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Chapter 70
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2024-12-15 22:24:07Related chapters
MARRIAGE PACT Chapter 71
Lena's POVThe apartment was quiet, too quiet. That kind of stillness that makes one feel like walking on the edge of a cliff, unsure if one wrong step would send them plummeting. But it wasn't the house that had me on edge; it was Liam.I stood in the kitchen, fingers wrapped tightly around a coffee mug, but it was more for comfort in holding onto something than any real need for caffeine. The sun filtered in through the windows, casting soft light upon the countertops, but doing little for the tightness in my chest.Zara was back. The thought of her sent a rush of unease through me. I’d known this day would come, but somehow, knowing and facing it head-on were two entirely different things.“Lena, you okay?" Liam's voice finally broke through my thoughts, and I turned to him standing in the doorway. His gaze was steady, but I saw the hesitation in his eyes. He wasn't blind. He knew something was wrong.I forced a smile, though it didn't reach my eyes. "Yeah, just. thinking."He didn
Last Updated : 2024-12-15MARRIAGE PACT Chapter 72
MICHAEL'S POVI was on the other side of this neatly polished mahogany desk, tapping my fingers down onto its edges, fidgeting but feigning interest in the documents laid before me. The atmosphere hung, suspended in heavy tautness like a drawn breath-a type which seeps into the bones and with each breadth takes a chance.Mr. Klein sat at the head of the table, impassive-looking but beneath those piercing eyes of an eagle which has just flown over its would-be prey leaning backward in her chair beside him. Lena drummed her fingers on the corner of the folder.“You are silent, Mr. Hartmann," Mr. Klein said as the smoothness in his voice was but varnish for that subtle challenge in the eyes of a man who knows how much weight his words carry. "What is your feeling regarding our proposal?”I leaned back in my chair, making a display of seeming thoughtful. But in fact, I knew just from the moment that they came through the door. That was the break Zara and I needed."It's… ambitious," I sai
Last Updated : 2024-12-15MARRIAGE PACT Chapter 73
ZARA'S POVI could tell Michael was frustrated even before he had opened his mouth. The pacing back and forth across the room was a surefire confirmation of my suspicion. He was angry, and quite honestly, so was I."Kai's out of his mind if he thinks I'm letting you anywhere near him," Michael snapped, razor-sharp, running his hand through his hair. "This isn't happening."I leaned against the edge of the desk, crossing my arms. "Michael, you know this was always a possibility. He's not going to let this partnership happen without leverage, and I'm that leverage."His eyes met mine, fierce and protective. "That's exactly why I'm saying no. You've already put yourself in danger once. I won't let you do it again."Sighing, I tried to speak as calmly as possible. "This is not about letting me do anything, Michael. This is my choice. And if that's the only thing that would help obtain the evidence we need.then I'll do it"."No," he said, his voice firm, allowing no room for argument. "Kai
Last Updated : 2024-12-15MARRIAGE PACT Chapter 74
ZARA'S POVThe place was a sight to behold, a perfect harmony of elegance and extravagance. It was beautiful, but no amount of beauty could cloak the tense atmosphere that seemed to crackle beneath my skin; I could feel it, an unsaid storm looming above us.Michael stood beside me, his hand brushing mine in a silent reassurance as we watched the guests take their seats. I wasn't aware if he knew how tightly I was clutching on to the edge of my clutch, but today's events had my nerves raw.I tried to block out the tight knot in my chest as Lena came into view, an intricate creation of lace and pearls that shimmered in soft light. The smile across her face glitter, though for one who knew her like me, the cracks around it stood a mile off.Mr. Klein reached us, his face split into this all-so-familiar fatherly grin. That made my stomach churn."Zara," he said warmly, placing a hand on my shoulder. "I'm glad you're here. It means a lot to Lena, you know."I forced a tight smile, biting b
Last Updated : 2024-12-15MARRIAGE PACT Chapter 75
LENA'S POVThe humiliation of the wedding still clung to me, like a second skin seared upon my memory, the public disgrace Liam had subjected me to. Whispers and pitying glances etched in my brain as if branded on with fire. But above everything, it was the visual image of him walking toward her that cut deepest.A wave of anger flared in my chest, playing back that scene in my head. His gaze was so sure, full of love, as he looked at her. Love he had never spared for me.It wasn't Liam's betrayal that had fuelled it, though, it was Zara's smug, effortless perfection, always seeming to come out on top of where I wanted most. First it had been Liam. Now it was this life that was supposed to have been mine.Not for much longer.She would pay for each and every one of those things that had ever been taken from me.I sat outside Hartmann Enterprises in my car, grasping the steering wheel so hard that the knuckles turned white. The plan was brewing in my mind over the last days until now i
Last Updated : 2024-12-15MARRIAGE PACT Chapter 76
KAI'S POV It wasn't different, with only her across from me with this feeling of walking right into the memory I had kept locked up tight all these years. There she sat, so quiet-faced, almost uninterested, as though the silence of three endless years chiseled no abyss in my world. Steady tapping fingers upon her laptop continued through the air, while the whirlwind which swept inside my insides found no deafening.The files lay in front of me, but all was a blur of numbers in front of my eyes as I tried to focus. All that could surface was her,, that woman who turned my life upside down and then vanished into thin air.I leaned back and felt this tension in my chest unbearable. "We can't keep pretending this is normal," I finally said, breaking the silence.She gave no heed for a moment, her fingers hovering over the keyboard, then continued as if I hadn't spoken."Zara," I went on, my voice crisp. "Are you just going to ignore me or actually tell me why you vanished?”Her fingers s
Last Updated : 2024-12-19MARRIAGE PACT Chapter 77
Kai's POVThe chill of the office felt deeper as I trod to and fro, my mind twisted into knots I couldn't untie. And then there was what Zara said replaying in my head, each word sharper than the one that went before. Three years putting distance between us, trying to forget, trying to get over it, and here I was, dragged right back into the chaos she had left.It was no longer about her but the lies, the inconsistencies, and the pieces that did not fit. I needed answers, and there was only one person I trusted to help me get those answers.I reached for my phone and dialed my friend Ethan. He answered on the second ring."Didn’t think I'd be hearing from you this soon," Ethan said, his voice light but tinged with a note of curiosity.“This isn't a social call," I said, working to keep my tone steady. "I need your help."There was a pause, then a low chuckle. "You're always so dramatic, Kai. What's the problem this time?""Zara," I said, the name bitter in my mouth.The humor was inst
Last Updated : 2024-12-19MARRIAGE PACT Chapter 78
Zara's POVI strode into the conference room, my head high, a smooth mask of indifference firmly in place. It was a fragile dance this partnership with Kai required; precision and constant vigilance not to slip up at one wrong move. He, too, was studying me closely, his eyes digging for chinks in my armor.I would give him none.I settled across from Kai, the echo of Michael's warning still playing out in my head. "Be careful, Zara," he'd said. "Kai isn't the same man you left behind. He's dangerous now, unpredictable."He wasn't wrong. Every time we entered a room together, tension seemed to hum in the undercurrents. Kai was unrelenting; his intentions as murky as they were unnerving.But I wasn't that woman anymore. I knew how to play the hard games, and I would win."Ready to begin?" I asked, light, professional.Kai leaned back in his chair, his gaze never leaving mine. "Always."Smooth and calculated, the tone was. There was almost something predatory in the way he looked at me,
Last Updated : 2024-12-19
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MARRIAGE PACT Chapter 98
ZARA'S POV I sit beside Liam's bed; the smell of the hospital is sterile. Machines beep steadily, their monotony no longer a reassuring sound. The sallowness of Liam's skin has sucked that vital spark from his face. With every breath, his chest rose and fell weakly. I could never have believed it would turn this way, the ending part with him. First, he came into my life as that confident, charming friend, one who would even make me laugh when I wouldn't want to smile. But here we are; the fact that one moment of his bravery sealed it for all of us changes everything.The creaking door opens, and in comes Michael, quietly, his gaze working its way around the space before finally resting on me. A faint trace of a smile bursts across that worn face, housing so much of the love held for me. He closes in before laying a reassuring hand on my shoulder in silent support."How is he?" Michael said softly, his voice barely audible over a whisper.I shake my head. "He's hanging on, but not fo
MARRIAGE PACT Chapter 97
ZARA'S POV I'm not quite sure how long has passed, even, since I sat here fisting the recording in my hand, every word uttered on that recording was mere evidence to substantiate this dreadful truth I had existed with all these years, couldn't change, prove, or even escape. Everything stands so different now, however-Kai is dead and, with my future at last within reach, so it is time for my father's name to be cleansed of the stains attached.I glance down at the file full of all evidence against him in front of me to bring Mr. Klein into the courtroom. It was finally over: the man who killed my mother and, the man who framed my father for a crime that he did not commit, was finally going to pay for his misdeeds.Behind me, footsteps echo, and turning, I see Michael standing in the doorway. His eyes are fatigued yet full of determination. He had been at each turn with me through my journey and now was down to the final move he and I would make."How are you holding up?" he asks softl
MARRIAGE PACT 96
MICHAEL'S POVMy veins surge with adrenaline as I approach the mansion. It's what I have been planning for weeks-each move, each little thing calculated. Tonight is the night everything changes. Tonight, I take Zara home, which means everything I have sacrificed will pay off.Liam's inside now, on the path we rehearsed. I can hear Liam's voice in my ear, slow and steady, soothing even. He's good.What I need to do now is distract Kai with something.I step onto the property, my footsteps silent yet heavy with intent. I head for the main door at which Kai will already be waiting; timing will play a very big role here. Should anything go wrong, this whole thing goes up in smoke.I push the door open and step inside the dimly lit hall. The slight creak of the door does not send a jitter down my bones. One shot at this, and I am not going to back down now."Kai," I call out, hearing my voice echo in empty corridors.He sits behind his desk, that cold, calculated expression carved into his
MARRIAGE PACT Chapter 95
Zara's POV I peer into the mirror, and the image staring back shows only an empty shell of the girl that once used to be. Michael's dead, and here I am in this mansion, caught by that very man who ruined my life. Every thought about him, Kai, grasps my heart with a fit of anger. But still, he presses on: he wants me to forget Michael, learn to cope with this kind of life-the twisted reality-to be his wife every waking day."Zara," his voice floats into the room deep and insistent. "Come out here. We need to talk."I didn't move. Not an inch. His commands mean absolutely nothing to me. Not anymore.The sound of his footsteps drew closer and I shrink further into the corner, knowing well how pathetic it sounded but quite beyond my control. A man who had taken away everything that mattered from me was master over this house. Well, today was different; at least he wasn't getting that satisfaction. The door creaked open."You can hide in here all you want, but you're never going to escape
MARRIAGE PACT Chapter 94
ZARA'S POVI sat on my bed by the window, and the raindrops falling against the panes coursed down in rivulets without sound-a reflection of the void inside my soul. There lay my son, sleeping still peacefully on the bed, curled up into a small bundle, his steady breathing the only sound in my room. For an instant, at the sight of him, all was well again, but pretty soon my reality confronted me.A knock shattered the fragile silence."Ms Zara," Madam Tess's voice was indistinct from the other side. There was something odd in her tone, like hesitation, even fear.Slowly, I rose, quickening at the pulse. Opening the door, I found her standing there, clutching a folded piece of paper in her shaking hands."What is it?" I asked, a knot already forming in my stomach.It's. It's a message," she breathed over her shoulder, eyes wide in that wild, frantic way. "From jacob."I plucked the paper from her shaking fingers, mine shaking too as I unrolled it. The words were a real kick in the guts
MARRIAGE PACT Chapter 93
ZARA'S POV For the past three years, I'd been telling myself-lying to myself, actually-I would never pass through those doors. Well, here I was at Kai's mansion gate with one heart in the rib, walking like gazelles all full and weighing in this huge over-reined guilt.The smell of polished wood and a touch of cologne wafted in as the heavy door now groaned open, while Madam Tess stood in the hall, her face alight with so much welcome just like always. "Madam Zara, you have returned!" she exclaimed in a voice that shook.I gave her no thought, strode right past her, as if she had never been, never broke my stride, my headset with one thing on my mind and one only, my son.Where is he?" I demanded ice with growing venom while whirling back a few feet to see Kai with dancing dark eyes and relishing the success.“Sleeping," growled gruff and small with curving lips ending into a smirk. "Welcome home, Zara.""It is not my home," I snapped.Kai's smirk grew. "Oh, but it is. Legally, nothi
MARRIAGE PACT Chapter 92
Zara's POVThe shrill buzz of my ringing phone pulled me from my reverie. I had sat in my office, staring rather blankly at the papers on my desk, unable to focus on anything. When I glanced at the screen, the headline flashing across it stole the breath from my lungs: Jacob Donovan Arrested for Attempted Murder of Mr. Klein.I shook my head, hardly able to say the word. "No," I whispered, shaking it now as if that somehow was going to make this vanish. My hands had some kind of tremor when I unfolded the article to read it. And damned if the accusations weren't-wild, depicting Jacob as an avenging business that finally snapped under all those pressures.A wave of nausea rolled over me. It wasn't a Jacob attack; it was personal.I banged my phone down and leaned back in my chair, racing my mind. One didn't have to be a genius to know behind whom this was-Kai. It had his fingerprints all over it. Jacob had been my rock, my ally in this war against him, and sat now behind bars for somet
MARRIAGE PACT Chapter 91
ZARA'S POVI sat at Hartmann's Enterprise, in my office, staring aimlessly at the screen of my computer. The numbers all seemed blurred together, the reports dim and far away. The only thing my mind replayed was the sound of the judge's ruling, the image of Kai walking out of the courtroom-smug-with my son in his arms. With every passing moment, the weight in my chest crushed me from the inside out.A soft rap at the door sliced through my fog. "Ms. White, you have a new message," my assistant Lily said in a faltering voice and laid an envelope on my desk before wheeling around to beat a swift retreat.I frowned at the plain white envelope. There was something about it that was … not quite right. I opened it, shaking, and pulled out a single sheet of paper.*Come home, Zara. You have to be with me and our son. Don't compel me to do something we'll both regret later on. Tell Michael to leave the matter alone- or he may not live any longer.*Those words sent a shiver down my spine. The
MARRIAGE PACT Chapter 90
ZARA'S POVThat was one heavy courtroom; I could feel it, a weight palpable upon the air. Seated beside the plaintiff's table, clutching the photo of my son tightly between my clasped hands, every beat of my heart seemed to feel this invisible vice squeezing tight. Across the room, Kai sat oozing smug confidence: the expensive suit, cool, calm demeanor molding him into every inch of the untouchable mogul he wanted the world to think he was."Ready?" Michael whispered beside me, his hand light on my arm.I nodded, but by now my stomach had started to do its wildest churning ever. "I have to be," I whispered low, "for my son."In strode the judge, and to his presence as one single body rose the courtroom. "All rise," cut through the silence of the voice of the bailiff.We sat in a chair as the trial began and stood up to address the court with that gloss of refinement only money can provide."My client, Mr. Kai Adler, is here for safety and welfare for his son," he began, "He has testif
