He looked at her quickly, the edge in his eyes softening. But she didn’t say anything. She kept her mouth tightly closed. Though she appeared composed, he knew she was breaking inside.
He turned his sharp gaze to Hailee once more and warned her dangerously. “Even if it's mine, I will never recognize it. So you better come out from your schemes, Hailee, or else I will be the one to take that monster out from your body.”
He dragged Eve back to the lift, but Margaret's cane made a loud clang on the floor as she struck it in anger.
“She’s carrying your child. That makes her part of this family now. How can you just simply kill your own blood? No Harris abandons their children! You will acknowledge this child whether you like it or not,” Margaret snarled at Alex in a hard voice.
Alex stopped in his tracks, turned slowly to his grandmother, and sneered coldly. “Rea
Victor's burial was held on a quiet hill just outside the city. The entire Harris family was present. Though he had walked a dark path, Victor was still Alex and Jaxon’s half-brother—and his memory was honored with quiet reverence.Eve stood beside Alex as they lowered the casket into the earth. She felt his hand grip hers tightly, as if anchoring himself to the present while mourning the past. There were no words spoken, just the soft sound of the wind and the occasional sniffle.Old Lady Margaret laid a white rose atop the grave. “May peace find you,” she whispered.A week later after Victor's burial, Alex made a decision that sent waves across York State—he stepped down from his role as CEO of Galaxy Empire Group. The news shocked shareholders and the entire business world. Jaxon, initially resistant, eventually took over the throne his twin brother had carried for so long.“I’ll never fill your shoes,” Jaxon said.“You’re not meant to,” Alex replied with a quiet ease. “You’ll d
On the rescue vessel...Eve was already rescued by Earl and Rupert—their ship was already near Caroline's, but just as Rupert dispatched the reinforcement team, the cargo ship exploded—leaving only a hell-like wreckage. The ship was completely blown apart.And Eve watched how it blasted in horror. Her knees gave out witnessing as the ship exploded beyond recognition.She clutched her stomach as tears spilled down her cheeks.Her husband was still there! And so was Jaxon and John.“No… Alex!” she screamed—but her voice was lost in the roar.Her head spun—and everything went dark. She couldn't take the pressure anymore.She fainted, falling limp in Earl’s arms.___Eve woke up in an all-white surrounding, and the smell of disinfectant was the first thing that greeted her. Then came the soft beeping of a heart monitor—and she immediately guessed she was in the hospital.Her eyes were still closed—groggy—but she clearly remembered the explosion of the ship last night.And Alex…Her heart
Eve slowly opened her eyes—only to find herself in a dark room. Her head was still fuzzy from the residue of the medicine she had inhaled yesterday.The last thing she remembered, she was having a meal in her suite when she heard someone knocking outside. And when she opened the door, she was knocked out.Her body still ached from her struggle to break free. When her mind finally cleared, her hands immediately flew to her belly.Her child!Fortunately, she didn’t feel anything wrong inside or any pain in her lower abdomen. Her baby was safe.She tried to sit up and scanned her eyes around the whole area—hoping to find some light. But there was nothing out there, only endless darkness.She slowly stood up and walked through the darkness like someone blind, until her hands found a cold metal wall.Where was she?A sudden, bone-chilling coldness crept into her heart. She could hear the faint sound of a whirring engine and the waves of the ocean. If she wasn’t mistaken, she was on a ship.
The air blowing at Blackwater Pier was biting and cold—carrying the strong smell of saltwater.Alex stood there alone, the wind brushing past him as waves hit the docks with steady rhythm. His eyes locked on the dark sea ahead.Somewhere out there, Eve was waiting.Somewhere on a ship that shouldn’t even be there, boarded by the last person he ever wanted to see again—Caroline.Earlier that day, everything had already moved into motion. Daniel had successfully breached their surveillance. The system wasn’t easy to crack, but he got in and found the exact position of the ship. It was a disguised cargo vessel, voyaging back to Finnland. It looked ordinary from a distance, but Daniel’s intel told a different story.It was one of Victor's cargo ships that carried their illegal shipments back and forth. In Daniel's estimation, there must be thirty armed men patrolling it day and night, aside from the ship's crew.Caroline wasn’t playing games this time. She had been plotting this for a whi
Alex’s grip on his phone tightened at the sound of that venomous voice on the other end. The device pressed against his ear nearly cracked from the pressure.“Caroline…” he said firmly through clenched teeth.A soft, mocking laugh filled the line.“I’m glad you still remember me, my dear stepson.”Alex signaled to Daniel to trace the call, but Caroline was a step ahead.“Don’t bother tracking this call. Even if you had the top hacker in the world, you still wouldn’t find my location,” she said with dripping sarcasm.Alex nearly exploded.“Caroline… if you so much as touch a strand of Evie’s hair, I swear I’ll kill you. This time, I’ll make sure you burn to ashes.”Caroline laughed again—crisp, cruel, and echoing through the line.“Oh Alex, do you think I’m scared of your little threat?” She laughed once more.“I’ve been through hell. I’m not afraid to die. But how about you? Are you ready to exchange your life for the woman you love?”It was an ultimatum.Alex’s fists cracked from how
The moment Victor’s last breath left him and he finally said his last goodbye of acknowledgment, Alex stood beside his brother's dead body in silence for a little while once more—letting the chaos around him dull into a blur.But that quiet didn’t last.He still had to locate wherever his wife had been hidden.Medics had already been evacuating the other guests trapped underground, as well as the dead bodies of Victor's men. When Victor's men’s bodies were already taken away, Alex also followed out of the atrium with Daniel flanking his side.Rupert and John were already outside and talking to the police. When John spotted him, he immediately relayed that the rest of the men had already been dispatched. Without wasting a moment, he gave a single command—short, sharp, and urgent.“Search the Phoenix Hotel. Every floor, every locked room, every goddamn corner. Eve was held there. He said it himself.”John immediately followed and took the lead without another word, while Daniel stayed b