All Chapters of The Saintess Chose The Wrong Man: Chapter 171
- Chapter 180
234 chapters
Chapter 171
So he did the most efficient thing available to him.He walked straight to the front of the line.Then—He let tears fall.Actual tears.Because really, after people had just spent two full hours being told positive thinking could rewrite destiny, what was more emotionally irresistible than visible heartbreak?“I just lost my mother.”His voice cracked perfectly.“And my father.”He shook his head, swallowing hard.“I can’t...”A pause.Then quieter—“I’ll just leave.”He turned.Started walking away.“No, come here! Hey!”One of the women rushed toward him.Lombard paused.“Do you want to see Miss Sylvie?” she asked gently.Lombard nearly blinked.Miss?This woman wasn’t even married?Her networking speed had to be extraordinary.“I thought I’d be able to see her, but there are already ten people waiting. I can’t just cut in,” Lombard said.“I’m first in line,” the woman said immediately, her eyes soft with sympathy. “I’ll give you my spot.”Lombard looked appropriately devastated.“
Chapter 172
She was probably deciding whether he was mentally unstable, emotionally vulnerable, or—more importantly—how much money could realistically be extracted from him.Heartbroken clients, after all, tended to be excellent business.“You’re single,” she explained patiently. “Since you were never married to her, you can’t be divorced. And because you are not currently married, that makes you single.”The tone suggested she had dealt with far stranger people.Likely richer ones too.“Oh.”Lombard nodded slowly.“Okay.”As though she had just handed him life-changing wisdom.Miss Sylvie visibly relaxed.The wobble in her hand disappeared.She seemed to believe they had successfully moved past his earlier creepiness.“Go ahead,” Miss Sylvie said, easing back into herself, that polished smile returning. “You’re supposed to tell me anything that’s bothering you.”Lombard nodded solemnly.“I’m a very insecure man.”“That’s not a problem at all,” she said immediately. “I’ve had many male clients te
Chapter 173
The Belmont family had finally managed to get Cassian stabilized enough to dull the worst of his pain.Once he could speak properly, he told them everything.How the Cataract team had taken him.How they had assumed he was holding Lombard hostage.How close he had come to not making it back at all.That alone had shifted the room.Then Mireya added her own part.She told them about seeing Lombard with two women.Alice.Abigail.And, naturally, she pushed the theory that Abigail had to be the source of whatever strange new advantage Lombard seemed to have suddenly acquired.Because how else could a mere man start moving this boldly?How else could he suddenly make decisions like this and survive them?That theory bought her enough attention to keep the room thinking.Reflecting.Strategizing.“If we’ve already established that Abigail is the one supplying him with all these powers,” one of them finally said, “then one thing becomes certain.”The room turned toward him.And honestly?Th
Chapter 174
“I think we need Rowan’s help,” another suggested.“No.”Mireya's mother shut that down immediately.“Rowan is busy. He called me some hours ago. He has a major board meeting with members of his company.”The speed of that response was almost amusing.There was absolutely no chance she was about to drag her precious golden son-in-law into this mess.Let these people destroy themselves without him.The planning dragged on.Suggestion after suggestion.Argument after argument.Until they finally settled on something.Someone ordinary would approach Lombard.Somewhere less crowded.Less public.Then they would use one of their abilities to interfere with his brain just enough to make him lose consciousness.Once they had him alive, they believed they could force the truth out of him.Because surely—surely—he knew where Ron was.Eventually, the family filed out of Cassian’s room.Cassian remained in bed, still recovering.Still aching.And honestly?He had no idea what amount of therapy
Chapter 175
Drake felt like an asshole.But feelings were luxuries.And right now, he could not afford luxury.He had a mission.And missions did not care about guilt.They cared about outcomes.One outcome.Dragging Lombard back into becoming the man he was supposed to be.That version of him.The vibrant one.The sharp one.The irritating bastard who was painfully alive and impossible to ignore.Not this emotionally embalmed version walking around pretending existing counted as living.And if what Drake was about to do made Lombard hate him forever?Fine.He would live with that.Because really—he had to do this.The moment he saw someone approaching the restaurant entrance, Drake got to his feet.The man looked exactly like what expensive corporate success would wear if it became human.Three-piece suit.Briefcase in hand.Face set in permanent I only discuss acquisitions and lawsuits.No room for hobbies.No room for nonsense.Drake raised a hand.The man caught the signal immediately and ch
Chapter 176
Good luck to Lombard if he was somehow expected to survive a real conversation with this man.“Look,” Drake said, deciding to force the conversation back to planet Earth. “To be honest, I thought you might want to have a word with Lombard.”Barca’s face changed slightly.“You remember him, don’t you?”Drake leaned back.“Lombard August.”A beat.“Clara’s fiancé.”“Yeah,” Barca said immediately. “That asshole.”Then, casually—“Is he still alive?”Drake stared at him.“Unfortunately, yes.”The sarcasm dripped hard enough to drown a village.Barca caught it.Did absolutely nothing with it.“So I’m meeting him?” he asked. “When? Because I’m already late for—”Drake’s phone pinged.He glanced down.Message from Vivienne:“I talked to Lombard. They’re at my front door.”Drake froze.Well.Shit.“He’s here,” Drake said.Then immediately grabbed his cup.“I need to use the restroom.”He stood so fast it was suspicious.Because no.Absolutely not.This had already been a terrible idea.A genu
Chapter 177
Barca looked almost offended.“Why the fuck would you think I might be dating your sister?”Silence.Then Lombard laughed.Pulled the chair back.Sat down.Laughed again.“You know…” he leaned back, shaking his head, “that would have been genuinely insane.”Barca said nothing.Lombard looked at him again.Really looked.Then gave a dry smile.“You look disturbingly fresh for someone maintaining the exact same haircut that makes it seem like no woman has voluntarily touched your head in years.” Barca stared.Barca continued, smile not quite behaving.“My priest would say some poetic nonsense about you being like a tree planted by the rivers of water.” A pause. “Funny little image.”He smiled.It did not reach his eyes.“You don’t look half bad either,” Lombard said, wearing that same smile that did not touch his eyes. “Though you do look like you’ve aged twenty extra years.”He tilted his head as if studying him. “Which is honestly impressive, because the last time I saw you, you still
Chapter 178
Barca let out a short laugh.“You want to kill me after killing my sister and parents?”“Unlike you, I’m not some idiot who sits around watching shit happen to my sister, then goes ahead to blame the one person who was actually there for her while I was busy being useless,” Lombard spat. That landed.Hard.Barca’s jaw tightened.“You’re begging for your face to be rearranged.”“Really?” Lombard tilted his head slightly. “Go ahead. Rearrange it into whatever fitting style you think it should be.”He still didn’t step back.Not even an inch.Outside the restaurant, the Belmont family’s representatives had already arrived.The first car—the one carrying the young man assigned to incapacitate Lombard—had parked by the roadside, far enough away that it wouldn’t attract attention or get flagged.The second vehicle, carrying backup, stayed several cars behind. If someone didn’t already know they had arrived together, there was no chance they would connect the two.The chosen operative stepp
Chapter 179
Lombard had never gone near the Belmont family intending to learn anything about their weird abilities or whatever supernatural nonsense they carried around like family heirlooms. He had only started dating Mireya because—well, hell—she had looked solid. Like the kind of woman who could actually build a life with someone.Turns out she was insane.And as a lovely bonus, he had accidentally picked up knowledge about a whole circus of lunatics.He pulled out his phone and dialed immediately.Within moments, members of the Cataract team rushed in.Efficient.Silent.Barca was lifted into the vehicle they had arrived in. Someone fitted oxygen over him while another monitored his pulse.His breathing stabilized slightly.Then they moved.Fast.By the time they reached the camp, Barca had been transferred to an actual healer—someone who had seen worse cases and dragged people back from uglier edges than this.It took time.But eventually—Barca’s eyes opened.The first person he saw was Lom
Chapter 180
The team sent to capture Lombard returned to the Belmont family estate.But not with celebration.Not with triumphant shouting.Not with the kind of smug victory the family would have absolutely thrown in each other’s faces.It was the exact opposite.They came back carrying silence.And fear.Of course, no one needed an explanation.They had all watched it happen.The live camera feed had shown everything.So when the team stepped back into the gathering room, every person there was already buried in thought.“I’m telling you,” the young man who had been assigned to incapacitate Lombard said, still visibly shaken, “he’s not human.”Nobody laughed.That alone said enough.“What are the chances?” he continued, voice rising. “The exact second I released my power... the exact second... he moved?”He dragged a hand over his face.“There’s no way. No way at all.”The room remained tense.Because he was right.Lombard had been the target.But somehow, the man standing beside him had taken t