Lahat ng Kabanata ng The Billionaire's secret baby bride : Kabanata 161 - Kabanata 170

The rain came down harder by morning, cold and relentless. It washed the blood from Alexander’s sleeve and turned the dirt road into dark mud. He didn’t seem to notice. His focus was fixed ahead — on the stretch of cracked asphalt that led deeper into the mountain range.Isabella followed quietly, her boots sloshing through puddles. The world around them had narrowed to sound — the drip of rain, the hum of the wind, and the low crackle of static from the broken comm unit Alexander carried.“How far?” she asked, shivering.“Five clicks, maybe less.” His voice was steady, the same measured calm that had carried them through gunfire and chaos. “Old records called it Site Twelve. But that’s not what the Circle named it.”“What did they call it?”He glanced at her. “The Womb.”Her heart clenched at the word. “The Womb?”“Where Echelon was born,” he said. “And where it should’ve died.”They moved in silence after that. The forest thickened, trees pressing in tight on both sides. The smell o

Alexander’s POVThe night after we left the Leclair estate felt longer than any I’d lived. The city lights outside the penthouse windows blurred into streaks of gold and red. Isabella sat across the room, silent, knees drawn up on the couch, staring into nothing.Every time she blinked, I could tell she saw him—Vincent.And every time I looked at her, I saw what that bastard had done.I wanted to destroy him. Not just ruin his business or name. I wanted him to feel what it was like to lose control—piece by piece, until he had nothing left to cling to.But right now, Isabella mattered more.“You haven’t said a word since we got back,” I said, keeping my voice low.She didn’t move. “If I talk, I’ll scream.”“Then scream,” I said. “Don’t hold it in.”Her eyes flicked to me, glistening with something sharp. “You think that’s going to help? You think I haven’t been screaming in my head since I was sixteen?”Her voice cracked at the end, and that sound shattered something in me.I moved clo

Isabella’s POVHospitals always smell like fear.That sharp, sterile scent that no amount of cleaning can hide—the scent of things too fragile to control.I sat in the hallway outside the ICU, fingers tangled in each other, my heart still pounding from the night before.Vincent Leclair was still alive. Barely.They’d dragged him out of our penthouse covered in blood, muttering something incoherent before collapsing. The police swarmed the place within minutes.Alexander had been patched up for a bullet graze, and I hadn’t let go of his hand since.Now, the world outside was burning with speculation.“Leclair in critical condition after shootout.”“Whistleblower couple tied to corporate conspiracy.”Every headline made my stomach twist.Alexander paced the corridor, one arm bandaged, jaw tight. “They’re saying he might not make it through the night,” he muttered.His tone wasn’t victory. It was exhaustion.“Do you want him to?” I asked quietly.He stopped pacing, met my eyes. “Part of

(Isabella’s POV)The explosion shook the ground miles away.Even behind reinforced walls, the shockwave hit like thunder — rattling windows, toppling a vase, and making my heart stop mid-beat.“Turn it up!” I yelled, rushing toward the monitor room.Nico was already there, headset pressed to his ear, voice clipped and sharp. “We’ve lost visual on the refinery. It’s gone. The entire block’s burning.”“No—no, no…” My knees almost gave out. “He’s there.”Nico turned, face grim. “We don’t know that yet.”“Yes, we do,” I snapped. “He went after Adrian.”Static hissed through the comm feed — faint, broken, and then—“Still… here.”My breath caught. “That’s Alexander.”Nico’s head snapped toward me. “Where?”The signal fizzled, then died.I grabbed the nearest gear bag and slung it over my shoulder. “Get the car.”“Isabella—”“I’m not waiting.”He moved to block me. “Alex gave strict orders—”“I don’t care what orders he gave!” I shoved past him, adrenaline pounding through every nerve. “If

Isabella’s POVWhen the second alarm screamed through the mansion, the sound cut through me like a blade. I felt it all the way inside my chest. Something like fear. Something like adrenaline. Something like the sinking realization that my life would never return to what it once was.But most of all, something like certainty.Because Alexander did not let go of my hand.He gripped it strongly, never loosening for even a heartbeat. And even in this chaos, even with guns firing in the distance and the estate shaking beneath our feet, I felt safer with him than I had ever felt with anyone in my life.We sprinted through the main hall. Smoke drifted from somewhere above us. Shouting echoed down the corridors, overlapping, clashing. I could hear Liam shouting orders on our left. Tessa’s footsteps ran behind us. Guards rushed past, forming defensive lines.Everything was breaking apart.Everything was war.My mind raced with every step.The Circle. My father. The Orpheus Sequence. Some gene