2026-04-01 23:33:07
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CHAPTER 272
Mia reached up to pull the blindfold but her mother's hand shot out and grabbed her wrist. "Don't. We are almost there. Please, Mia. Just trust me."Mia's jaw clenched beneath the silk. Trust. That word tasted like poison coming from her mother's mouth. But she lowered her hand and sat back, her fists balled tight on her lap.Then everything happened at once.The car lurched violently to a stop. Mia's body jerked forward, the seatbelt digging into her chest. She gasped and reached for the blindfold."What happened? Why did we stop?"Before her mother could answer, the sound of car doors slamming erupted from every direction. One. Two. Three. Four. The noise surrounded them like thunder.Heavy footsteps rushed toward the car. Mia's heart slammed against her ribs."Mom? What is going on?"Her mother's breathing became rapid and shallow. "I don't know. I don't know what is happening."The passenger door was ripped open. A large hand grabbed Mia's arm and yanked her out of the seat. Her f
CHAPTER 271
Alex was standing by the kitchen counter when his phone buzzed. He snatched it up before it could ring a second time."Talk to me, Jace."Jace's tone was sharp and urgent on the other end. "Sir, the vehicle carrying Mia and her mother is heading northeast on Interstate 87. Based on the route, they are not going to any pharmacy or pastry shop. The direction matches the Vindas family estate in Greenwich."Alex's grip on the phone tightened until his knuckles turned white. His entire body went rigid. For a second, he did not move. He did not blink. Then his jaw locked and his nostrils flared as the realization hit him like a freight train."How far are they?""Approximately twenty minutes from the estate at their current speed.""Get the car ready. Now. I want a full team on standby before I arrive.""Already on it, sir. I anticipated this possibility the moment you called earlier."Alex ended the call and grabbed his jacket from the chair. Mia's father looked up from the couch with a pu
CHAPTER 270
Mia gave Alex one last look. It was quick but it carried something. An apology maybe. Or a promise to be back soon. Alex gave a small nod. Then the door closed behind them.Outside, the afternoon sun hit the sidewalk as Mia and her mother walked toward the parked car. Mia's mother moved quickly, almost too quickly for someone who had been complaining about stomach pain earlier. Mia noticed but kept quiet.They reached the car and her mother opened the passenger door for Mia. "Get in. I will drive."Mia raised an eyebrow. "You never drive.""I want today to be special." Her mother smiled wide. "Just the two of us. Like the old days."Mia climbed in reluctantly and pulled the seatbelt across her chest. Her mother got into the driver's seat and started the engine. As they pulled onto the road, her mother suddenly reached into her purse and pulled out a silk scarf."Close your eyes."Mia turned sharply. "What?""I want to surprise you with the location. You always loved surprises as a kid
CHAPTER 269
Mia's mother stood in the middle of the hallway, her lips trembling and her eyes glistening with tears that seemed to appear out of nowhere. She clasped her hands together and lowered her head, her shoulders dropping as if the weight of the world had finally broken her."Mia, please." Her knees buckled slightly, and she reached for the edge of the wall to steady herself. "I know I have been terrible. I know what I did was unforgivable. The slap, the words, everything. I am not asking you to forget. I am just asking you to give me one chance. One hour. That is all I need."Mia watched her mother from the couch, her arms still crossed and her face showing nothing. Not sympathy. Not anger. Just emptiness.Her mother took another step forward and her knees almost touched the floor. "Do you want to see your mother on the ground? Is that what it takes? Because I will do it, Mia. I will get on my knees right here if that is what you need from me."Mia's eyes flickered. Something shifted behi
CHAPTER 268
Simone smirked, the satisfaction spreading across his face like poison. "You better. Because the next time I come here, I expect Mia to be standing right where you are, ready and willing."Tom nodded slowly, his pride cracking beneath the surface. Yet even as he submitted, a question gnawed at the back of his mind. Why Mia?The Greenes were powerful enough to have any woman from any family in the country. Their insistence on Mia specifically felt unnatural. There was something they were not telling him. But right now, he was in no position to ask.Simone's grandfather rose from his chair without another word, and Simone followed. Neither of them looked back as they walked out of the meeting room, leaving Tom alone with the silence and the bitter taste of humiliation in his mouth.At the same time, across the city at Mia's apartment, a different kind of tension was building.Mia's mother paced back and forth in the hallway, her phone clutched in her trembling hand. Tom's call still ran
CHAPTER 267
Tom Vinda shifted in his seat, the weight of the Greenes' presence pressing down on him like a boulder on his chest. The villa's grand meeting room had never felt this suffocating. Simone sat across from him with one leg crossed over the other, his jaw tight and his eyes burning with something that went beyond business. The old man beside Simone, patriarch of the Greene family, remained still as a statue, his fingers resting on the head of his cane.Tom cleared his throat and leaned forward, forcing a diplomatic smile. "I understand your family's interest in strengthening our alliance. But I must be honest with you. Mia has always been difficult to control. She is stubborn beyond reason."Simone's grandfather did not blink.Tom continued, wiping the thin layer of sweat forming on his forehead. "However, the Vinda family is not short of excellent granddaughters. My second son's daughter, Clarissa, graduated from Columbia with honors. She is obedient, elegant, and more than capable of f
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