All Chapters of Owned By The Enemy : Chapter 81 - Chapter 90

The alert came in at 2:13 a.m.Sebastian was still awake.He usually was.Sleep had become something he did in fragments — a few hours when things were quiet enough, which lately meant almost never.The screen on his desk lit up.UNAUTHORIZED DEVICE CONNECTED.For a second, he ignored it.Then he saw the location.Ivy's room.He was already moving before the second notification appeared.By the time he reached the hallway, two guards were already outside her door.Neither looked comfortable."Status?""Nothing unusual, sir.""Then why was there an access attempt?"The guard hesitated."Because it wasn't a normal breach."Sebastian stopped."What does that mean?"The guard looked down at the tablet."The device connected using an approved signal."Silence.Someone didn't break in.Someone had permission.Inside the room, Ivy was awake.She had been since the message.Since the photo.Since the moment Richard's words started replaying in her head.They knew about you before you knew abo

Ivy's fingers tightened around the folder.Her first instinct was to spin around.Instead, she stayed exactly where she was."Don't move," the voice said again, lower this time.She recognized it.Rafael.The knot in her stomach loosened just enough for irritation to take its place."You enjoy doing this, don't you?"A soft chuckle came from behind her."You nearly screamed.""I wasn't going to scream.""You definitely were."She turned.Rafael leaned against the wall near the balcony doors, one shoulder resting against the frame, his hands tucked into the pockets of a dark pair of trousers. He looked as though he'd wandered in by accident instead of walking into a locked bedroom in the middle of the night.She frowned."How did you get in here?""You locked the front door.""I know I locked the front door.""You forgot the balcony."She stared at him."I forgot..."He nodded toward the curtains swaying slightly in the night breeze."You left it unlocked."For a moment, neither of the

The lobby remained silent long after the visitor lowered his phone.No one rushed to fill the silence. Even Rafael, who usually found something to say when a room grew too heavy, kept his eyes on the man standing outside the glass doors."My employer says Emily never arrived," the visitor repeated, this time sounding less certain than before.Lucien folded his arms. "Either your employer is lying, or you're delivering the wrong message.""I've delivered exactly what I was given."Sebastian stepped forward and took the phone from the man's hand without asking. The call had already ended, but he studied the screen anyway, as though it might reveal something everyone else had missed. Then he handed it back."Go home."The visitor frowned."I don't think you understand. Mr. Harper instructed me to return with Miss Harper.""I understood the instruction."Sebastian's voice never rose."I'm giving you one."The man hesitated.He looked past Sebastian to Ivy, hoping she might change everythi

The photograph remained on the conference table long after everyone had stopped looking at it.No one touched it.Emily's face seemed to follow Ivy wherever she stood. Calm. Certain. As though she'd walked away from both Richard and Sebastian without a second thought.Ivy wished she understood how.She had spent weeks trapped between two versions of the truth. Emily had looked at the same board and simply... left it."I need some air."Nobody stopped her.Not Lucien.Not Jaxon.Not even Sebastian.That hurt more than she expected.She walked out onto the terrace, resting both hands on the cool stone railing. Dawn had finally broken, painting the sky in pale shades of gold and gray. The city was waking up, unaware that somewhere beyond its crowded streets, her sister had vanished by choice.The glass door slid open behind her.She didn't turn."I thought it'd be you," she said.Rafael leaned against the doorway, coffee mug in one hand."You looked disappointed.""I was expecting Sebast

"The house was already empty."Nobody spoke.Ivy looked from Jaxon to Sebastian."What house?"Jaxon glanced at Sebastian before answering."The address Richard left out."She frowned."The missing page?"He nodded."He called ten minutes ago. One of his men found it.""And?"Jaxon slipped his phone into his pocket."They were too late."Rafael pulled out a chair."Did Richard say who was there?""No.""Did he say what they found?""No."Lucien scoffed."That's helpful.""He only said the place had been cleared out."Sebastian reached for his jacket."We're leaving."Ivy was already walking toward the door.The rain had eased into a light drizzle by the time the convoy turned onto a quiet road lined with old trees.Richard was waiting beside a dark sedan.He didn't wave.He simply watched the vehicles stop one after another.Ivy climbed out before Sebastian had a chance to reach her."You found it?"Richard nodded."I found the house.""And Emily?"He held her gaze."No."She looked a