehouse shook with the sound of crashing crates and shouts, the chaos feeding itself like wildfire. Nathan’s boots hit the slick concrete with precision, pivoting as a metal beam clanged down mere inches from his shoulder. Sparks flew, catching the dim red light, and the acrid smell of disturbed dust filled his lungs.“Cover me!” he barked, voice cutting through the storm of sounds.Liam moved instantly, sliding behind a toppled crate, gun drawn. “Where?”Nathan pointed toward the far side where shadows moved unnaturally fast—like predators in a synchronized hunt. “There. The first breach!”Cassandra was already in motion, crouching low, eyes scanning every corner, every reflection of the dim light on metal surfaces. “One wrong move, and it’s over,” she murmured, almost to herself.From the shadows, one figure lunged—a masked assailant, fast and precise. Nathan sidestepped, catching the arm mid-swing and flipping the figure onto the concrete. Liam’s gun cracked, the shot precise
Chapter Three Hundred and Eighty-Six
The warehouse had turned into a warzone. Crates splintered under fists and boots, metal chains swung like pendulums, and sparks from broken machinery painted the room in harsh orange streaks. Nathan’s lungs burned, each inhale tasting of dust and smoke, but his focus didn’t waver. Every movement, every step, was calculated.Liam was next to him, crouched low, firing at attackers emerging from the shadows, but Nathan noticed something off. Every time Liam shot, a masked figure seemed to anticipate his aim, ducking, sidestepping, vanishing into the darkness. Someone inside had trained them, had been feeding the enemy precise intel.Cassandra was in her element, moving fluidly between crates, her eyes sharp, weapon precise. She took down two assailants with a rhythm that made it look almost effortless. But even her gaze flickered to Liam more than once, catching the subtle hesitation in his stance.Nathan signaled with his hand. “Stop. Hold position. Watch them. Watch him.”Liam froze, c
Chapter Three Hundred and Eighty-Seven
The warehouse still trembled from the falling crates, but Nathan didn’t give it a second thought. His focus was entirely on Marcus, who struggled beneath the grip of his restraint, fury and disbelief twisting his features. Sweat dripped from the harsh lights above, glinting like tiny jewels across his skin, but Nathan didn’t relent. He wanted answers. He needed to know the depth of this betrayal.“Why, Marcus?” Nathan demanded, voice low, deadly calm. “After everything… why?”Marcus spat onto the concrete. “Why? You left cracks, Nathan! You always leave cracks. I watched, waited, and someone finally noticed. Marjorie. She saw the opportunity, and I… I took it. I wanted the recognition you never gave me. I wanted—”“—to ruin us?” Cassandra cut in, voice sharp, stepping closer, weapon still raised. Her eyes burned, not with fear, but with controlled rage. “You wanted to destroy what we built, what he built, just because you couldn’t stand being second?”“I wasn’t second,” Marcus snapped
Chapter Three Hundred and Eighty-Eight
The warehouse had become a maze of smoke, sparks, and flying debris. Nathan’s boots skidded on wet concrete as he pivoted, catching Elena’s strike just in time. Metal screamed as her blade scraped against his reinforced cuff. Every movement was a test, every second a potential death sentence.“Step aside!” Liam shouted, firing at a masked attacker advancing from the left. The figure dropped, but the volley of bullets had barely made a dent in the swarm of enemies surrounding them.Cassandra ducked under a swinging chain, rolling to her feet and taking precise aim at a figure who moved unnaturally fast toward Nathan. Her finger squeezed the trigger—bang! The attacker dropped, clutching his shoulder, but more surged forward, relentless.Nathan’s mind raced. The betrayal was deeper than he imagined. Marcus had been the first leak, yes—but Elena? The woman who had always been the calm, stabilizing force? Now she was almost untouchable, striking with perfect knowledge of their tactics. Eve
Chapter Three Hundred and Eighty-Nine
The air in the warehouse was thick with smoke, dust, and the metallic scent of blood. Sparks from the broken wiring and splintered crates cast fleeting shadows across the concrete floor, flickering like firelight over a battlefield. Nathan’s breath came in sharp, controlled bursts as he scanned the room. Every corner, every shadow, was a potential threat. Marcus and Elena had orchestrated a perfect storm, and he knew the fight wasn’t just physical—it was psychological, designed to break them from the inside.“Move!” Nathan barked, pivoting as a masked figure lunged from the shadows. He caught the wrist, twisted, and sent the attacker sprawling into a pile of crates. Sparks erupted as metal collided, and Nathan didn’t pause. He had to keep moving, keep the others alive, and find the weak link before more chaos could consume them.Liam fired at another masked attacker moving too quickly for the eye to follow. “Nathan! There are too many of them!”“We make our own advantage!” Nathan yell
Chapter Three Hundred and Ninety
The warehouse had settled into an uneasy quiet. Smoke curled in thin ribbons from the smoldering crates, and the distant hum of the city outside reminded Nathan that the world still moved, indifferent to the chaos he had just survived. The floor was littered with broken machinery, splintered wood, and the bodies of the masked attackers, some unconscious, some groaning in pain. But the real battle had been fought within—the betrayals, the tests of loyalty, the sharp fractures of trust that cut deeper than any blade.Nathan stood at the center of the devastation, chest heaving, eyes scanning Marcus and Elena. Both were bloodied, exhausted, but unbroken in spirit. Nathan’s fist clenched around his own resolve. This wasn’t just punishment. This was a reckoning.Cassandra moved beside him, weapon lowered but alert, eyes sweeping the warehouse for any lingering threat. “Are they… done?” she asked, voice tight with exhaustion and adrenaline.Nathan’s jaw tightened. “For now. But the storm is