2025-05-22 13:44:47
Previous Chapter
Latest Chapter
CHAPTER 67
Ethan’s POV In the bathroom, steam rose quickly, curling against the glass like restless ghosts. I stepped under the stream of hot water, pressing my palms against the cool tiles, head bowed low as if the water might wash away the weight pressing against my spine.But it didn’t. If anything, it made it worse. The silence brought thoughts. Unwelcome ones. The kind that crept in from the corners when your defenses were down. "What if you went to Paris?" The thought sliced through me without warning. I blinked into the rising steam, water beating against the back of my neck. "No," I muttered. "Hell no." But there it was, planted like a stubborn seed. A ridiculous idea, born from a cocktail of regret and whatever this was swirling in my chest. "Go to Paris. Apologize. Set things right." I turned off the water with a grunt, grabbing a towel and rubbing at my face like I could smudge the idea out of existence.“What would that even make us?” I said to the empty room. “Lovers? Is tha
CHAPTER 66
Ethan’s POV “You ever get tired of sulking into your drink like some washed-up noir detective?” Martin jabbed, smirking as he nursed his beer.I scoffed. “You ever get tired of projecting your midlife crisis onto my choice of bar ambiance?”“Tense much?” he shot back. “Or is it because someone’s still haunted by the ghost of relationships past?”“You’re one more jab away from wearing your drink, Martin.”He laughed, leaned back in his chair. “Touché.”That’s when my phone buzzed on the table, slicing clean through our back-and-forth like a blade. I checked the screen—Jordan.I picked up. “Yeah?”“Ethan!” Jordan’s voice was electric, buzzing with an urgency that put my nerves on alert. “You’re not gonna believe what I found. It’s about Olivia.”Her name hit like a punch to the ribs. My spine stiffened. The glass I held suddenly felt like it weighed ten pounds.“Hold on,” I said, rising from my seat. “Give me a sec.”I tossed a few bills onto the table. “Tell your dad the beer was grea
CHAPTER 65
Ethan’s POV I should’ve gone straight to the car. I should’ve left then and there, but something held me. I looked back at the building, at the flickering light in the upstairs window, at the shadow of kids moving behind the curtains.A place like this saved me. Now I save it. It gave me deep comfort knowing that. That had to give me enough peace over everything else. I was halfway to my car when some noise stopped me. "Hey! Leave him alone!" The sharp voice shattered the early evening peace like glass underfoot. I spun around, heart knocking once in my chest. A boy, no more than eight, had thrown himself between two older boys and a much smaller one, his arms wide, his stance daring. "I said back off!" he yelled again, fire blazing in his tiny voice.The taller kids paused, sizing him up with sneers, before shrugging and stalking away like hyenas denied their prey. The small boy sniffled. The older one crouched beside him. "You okay, Temi?"Temi gave a shaky nod, wiping his f
CHAPTER 64
Ethan’s POV “Why didn’t you tell me earlier the roof leaks this badly?” Mrs. Ibe flinched, her clipboard wobbling slightly in her grip. “We managed to patch it up last month, but the rains...” “Patching isn’t managing,” I cut in, motioning to the damp stain curling across the ceiling. “That’s not a patch. That’s a prayer.” “Mr. Sinclair,” she began, already in apology mode, “you’ve done so much already...” “And I’m not done,” I said flatly, turning away from the stained ceiling and looking through the window into the playground. “So stop acting like I’m here for charity points. I’m not.” She sighed, gently. “I didn’t mean it that way.” “Good.” I turned back, softened my tone. “Because if this place caves in, no one’s writing any scholarships. No futures get built in a moldy building.” Outside, the laughter of children pierced through the cracked window pane. “They deserve better.” She looked at me, eyebrows pinched, eyes tired. “We all do.” I nodded, pressing two fingers to
CHAPTER 63
Vanessa’s POV His head shifted slightly, so slightly anyone else might’ve missed it. But I knew him. That twitch meant he heard me.“If I were you,” I went on, stepping closer, “I’d probably hate me too. Maybe even worse than you do now. Maybe I wouldn’t even be able to stand the sound of my own name.”Still no reply. No glance. Just that rigid posture of his, frozen and impenetrable.“But I’m here. Not because I think I deserve anything from you. I don’t. God knows I don’t. I’m not asking for another chance, Ethan. I’m not even asking for kindness. I’m just…” I swallowed. “I’m asking for a little space in your heart. Just a corner. One little corner where maybe, someday, you can find a reason to forgive me.”My voice faltered but I didn’t stop. I couldn’t stop.“I’ll wait. I’ll wait no matter how long it takes, even if it’s forever. I know I burned everything to the ground. I know I made choices that killed us. But I can’t go back in time. I can’t undo any of it.”He shifted again.
CHAPTER 62
Vanessa’s POV “You can’t keep doing this, Vanessa,” I whispered to my reflection, the morning light casting a harsh glow on the mirror.The woman staring back at me looked composed, but beneath the surface, a strategic planner.“Following him around like some lovesick teenager? Pathetic.”Yet, here I was, plotting my next move to cross paths with Ethan.I had memorized his routines: gym sessions at dawn, evening walks in the park, and visits to the orphanage on Thursdays.Today was Thursday. I glanced at the clock.If I left now, I could arrive at the orphanage just as he did.“This is your chance,” I told myself. “Don’t mess it up.”The drive to the orphanage was a blur, my mind rehearsing possible conversations, apologies, and explanations.As I parked, I spotted Ethan’s car.Perfect timing.I stood outside the orphanage, my heart racing with anticipation. I had been tracking Ethan’s movements for weeks, and I knew he would be here today. I took a deep breath, smoothing out my dres
CHAPTER 61
Ethan’s POV I called Jordan the next morning.“I need deeper surveillance,” I said. “Target Cole. I want everything. Phone logs. Meeting records. Messages. And Jordan…”“Yeah?”“About that encrypted drive I gave you. The one from my parents’ and the with Sinclair’s archive logs from last quarter…”“I’ve got the first partially decrypted. We need more time on that. It was skillfully locked away. As for the Sinclair drive, there’s something odd about it. I discovered some deleted directories from your grandfather’s digital vault. Looks like someone’s been trying to scrub records.”“Of what?”“I don’t know yet. But someone didn’t want anyone seeing them.”I rubbed the back of my neck, heartbeat tightening.“Keep digging,” I said. “And Jordan, stay quiet. No one else knows you’re involved.”“Understood.”I hung up.Something bigger was buried beneath the surface and I was done dancing around it. This was war. And family or not, if Cole was behind this…He’d better pray I didn’t find out.
CHAPTER 60
Ethan’s POV “That’s impossible,” I muttered, reaching for the file that had become a fixture on my desk for weeks. “We verified Delven’s licensing through the Ministry’s official portal. Twice. I spoke to Gideon myself last Thursday. Everything was clean.”Priya tapped the screen. “Then explain this. This ‘leak’ has timestamps, licensing data, even supposed government letterhead. If this is fake, someone went out of their way to make it look damn real.”A part of me froze, not outwardly but inside, I was ice.Why now? Why this deal?The Delven partnership was the first major initiative I had led on my own. No grandfather to shadow. No hand-holding from senior executives. It was mine. And now?“Have we heard from Gideon today?” I asked, my voice tight.Marissa shook her head. “Radio silence since 2 a.m. Botswana time. His team’s not answering.”“And the press?” I asked. “Who ran the story first?”“MarketPulse. Followed by DealLine and Financial Tribune.”“Convenient,” I murmured.Too
CHAPTER 59
Ethan’s POV The boardroom lights glared down like interrogators, harsh, hot, and deliberately unforgiving. They weren’t designed for comfort; they were built for scrutiny. The polished obsidian table beneath them reflected every scowl, every twitch, every clench of a jaw. Conversations bounced off the glass walls like ricocheting bullets. No one was there to observe. Everyone had a stake. And I? I was at the head of the table for now.Marissa Clay started, as she always did, with numbers. “Our crypto infrastructure portfolio is stagnating. We pulled out of two promising platforms last quarter because we were overly cautious. That won’t work anymore. Fidelity, BlackRock, Goldman they’re investing heavily in digital assets. And we’re sitting on our hands.”She slid a report forward, polished fingers tapping the graph. “This isn’t speculative anymore. It’s structural.”Donovan Wexler leaned back with that same smug expression he wore like a second skin. “That’s a beautiful fantasy, Mari
You may also like
Back From Prison!
KMyay166.8K viewsSecretly Rich Son in Law
Banin SN180.6K viewsRevenge of the Secret Heir
Belladonna82.2K viewsThe Legendary King Of War Returns
Victoria T.O116.8K viewsThe Underrated Duke's Heir Rise To Power
Lixypearl4.0K viewsLOGAN .H. BENTLEY'S REBOUND
LADY E14.8K viewsThe Ultimate Power
Poen Konnet64 viewsThe Resurgence Of The War King
Tyqun Nla5.3K views