Chapter: 14The morning mild filtered in through the inn curtains, casting a warm glow over the room, however, James felt none of its warm temperature. His heart has become like a block of ice, hardening the weight of his anger and resolution.As he paced the floor, his thoughts whirred with the consequences of Chloe's taunting smartphone call. She might also have denied any involvement in Lily's disappearance, but James knew better. Chloe's twisted games and jealous rage had eventually taken a devastating flip, and he might no longer loosen up till she paid for her actions.A sharp rap on the door drew him from his mind, and he crossed the room in prolonged strides, yanking it open to show Louis standing at the opportunity side, his expression grim."We need to speak," Louis said without preamble, brushing beyond James and into the room.James closed the door behind him, his jaw set in a hard line. "If that is approximately calling off the quest once more, you can overlook it. I'm not
Chapter 15The days following James' war of words with Chloe were a whirlwind of pastime. True to his phrase, he had mobilized each useful resource at his disposal, mounting a steady pursuit to deliver Chloe to justice.Yet, even as the evidence piled up and the authorities closed in, James could not shake the nagging experience of unease that plagued him. Lily became nonetheless missing, her destiny a looming query mark that haunted his every waking moment.It became certainly one of his restless nights, tossing and turning in the confines of his motel room, when his phone rang, shattering the silence like a gunshot. He fumbled for it, his heart pounding as he saw an unknown quantity flashing at the show."Hello?" he responded, his voice laced with a combination of preference and trepidation."James," a voice crackled over the street, distorted however unmistakably Chloe's. "Did you truly assume you could take me on and walk away unscathed?"James felt his blood run bloodless, his gr
Chapter 16The dim lighting fixtures of the deserted warehouse cast eerie shadows throughout the concrete floor, including an air of menace to the already tense surroundings. James stood in the middle of the cavernous area, flanked by way of Louis and a handful of relied-on gang – every one a hardened veteran, their expressions grim and unyielding."Alright, pay attention up," James said, his voice a low rumble that carried weight and authority. "We're going to take a look over the plan one greater time, and I need to make sure everybody is aware of their roles to the letter."He turned to a burly guy with a shaved head and a jagged scar strolling down his cheek. "Paulie, you and your crew might be liable for securing the perimeter. I need eyes and ears on each viable entry and go-out point. No one goes in or out without our say-so."Paulie nodded, his expression emotionless. "You got it, boss. My guys are locked and loaded."James then turned his attention to a slim, wiry man with a
Chapter 17The deserted production unit became eerily silent as James and his group took up their positions, the most effective sound was the faint echo in their footsteps towards the concrete floor. Tension hung thick within the air, a palpable pressure that seemed to crackle with the promise of impending violence.James crouched behind a stack of crates, his grip tight on his weapon as he peered out on the open expanse of the primary ground. Somewhere inside this maze of shadows and metallic, Lily modified into being held captive – a notion that despatched waves of fury crashing through him.A mild movement to his left drew his attention, and he saw Louis sliding into function beside him, his expression grim."Marco's institution is in position," Louis murmured, his voice slightly above a whisper. "They have eyes on Chloe and her group, but no sign of Lily."James felt his jaw tighten, his knuckles whitening across the grip of his gun. "Keep looking," he said through gritted teeth.
Chapter 18It has been a few days still the big showdown on the deserted manufacturing facility. Lily resigned from work and stayed home to rest, convalescing from her accidents after the crazy hostage scenario with Chloe. Even though she changed into pretty banged-up, she felt quite relieved that the nightmare was finally over.James hadn't left her side considering rescuing her. He felt so guilty about getting her mixed up in all his psycho ex-fiancée's drama, however, Lily tried comforting him that it wasn't his fault. She was just glad they could move forward now, together.One morning, as Lily slowly woke up, she observed James wasn't beside her in bed. That changed into bizarre – he usually waited till she became wide awake earlier than leaving the room. She shrugged it off in the beginning, figuring he just got an early beginning to his day. But then she heard loud voices coming from the hallway out the doors to the bedroom. She immediately recognized James' voice, it sounded
Chapter 19 Lily woke up feeling like total crap. Her body ached all over from the lingering bruises and her head was pounding. She figured it was from worry more than anything. It had been almost a week since Chloe's creepy phone call and there was still no sign of that twisted psycho. She rolled over, half expecting James to be gone already. He had been obsessed with finding Chloe, working pretty much around the clock with his security team. But to Lily's surprise, he was still there lying next to her, sleeping peacefully. His presence immediately made her feel a little calmer. Not wanting to disturb him, Lily just watched James sleep for a while. She hated seeing the exhaustion etched on his face lately. This whole Chloe fiasco was doing a number on him. Lily felt a surge of guilt - if she had never drunkenly married him that night, none of this would have happened. As if he could sense her watching him, James started to stir. His eyes fluttered open and settled on Lily with a s
Chapter 20 The next few days have been essentially a blur for Lily. Between looking to get over her injuries and the constant pressure of anticipating news on Chloe's whereabouts, she felt like she changed into dwelling in a peculiar limbo state. James was gone more than he was home, coordinating the manhunt along with his security men. Lily hated how hectic and preoccupied he seemed on every occasion they were together. She knew he was seeking to guard her, but the distance between them became in reality starting to wear on her. One night, Lily was curled up on the sofa mindlessly flipping through TV channels when James came through the door. He appeared past exhausted, with heavy bags underneath his eyes and a few days' worth of scruff on his chiseled jawline. "Hey you," Lily greeted him softly, patting the sofa cushion next to her in invitation. "Looks like a long day." James gave her a good smile and collapsed onto the sofa with a grunt, running a hand over his face wearily.
Chapter 21A couple of days later, Lily was fixing lunch in the kitchen when her phone started ringing. She glanced at the number - it was blocked again, just like the last time Chloe had called to taunt her.Her stomach dropped as she stared at the buzzing phone. Part of her didn't want to answer, scared of whatever deranged mind games that psycho might try. But then again, giving Chloe the silent treatment was probably exactly what she wanted.Taking a deep, steadying breath, Lily swiped to accept the call. "Hello?""Well, if it isn't always the little wifey," Chloe's sickly-candy voice at once grated on Lily's nerves. "Miss me?"Lily rolled her eyes so tough they nearly fell out of her head. "Can't say that I even have, no. What do you need this time, Chloe?"The other female let loose a derisive snicker. "Straight to the factor, I like that. Okay, I'll cut the chitchat - I wanted to individually extend you an invite.""An invitation?" Lily scoffed. "To what, your lobotomy? No than
Chapter 142: The Watson mansion was fully alive. Streamers hung cascading off of everything they could, balloons bounced merrily around various corners, and the air swam thick with the tantalizing smell of BBQ on the back porch. Today was, after all, Ave's party – but it was more than that; today was the day Lily and James had chosen to once again pledge themselves to one another.Lily stood before the full-length mirror, straightening out her simple white sundress. At seven months, she was radiant—a perfect arc the curve of her belly was, below the flowing fabric.From the doorway, the sound of a voice declared, "You look beautiful." Lily turned to see her cousin Maggie smile at her."Thanks." Lily smoothed the dress. "I feel like a beached whale, but James insists I'm glowing."Maggie burst out laughing. "He's right, you know. You look like you're about to light up his world or something." She walked over and hugged Lily. "I can't believe how far we've come since that one crazy nig
Chapter 141: Lily woke up off. She couldn't explain it, but something just seemed… off. And when she rolled over to check the time, a wave of nausea hit her. She groaned and buried her face in her pillow."Alright?" James mumbled, still half asleep."Yeah, I just feel a little queasy," Lily replied. "Probably just something I ate."James sat up concerned. "You want me to get you something?"Lily shook her head. "No, I'll be fine. We should get up anyway; Ave has that school play today, remember?"They climbed out of bed and busied themselves getting ready for the day. James went into the bedroom to awaken Ave while Lily projectile-vomited into the toilet.James had, by this time, somehow managed to dress Ave in her costume: a huge, puffy frog outfit in bright green made for the school dress rehearsal of "The Frog Prince.""Mommy!" Ave squealed as she clumped down the stairs. "Do I look like a real frog?"Lily laughed, pushing aside her queasiness. "Why, yes, my child, the fairest fr
Chapter 140: Giggles consumed the room, and James stirred awake. He opened an eye to find a little face at the end of the bed staring in at him."Daddy! Wake up!" little Ave chirped in at him.Stepping over the landmines that were on the bed, James ran his hand through the small amount of her running down her back and picked her up, digging fingers into her tummy."Morning, princess," he said by way of splaying a kiss on her forehead.Ave giggled and squirmed. "Mommy said breakfast was ready!""Oh, yeah?" said James, sitting up but not letting go of the squirming Ave. "Am I to take it that's why Mommy sent you in here to wake me up?"Ave nodded, her bouncing brown curls saying more than she could. "Yep! She said tell you there's coffee."James laughed, and if Lily knew him at all well, it was all for her benefit. "Well then, I guess we'd better not have Mommy waiting, huh?"He climbed out of bed, Ave still in his arms, and rolled out of the room. The smell of bacon and coffee wafted
Chapter 139James lay on his back on the pristine white sand beach and took a pounding from the burning Maldivian sun. His hand reached up behind him for the coconut cocktail, tasting sweetness in his mouth as the gentle lapping of waves broke almost ten meters away from shore. It was the first time he had really been allowed to relax, barring a three-month period, since they had released the secrets of the Shadow Council onto the world."Penny for your thoughts?" The sound of Lily's voice broke through his reverie. She settled herself down on the lounger beside him. Her skin was golden against the sun.He smiled, squeezing her hand, saying, "Just thinking how surreal this all is. A year ago, I was knee-deep in conspiracies and shadow organizations. Now I'm sipping cocktails on a private island."Lily chortled; that sound always hit James in exactly the right place in his heart."Life's funny that way, isn't it?" she said, turning her head to look at him with her chin resting on her a
Chapter 138: James was pacing his living room relentlessly. Elena was with Rachel. It was all over. Well yah, anyway that was supposed to mean.Lilly squinted at him from the couch. "James, honey, you're going to wear a hole in the carpet. Come sit down."He sucked in a deep breath and sat down beside her. "I'm sorry; I just… I just can't help but feel this is too easy. After everything we've been through, this is just too easy."Lily squeezed his hand reassuringly. "James, I hardly think that anything about this has been easy. But maybe, this is the way it ends. Not really with a bang, but with a whimper."There was a pounding on the door. The teenager was on his feet before James could even open his mouth. His heart pounded in his chest. This was it.The door was thrown open. To find Rachel standing there—grimy, dirty, and obviously completely exhausted but still with the fires of determination burning behind her eyes. And past her."Hello, James," came the soft-spoken voice of Ele
Chapter 137: Rachel's hands trembled on the wheel. She drove the car towards the lighthouse. It was a full moon drooping low into a mess, ever drooping across the sky to the west, throwing a queer, sickly light over the whole demesne. She could not believe the fact that she was actually doing this, meeting secretly with her mother, Elena.She couldn't bat the feeling away that this time—this time—things were different. There was no hand in the place that could have been straightened just then, and scarcely a hand for him to take.Beside the lighthouse was her mother's car. Ray closed her eyes, drew a deep breath, and felt her hand shake again, then brought it quickly up to her chest and gripped hard. "You can do this," she whispered to herself.She scrambled out of the car and up the serpentine path to the lighthouse, where waves dashed to the rocks and her feet crunched over gravel.One figure stood at the top by the railing, looking out at the water: Elena. His mother.Rachel's hea
Chapter 136The world had barely had enough time to absorb the shock that came with the downfall of Shadow Council. News channels were all agog with relentless updates, while governments scurried to try and react to the development; people all around tried to understand what all this really meant and what the implications of the bombshell were that shook the very fundamentals of society.But there was so much more to it than that which James Watson could see coming.He found himself standing outside the hospital room after just a moment's hesitation on the other side of the door handle. He could see from the small window that Louis was lying in a bed, hooked up to a lot of machines, Rachel sat at his side.He steeled himself, took a deep breath, and walked in.Rachel lifted her head. Her eyes were red, red, but glittering. "James," she said very quietly. "I didn't expect you to be here.""How is he?" asked James, who had moved now and stood at the foot of Louis's bed.Rachel sighed. "
# Chapter 135: James took a deep breath and brought his head counterclockwise to his team, tired yet charged. It was time to engage their plan."Okay, let's go over this again. Hawk, are you set up with that kill switch or what?"Hawk just nodded. Her fingers danced across the laptop keyboard. "Okay, I am ready as I will ever be, but remember, this is one shot deal.""Right," James confirmed, turning towards Kelvin. "You got your contacts on standby?"Kelvin lifted his phone reassuringly. "They're all set, just waiting for our signal now."Glancing toward Angie and Agent Johnson, he asked, "You two sure about this? This is going to be dangerous."Angie made a show of rolling up her eyes. "Please. After all else we've done? It's just another Tuesday."It was Johnson's turn to chuckle. "What she said. We've got your back, James."James bobbed his head, his fear mixing in with his excitement. This was it: the last big push to finally bring down the Shadow Council."Alright then," he sai
Chapter 134: Days passed after the warehouse before a blur of debriefings, media frenzy, and shock waves that echoed across the globe. Standing smack in the middle of this hurricane, shaking the very roots of governments and institutions around the globe, was James and his team.They now sat in a safe house, courtesy of Agent Johnson—now an unlikely ally in all of this, ever since the exposure of the Shadow Council. There, in that very suburban home, the living room had now become something of a command center: there were laptops and papers all over, the place cluttered with empty coffee cups.James rubbed his tired eyes at the news playing on mute on the television. Of course, the headline scrolled by in the news: "Global Markets in Turmoil as Shadow Council Revelations Continue.""You should get some rest," Angie said before putting a hand on his shoulder. At least she looked a little better now, with the bruises from her captivity fading, but there was a new hardness in her eyes.