All Chapters of Reborn as the Ruthless Heir’s Contract Wife: Chapter 121 - Chapter 130

Caelan remained on one knee.The library had not emptied completely.Gideon stood near the door. Selene watched beside Julian. Lucien’s face remained on the secure screen. Mara and Ronan tried to pretend they were examining evidence.I could have asked for privacy.I did not.Crowne had witnessed our vows, studied our marriage, and measured our feelings as if they were part of an experiment.This choice deserved witnesses who understood what it cost.“Are you proposing?” I asked.“We are already legally married.”“That has never stopped you from preparing paperwork.”“There is no paperwork.”“No conditions?”“One.”I raised an eyebrow.“Tell me the truth before you say yes.”“About what?”“Whether you still fear that choosing me means losing control of your life.”The question reached the part of me I had not wanted to examine.“Yes,” I said.Pain touched his face, but he remained still.“I’m afraid loving you will make me ignore something I should see. I’m afraid Crowne designed this

Helena divided the case into four parts.Financial conspiracy.Human experimentation.Murder and attempted murder.Obstruction through altered records and false identities.“We do not present this as one enormous story,” she said. “A court will reject anything it cannot follow.”We gathered inside a secured conference room.Caelan sat beside me rather than at the head of the table. There was no head anymore.That was another difference.Helena displayed a wall of evidence.Lucien’s hidden accounts proved money moved through Crowne.Selene’s records proved her identity was used to authorize false transactions.Gideon’s testimony connected Alaric to M-Origin.Halden could identify the medical program.Nessa knew the Meridian alterations.Ronan possessed security evidence.Caelan and I remembered our deaths, but memory alone would not survive legal scrutiny.“We need physical proof from the bridge and courthouse,” Helena said.“The bridge chamber was cleared,” Ronan replied.“Not complet

Selene refused immediately.“No.”We returned to Helena’s secured building with Tavia’s message. The courthouse countdown showed thirteen hours.“You don’t need to die,” I explained.“Tavia said I must.”“She said Crowne must believe it.”“And how do you plan to convince a system that reads medical records?”Ronan displayed the CrownNet structure.“The closure account recognizes three forms of confirmation: hospital declaration, biometric termination, and witness verification.”“Biometric termination sounds like death.”“It measures the absence of a registered heartbeat for ninety seconds.”Lucien looked toward him through the screen.“Ninety seconds is enough to cause brain damage.”“We won’t stop Selene’s heart,” Ronan said. “We will intercept the monitor signal and provide CrownNet with a simulated reading.”“What if the system checks another source?”“Tavia has to block it.”Selene laughed bitterly.“So my life depends on a woman none of us has met.”“Not only her,” I said. “We bu

The news called Selene a murderer before sunrise.Photographs of her appeared beside reports of secret accounts, medical experiments, and political payments. Commentators described her as a jealous relative who infiltrated Mercer Holdings and manipulated Lucien.Crowne’s false story was convincing because it contained real pieces of guilt.Selene had stolen money.She had helped drug me.She had conspired with Lucien.Crowne placed its own crimes around hers until no outsider could see the difference.Selene watched the coverage from the medical room.“They believe it.”“They have seen only Crowne’s evidence,” Helena said.“They will still believe it after I appear.”“Some will.”Selene looked at me.“You’re not going to promise my name will be cleared?”“No. You confessed to crimes. Clearing your name completely would be another lie.”Her mouth tightened.“Then what are we doing?”“Separating what you did from what they placed on you.”“And if people still hate me?”“You live with it

The decoy was placed inside Mercer Medical Archive.The facility appeared secure.Armed guards controlled every entrance. Cameras covered the halls. Biometric locks protected the vault.All of it was designed to fail.Ronan replaced one guard with a trusted operative. Mara created a blind area in the eastern corridor. Tavia installed the false Isolde pattern inside a vault that could be opened using copied Crowne access.We wanted the theft to require effort.Not enough to stop it.Enough to make Octavian believe he outsmarted us.Crowne watched the building before sunset.A delivery van circled twice.Two men entered a café across the street.A woman in medical clothing photographed the rear gate.“They are mapping security,” Mara said.Caelan and I watched from an apartment opposite the archive.“Will Octavian come?” I asked.“No,” Caelan replied. “But he may remain close enough to control the team.”Tavia monitored the decoy.The hidden tracker would remain inactive until it connec