2025-06-05 19:44:25
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CHAPTER 73
Ethan’s POV“You’re telling me the bastard had them hidden all along?”Jordan’s voice snapped through the encrypted line like a whip, sharp and disbelieving.I gritted my teeth, staring at the gaping cavity in the wall behind Richard Hale’s massive mahogany bookshelf. The office smelled like mildew and rot like secrets that had festered too long beneath polished surfaces. The place was gutted, stripped of its former intimidation, but the ghosts of deception lingered in the dusty corners.“False panel,” I muttered, pacing. “He carved it out behind his first edition collection. I had to damn near dismantle the whole shelf to find it. Real classy hiding spot.”Jordan exhaled, somewhere between a sigh and a whistle. “He really thought he could bury it all there? After everything?”I pulled the documents from the aged leather folio, careful not to smudge the already fading ink. Twelve sheets total. Perfectly preserved lies.“He didn’t think he had to bury it deep. He thought no one would d
CHAPTER 72
Vanessa’s POV “You sold it?!” I shouted into the phone, pacing the length of my suite like a caged animal. The glass in my hand trembled from the sheer rage pulsing through my veins. Mr. Jacobs’ voice came through hesitant and weak. “We didn’t have a choice, Vanessa. The board… there was too much heat. Lawsuits piling up. Press breathing down our necks. Every investor pulled out.” “Every investor?” I spat. “Even you?” A beat of silence. “Especially me.” I hung up before I could scream. My heart pounded in my chest like a ticking bomb. I poured another glass of wine, number three? Four? I’d lost count, and swallowed it in one gulp. The warmth did nothing to cool the fury simmering beneath my skin. Hale Pharmaceuticals. The once-glorified empire my father had spent decades building, now unraveling at the seams. It had started small with whispers of expired drugs in poor neighborhoods, overdoses conveniently swept under the rug. Then the whistleblower surfaced. A former lab tech w
CHAPTER 71
Vanessa’s POV “He didn’t drink it? Are you kidding me?” I spat, slamming the cabinet door hard enough to rattle the glasses inside. My fingers clenched the edge as though sheer force could change the outcome.The voicemail kept playing, the bartender’s voice far too casual for what he was reporting. “Miss, he barely touched the rim. Just water. He left without a sip. Looked... focused. Like he knew.”My heart thudded against my ribs like it was demanding answers.“He knew?” I muttered, jabbing the end call button so hard I almost cracked the screen. “Of course, he knew.”I yanked the cork from the bottle and poured myself a glass, watching the wine coil into the bowl like a liquid curse. The rich red shimmered under the kitchen lights—mocking me.“You had one job,” I hissed at the silent room. “One simple, foolproof, idiot-proof job.”I stalked to the window, wine in hand, and stared out over the city. The night glistened, lights blurring like smeared ink. People bustled below, bliss
CHAPTER 70
Ethan’s POV“So let me get this straight, you flew to Paris without a plan, just vibes? Ethan, my guy, you’re officially a sick loverboy.”Jordan’s voice crackled through my phone’s speaker, thick with laughter and laced with mockery.“Shut up,” I muttered, tugging the collar of my coat tighter against the Parisian drizzle. The cold air bit at my face as I paced the narrow balcony of my hotel room. “I didn’t fly halfway across the world because I’m in love.”“Oh really? Then what do you call it when a man shows up in the most romantic city on Earth for the woman he ghosted months ago? Because ‘business meeting’ sounds like the worst lie you’ve ever told.”I groaned and leaned against the wrought iron railing, watching cars weave along the wet streets below. “God, you’re insufferable.”“And you’re predictable. Admit it, Ethan. You missed her. You’re just pissed she’s probably not still crying into her wine over you.”I didn’t answer. Not because he was wrong, but because I didn’t want
CHAPTER 69
Ethan’s POV “Are you seriously doing this? Flying halfway across the world for a woman who probably isn’t even thinking about you?”I muttered the words under my breath, hating the way they hung in the stale airplane air like guilt soaked in regret. The hum of the jet engines filled my ears, drowning out my better judgment.The clouds parted slowly to reveal the glittering tapestry of the City of Lights. Paris sprawled beneath us like an untouchable dream, beautiful in a way that felt cruel. The skyline shimmered beneath the soft veil of rain, a surreal welcome that mocked my resolve. My heart beat a little too fast, not from altitude, but from memories I couldn’t bury.The pilot’s voice broke through the overhead speakers. I didn’t hear the words, just the tone. Calm. Routine. Nothing like what boiled under my skin. My fingers dug into the armrest with quiet desperation as I stared through the rain-speckled window.A flight attendant leaned toward me. “Monsieur, is everything alrigh
CHAPTER 68
Vanessa’s POV “You had one job. One simple job!” I hissed under my breath, each word slicing through clenched teeth as I glared at the bartender. He moved with maddening nonchalance, whisking away Ethan’s untouched drink like it was just another unfinished cocktail, not the centerpiece of a plan I had crafted with surgical precision. I watched the amber liquid disappear down the sink and felt something sharp twist behind my ribs.The bar’s dim lighting tried to cast everything in soft shadows, but nothing could dull the rage boiling inside me. My manicured nails dug into the cold, fragile stem of my wine glass, trembling with the effort it took to stay seated.That drink should have done it. A gentle push, not poison. Just enough to soften Ethan’s walls, to make him slow down, forget the things that made him hate me. But no—he hadn’t even touched it. Not a sip. He just sat there, spoke with those two idiots like nothing was different, and left.Left—without hesitation, without a back
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