2025-05-20 23:58:27
Previous Chapter
Latest Chapter
239
The air thickened with tension, pressing down like a storm cloud about to burst.“I said,” the man repeated, his smug grin widening, “this place isn’t for the likes of you. You’re embarrassing yourself and—frankly—ruining the view for the rest of us.”Dylan’s jaw twitched, his fists clenching at his sides. He glanced down at Dolly—her lip was trembling, her big eyes brimming with confusion and the threat of tears. His heart twisted.“Daddy…” she whispered, her voice so small it barely reached his ears. “Can we go home?”That was the breaking point.“No, baby,” Dylan said softly, crouching down beside her chair. “We’re staying. You wanted spaghetti, remember? And dessert too. We’re going to enjoy dinner—just like everyone else here.”The man scoffed. “How noble. Shame doesn’t feed the bill though, does it?”The scraping of chairs and shuffling feet signaled the shifting interest of the other patrons, many now openly watching, murmuring.“I asked you to stop,” Dylan said, standing tall
238
Dylan’s chest felt tight, his mind a whirlpool of tension and exhaustion. The kidnapping of Molly had shaken him to the core—his heart ached every time he thought of her in unknown hands, vulnerable and scared. Then there was the Bobby issue, a mess that seemed to twist tighter with every passing hour. And Jane… Jane had shown up again, eyes pleading, asking for his help. How could he refuse? But all these problems pressed down on him like a weight he couldn’t shake.He looked over at Dolly, who was sitting quietly in the car beside him, her small hand nestled in his. She was unaware of the chaos swirling around him, her bright eyes full of innocence and hope. Dylan wanted to give her a moment of peace, a slice of normalcy in the storm. So he had decided, almost on a whim, to take her out to dinner at an upscale restaurant he had heard about—a place with soft lighting and quiet music, where people came to celebrate life and enjoy the finer things.As they stepped inside, the warmth of
237
Disintegration Protocol (Continuation – Part 3) Jane held the USB drive like it was a venomous snake. Her fingers trembled, eyes locked on the sticker as if it might vanish if she blinked. Linda backed away, her voice cracking. “Jane… don’t. We don’t know what that thing could do!” “But what if it’s a clue?” Jane whispered, more to herself than anyone else. “What if it’s the only thing he left behind that can explain this?” Adam tugged at her sleeve. “Is Bobby a bad guy now?” Jane bit her lip hard, blinking rapidly. “I… I don’t know, sweetheart.” Linda sat down heavily, her breath shallow. “I raised him like my own. I gave him everything.” Her words came out between sobs. “And he left us like we were garbage.” “Don’t do this now,” Jane said, voice sharp but fragile. “We don’t have time for blame. We need answers.” Linda turned on her. “I gave him access because you loved him!” Jane’s hand slammed down on the coffee table. “And you didn’t once question it! I was stupi
236
Disintegration Protocol (Continuation – Part 3) Jane held the USB drive like it was a venomous snake. Her fingers trembled, eyes locked on the sticker as if it might vanish if she blinked. Linda backed away, her voice cracking. “Jane… don’t. We don’t know what that thing could do!” “But what if it’s a clue?” Jane whispered, more to herself than anyone else. “What if it’s the only thing he left behind that can explain this?” Adam tugged at her sleeve. “Is Bobby a bad guy now?” Jane bit her lip hard, blinking rapidly. “I… I don’t know, sweetheart.” Linda sat down heavily, her breath shallow. “I raised him like my own. I gave him everything.” Her words came out between sobs. “And he left us like we were garbage.” “Don’t do this now,” Jane said, voice sharp but fragile. “We don’t have time for blame. We need answers.” Linda turned on her. “I gave him access because you loved him!” Jane’s hand slammed down on the coffee table. “And you didn’t once question it! I was stupi
235
224 Disintegration Protocol (Continuation) The loading screen from Z0 still burned in Bobby’s mind, but it didn’t matter anymore. He was already in flight mode. Chase’s calls were going unanswered. The Nova2 security logs showed Bobby exiting the facility less than an hour ago. Just a man in a hoodie and cap, slipping out through a side entrance with a duffel bag and a burner phone. By the time Chase realized what had happened, Bobby was halfway to a private airstrip outside state jurisdiction. No farewells. No explanations. No warnings. He’d already transferred what he could from the dummy accounts—most of it siphoned slowly over the past six months from project budgets, padded invoices, and worst of all, from Jane’s family’s trust. Jane. Bobby winced at the thought of her. She had trusted him with everything—her love, her family, their future. He had smiled through every dinner, kissed her on the forehead as Adam sat between them at movie night, and promised Linda security
234
Disintegration Protocol (Continuation – Part 3) Jane held the USB drive like it was a venomous snake. Her fingers trembled, eyes locked on the sticker as if it might vanish if she blinked. Linda backed away, her voice cracking. “Jane… don’t. We don’t know what that thing could do!” “But what if it’s a clue?” Jane whispered, more to herself than anyone else. “What if it’s the only thing he left behind that can explain this?” Adam tugged at her sleeve. “Is Bobby a bad guy now?” Jane bit her lip hard, blinking rapidly. “I… I don’t know, sweetheart.” Linda sat down heavily, her breath shallow. “I raised him like my own. I gave him everything.” Her words came out between sobs. “And he left us like we were garbage.” “Don’t do this now,” Jane said, voice sharp but fragile. “We don’t have time for blame. We need answers.” Linda turned on her. “I gave him access because you loved him!” Jane’s hand slammed down on the coffee table. “And you didn’t once question it! I was stupi
233
221: The Future in Flame “I wouldn’t have told you if I wasn’t.” Dylan nodded. “Then let’s burn the world down.” He typed the command. A loading bar began to climb. Lilith stepped up beside him and pulled a drive from her coat—sleek, unlabeled, humming softly. “My code’s on here,” she said. “It’ll mimic the framework of Ignis Core perfectly. I’ve even embedded some of your old code from before you joined Ash. They’ll think it’s legit. Familiar. But once it activates… recursive detonation.” She handed it to him. He plugged it in. The system blinked. Code spilled across the screen—lines upon lines of luminous, perfect deception. Lilith crossed her arms as she watched. “We’ve got one shot at this.” Dylan didn’t look away from the screen. “Then we make it count.” The lights dimmed for a moment as the system initiated a shadow crawl—spreading the false Ignis Core like a virus in slow motion. Unseen. Waiting. When it was done, Dylan stood back, eyes cold. “Now we wai
232
Disintegration Protocol (Continuation – Part 3) Jane held the USB drive like it was a venomous snake. Her fingers trembled, eyes locked on the sticker as if it might vanish if she blinked. Linda backed away, her voice cracking. “Jane… don’t. We don’t know what that thing could do!” “But what if it’s a clue?” Jane whispered, more to herself than anyone else. “What if it’s the only thing he left behind that can explain this?” Adam tugged at her sleeve. “Is Bobby a bad guy now?” Jane bit her lip hard, blinking rapidly. “I… I don’t know, sweetheart.” Linda sat down heavily, her breath shallow. “I raised him like my own. I gave him everything.” Her words came out between sobs. “And he left us like we were garbage.” “Don’t do this now,” Jane said, voice sharp but fragile. “We don’t have time for blame. We need answers.” Linda turned on her. “I gave him access because you loved him!” Jane’s hand slammed down on the coffee table. “And you didn’t once question it! I was stupid, yeah—b
231
Disintegration Protocol (Continuation – Part 3) Jane held the USB drive like it was a venomous snake. Her fingers trembled, eyes locked on the sticker as if it might vanish if she blinked. Linda backed away, her voice cracking. “Jane… don’t. We don’t know what that thing could do!” “But what if it’s a clue?” Jane whispered, more to herself than anyone else. “What if it’s the only thing he left behind that can explain this?” Adam tugged at her sleeve. “Is Bobby a bad guy now?” Jane bit her lip hard, blinking rapidly. “I… I don’t know, sweetheart.” Linda sat down heavily, her breath shallow. “I raised him like my own. I gave him everything.” Her words came out between sobs. “And he left us like we were garbage.” “Don’t do this now,” Jane said, voice sharp but fragile. “We don’t have time for blame. We need answers.” Linda turned on her. “I gave him access because you loved him!” Jane’s hand slammed down on the coffee table. “And you didn’t once question it! I was stupi
You may also like
The Ruthless Son-in-law
Bella Starr134.3K viewsEthan Nightangle Rises To Power
Dragon Sly94.1K viewsReturn of the Powerful Young Master
AFM3186.2K viewsThe Rise of a Master: It Starts With Rejection
Dreamy Fire185.2K viewsThe Almighty Supreme Commander
Little Goddess 607 viewsLegacy
Biggest Werey1.2K viewsThe Magnificent James Lawrence
Rafaiir_2.0K viewsThe Billionaire Impotent son-in-law
Bee Baby13.5K views