All Chapters of BOUND BY BLOOD AND BILLIONS: Chapter 11 - Chapter 18

18 Chapters

Blood and Medicine

EmilyViolet's breathing sounded like paper tearing. Each breath came shorter than the last, her small chest fighting for air that wouldn't come. The fever had spiked to 105 degrees an hour ago, and her lips were turning blue around the edges.I pressed my ear to her chest. Her heartbeat fluttered like a dying bird."Mama," she whispered, her voice so weak I had to lean close to hear. "I'm cold."But her skin burned like fire under my touch. The medicine Alexander had given me earlier wasn't working. If anything, she was getting worse.I looked at the bottle in my hands. The label was right - same prescription, same dosage Violet had been taking for months. But something was wrong. The liquid inside looked thinner than usual, almost watery.A sound echoed from downstairs. Catherine's heels clicking across the marble floor, getting closer."I don't care what that girl thinks," Catherine's voice carried up the stairs. "She's nothing but trouble. First Jason, now this drama with the poli

Last Updated : 2025-08-21

The Shadow Network

AlexanderThe whiskey burned going down, but it did nothing to quiet the voices in my head. I sat in my study at 3 AM, staring at the file spread across my desk. Emily's file. Every detail of her life mapped out like a battle plan.But battles weren't supposed to feel like this.I picked up the photo Vincent had taken six months ago - Emily leaving the hospital with Violet in her arms, both of them crying. Perfect. Vulnerable. Exactly what the arrangement required."Subject exhibits optimal characteristics for Phase Twelve," I'd written in the margins. "Proceed with acquisition."Acquisition. Like she was a piece of property instead of a woman who made my chest tight when she smiled.The intercom buzzed on my desk. "Mr. Richie? There's a call for you. Line two."I checked the clock. Who the hell called at three in the morning?"Alexander." The voice on the other end was smooth, cultured, with just a hint of an accent I'd never been able to place. My handler. The man who'd given me eve

Last Updated : 2025-08-21

Allies in Darkness

SarahThe text message sat on my phone screen, unread for three days. Just like the seven messages before it."Em, are you okay? Haven't heard from you since the wedding. Violet feeling better?"Nothing. Complete silence from the woman who used to text me twelve times a day about everything from Violet's temperature to what she had for breakfast.I paced around my tiny apartment, stepping over toys Marcus had left scattered on the floor. My boyfriend was at work, pulling a double shift at the warehouse, and the silence was driving me crazy."This isn't like her," I muttered to my reflection in the bathroom mirror. "Emily's paranoid about staying in touch. Always worried something might happen to Violet."The wedding had been so sudden. One day Emily was crying about medical bills, the next she was married to some rich guy and moving into a mansion. She'd called me once from her new house, voice strangely flat."Everything's perfect, Sarah. Violet's getting the best care. I don't need

Last Updated : 2025-08-27

The Perfect Replacement

EmilyViolet slept peacefully for the first time in days. Her fever had broken, and color was returning to her pale cheeks. I sat beside her bed, watching her chest rise and fall with steady breaths, trying not to think about the insulin syringe hidden in Catherine's room.They were going to kill me tonight. I knew it with the certainty of prey sensing a predator's approach.But first, I needed answers. I needed to understand exactly what I'd walked into when I married Alexander.The house was quiet. Catherine had gone to bed an hour ago, Alexander was locked in his study, and the servants had finished their evening duties. This might be my only chance to explore the parts of the mansion I'd never seen.I slipped out of our tiny attic room, leaving the door cracked so I could hear if Violet stirred. The main house felt different at night - bigger, more menacing. Shadows stretched across expensive paintings of dead family members, their painted eyes seeming to follow my movements.I'd

Last Updated : 2025-08-27

Chapter 15: Breaking Point

Catherine Richie sat in her private study, the same room where she'd planned twelve deaths over the past five years. Her fingers traced the rim of her crystal wine glass as she stared at the photographs spread across her mahogany desk. Twelve faces, all looking so similar it was almost eerie. Twelve young mothers who had dared to touch what belonged to her.The latest photo showed Emily's frightened face from the security cameras. Catherine picked it up, her manicured nails digging into the paper until it crumpled at the edges."You stupid girl," she whispered to the photograph. "You actually thought you could replace Elizabeth."The memory of Elizabeth still burned in Catherine's chest like acid. Beautiful, gentle Elizabeth who had stolen Alexander's heart and turned her son into a lovesick fool. Catherine had watched in horror as her brilliant, ambitious Alexander became soft, distracted by a woman who was nothing more than a pretty face with a sob story.Catherine opened her desk d

Last Updated : 2025-08-29

Chapter 16: The Underground

MarcusI sat in my dimly lit office behind the strip club, staring at the phone that had been ringing for the past ten minutes. I knew who was calling. I knew what they wanted. And I knew that answering meant crossing a line I'd been dancing around for three years.The phone fell silent, then immediately started ringing again."Shit," I muttered, running my hands through my graying hair. I'd known this day would come eventually. The day when providing information wouldn't be enough anymore.My office door burst open without a knock. Jazz Martinez stormed in, her dark eyes flashing with anger. At twenty-eight, she was ten years younger than me, with the kind of fierce beauty that could stop traffic. She was also the only person who dared to enter my office uninvited."Marcus, what the hell is going on?" She slammed a newspaper down on my desk. The headline read: "Local Woman Questioned in Stepson's Death."Emily's photo stared up at us from the front page.I felt my stomach drop. "Jazz

Last Updated : 2025-08-29

Chapter 17: Mother's Love

EmilyI pressed my back against the cold attic wall, listening to footsteps moving through the house below. Violet was sleeping in my arms, her fever finally broken thanks to the real medicine I'd stolen from Catherine's cabinet. Her small body felt so light, so fragile. I couldn't let them hurt her."Mommy?" Violet's voice was barely a whisper. "Are we playing hide and seek?""Something like that, baby." I smoothed her hair, trying to keep my voice calm. "We need to be very quiet, okay?"Through the small attic window, I could see the garden below. The main gate was visible from here, along with two security guards patrolling the grounds. Catherine wasn't taking any chances tonight.I'd tried the servants' entrance an hour ago, but it was locked from the outside. The kitchen door had an alarm system I didn't know how to disable. Even the basement exit led to a courtyard surrounded by high walls topped with security cameras.We were trapped."Mommy, I'm scared." Violet's tiny hand gri

Last Updated : 2025-08-30

Chapter 18: The Choice

AlexanderI stared at Emily and Violet huddled together in Elizabeth's secret room, my heart hammering against my ribs. The syringe in my mother's hand caught the dim light like a weapon of judgment. This moment had been coming for weeks, maybe months. I just hadn't wanted to see it."Take the syringe, Alexander." Mother's voice was calm, businesslike. "It's time you stopped being a child and became the man this family needs."Emily's eyes met mine through the shadows. She wasn't begging or crying like the others had. She was just looking at me with a kind of sad understanding, as if she'd always known it would end this way."Please," she whispered, but not to me. She was talking to Violet, trying to keep her daughter calm. "Close your eyes, baby. Just close your eyes.""Don't make this harder than it has to be," Mother said, holding out the syringe. "She knew what she was getting into when she married you. They always do, deep down."I took the syringe with trembling hands. The weigh

Last Updated : 2025-08-31

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