Tous les chapitres de : Chapitre 51 - Chapitre 60

Chapter 51Riven stood frozen in the doorway like the confession had drained every drop of strength from his body.I didn’t move closer. I couldn’t. The space between us felt like miles of broken glass.“Say something,” he whispered, voice cracking. “Please.”I looked at him — really looked. The man who had once broken into my life with murder in his eyes now looked like he was the one dying. His shoulders trembled. His hands clenched and unclenched at his sides. The faint scar above his eyebrow caught the low light from the hallway, a reminder of every time I had traced it with my thumb in the dark.“I don’t know what to say,” I finally answered. My voice sounded foreign to my own ears — flat, exhausted, stripped of everything but truth. “You lied to me. Every night you slept next to me, you were feeding Marcus pieces of my life. You looked me in the eyes and told me you were with me while you were destroying everything I built.”Riven took one shaky step forward, then stopped when I

Chapter 53The boardroom smelled of polished mahogany and expensive cologne.I walked in at 10 a.m. sharp. Twenty-three faces turned toward me. Some looked away. Others met my eyes with the cold satisfaction of men who had already made their deals and were now counting the money.The vice chairman didn’t waste time. He stood at the head of the table like he had rehearsed this moment for weeks, fingers resting lightly on the leather folder in front of him.“Damien,” he began, voice smooth and rehearsed, “the evidence against you is overwhelming. Leaked financial records. Unauthorized access to secure systems. Funds funneled through shell accounts that trace back to known criminal networks. The SEC has already opened an investigation. The shareholders are in open revolt. For the survival of the company, we have no choice but to vote on your immediate removal as CEO and chairman.”I remained standing at the far end of the table, refusing to sit. “This isn’t about survival. This is about

Chapter 55Gunfire tore through the warehouse like thunder trapped in concrete.I fired twice, dropping the guard closest to Lila. The second man spun toward me, muzzle flashing. I dove behind a rusted loom as bullets chewed the metal inches from my head. Dust exploded into the air. My ears rang.“Riven!” I shouted.He was already moving — low, fast, knife in hand. He reached Lila and started sawing at the ropes binding her wrists. Her eyes were wide with terror, but she stayed silent, trusting him.Marcus didn’t panic. He simply stepped back into the shadows, expression calm, as if he’d already won.“You really thought it would be that easy?”Another guard appeared from behind a pillar. I put two rounds in his chest before he could aim. The impact threw him backward into a stack of crates. Wood splintered. Lila screamed as Riven finally cut her free and pulled her down behind cover.I moved toward them, firing as I ran. A bullet grazed my side — hot, sharp, deep enough to burn. Pain

Chapter 57The safe house appeared ahead, high walls and reinforced gates cutting sharp lines against the night sky. It should have felt secure. Instead, the moment we pulled up, the silence felt wrong — too complete, too deliberate.The front gate was ajar.No guards.No lights.Riven killed the engine. “Stay in the car.”I didn’t listen. I stepped out, gun in hand, ignoring the sharp pull in my side. Blood seeped through the bandage, warm and sticky against my skin. The world tilted for a second, dizziness clawing at the edges of my vision, but I forced it steady. I had lost too much blood already tonight. Every step reminded me of it.We moved through the house room by room. Empty. Too empty. The air smelled of nothing — no coffee, no faint trace of Lila’s shampoo, no lingering presence of the security detail that should have been here. Furniture was undisturbed, but the absence felt violent.Lila’s bedroom door was open. The bed was unmade. Her blanket was on the floor, as if she

Chapter 59The tracker blinked on Riven’s phone, a small red dot moving northeast. We followed in silence, headlights off, the engine a low growl. My side burned hotter with every turn. Blood had soaked through the bandage completely now. Each breath pulled at the stitches like barbed wire. The dizziness was getting worse, the edges of my vision tunneling.Riven kept glancing over. “You’re losing too much blood.”“Drive.”The target building appeared — an abandoned distribution center, windows boarded, fence sagging. The dot stopped dead in the center. We parked two blocks away and approached on foot. My legs felt heavy. I leaned against a container for a breath, blood warm against my palm. Six hours had become five. Time was collapsing faster than we could move.We slipped through a side door. The interior was vast and dark, moonlight slicing through gaps in the roof. Crates and old pallets formed a maze.Too quiet.Riven raised a hand. We froze.Lights snapped on — harsh fluorescent