2024-10-29 15:24:14Max pedaled furiously, his heart pounding as he arrived at the pool party fifteen minutes later.
The sound of loud music and laughter filled the air, but he had no time to focus on that. His only mission was to find Amanda.
Pushing through the crowd, he tried to keep calm, but a group of familiar faces spotted him.
"Hey, look! It's the campus charity case," one of the guys sneered, pointing at Max like he was a circus act.
"What's up, Rags-to-No-Riches?" asked someone else with a mean grin. Are you here to bring us food or take away our trash?"
Everyone in the group started laughing. A third person spoke up and said, "Nah, man. I think he's just here to look through the trash himself." "You need to get dressed, right?"
He clenched his hands and ground his teeth, but Max didn't stop. He had to find Amanda. Even though the words hurt, he wouldn't back down.
At that very moment, Johnson's words boomed over the loudspeaker, making everyone pay attention. "You look more beautiful than any other girl on campus, Amanda." May I ask you to date me?"
There was a wave of cheers all around him. "Say yes! Say yes!" the crowd chanted in unison, adding fuel to Max's growing anxiety. He pushed harder, his body weaving through the sea of students.
Then her voice came through loud and clear. "Yes, Mr. Johnston! Yes, I will!"
Max was hit hard in the gut by what Amanda said.
His steps faltered, and for a moment, the world blurred around him. Johnson's loud, triumphant voice sliced through his shock. "Baby, I’ve got something special for you."
Johnson pulled back a cloth, dramatically revealing a shiny new sports car. Gasps of admiration rippled through the crowd.
"Johnson's the man!" someone cheered.
"Amanda’s so lucky!" a girl squealed in envy.
Max froze in place, watching in disbelief as Amanda smiled and threw her arms around Johnson, kissing him deeply. Everything he thought he knew about Amanda—about their relationship—seemed to shatter right in front of him.
Unable to control his emotions any longer, Max stormed through the last cluster of students, eyes blazing. "Amanda!" he shouted, voice raw with pain and disbelief.
The music screeched to a halt. All eyes turned to Max, standing there in his worn clothes, looking like an outsider in a world that was never his. Amanda's expression changed from one of surprise to discomfort.
"Max?" she asked, stepping back. "What are you doing here?"
Johnson stepped forward, a smug grin plastered on his face. "Who let this sewer rat in? Someone call security!"
Max ignored him, his focus solely on Amanda. "Tell them, Amanda. Tell them about us. Tell them the truth."
Amanda's face hardened, her lips pressed into a thin line. "I don’t know what you’re talking about," she said coldly. "We’ve never been together."
Laughter erupted from the crowd. "Looks like Poverty Boy’s lost his mind!" someone shouted, fueling the mockery.
"Maybe he's been living off dumpster scraps for too long!" another yelled, the crowd roaring with laughter.
Johnson, feeding off the crowd's energy, slung his arm around Amanda possessively. "Listen, Pizza Boy, you’ve probably fried your last brain cell working all those bottom-tier jobs, so let me break it down for you: Amanda. Doesn’t. Know. You."
Max’s breath hitched, the pain in his chest unbearable.
Johnson smirked, his eyes glinting with malice. "But hey, I’m in a good mood tonight. How about I offer you a job? Maybe as my personal janitor. You can start by licking my shoes clean, you mangy mutt."
The crowd burst into wild laughter.
"Yeah, get on your knees, Trash Boy!" another taunted.
"That’s all you're good for, you broke joke!" the insults continued to rain down.
Johnson, growing more emboldened by the minute, reached down and squeezed Amanda’s butt in front of everyone.
"This, right here, is what a real man looks like," he gloated.
"You pathetic little worm. Why don’t you scurry off before I call animal control to deal with your flea-bitten hide?"
Max boiled with anger, couldn't control himself anymore, and punched and landed on Johnson’s face.
Previous Chapter
Latest Chapter
CHAPTER 218
The bunker’s silence was suffocating.Max’s fingers hovered over the button, every muscle in his body screaming for him to end this.One press.One moment.Elliot’s empire—gone.Emily, bruised and breathless, rushed into the chamber first, Red Fang and Molly behind her.“Max!” she gasped, eyes darting between him and Elliot. “Do it. End this.”Red Fang, ever the pragmatist, cocked his gun. “Push the damn button, boss.”Molly’s gaze flickered to the mainframe. “We don’t even know what wiping it will trigger.”Max knew that.That’s why he wasn’t pressing it.Something wasn’t right.Elliot, bloody but smirking, watched him carefully.“You hesitate,” he murmured. “Smart.”Emily’s breath hitched. “Max, don’t listen to him.”Elliot’s smirk widened.“You think I built this entire empire just for it to collapse with me?” His bruised fingers tapped the device in his palm. “Go ahead. Destroy it. But you won’t be stopping anything.”Max’s grip tightened.“Then what am I stopping?”Elliot chuckle
CHAPTER 217
The bunker loomed before them, half-buried beneath ice and reinforced steel. The frozen wind howled across the tundra, but Max barely felt it.He could only see one thing.The entrance to Project Nemesis.Red Fang, Emily, and Orlov’s strike team flanked him. The Russian general’s men were hardened operatives, armed to the teeth.“Thermal scans show minimal movement inside,” Molly reported through the comms. “But that’s impossible. Elliot wouldn’t leave this place unguarded.”Max’s jaw tightened.“He’s waiting.”Emily’s hand hovered over her gun.“So what’s the play?”Max stepped forward.“No more tricks,” he said. “I go in alone.”The bunker’s inner doors slid open, revealing a massive, circular chamber bathed in dim, blue light.And at its center—Elliot.Standing alone, dressed in a black combat shirt, his expression calm.Waiting.“You made it,” Elliot said smoothly. “Was starting to think you’d given up.”Max stepped forward, muscles coiled.“No more games.”Elliot smirked.“No. J
CHAPTER 216
Max’s eyelids cracked open, and the first thing he felt was pain.His wrists were bound.His head throbbed.His breath came out in short, sharp bursts, the frigid air burning his lungs.The room was concrete and steel, dimly lit by a single overhead bulb.A black site.Siberia.He flexed his fingers, feeling the bite of handcuffs against his skin.Across from him, Emily and Red Fang sat in matching restraints, their eyes flicking toward him as he stirred.Emily’s lip was split. Red Fang’s knuckles were bruised.Max let out a slow, steady breath.Elliot had planned for this.And now?Now they were in his trap.The heavy door groaned open.A man strode in—tall, broad, and radiating pure military authority.General Dmitri Orlov.His icy blue eyes swept over them, calculating, judging.He stopped before Max, arms crossed.“I should execute you where you sit,” Orlov said in flawless English.Max didn’t flinch.“You’d be making a mistake.”Orlov’s expression didn’t change.“You are Maxwell
CHAPTER 215
Max’s hands shook as he stared at the blinking red display on Emily’s chest.0:59He swallowed, forcing his mind to slow down.“Emily, don’t move,” he said, his voice tight.She held her breath. “Wasn’t planning to.”The bomb’s wiring was intricate, laced with a failsafe mechanism designed to detonate if tampered with incorrectly.0:45Molly’s voice crackled through the earpiece.“Max, I’m in the system—there’s a wireless detonation trigger, but I can’t hack it remotely. You have to disable it manually.”Red Fang’s tone was grim. “How much time?”Max exhaled shakily. “Not enough.”0:30His fingers moved with surgical precision, tracing the primary detonation circuit. One wrong move, and Emily would—No.Focus.Emily’s eyes locked on his. “Max.”0:15“Almost there,” he muttered.0:10Max found the kill switch—but it was wired to a secondary charge.Damn it.He had one chance.One cut.He sliced through the wire.0:03The countdown stopped.A sharp, piercing silence filled the room.Emi
CHAPTER 214
The skyline of Dubai gleamed under the desert moon, an empire of glass and steel stretching toward the heavens.At its peak stood the Desert Crown, a private skyscraper Elliot had turned into his personal fortress.Tonight, Max was walking straight into it.Max adjusted his collar, stepping out of the sleek black car that had been provided for him.No weapons.No backup.No second chances.Elliot had made that clear.The building’s penthouse elevator was already waiting.Red Fang’s voice crackled through the hidden earpiece.“You sure about this, boss?”Max stepped inside.“No.”The elevator doors sealed shut, carrying him into the lion’s den.The penthouse was a study in excess. Floor-to-ceiling windows overlooked the glittering skyline, the city pulsing with unmatched wealth and power.And at the center of it all—Elliot.Sitting in a high-backed chair, dressed in a custom black suit, a drink in hand, smirking like he’d already won.Emily was nowhere to be seen.Max’s fists clenched.
CHAPTER213
The screen on Viktor’s phone lit up.A live news broadcast.Max turned his head slightly—and felt his blood go cold.His own face flashed across the screen.BREAKING NEWS:“Interpol confirms Maxwell Montgomery is in possession of a classified bioweapon. Global alert issued. Immediate capture or termination authorized.”Max’s heartbeat thundered.No.Elliot’s voice hummed through the line.“You see, Max… while you were busy looking for me?”The smirk was almost audible.“I made the world believe you’re the real threat.”Viktor gave him a mocking shrug.“Sorry, Max. It’s just business.”Gunfire roared through the abandoned warehouse, bullets sparking off rusted steel beams as Max dove for cover behind a stack of shipping crates. The acrid stench of gunpowder filled the air, mingling with the heavy scent of betrayal.Red Fang was already firing back, his rifle barking as he clipped one of Viktor’s men.But it wasn’t enough.They were outnumbered.And worse—Emily was gone.“Max, we gotta
You may also like
Rising from the Ashes
Only For You906.9K viewsThe Billionaire Heir
Teddy129.0K viewsMy Aloof Sisters Asked for My Forgiveness
Autumn Rain168.6K viewsReturn of the son-in-law
Chessman74.3K viewsDouble Agent: Stuck Between the Villain and Protagonist Camp
Antonigiggs1.3K viewsThe Return Of Martins Goblin.
Emkay writes 585 viewsThe Affinity For Darkness
Sajay927 viewsMillion Dollar
Shreevansh1.0K views