bChapter /bb229 /b

    bMARCUS’S /bPOV

    bThe /belevator doors slid open with a dull chime, and I stepped into the quiet hallway leading to my office. My assistant trailed behind bme/bb, /bbher /bbheels /bclicking in measured rhythm against the polished marble floor. The silence in the building was a relief after the chaos of the bbusiness /bterminal earlier.

    Let’s not forget the fact that it had also been a long time since I walked through thispany hallway.

    It has been what? Almost a year, and I had to say the staff were doing a great job, I mean they had ito/i, what else were they employed to do? There was no reason for me to give them much praise just because they kept my office clean, they were just little ants following orders from their boss nothing more.

    Today’s event had been nothing short of exhausting but it was more than the simple fatigue of meetings and handshakes.

    I loosened my tie as we walked in, shrugging off my jacket with the deliberate calm of a man trying not to let the day’s anger get the better of him. But inside, my mind was running at full speed.

    No matter how tired I was, there was no time to waste. No moment for rest. I had promised myself and I meant every word that I would bring that man down even if it was thest thing I did.

    And I always keep my promises.

    From the way Adrian spoke to me a few moments ago, he was probably ready to fight back just as hard, am sure he is already looking for multiple ways to shut me down for good so there was no time.

    Now the big difference between him and I is that, I have lived in London most of my years when I found real wealth, every transaction and business meetings I did were in London, my assistant knew how to handle all my clients who came to the office at New York, if they wanted to meet with me so badly I woulde over here based on business only, but that rarely happens, so if you wanted to find anything dirty about me it’s definitely not in this country.

    But him? He has basically lived all his life in this city, which is where I would take advantage of

    I crossed the room and dropped into my leather chair, leaning back as I let the familiarfort of my office seep in. The walls here felt like they listened without judgment unlike the vultures in the corporate world who were always looking for a weakness to exploit.

    From the corner of my eye, I could see my assistant already moving to her desk, opening herptop, and spreading files like a soldierying out weapons before battle. She knew exactly what I’d told her to do: start crafting the corporate scandal we had discussed. It would take time, of coursei, /ithe best deceptions always did but I wasn’t going to limit my assault to just one area.

    If I focused only on the financial side of things, there was still a chance Adrian could recover. I knew this man too well. I had been his friend once, long before our alliance turned to animosity. I had seen firsthand how many people had tried to cripple him financially, only for him to crawl back stronger than before.

    No. This time would be different.

    I wasn’t going to aim at just one target – I would hit every angle: financial, personal, emotional. I would dismantle his empire, but more importantly, I would dismantle him.

    bOn /bthe personal front, I already had a thread to pull. I knew that Adrian had been arrested a few days ago. The news had circted bbriefly /bbefore vanishing from most outlets, almost like it had never happened. That kind of vanishing act didn’t happen on its own, he had bought his silence. Someone had been paid off, and my bet was ion /ithemissioner.

    bChapter /bb229 /b

    bBut /bbwhat /bbAdrian /bbforgot /bwas this: everything and beveryone /bhad ba /bpriceb, /b

    bIt /bwas bonly /bba /bmatter of finding out what that price was. And once I did, themissioner would talk. He’d tell me exactly bwhat /bbAdrian /bbhad /bbeen barrested /bbfor/bb. /bWith that knowledge, I could start tearing open more of the secrets he had tried so desperately bto /bbury,

    The truth has always been my favorite weapon because, in the right hands, it cuts deeper than any lie.

    b“/bThis is what we were able to get from the media before it was deleted,” my assistant Evelyn said, stepping forward and cing a bslim /bbfile /bbon /bmy desk.

    I took it without a word, flipping it open. Photocopies of headlines, small snippets of articles, blurry photographs taken in a rushb. /bbMy /beyes scanned quickly, searching for the one thing I needed: a clear answer to why he was arrested. But all I found was surface–level informationb, /brecycled in every piece – “business mogul detained,” “CEO questioned by authorities.”

    Nothing substantial. Nothing I could sink my teeth into.

    1 let the folder fall to the desk with a sharp p.

    “This is it? This is all you could dig up?” I asked, my tone t but my eyes cold.

    “Yes, sir,” she said softly, her head lowering slightly as though bracing for a storm.

    I leaned back in my chair, letting out a slow, controlled sigh. For a brief second, I stared at the ceiling, thinking. The answers weren’t going to be found in scraps from half–baked media reports.

    No, the only real ce to get what I wanted was straight from the source.

    My gaze shifted to the clock on the wall. The afternoon sun still poured in through the blinds, it was early enough that themissioner would be in his office. Still in hisfortable chair, probably thinking he was untouchable.

    That assumption was about to be tested.

    If Adrian had bought his silence, I could buy his voice. The question wasn’t if themissioner would talk, it was simply a matter of how much it would cost ito /imake him betray that little arrangement.

    And believe me, I was willing to pay.

    I pushed back my chair and stood, my mind already rehearsing the first words I’d say to themissioner. I imagined his hesitation, the shifting in his seat, the nces to the closed door. I knew his type – self–important, cautious, and deeply corrupt beneath the thin veneer ofw and order.

    We’d get along just fine.

    “Get the car ready,” I said, slipping my jacket back on with deliberate movements.

    “Yes, sir,” my assistant replied, immediately rising to her feet. She didn’t ask questions which was one of the things I valued most about her.

    Without wasting another second, she left the room. I followed shortly after, my mind already several steps ahead.

    This wasn’t just about finding out why Adrian had been arrested. This was about pulling the first thread in a sweater that was already frayingb. /b

    Once I had that thread in my hand, I would keep pulling until his entire image, his careerb, /bhis name unraveled.

    Adrian Westwood thought he knew what war was.

    He was about to find out what it looked like when I fought without limits.

    Chapter b229 /b

    Let’s bgo /bbfind /bbout /bwhat you’re hiding.

    *

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