Lahat ng Kabanata ng The Billionaire's Dangerous Obsession I Escaped But He Found: Kabanata 131 - Kabanata 137

Bianca settled into the chair beside Sophia's bed, crossing her legs, her eyes fixed on Sophia's pale face. The hospital room was quiet save for the steady beeping of the monitors and the soft hum of the ventilator. The afternoon light filtered through the blinds, casting striped shadows across the floor and across Sophia's motionless form.Bianca studied her for a long moment the hollows of her cheeks, the dark circles beneath her closed eyes, the tubes and wires that connected her to the machines that kept her alive. She looked fragile. Breakable. Nothing like the woman who had haunted her nightmares for twenty years."You know," she began, her voice soft and conversational, almost pleasant, "I've been thinking about the past lately. About how we got here. About how you ended up in this bed, and I ended up... winning."She smiled a small, satisfied curve of her lips."Remember when we first met? Elementary school. Mrs. Madison's class. You were the new girl shy, quiet, clutching you

The next morning, Lily arrived at the hospital with the children.They were quiet in the car, their small faces pale and serious. Chloe clutched Mr. Wiggles to her chest. Liam stared out the window. Tristan sat perfectly still, his dark eyes fixed on some distant point."Are you ready?" Lily asked.They nodded.She led them through the hospital corridors, past the nurses and doctors, past the waiting rooms and the check-in desks. The bodyguards outside Sophia's room recognized Lily and stepped aside."Mrs. Ferri. The children.""Yes. They need to see their mother."The bodyguards exchanged glances, then nodded.Lily pushed open the door.Sophia lay in the bed, pale and still, the machines beeping softly. She looked smaller than the children remembered. Thinner. More fragile.Chloe's lip trembled. "Mommy?"No response.She walked to the bed, her small hand reaching for Sophia's. "Mommy, it's me. Chloe. I came to see you."Liam followed, his voice steady but soft. "We miss you, Mom. We

The memory came unbidden, sharp and clear, as if it had happened yesterday.Leonardo was eighteen years old, standing at the top of the staircase in his father's house, watching the front door open. He had known this moment was coming. His father had told him gently, carefully, as if he were a child who might break that he was getting remarried. That there would be a new woman in the house. A new family.He hadn't expected it to happen so soon.His mother had been dead for barely a year. A year of grief. A year of rage. A year of watching his father drown his sorrows in whiskey and work, leaving Leonardo alone with the ghost of a woman who had loved too much and lost everything.And now this.The door opened, and his father walked in, a woman on his arm. She was beautiful Leonardo could see that, even through his fury. Dark hair, kind eyes, a gentle smile that made his stomach turn.Behind her stood a girl.She was young fourteen, maybe with dark hair and wide, frightened eyes. She cl

The interrogation room was cold and sterile, the kind of place designed to make people uncomfortable. A single table, two chairs, and a mirror that was actually a two-way glass.Leonardo stood behind the glass, watching.Richard Ashford sat across from two detectives, his posture arrogant, his expression dismissive. He was in his fifties, with graying hair and sharp features that had probably once been handsome. Now they just looked cruel."I don't know what you're talking about," he said, leaning back in his chair. "I haven't done anything wrong.""Mr. Ashford," one of the detectives said, "we have evidence linking you to the kidnapping of Sophia Reed. Money transfers. Shell companies. We know you hired those men.""Circumstantial. All of it." Richard waved a hand. "I'm a respected academic. I have friends in high places. You can't just—""We have your signature on the transfer documents.""Forged.""We have your voice on a recorded call.""Fabricated.""We have—""This is harassment