All Chapters of Lust Under Lies. she want more : Chapter 51 - Chapter 60

Nickey hadn't slept in three days. Every time he closed his eyes, he saw his father's face. Planning. Plotting. Waiting to strike.Hope was different now. After using her abilities to protect thousands, something had shifted. She was quieter. More withdrawn. Like the weight of what she'd done was crushing her."You saved people," Trina told her. "That's good. That's what heroes do.""Heroes don't exist," Hope said flatly. "The Architects showed me. Every species that creates heroes fails. Because heroes mean someone has to save everyone else. That's not evolution. That's dependence.""You're five years old. You shouldn't think like this.""I'm five and I've seen species die. I've watched civilizations end. I'm not a normal five-year-old. Stop pretending I am."Sarah entered the safe house. "We have a bigger problem. Governments worldwide are fracturing. Half want to cooperate with the Architects. Half want to fight. Civil wars are starting in seventeen countries.""Because of us?""Be

**Chapter 46: **Hope walked through the ruins of Michael's estate alone. The mansion was gone. Burned years ago. But the garden remained. Roses still grew wild around the fountain. The place where everything started.Where Nickey had first kissed Trina. Where the affair ignited. Where betrayal became love became destruction.Catherine sat on the fountain's edge. Alive. Real. Not a clone. Not a trick."Hello, granddaughter. You came.""You said you'd prove my other grandmother is alive. Prove it."Catherine pulled out a tablet. Showed security footage. A woman entering a building. Nickey's mother. Older but unmistakable."That was filmed yesterday. She's alive. Has been this entire time. Watching. Planning. Using everyone.""Why would she fake her death?""Because she's smarter than me. Than your grandfather. Than anyone. She created the Architects."Hope's blood went cold. "What?""The aliens. They're not real. They're AI. Quantum computers. Programmed by your grandmother thirty year

Hope collapsed.Blood trickled from her nose. Her eyes. The strain of fighting grandmother's defenses had drained her completely.Trina caught her before she hit the floor. "No, baby, stay with me—""Can't... stop her..." Hope's voice was barely audible. "Too strong... the system... it's already..."Forty-five. Forty-four. Forty-three.Nickey's mother stood. "Touching. The child tried so hard. But children always fail against their elders. That's the natural order."Marcus's voice crackled through their earpieces. "I'm detecting weapons systems activating globally. Biological agents. Neurological disruptors. She's not bluffing. This is actually happening."James moved toward the console. Nickey's mother raised her hand. He flew backward into the wall. Didn't get up."Anyone else want to play hero?"Thirty-eight. Thirty-seven. Thirty-six.Nickey's mind raced. There had to be something. Some weakness. Some flaw in her plan. But looking at her face—his mother's face—he saw only certainty

"You died." Nickey's voice shook. "I watched them bury you. I was twelve years old. I threw dirt on your coffin.""You threw dirt on an empty box." His father stepped over unconscious soldiers. Older now. Grayer. But unmistakably him. "Your mother needed me gone. I complied. Faked my death. Disappeared. Spent two decades building what comes next.""Which is what exactly?""Insurance. Against exactly this scenario. Against your mother going rogue. Against the Council trying to weaponize children. Against everything that's happening right now."Trina moved between them. Gun raised. "Who sent you? Council? Someone else?""I sent myself. I'm not with the Council. Never was. Your handlers think they're in control but they're puppets too. Everyone's a puppet. Except me. I cut my strings years ago.""Prove you're really his father," Marcus demanded. "Could be a trick. Hologram. Clone. Anything."The man looked at Nickey. "When you were seven, you broke your arm falling off the garage roof. T

The Blackthorn facility wasn't a prison. It was worse. It was comfortable.Private rooms. Excellent food. Training facilities for the children. Medical care. Everything they needed except freedom.Nickey watched through his window as Genesis taught the younger children hand-to-hand combat. Brutal. Efficient. No mercy. Hope sat on the sidelines. Powerless. Useless. Fading into nothing.Three weeks and she'd barely spoken. Barely eaten. The girl who'd sacrificed everything was withering without purpose."She needs you," Trina's voice came from behind. First time she'd spoken to him in days."She needs her power back. Which is impossible.""Is it?" Trina moved closer. Close enough he could smell her perfume. The same one she'd worn the first night they'd slept together. "Director Chen has resources. Technology beyond anything we've seen. Maybe she can fix Hope.""At what cost? Everything here costs something.""Maybe some costs are worth paying."He turned. She was dressed for someone. N