《THE BILLIONAIRE'S REPLACEMENT BRIDE》全部章節：第 51 章 - 第 60 章

JULIAN“His name is Martin Vain,” I said. “He’s my longtime rival who runs a company almost the size of mine, and we have spent the last decade competing with each other.”“Okay, but that doesn’t fully explain the look on your face.”I didn’t answer her right away. I was too busy replaying the dinner conversation in my head, piece by piece, his words then. “Your mother strikes me as a woman who doesn’t particularly enjoy losing twice.” I’d written it off that time as nothing more than a cheap shot from someone who was losing and trying desperately to appear put together.It hadn’t been a cheap shot. If anything, it had been a preview.“He cornered me at the investor dinner last week,” I finally said. “Said something about how my mother didn’t like losing twice. I didn’t think of it as anything more than a harmless jab.” I exhaled sharply, irritated with myself. “I should have seen it coming. The whole exchange didn’t sit right; now I know why.”Scarlet was quiet for a second, working

JULIAN“Now?” She peered over my shoulder at the window and the city beyond it. “It’s already dark out.”“I know, but Martha wouldn’t contact me if it weren’t urgent.” “After everything that happened today? You look like you haven’t slept in days.” She sighed softly. “Did he at least tell you the reason for the summons?”“No, he didn’t say what this is about, and that’s exactly what bothers me.”She studied my face intently. “Will you be alright?”“I hope so.” I was already reaching for my coat, pondering over the unknown reasons for the summons in my head. “Then go; I’ll be here when you get back,” she said as I reached the door. “Call me if it gets bad.”“It’s my father. It’s always at least a little bit bad.” I closed the door behind me.*****The drive to my father’s estate gave me more time than I wanted to sit with my own thoughts. I had no idea why my father wanted to see me tonight, and the not knowing was slowly eating at me. My father only summoned me for demands, ultima

ELEANORIt has been approximately eight hours since the media officially announced the alliance between Martin Vain and me. And in that time span, my phone had been blowing up with calls from people who either wanted to figure out exactly what the alliance meant or wanted to be early enough to join the winning side before the war officially started.The announcement had been nothing short of a carefully planned bombshell that I dropped at the right time. Of course, before I gave the green light for the reveal, I’d already contacted some of the major shareholders on the board and briefed them on the situation. None of them had explicitly taken sides yet, but I was confident that they were leaning towards me, and even if they weren’t, when I was done with my full plan, they would inevitably be on my side. Another call came in on my phone; this time it was from Martin Vain himself.I picked up the call and brought the phone to my ear. “It’s working,” he said immediately, satisfactio

JULIAN“Marta!” I roared again, the sound ripping through the study as I lowered my father’s limp frame onto the floorboards.She burst through the door, her professional training kicking in instantly. She checked carefully for his pulse, her expression tightening. “His heart is failing. I need to call the ambulance now.” She was already dialing the line before the sentence even fully left her mouth.Within minutes, the sirens blared, cutting through the painful silence of the estate. Everything else that followed was a blur, and I only remembered the ambulance arriving at the hospital and then wheeling him into the ICU.I stood alone outside the ICU, my suit jacket askew and my tie loosened. I dragged my hand through my hair, my knuckles trembling slightly as I did. Marta approached me quietly. “Julian, I have to go. I need to settle some issues with the attorney. After your father had his private medical code reassigned to lock out Eleanor’s spies so she wouldn’t be able to access

JULIANEleanor stepped into the waiting room in a frantic, breathless rush straight from the Channel Seven studio. Her hair was slightly loose from its bun, her dress was rumpled, and her chest was heaving as she cosplayed a terrified, broken wife running to her dying husband. Her assistant was by her side, her hands closely tucked in her coat.I moved instantly, intercepting her at the ICU threshold, physically blocking her path with my broad shoulders as I towered over her.Eleanor didn’t make a scene out loud. She just took a single, slow step forward into my personal space. She leaned in near my shoulder, her voice dropping into a low whisper. “Do you really want to do this, Julian?” she asked calmly, her expression entirely smooth. “I’m his wife and legal next of kin.”The sheer certainty of her voice made the fury brewing in me worse. She was right. If I kept her barred from the room under the eyes of their floorboards and chief of staff, it would give her exactly the ammunitio