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Chapter 19: The Iron Empress2
Date de publication:
2026-01-15 00:44:21
Latest chapter
The Billionaire’s Discarded Bride Chapter 191: Tom's Trauma
Bella POVTom slept in our bed for the first week.He didn't ask. On our first night home from the hospital, the doctors had cleared him, and the FBI was done asking questions. I had given him a bath, put him in his dinosaur pyjamas, and read him three books. Caleb sat on the other side of him, doing voices for the characters. When the books were finished, Tom simply didn't move. He lay between us with his hand tucked into mine, his eyes wide open, watching the ceiling."You can sleep," I told him."I know," he said."We're both here.""I know," he said again, and didn't close his eyes.I looked at Caleb over Tom's head as Caleb looked back at me. Neither of us suggested moving him.At some point in the early hours Tom fell asleep with his fingers still wrapped around mine.I lay there in the dark, listening to him breathe and thinking about the last forty-eight hours. I thought about the warehouse floor, his shaking body, and his voice crying, Mommy, Mommy, Mommy. I did not sleep at
The Billionaire’s Discarded Bride Chapter 190: Caught
Jade pov "Yes," I said."Am I speaking with Jade Hart?" It was a woman's voice.Something cold moved through me."Who is this?" I asked."Special Agent Dana Reyes," she said. "FBI. Miss Hart, I need you to stay exactly where you are."Agent Reyes, I looked out the window at the river. The boat had moved so far down that I could no longer see it."How did you get this number?" I asked."We've had it for weeks," Reyes said. Her voice was just like I had heard before. "Miss Hart, I need you to stay exactly where you are."I looked around the room. The boring furniture, the bag I hadn't fully unpacked, and the second laptop open on the table."I don't know what you think""Fourteenth floor, facing east," she said. "Canary Wharf. We've been outside the building for eleven minutes."I closed my eyes.In the end, it was M. It was always going to be M—useful right up until the moment he became more scared of the police than he was of losing my money. I had known that was a possibility and us
The Billionaire’s Discarded Bride Chapter 189: Jade planning
Jade pov What I had not accounted for was sitting in the van, watching the live feed from that grey room, and seeing a five-year-old refuse to cry. He eventually cried. At the end, when he had nothing left. But for the first six hours, he had simply sat there. Back against the wall, knees to his chest, jaw set in that way that was so completely Caleb's face on a child's face it made me want to put my fist through something. He had talked to the wall. He had pressed his hand flat against the floor like he was steadying himself. He had looked at the camera once, directly, like he knew someone was watching, and then looked away with the deliberate composure of someone who had decided not to give whoever was watching the satisfaction. He was five years old. And when Marco had brought him food—a simple enough gesture, intended to keep him cooperative and quiet—Tom had looked at the plate, looked at Marco, and said, very clearly, "No thank you." I had heard it through the feed and fel
The Billionaire’s Discarded Bride Chapter 188: Jade
Jade POVThe call came at 7:43 AM.I was on my third coffee of the morning, standing at the big window of my Mayfair flat in a silk robe. I watched the street below fill with people as the city woke up. I hadn't slept, and I hadn't even tried. Sleeping on a night like this would have been impossible, and I had stopped pretending otherwise.My phone buzzed on the marble counter. The number was one I had memorised and never saved.I answered on the second ring."Talk to me," I said.The voice on the other end was fast, shaky, and wrong in all the ways I had been dreading. "It's ruined. The police are here, the boy is out. I'm moving."I set my coffee cup down very carefully on the counter."Where are you?" I asked."East side. I've got maybe four minutes before""Stop." My voice came out flat and cold. "Don't call this number again. Don't contact anyone else. You're on your own from here, do you understand me?"There was a pause. "We had an agreement""The agreement was only if you succ
The Billionaire’s Discarded Bride Chapter 187: The Reveal
Bella pov Caleb got up first and lifted Tom onto his back. Tom's arms looped around his neck. Then Caleb reached down and pulled me up, and he didn't let go of my hand once I was standing. I didn't want him to. We were halfway down the corridor. Tom had his chin hooked over Caleb's shoulder. He watched the hallway go past with that quiet, thinking look he always got when he was learning something new. "This is a big building," he said. "It is," Caleb said. "It smells funny, Daddy." "Old buildings often do." Tom was quiet for a minute. Then he said, "Dad?" "Yeah." "I told the wall about dinosaurs," he said. "When it got too quiet, I told it everything." He stopped for a second. "I know a whole lot." "I know you do," Caleb said. His voice sounded like it was about to break. "Do you think walls can hear things?" "I think if any wall was ever going to hear something, it was hearing that." Tom thought about this very seriously. "Good," he said. "Then it wasn't bad." He hugg
The Billionaire’s Discarded Bride Chapter 186: The Rescue
Bella POVThe building smelled of rust and old machine oil. At 6:10 AM, the silence was heavy and thick—the kind that makes every footstep feel like a shout.I had never worn a tactical vest before. It sat heavy on my shoulders, but I was grateful for the weight. It gave me something concrete to focus on that wasn't the image of Tom crying my name into his knees.Agent Reyes's team split at the fence line. Four agents headed for the freight entrance. A single agent named Torres, who moved with the kind of silence that comes from years of training, led Caleb and me toward the west fire escape. The old metal vibrated with every step, but Torres moved up it without making a sound. Caleb was right behind me. On the third landing, he placed his hand briefly against the small of my back—not pushing me, just letting me know he was there.We reached the second-floor door at 6:14.Torres checked his earpiece. He held up one finger, then two, waiting for the signal from Reyes.I could hear my
The Billionaire’s Discarded Bride Chapter 62: Not claiming
Caleb pov "You're right, I don't get to claim anything." I moved to stand beside her at the railing, careful not to touch. "But I want you to know what I've learned, how I've changed. I've been in therapy for years trying to undo the damage my father did. I've cut ties with everyone who knew the t
Dernière mise à jour : 2026-03-27The Billionaire’s Discarded Bride Chapter 66: United Fonts
Bella pov "Fine, but I want final approval on all PR statements.""Done, and I want you to review the legal strategy against Jade and Richard."We spent the next hour going over details, falling into the easy rhythm of business discussion. This I could handle, Caleb the CEO was someone I could spa
Dernière mise à jour : 2026-03-27The Billionaire’s Discarded Bride Chapter 47: Caleb And Tom
Caleb pov "Do you want to rest for a bit?" Maya suggested, moving closer."Can Caleb read me the penguin book?" Tom asked, already grabbing it. "Please?"I looked at Bella, asking permission without words. She hesitated for a long moment, then gave a small nod."I'd love to read to you," I said.T
Dernière mise à jour : 2026-03-24The Billionaire’s Discarded Bride Chapter 50: Hart Family Returns
Bella POVThursday morning started like any other. I was in my temporary office at Hart Worldwide's Silverton branch, reviewing acquisition proposals, when my assistant knocked on the door with an anxious expression."Ms. Hart, you have visitors," Jennifer said, her voice tight. "They don't have an
Dernière mise à jour : 2026-03-24
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