All Chapters of Too Late to Regret: The Billionaire’s Unwanted Ex: Chapter 21 - Chapter 30

The silence in the penthouse was heavier than the noise had been. The shards of the obsidian cube lay on the floor like dead stars."We have ten minutes," Lucian said, his voice stripping the room of panic and replacing it with military precision. "Elara, pack warm clothes. No electronics. No tablets, no smartwatches, no digital toys. If it has a battery, it stays here.""Where are we going?" Elara asked, already moving to grab a duffel bag. She didn't argue. She had heard the voice in the walls."Somewhere he can't hack," Lucian replied. He walked over to the wall safe behind a painting. He didn't punch in a code; he used a physical key. Inside was a stack of cash and a revolver. He took both.Leo was sitting on the floor, hugging his knees. "I can't bring my tablet?" he whispered, looking devastated. "But... how will I help?"Lucian knelt, grabbing Leo’s shoulders firmly. "You help by being invisible, Leo. Right now, your brain is the target. We need to take you off the grid."The G

The '69 Mustang rumbled into the outskirts of New York City just as the sun began to bleed through the gray clouds. They didn't go to Manhattan. They went to Queens, to an unmarked warehouse in an industrial district.This was ScentTech’s "Skunkworks"—a small, off-the-books lab Elara used for hazardous material testing. It had no smart locks, no cameras connected to the cloud, and crucially, manual ventilation."Get the kids inside," Lucian ordered, scanning the empty street. "I’ll cover the car."Inside, the air smelled of ozone and sterile glass. Elara didn't waste a second. She grabbed a lab coat, pulling it over her muddy clothes."I need three hours," she said, tying her hair back. "And I need Julian."Lucian stiffened. "Julian?""He’s a doctor, Lucian. If things go wrong... if you get exposed to the compound... I need someone who knows how to treat respiratory distress. And he’s the only person left on this earth I trust with the twins."Lucian clenched his jaw, battling his pri

The drive from Thorne Tower to the Queens warehouse was the longest of Lucian’s life. The adrenaline that had sustained him during the confrontation with Silas was fading, replaced by a bone-deep exhaustion.He reached across the center console of the Mustang, seeking Elara’s hand. She interlaced her fingers with his immediately. Her grip was tight, an anchor in the storm."You’re shaking," she whispered, rubbing her thumb over his knuckles."I’m fine," Lucian lied, staring at the road."Lucian," she said softly. "You just took down the man who haunted you for thirty years. You’re allowed to shake."Lucian let out a long breath he felt like he’d been holding since he was seven years old. He brought her hand to his lips and kissed it. "I just want to see them. I need to see them."The Warehouse – 8:30 PMThe metal roll-up door rattled open. Inside, under the hum of the industrial lights, Julian was sitting on a crate, reading a medical journal. Mia was asleep on a makeshift bed of lab

The morning after the gala felt like a fever dream. The sapphire on Elara’s finger caught the light of the rising sun, casting blue prisms across the breakfast nook. For a few hours, the world was quiet. Leo was busy showing Mia how to "properly" eat a croissant, and Lucian was actually ignoring his three buzzing phones to watch Elara brew coffee."You’re staring," Elara said, a playful smile on her lips."I’m admiring my investment," Lucian teased, pulling her into the crook of his arm. "The market opened ten minutes ago. Thorne Industries and ScentTech are being viewed as a single powerhouse. We’re invincible.""Nobody is invincible, Lucian," Elara cautioned, though she leaned into his heat. "We still have the trial, and the media circus, and—"The heavy oak doors of the penthouse didn't just open; they were retracted by security as if a hurricane were approaching.A woman walked in.She wasn't running or shouting. She moved with a terrifying, glacial grace. She wore a suit of ivory

The headline on the Manhattan Chronicle’s digital front page was a masterpiece of character assassination: "THE SCENT OF DECEPTION: Did Elara Vance Steal the Throne Jewels?"The article, backed by "anonymous sources" within the Thorne legal team, claimed that Elara’s original formulas for ScentTech were actually stolen from a private lab owned by Silas Thorne. Worse, it hinted at a darker past—alleging that during her five years in hiding, Elara had been involved in "fringe medical testing" and had neglected her children to fund her business."It’s a Moral Turpitude hit," Lucian roared, pacing the length of his study. "Beatrice isn't just trying to embarrass you. She’s triggering the 'Character Clause' of the Council. If the Five Families believe you’re a thief and an unfit mother, they can legally sever your ties to the Thorne estate. You’ll be barred from the Gala."Elara sat at the table, her face pale but her eyes cold. "She’s lying about the formulas. I have the patent dates. I h