All Chapters of The Night Before Christmas: Chapter 161 - Chapter 170

The room remained silent after my words. I could see it in their eyes.Shock.Curiosity.Disbelief.None of them could picture the woman sitting before them as the person the underworld once feared. That was probably for the best. Because the woman they knew today no longer existed.At least not completely.I leaned back in my chair and stared at the rain beyond the windows. The memories felt strangely alive.As though only yesterday I had been standing inside that unfinished building with blood on my clothes and revenge in my heart."The men who killed my father followed me."Jane frowned."You knew they were coming?"I nodded."Of course, I was a witness to their crime."The answer came easily."They wanted to eliminate his successor."My gaze drifted towards Desmond."They wanted me dead before I could become a problem."A faint smile touched my lips."Unfortunately for them, they gave me time to think."That had always been my greatest strength.Not my aim.Not my reputation.Not

Aviel's POVThe first sign that something was wrong arrived shortly after sunrise.I stood alone inside the penthouse overlooking the sea, staring at the endless stretch of grey water beyond the glass. The storm from the previous night had finally passed.The sky was clear, and the ocean looked calm.Yet something felt wrong.The unease had followed me since waking. A sensation I rarely experienced.Fear.I hated fear.Fear was for weak people.Fear was for people who lacked control.And for most of my life, control had been the one thing I never allowed myself to lose.My phone vibrated.I glanced at the screen.One of my remaining contacts.A man who normally never called unless absolutely necessary.I answered immediately."What is it?"Silence greeted me for a moment.Then came the words."Helina is dead."Everything inside me froze.The room suddenly felt colder."What?"The word escaped before I could stop it.The man repeated himself.This time slower.More carefully. As though

Desmond's POVThe interrogation room was colder than the rest of the building. The air carried the sterile scent of disinfectant and metal. Fluorescent lights hummed softly overhead, casting harsh reflections across the steel table positioned in the centre of the room.I stood beside the observation window with Daniel and James while officers escorted Fabien inside. Aria and Caroline, were seated together on a chair provided them.For a man who had just been arrested while attempting to flee the country disguised as a woman, he looked remarkably calm.His wrists were restrained. His expensive suit had been replaced with prison clothing. Yet the confidence remained.The moment he entered the room, a smile touched his lips. Not the smile of a defeated man, but a smile of someone who still believed he held power.Fabien lowered himself into the chair and glanced around leisurely. "Mr Howard, you can go in now," the officer said to me."I want to come too," Aria said holding my arm and s

Aviel's POVThe penthouse no longer felt like a kingdom. It felt like a prison with expensive furniture.I stood beside the floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the sea, watching sunlight dance across the water. The view had once filled me with satisfaction. It had reminded me of everything I had built.Reminded me of Fred Whitmore and why I took this path. This penthouse is the first property Fred and I acquired together. It was also a reminder of everything I owned and controlled.Now it only reminded me of how much I had lost.The silence inside the penthouse felt unnatural.My life before I took this power-seeking path had been filled with meetings, phone calls, updates, reports and people competing for my attention. There had always been someone waiting to speak to me.I worked hard to prove to my father that I was ready to lead the mafia group as the new Don. I was capable of managing the position, but he shattered that hope. A woman can't be a Don. He said. It's a position on

Aria's POVThe apartment felt different.For the first time in what seemed like forever, nobody was running. Nobody was hiding. Nobody was investigating another crime or preparing for another confrontation.Peace had finally arrived.I stood beside the floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the city as morning sunlight flooded the penthouse.The view looked brighter than usual. Perhaps because I was finally looking at it without fear. The past few weeks had felt like a lifetime.Helina was gone. Fabien was behind bars. Aviel had finally been arrested. The lies that had controlled so many lives had finally collapsed.Yet standing there, I realised something surprising. Victory did not feel the way I imagined it would.There was no overwhelming celebration. No sense of triumph. Only relief.A deep, quiet relief.Behind me, laughter echoed through the apartment.I turned.Hailey raced across the living room while David chased after her, carrying a toy aeroplane. The two children had become