All Chapters of The Billionaire's Breeding Vessel : Chapter 61 - Chapter 70

The questions started differently this time, not with sympathy but with suspicion, and Melinda felt the shift the moment she walked through the hospital's main entrance three mornings later, a cluster of reporters gathered near the visitor parking with cameras already raised, their expressions hungry in a way the earlier, gentler coverage had never carried."Dr. Jason," one of them called out, pushing forward as she tried to move past, "is it true the Stewart family's territory transfer was connected to criminal activity? Did you know about Stanley Stewart's ongoing ties to organized crime when you returned to his life?"The question landed like a slap, and Melinda felt the old instinct rise in her, the urge to run, to disappear, to vanish the way she had six years ago rather than face accusations twisted so far from the truth they barely resembled it. She kept walking instead, her chin lifted, her pace steady despite the pounding of her heart, refusing to let them see the fear clawin

Harrison arrived at Stanley's apartment late that evening, two days before the scheduled interview, carrying a thin folder and an expression that immediately told Stanley this wasn't a routine preparation update."Investigators shared something with us today," Harrison said, settling into the chair across from Stanley without his usual measured calm. "Part of the discovery process, since we're cooperating fully. It's about Finch, but not in the way either of us expected.""What did they find?" Stanley asked, bracing himself for whatever fresh complication was about to unfold."Finch wasn't operating independently," Harrison said, opening the folder to reveal bank records and encrypted message transcripts investigators had recovered during their broader inquiry. "There are payments flowing out of the Pinnacle Shipping accounts, not just revenue coming in. Quarterly transfers, substantial ones, going to an offshore account investigators haven't fully traced yet. Someone was taking a cut

"Patient and thorough," Marcus repeated, climbing into the car beside Stanley as they pulled away from the prosecutor's office. "That's going to take time we might not have, Stanley. If Volkov's second has spent months rebuilding quietly, they could already be operational again by the time we identify even a single footprint.""Then we work faster," Stanley said. "Pull every resource you have. I want surveillance on anyone who had contact with Volkov's organization in the weeks before his arrest, especially people who vanished from the radar afterward rather than getting swept up with Kessler and the others."Marcus was already scrolling through something on his phone, his expression sharpening. "There's one name that fits that pattern," he said slowly. "A woman named Irina Rostova. She worked logistics coordination for Volkov's shipping operations, officially employed by one of his legitimate front companies. She stopped showing up to work three days before the raid, no termination n

"Brave," Melinda repeated, something fierce and tired moving across her face as the car pulled into her driveway. "I hope brave is enough, Stanley, because I don't think I have another version of myself left to offer if this doesn't work."Her phone buzzed before Stanley could answer, the first of what would become an avalanche, and she glanced down at the screen with visible dread before her expression shifted into something sharper, more alert."It's Marcus," she said, answering immediately and putting it on speaker between them."We found her," Marcus said, his voice tight with urgency that cut through the exhausted relief of the interview entirely. "Irina Rostova. Property records led us to a rental unit under a name she'd been using, but Stanley, we were two hours too late. The unit's been cleared out, completely. Whoever packed it did so fast, and recently, within the last day or two at most."Stanley's stomach dropped, the brief, fragile peace of the interview's aftermath colla

Marcus's phone buzzed sharply against the kitchen counter, shattering the tense quiet, and he snatched it up with the particular urgency of a man who'd been half-expecting exactly this interruption."Unknown number," he said, frowning at the screen before answering it on speaker, his eyes flicking to Stanley in silent warning. "This is Blackwell."Static crackled for a moment, and then a woman's voice emerged, calm, faintly accented, deliberate in a way that made the hair rise on the back of Stanley's neck. "Mr. Blackwell. I watched the interview tonight. Very touching. Very informative."Melinda's hand flew to her mouth. Stanley stepped forward instinctively, as though proximity to the phone could somehow protect the people standing beside him."Irina," Marcus said, his voice flat and controlled despite the sudden tightening of his jaw."You've been quite thorough, searching for me," the voice continued, unbothered. "Rostova, Volkov, names from a story you think you already understan