Lahat ng Kabanata ng BLOOD AND PETALS: Kabanata 71 - Kabanata 80

Adrian was in his office reviewing shipment reports when Luca walked in without knocking. That alone was enough to signal it wasn’t routine.“Tell me this is quick,” Adrian said without looking up.“It’s not.”Adrian leaned back in his chair. “Alright.”Luca dropped a tablet on the desk and turned it toward him.“Remember Isabella’s financial trail?”Adrian’s expression didn’t change. “We closed that.”“We thought we did.”Adrian looked down at the screen.Transaction logs. Old shell accounts. Numbers that once meant nothing because they went nowhere.“What am I looking at?” he asked calmly.“One of the dormant shells reactivated six months ago. Different industry. Logistics. Port storage.”Adrian skimmed it. “So?”“So the funding source traces back to a holding group that didn’t exist before your wedding.”That made Adrian’s eyes lift.“Be specific.”“It was registered two weeks after the scandal. Same legal firm that handled Daniel’s corporate filings.”Adrian didn’t react immediate

Adrian didn’t sleep that night. Not for the first time, not for the last. His office was dark except for the pale glow of the city lights through the floor-to-ceiling windows. Luca had already briefed him: Daniel had been spotted again, moving in ways Adrian didn’t like. Too casual. Too confident. Too public.Adrian didn’t touch his drink. He didn’t need it. He was already bracing for the storm.“You’re going to blow a fuse if you keep staring at the skyline like that,” Luca said from the doorway.Adrian didn’t answer immediately. His gaze stayed fixed outside. Finally, he said, “I want every detail on him. Every move, every contact, every single place he’s been in this past years.”“He’s careful. Silent. Doesn’t leave footprints,” Luca said. “I’m not sure we’ll get much before he makes his next move.”“Then we watch,” Adrian said. “And when he tries something, I want him to regret it.”Elena had been restless, too. She couldn’t sleep after seeing Daniel at the café. Mateo, thankfully

The first sign something was wrong came during dinner.Adrian noticed it before anyone else.He was sitting at the table with Elena and Mateo while the boy tried to stab a piece of pasta with his fork like it had personally offended him.“Hold it like this,” Elena said, guiding Mateo’s hand.Mateo frowned seriously. “It’s running.”“The pasta is not running,” Elena said.Adrian watched them quietly.Mateo finally managed to stab one noodle and lifted it proudly.“I win.”Elena laughed.Adrian almost smiled.Then his phone buzzed.He didn’t pick it up immediately. When Luca called during dinner, it usually meant something stupid had happened somewhere in the network.The phone buzzed again.Adrian finally picked it up.“What.”Luca didn’t waste time.“You need to see something.”Adrian leaned back in his chair. “I swear If this is about the docks again—”“It’s not the docks.”Adrian went quiet.“Then talk.”Luca’s voice lowered.“Three of our shipments were intercepted tonight.”Adrian

Adrian’s convoy moved fast along the quiet highway.Three black SUVs.Standard formation.Luca sat in the passenger seat of the first vehicle while Adrian sat in the back, looking through messages on his phone.“Something feels off,” Luca muttered.Adrian glanced up. “You say that every time we leave the city.”“Because every time we leave the city someone tries to kill us.”Adrian almost smiled.Mateo had drawn something earlier that day and forced it into Adrian’s jacket pocket. Adrian had folded the paper and kept it without thinking.Luca noticed Adrian touching the pocket.“You’re getting soft,” he said.Adrian didn’t bother denying it.Before he could answer, the driver suddenly slowed.“Why are we stopping?” Luca asked sharply.“There’s a truck ahead blocking half the road,” the driver said.Adrian leaned slightly to see through the windshield.A large cargo truck sat diagonally across the highway.Engine off.No driver.Luca cursed quietly.“Reverse,” he ordered.Too late.Two

Adrian woke up to the sound of something metal hitting the floor.His eyes opened slowly.For a few seconds he couldn’t remember where he was.White ceiling.Old fan spinning slowly.The smell of antiseptic.Then it all came back.The convoy.The gunfire.The explosion.He tried to sit up.Pain shot through his chest like someone drove a knife between his ribs.“Bad idea.”Adrian turned his head slightly.The doctor stood by the doorway picking up a metal tray that had fallen.“You should still be unconscious,” the doctor said.Adrian ignored the comment.“How long?”The doctor walked over and checked the monitor beside the bed.“Four days.”Adrian’s jaw tightened slightly.Four days since the attack.Four days the world had probably assumed he was dead.The doctor noticed the look on his face.“You remember what happened?”“Yes.”“That’s impressive. Most people with a concussion like yours forget half the event.”Adrian slowly pushed himself upright.The doctor immediately stepped fo