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Chapter 52: Fierce Inheritance

last update Last Updated: 2025-10-01 02:33:16

Zara’s POV

Time slipped by unnoticed. At some point, exhaustion pulled me under, and I drifted off on Sterling’s lap. His steady presence was the only anchor that dulled the chaos swirling in my mind. Despite everything I felt safe there, cocooned in the warmth of him.

He woke me gently, fingers brushing against my arm. “Aria…” His voice was low, coaxing. I blinked awake. It was already noon.

I yawned and stretched, the heaviness in my bones reminding me of how little rest I’d had.

“We can join the others now,” Sterling said, his hand still lingering on mine. “After that, we’ll leave.”

I stilled. “Leave? Has the culprit been found?”

“No.” His jaw tightened. “But your suspicions were right. The man in black isn’t one of us. He was probably hired by one of the families.”

Someone wanted me gone badly enough to bring in a professional.

“What about the one who planted the camera?” I pressed.

“Not found yet,” he admitted. “But they’ve promised to uncover it.”

I nodded, though unease gnawed
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  • Behind The Mask    Chapter 52: Fierce Inheritance

    Zara’s POVTime slipped by unnoticed. At some point, exhaustion pulled me under, and I drifted off on Sterling’s lap. His steady presence was the only anchor that dulled the chaos swirling in my mind. Despite everything I felt safe there, cocooned in the warmth of him.He woke me gently, fingers brushing against my arm. “Aria…” His voice was low, coaxing. I blinked awake. It was already noon.I yawned and stretched, the heaviness in my bones reminding me of how little rest I’d had.“We can join the others now,” Sterling said, his hand still lingering on mine. “After that, we’ll leave.”I stilled. “Leave? Has the culprit been found?”“No.” His jaw tightened. “But your suspicions were right. The man in black isn’t one of us. He was probably hired by one of the families.”Someone wanted me gone badly enough to bring in a professional.“What about the one who planted the camera?” I pressed.“Not found yet,” he admitted. “But they’ve promised to uncover it.”I nodded, though unease gnawed

  • Behind The Mask    Chapter 51: Blind Spots

    Zara's POV I was taken to a separate room. I couldn’t hold on to the details, Sterling’s voice, the detective’s words, everything blurred into a distant hum. My head spun, the room tilting as if the floor might give way beneath me.But through the chaos, one thing anchored me, Sterling’s hands. His palm wrapped firmly around mine, his other arm steadying me as if he could will my trembling body into stillness.The memory of Cassian pulling the trigger replayed again and again, a cruel reel etched into my mind. My chest tightened. For a terrifying second, I couldn’t breathe.Not again. Nothing will happen this time.I forced the thought into my bones, dragging in air until the panic eased its grip. Slowly, my lashes lifted. I was leaning on Sterling's body.“You’re safe,” he murmured, pulling me into his chest. His hand threaded gently through my hair, grounding me in the warmth of his voice. “Nothing will happen to you.”The knot in my throat finally loosened. “Thank you,” I whispere

  • Behind The Mask    Chapter 50: The Secret Recorder

    Zara’s POVThe room was suffocating with silence, broken only by the occasional scrape of a chair or a heavy breath. Cassian hadn’t said a word, too quiet, too calm. His stillness gnawed at me. When they all accused me earlier, he didn’t even flinch to defend me, not a word.I refused to believe he had anything to do with this. Not Cassian. Not yet. I wasn’t finished with him, and I’ll be damned if someone takes him off the board before I decide his fate.The detective walked back in, his face a storm of calculation. “We have the footage,” he announced. “But it involves Mr. and Mrs. Everhart’s privacy. We cannot play it for everyone.”The room shifted, whispers sparking instantly. My pulse quickened, but I held his gaze. “Play it,” I commanded.He hesitated. “We haven’t gone through it yet. If the footage exposes… nudity, or intimate matters, you might not want everyone to…”“I said play it.” I demanded. “I’ve been accused enough tonight. If you keep it hidden, they’ll say the Everha

  • Behind The Mask    Chapter 49: Unbroken

    Zara’s POVTessa sat frozen, lips trembling, unable to defend herself. A pitiful whimper escaped her throat. Nico, on the other hand, leaned back like he had all the time in the world, chewing his gum as though his name had never been dragged into the mud.I rose from my chair slowly, every pair of eyes was on me.“Shut the fuck up!” I snapped. The walls seemed to vibrate with my voice. Silence slammed into the room.“Let’s get a few things straight,” I said, my voice cold and cutting. “You’re all acting like side-key dump gossipers, and I’m tired of it.”“Watch your mouth,” Peterson barked, puffing himself up.I tilted my head, locked eyes with him, and let a dangerous smile curl on my lips. “You didn’t watch yours when you opened it. Why should I?”His jaw clenched. He looked away first.“First,” I continued, sweeping my gaze across the table, “I won your shares. I know that makes some of you bitter, and frankly, I don’t care. Cry about it in your own time, not here.”I let the word

  • Behind The Mask    Chapter 48: Every Alibi Bleeds

    Zara’s POVI heard every word of Sterling’s interview before he was ushered in. When he sat beside me and took my hand, the simple brush of his thumb steadied me. Then Cassian was called, and I listened closely to every sharp exchange in his interrogation. It’s ironic, tragic even, that the Blackwells are now tangled at the very center of this nightmare. My mind replayed the shadowed figure in black I saw before. I feel it in my bones, he is behind this. And yet why didn’t the footage catch him entering the building? Something wasn’t adding up.Cassian returned and lowered himself into the seat beside me, the silence between us suffocating. I kept wondering, would Cassian truly want me dead? What if he went out searching for a weapon and came back only to lash out at the wrong body under my sheets? Did my words to him earlier ignite a rage he couldn’t swallow?Six families already had reason to hate me after last night’s games. Six enemies with bloodshot eyes watching me win. Now i

  • Behind The Mask    Chapter 47: All of Us Are Guilty

    Sterling’s POVI stayed outside, waiting for Aria. The last thing I wanted was to make things more complicated for her, though a corpse found in her bed was already complicated enough.The morning air was sharp, carrying the hum of restless whispers from the others. I didn’t flinch when a man in a grey coat approached, his badge half-hidden in the fold.“Mr. Sterling Blackwell?”I arched a brow. “Who’s asking?”“Detective Paul. Please, come with me.”I followed him across the gravel path to the smaller annex near the mansion. The atmosphere inside was different, quieter and heavier. The elderly sat in the drawing room, masks of control hiding barely restrained panic. Cassian was there, but Aria was nowhere in sight, which troubled me more than I cared to admit.Immediately we entered the interrogation room, I cut them off before they had the chance to pounce. “Where is Aria?”“In the next room. You’ll see her after. We’ll start with you now,” one detective said, motioning to a chair.

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