“Mr. Graves? Hold on a moment, let me check.”

    b13 /bmin left

    After a brief pause, the voice returned. “Mr. Graves, I’ve just inquired–Kaia went out on business.”

    The answer only tightened the knot in Lucien’s chest.

    His assistant’s voice followed quickly, “Sir, we’ve confirmed Mrs. Graves went to the police station. She was asking about a colleague named Vanessa–apparently, she’s been missing for several days.”

    Lucien’s tone dropped to amand. “Keep digging. Pull every surveince feed from around the entranceb–/bnowb./bb” /b

    44444

    Kaia came to, disoriented, her wrists bound, the seatbelt digging into her side. The hum of the engine filled her ears. She was in the backseat of a moving car.

    “Awake, huh?” The voice from the driver’s seat was ice.

    She lifted her head just enough to catch Jerry’s face in the rearview mirror–cold, sharp, eyes like steel.

    “Where are you taking me?”

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    &

    b13 /bmin left

    He smirked without looking away from the road. “Rx. You’ll find out soon enough. You’ve been dying to know about your friend, right? Wellb… /byou’re about to see her.”

    Her pulse kicked hard. “Jerry! What did you do to Vanessa? She never did anything to byou/b. bWhy /bbhurt /bherb?/bb” /b

    “Please. That idiot thought I liked her.” His tone dripped with contempt. “I only used her bto get /bto you. If she’d behaved, getting byou /bwould’ve been easy.b” /b

    Kaia’s stomach turned. Just as she’d feared–she was his real

    target.

    “Jerry,” she said quietly, careful bnot /bto provoke him, “did we know each other beforeb?” /b

    “Doesn’t matter.b” /bHis voice hardened. “If it weren’t for you, she wouldn’t be where she is now. So even bif /bwe’d never met, you’d still deserve to die.”

    A flicker of recognition cut through her panic. She took a chance.

    “You mean Lunab?/bb” /b

    The name hit him like a live wire, “You don’t have the right to say her name!”

    The car jolted as he mmed on the brakes. Kaia pitched forward, her forehead cracking against the front seat. Stars burst in her vision.

    5 16:38

    Chapter 298 For Luna

    b13 /bmin left

    Jerry twisted in his seat, eyes bloodshot, jaw locked. “Luna was kind. Innocent. And you destroyed her.”

    He looked at her blike /bhe wanted to tear her apart with his bare hands.

    Kaia bit down on her blip/bb, /bfighting to stay conscious.

    “Jerryb, /byou’re aw grad from a top–tier school. You know she broke the bw/bb. /bShe was arrested–it had bnothing /bto do with me.”

    “Nothing to do bwith /byou?b” /bHis voice cracked into a snarl.

    “You only made it big because of the Graves bfamily/bb. /bYou used your man to frame Luna. This-b” /bbhe /bjabbed a finger at her “—is all your faultb!/b”

    It hit her–he wasn’t just bangry/bb. /bHe was unhinged. There was no reasoning with bhim/b.

    “Okay, calm downb,/bb” /bshe said, forcing her voice steady. “Tying me up won’t fix anythingb. /bYou just… bwant /bLuna out of prison, right?”

    He gave a low, humorlessugh.

    “Kaia, don’t y me. We both know she’s not getting out. If I weren’t trained in thew, maybe you could’ve fooled me. But I’m not some idiot off the street,”

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    His eyes hardened in bthe /brearview bmirror/bb. /b“Sit back and don’t bmove /bban /bbinch/bb./bb” /b

    He stomped on bthe /bgas, the car bsurging /bforward.

    Kaia’s stomach twisted. Years studying thewb, /band he’d still abandoned reason—he bmight /bas well have been billiterate/b.

    She turned bher /bhead to the window. The city was long gone; only empty fields rolled past, the sky bstretching /bwide and bleak. Her chest tightened bwith /bdread.

    bThen/bb–/bbmovement /bin the distance. A speck bin /bthe skyb, /bbgrowing /b

    Her breath caught. A helicopter.

    Her pulse roared in bher /bears.

    biCould /i/biit /ibe bihim/i/bbi? /i/b

    *****

    “Mr. Graves, bthat’s /bbit/bb–/bbthe /bcarb! /bIt’s Mrs. Graves‘ car!”

    Lucien’s stomach plummeted. bFrom /bthe helicopter’s windowb, /b

    bthe /bvehicle looked bsmall /band fragile against the endless bstretch /bbof /broad.

    i??? /i

    16:38

    Chapter 298 For Luna

    b12 /bmin left

    “This is a straight run with no forks ahead,” the pilot called over the headset.

    “Our ground team still hasn’t caught up. And there’s no safending spot–forcing it down here would be suicide.”

    Lucien was already strapping on his harness. “Take us over that sloped grove. I’ll rappel down.”

    “Sir, that’s insane. Even special forces-b” /b

    He cut the man off, locking eyes with the bodyguard. “I trained for this in college. You keep flying and find anding zone. I’m going down alone.”

    It wasn’t bravado–it was desperation.

    The thought of Kaia trapped in that car, maybe hurt, maybe worse, wed at his chest. He couldn’t just hover in the sky and do nothing.

    One look bat /bhis face was enough. The cabin went silent. No one dared argue.

    Lucien’s gloved hands tightened on the rope, He didn’t even know if Kaia was still breathing.

    But he knew one thing–he was going to get her back.

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    Chapter 298 For Luna

    b12 /bmin left

    Inside the car, Kaia’s heart was pounding so hard it felt like bit /bwas gonna burst.

    “Jerryb, /bhow’d you meet her?”

    He shot her a look bin /bthe rearb–/bview bmirror /band smirked.

    b“/bWhat, trying to bmake /bsmall talk on byour /bway bout/bb? /bFine. I was sponsored by bthe /bThorne bfamily/b. If it wasn’t for Luna begging her dad, I wouldn’t be where bI /bam today.b” /b

    The sneer softened for just a second, bhis /bvoice tinged with something almost like nostalgia.

    “It wasn’t for longb, /bbut I owed them. After the Thornes fell apart and her parents passed baway/bb, /bI swore I’d pay it back. And then —” his expression hardened— “Luna ended up in prison.”

    Kaia forced a polite bsmile/bb. /bb“/bbI /bsee. What a shameb./bb” /b

    “What do you bmean /bby bthat/bb?/bb” /bJerry’s head snapped toward her, eyes narrowingb. /bHis bgaze /blingered too long–too long for a man driving at this speed.

    Kaia’s eyes flicked past him, toward the sky,

    And her breath caught.

    Through the windshield, she caught sight of him–Lucien-

    16:38

    Chapter 298 For Luna

    b12 /bbmin /bleft

    bplunging /bbfrom /bthe belly of a helicopterb, /bba /brope whipping wildly

    bin /bbthe /bbwind/b.

    Her heart lodged bin /bher throat.

    bWrite yourment /b