CHAPTER 165The Konastino family estate had always been a place of noise.Laughter in the hallways. Arguments that ended in wine. Conversations layered over one another like music that never quite stopped.That afternoon, however, the house felt different.Quiet.Too quiet.Andrea sat at the long mahogany table in the family sitting room, elbows resting on the polished surface, his fingers steepled beneath his chin. His jacket lay forgotten on the chair beside him. The weight on his shoulders was visible—etched into the tightness of his jaw, the dark shadows beneath his eyes.Maria noticed first.She always did.She stood near the window, arms folded, watching her younger brother like one studies an approaching storm.“This isn’t just business stress,” she said calmly. “You haven’t touched your coffee.”Andrea didn’t look up. “I called this meeting for a reason.”The door opened, and Chloe entered, heels clicking sharply against the marble floor, followed by Anastasia, who closed the

Sofia didn’t remember how she left the café.Only that her hands were shaking.The city blurred past her windshield as she drove, traffic lights flashing red and green without meaning. Chloe’s voice replayed in her head over and over, each word cutting deeper than the last.You wanted a throne.You caused this.Call him off.“No,” Sofia muttered, gripping the steering wheel tighter. “That’s not true. It wasn’t entirely my fault.”Her chest felt tight, like the air had thickened around her.Andrea wasn’t innocent. He never had been. He had chosen work over her, power over presence, silence over understanding. He had made her feel small long before she ever started wanting more.“I changed,” she whispered angrily to the empty car. “I paid for my mistakes.”She had rebuilt herself. Therapy. Distance. A new life. A new name in some circles. She wasn’t the same woman who had once been desperate for validation and control.So why did Chloe’s words still hurt?By the time Sofia reached her t

CHAPTER 169 Anastasia sat behind her massive mahogany desk, the dim light of the late afternoon bouncing off the glass awards lining the walls. She tapped her fingers against the polished surface, irritation flickering in her dark eyes. The world outside moved on in ignorance, but inside her mind, one thought dominated everything: Nikolai Volkov had escaped.The phone call she made earlier still burned in her memory.“How could you let this happen?” Anastasia’s voice was ice, cutting through the conference line connecting her, the head prosecutor, and the prison warden. “A prisoner of his magnitude… he cannot simply vanish!”The head prosecutor stammered. “Miss Anastasia, we… we are investigating—”“Investigating?” Anastasia snapped. “Do you know who you’re dealing with? Nikolai Volkov is no ordinary criminal. He has influence, connections, and a mind that could dismantle lives faster than your entire department can process evidence. I don’t care what excuses you have. I want him fou

CHAPTER 171 The city had barely caught its breath from the chaos Nikolai had unleashed in his disappearance, yet he was already ready for the next move.Nikolai sat in a dimly lit room, the only light coming from a single desk lamp. The shadows stretched across his face, accentuating the sharp angles of his jaw and the cold fire in his eyes. He tapped a finger against the table, watching a series of monitors display social media feeds, news alerts, and private messages—all buzzing with updates on the hunt for him.A small phone rang quietly on the side, and he answered without looking.“Yes?”A familiar voice whispered back, “Everything is in place. The media contacts are ready. The photos are… convincing.”Nikolai’s lips curved into a faint, dangerous smile. “Good. Make sure the story hits first thing tomorrow morning. The fake wife, the images—they must be perfect. Subtle details, nothing sloppy.”“Understood,” the operative replied. “She’s already in position. All they need to do

The Romano machine moved silently—but when it moved, the world shook.Within hours of Anastasia’s command, doors that had been locked for years began to open.A judge who owed Andrea a favor quietly pulled sealed financial records.A senator who once drank Maria’s wine returned her call after five missed attempts.An intelligence contractor Chloe once saved from ruin reopened his old files.By midnight, the narrative began to shift.Not in headlines yet—but underground.Where power truly lived.Anastasia stood before a wall of screens, arms crossed, her posture calm and lethal.“Run his digital footprint again,” she ordered.Her tech lead shook his head. “We already did. It’s like chasing smoke. Nikolai erased himself.”Anastasia tilted her head slightly. “No one erases themselves completely.”She pointed to the screen. “Zoom in on the media leak.”The fake documents Nikolai planted were professional—too professional.“These files were edited on an older encryption framework,” Anastas