Semua Bab Behind The Mask : Bab 41 - Bab 50

Zara’s POVThe party naturally fractured as the night deepened. The elders drifted to the rooftop, nursing aged scotch and cigars, their laughter a low rumble as they observed us from above like watchful gods.A message came, Mr. Everhart wanted me. I slipped away from the music and found him on the rooftop among his circle of old-world friends. I offered smiles, handshakes, polite nods, every gesture perfectly rehearsed.That’s when I saw it. A man lifted his hand, fingers forming a sign. The same cryptic gesture Dr. Henry had made at the hospital. And he wasn’t the only one, several others mirrored it, subtle but deliberate, like a language whispered in plain sight.“So, when will she join us?” the host of the evening asked, his tone casual, but his eyes sharp.Mr. Everhart’s gaze settled on me, steady and knowing. “Soon,” he replied. “It’ll happen soon. Relax.”Join what?The word lodged itself in my chest, cold and heavy. This was the second time I’d heard it, that strange phrasin

Zara’s POVAfter winning the Carringtons, the air inside the hall was electric, the champagne-scented kind of silence that only happens when fortunes are at stake. By now, nearly everyone had abandoned the dance floor and gathered around the long green-felt table, their jewels glittering under chandeliers, eyes hungry as they watched me climb.They whispered as I played. Some swore I was cheating. Others swore I was blessed with impossible luck. Either way, I was winning, and in this room, winning meant power.Mr. Everhart, stoic as marble, betrayed nothing, but I caught the faint curve at the corner of his mouth, pride he refused to wear openly. He was watching me drag the Everhart name up the ladder, one ruthless hand at a time. I beat five families already, some shares lower than twenty, but still, it's a lot.The final opponent was the one everyone had been waiting for: Vanderlyn, our host. His son Peterson slid into the chair across from me with the cool arrogance of someone who

Zara’s POVThe noise grew louder outside, shouts and gasps echoing through the early morning air. I checked the time, almost 5 a.m.“Shit,” I muttered, heart racing. “I didn’t even realize morning had crept in.”“You should leave first. I’ll follow after,” Sterling said, his voice low and urgent.“Okay. And remember we were never together,” I reminded.“Got it.”I slipped my robe over my nightdress and stepped into the chill. The wind bit against my skin as I made my way toward the front of the building.Sandra’s screams split the dawn, raw and hysterical. Guests in nightclothes spilled out, voices layering into a chaotic hum. My pulse quickened. Something was wrong, very wrong.I spotted Tessa and Nico in the crowd. Tessa’s face was streaked with tears, her hands trembling. I rushed to them.“Tessa, what is it?” I asked, but before I could say more, she turned, her eyes going wide. Relief and fear flickered across her face.She threw her arms around me, clinging like she’d been holdi

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

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