2025-05-09 23:54:00
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CHAPTER 841
Tedmond didn’t turn around. He kept his eyes locked on the dark horizon."The Atlantic doesn't care about your wine, Madam. We're hitting a cross-current. It’ll be choppy for the next few hours. I suggest you tell your guests to stay seated."Katerina stepped up beside him, her hand resting on the console dangerously close to his."I don't like choppy, Captain. I like control. And I’m waiting for a very important confirmation from the mainland." She checked her encrusted watch. "Ten minutes. If my bird doesn't chirp by then, I might have to find a new way to vent my frustrations. And I think Portia would make a very interesting target for a midnight swim, don't you?"Tedmond’s grip on the wheel reached a breaking point. He could feel the heat of his own rage radiating off his skin."I wouldn't recommend that," Tedmond said, his voice dropping into a register that made Katerina’s eyes flicker with a sudden, confused caution."Oh? And why is that, Captain?""Because," Tedmond said, f
CHAPTER 840
With a speed born of pure desperation, Ruby snatched the heavy silver vase and swung it with all her might at Thomas’s temple.She expected him to fumble, to stumble back like any man his age. She expected to burst through the door and lose herself in the mansion’s sprawling corridors before the guards could blink. The vase cut through the air with a lethal whistle.Thomas didn’t flinch. He didn’t even blink.In a movement so fluid it was nearly invisible, his hand shot up. He didn't block the blow; he caught it.The silver met his palm with a dull thud, the force of the swing absorbed into his arm without shifting his posture an inch.Ruby’s eyes widened. She tried to yank the vase back, but it was like trying to tug a mountain. Thomas’s fingers wrapped around the silver neck, his grip tightening until the expensive metal groaned and deformed under his strength."The problem with working in a house like this, Ruby," Thomas said, his voice terrifyingly calm as he rose to tower ove
CHAPTER 839
Tedmond’s breath hitched over the line.From the bridge of the Vasilisa, he stared out at the dark ocean, his eyes fixed on Persis’s distant balcony. "She’s scared, Thomas. The Sokolovs are threatening her family. If you break her too hard, she’ll bolt or tip them off that the house is hot.""I won't break her, sir," Thomas promised, his voice low and steady. "I'll offer an alternative. The Washingtons pay better than the Sokolovs, and we protect our own. Let me try to turn her.""Fine," Tedmond finally grunted. "But do it off-comms. No record. If she doesn't flip in five minutes, put her in the sub-level holding cell. I’ll deal with her when I get back.""Understood."Thomas ended the call and tucked the phone away. He straightened his suit jacket and walked out of the study, his expression unreadable. He made his way to the third floor, moving with the quiet authority that made the staff stand a little straighter as he passed. He found Ruby in the East Gallery.She looked exactly
CHAPTER 838
"A few years ago," Svetlana said, her tone flattening, "we had an incident. An insider, someone we trusted as family, stole a set of encryption keys from this very suite.”She paused, her gaze sweeping the room. “It nearly broke our hold on the Baltic ports. It was a betrayal that changed our protocols forever. Since then, no one is above the lens. Not even you."Persis rolled her eyes, though her mind was already racing. "So, because someone had sticky fingers years ago, I have to forfeit my privacy? That’s ridiculous. We're on a ship in the middle of the ocean, Svetlana. Where exactly am I going to take anything?""You'd be surprised what people attempt when they think no one is watching," Svetlana replied, her eyes narrowing. "The cameras stay. If you’re truly one of us, you have nothing to hide.”A flicker of suspicion crossed her face. “Wash up, change into the gown we laid out, and join us for tea on the deck in an hour. And Persis? Don't try to cover them. It triggers a sile
CHAPTER 837
Katerina chuckled, waving a hand dismissively. "Don’t tire him out, Marcella. We need him alert for the crossing."Marcella didn't wait for a second invitation. She sauntered across the deck, the heels of her designer sandals clicking rhythmically against the teak wood. She stopped just a foot from Tedmond, leaning hip-first against the brass railing of the bridge console."Captain Kelvin," she purred, tilting her head back until her blonde hair caught the midday glare. "The engines feel... particularly powerful today. Is that your doing, or is the ship just excited to have us on board?"Tedmond didn't move. He kept his hands locked on the wheel, his gaze fixed on the endless blue of the Atlantic. Up close, the sheer size of him was overwhelming; he made the bridge feel cramped, small, and suddenly very hot."The engines are standard for a vessel of this displacement, Madam," he rumbled. His voice was a low, vibrating growl he didn't even have to fake.Marcella laughed, reaching o
CHAPTER 836
Svetlana’s laughter died, replaced by a sharp, calculating gleam as she pulled a slender, encrypted burner phone from her clutch. She slid it across the marble tabletop until it bumped against Persis’s hand."Since you’re so adept at identifying the flaws in a spy’s armor, Portia, let’s put that theory to use," Svetlana said, her voice dropping into a silky, dangerous challenge. "Our perfect little maid is due for her check-in.”“She’s been hesitant to pull the file on the Washingtons' offshore accounts because she fears Albert is watching the server logs. I want you to give her the push she needs."Persis stared at the phone. The screen was dark, but it felt like a live grenade in her hand. Sending a message from this device would link her irrevocably to the Sokolov espionage network. Worse, it would trigger a mole she now realized was likely someone she saw every single day."I... I wouldn't know what to say," Persis murmured, the "Portia" persona fluttering back into place, wide
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