Alle Kapitel von The Discarded Wife: Kapitel 21 – Kapitel 25

The Vance Empire Victory Gala was held in the grand ballroom of the Plaza, a sprawling, gilded arena of crystal chandeliers and champagne towers. It was designed to be the ultimate display of corporate invincibility. Five hundred of the city’s most ruthless financial elites, board members, and socialites were in attendance, completely unaware that they were drinking to a dead man.Elena stood before the floor-to-ceiling mirror in the Plaza’s VIP dressing suite, her breath coming in shallow, uneven completely.The gown Jaxon had delivered to her earlier that evening lay against her skin like a physical threat. It was a masterpiece of dark crimson silk—backless, plunging dangerously low in the front, with a thigh-high slit that left absolutely nothing to the imagination. It was not the dress of a conservative, obedient wife. It was the dress of a sovereign who belonged to men who wanted the entire world to know they owned her, without ever saying a word.The heavy suite door opened and c

The words hung in the air of the master suite, a quiet, lethal declaration of war. We will drown them in the vault.Killian’s obsidian eyes darkened to pitch. The absolute, unvarnished devotion in his gaze was staggering. For five years, he had built an empire, hollowed out a syndicate, and orchestrated a multi-billion dollar hostile takeover, all for the singular purpose of putting the woman standing before him on a throne.He didn't speak. He didn't need to. He simply leaned forward and claimed her mouth, pouring every ounce of that five-year obsession into a kiss that tasted of absolute ruin and total salvation.Jaxon let out a low, rough sound that vibrated deep in his massive chest. He caught the pooled crimson silk resting at her waist and pulled it down, dragging the heavy fabric over her hips and letting it fall to the floor. Elena stepped out of the ruined dress, wearing nothing but the raw emerald pendant and the faint, fading bruises they had left on her skin the day before

The silence inside the Vance penthouse was absolute, thick as deep water, broken only by the ragged, terrified breathing of the man tied to the chair in the center of the foyer.Julian Vance strained against the heavy zip-ties biting into his wrists. The emergency crimson lighting cast long, demonic shadows across the white marble floors he used to walk with such arrogance. He stared at the heavy, reinforced steel doors of the private elevator banks.Click. Hiss.The elevator didn't chime. The doors simply forced themselves apart with a violent, mechanical groan, the pneumatic seals breaking under the pressure of industrial hydraulic spreaders.Six men stepped out of the black shaft. They moved with terrifying, fluid silence—a ghost squad clad in matte-black tactical gear, suppressed submachine guns raised, their faces obscured by panoramic night-vision optics. They didn't sweep the room like police; they moved like a death squad executing a rehearsed slaughter.Julian’s heart hammere