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Chapter Ninety-Nine – Fault Lines, Part VIII
Dernière mise à jour:
2025-04-08 18:18:36
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Trapped with a Ruthless Billionaire Chapter One Hundred – Fault Lines, Part IX
LeilaThe message on her phone screen was like a knife pressed against her skin.Did you really think he loves you? If yes, then why did he allow you to stay there instead of persuading you to leave with him?Leila stared at it, the words burning into her mind, imprinting themselves like a brand. Her breathing became shallow as she tightened her grip on the phone, her knuckles turning white from the strain. The cool surface of the device dug into her palm, yet it wasn’t enough to ground her. Nothing was.She recognized that tone, even though it was associated with an anonymous number.Camille.She could almost sense the smirk in her tone, the casual malice hidden within a harsh reality. Camille had always known how to distort the truth so it could inflict the deepest wounds. And worst of all—Leila felt herself bleeding from it.Because the part of her that had fought fiercely to reclaim her voice now trembled under the weight of that simple claim.Still owns you.Leila exhaled sharply
Dernière mise à jour : 2025-04-08Trapped with a Ruthless Billionaire Chapter One Hundred One – Fault Lines, Part X
AdrianThe silence that filled the lounge after Adrian spoke was not just heavy; it felt suffocating. The kind of silence that wrapped itself around the room like smoke and making each breath a challenge.Graham Sterling’s complexion lightened, just a fraction, enough to reveal the truth hidden beneath his polished facade.Adrian maintained his composure without raising his voice or shifting his stance. His stillness alone was a statement, a force in itself. Every inch of him radiated control—a chilling control that made the dimly lit lounge seem colder. Shadows warped around him, and the overhead light cast sharp shadows on his cheekbones. Yet, his eyes seemed even darker than the room itself, deeper than the accusations that hung around them.Leila remained frozen nearby, her face unreadable. Her gaze fixed on him, but he didn't meet her eyes. Not yet.This moment was not about her.At least, not right now.It was directed towards those who thought they could use her as a weapon aga
Dernière mise à jour : 2025-04-09Trapped with a Ruthless Billionaire Chapter One Hundred Two – Illusions and Deceptions
CamilleIt was almost amusingly simple.Camille Thornton settled back in her plush velvet armchair, one leg elegantly crossed over the other, a half-full glass of red wine shimmering in the dim light beside her. The glow from her tablet flickered across the crystal surface as she browsed through one sensational headline after another, each one more provocative than the last. Her timing had been exquisite—strategic, even surgical. Just one anonymous email, one attachment, and a handful of media contacts she had nurtured for years had ignited the fire.The document she leaked was deceptively straightforward: a scanned contract with Adrian Blackwell' signature on one side and Leila Carter' on the other. It was embossed and legitimized, complete with official letterhead.“Engagement Agreement Between Parties – Exclusively For the Purpose of Public Image Management and Investor Assurance.”The wording was calculated, cold, devoid of any romance. It stripped their love story down to its cor
Dernière mise à jour : 2025-04-09Trapped with a Ruthless Billionaire Chapter One Hundred Three – War of Shadows
AdrianMinutes after the press conference ended, its repercussions were already causing shockwaves across the fault lines they had been trying to mend for a while. Calls and messages flooded in through personal channels, encrypted threads, and secure communication apps. Some were congratulatory notes from loyal partners and long-standing allies, while others were cautious inquiries from stakeholders assessing whether the turmoil was truly subsiding or if they were merely sheltered in the calm before another storm.Yet, what captured Adrian’s focus wasn’t the influx of communication.It was the silence.A noticeable absence of immediate reaction 1111from the more politically adept board members. The deliberate stillness from institutional investors known for backing whichever side promised higher returns. The friends who had not reached out—those always quick to respond after a public announcement.In Adrian’s realm, silence signified strategy—not neutrality. And strategy often conceal
Dernière mise à jour : 2025-04-10Trapped with a Ruthless Billionaire Chapter One Hundred Four: The Structure of a Narrative
LeilaThe penthouse had transformed from a home into a strategy room. Once representative of modern elegance and tranquility, the walls now felt charged with an unspoken tension, creating an unsettling atmosphere. Every edge seemed too sharp, every inhale too shallow. Leila's heels echoed on the polished floor like gunfire, her chest constricted by an unnamed tempest brewing inside her. This wasn’t simple anxiety; it was a simmering rage—cold and calculated, rooted deeply in her core, pressing against her consciousness as she scrutinized the encrypted files Gwen had just sent over: the audio, the metadata, the spectral breakdown. “It’s fake,” Gwen asserted over the secure call, her tone unwavering despite the static from the international connection. Fatigue clouded her eyes, while her voice betrayed a sense of conflict. “Or rather, it’s real pieces rearranged—spliced together like a monstrous confession.” Leila’s brow knitted together. “What makes you think that?” “I ran mu
Dernière mise à jour : 2025-04-10Trapped with a Ruthless Billionaire Chapter One Hundred Five – The Back Door
LleilaThe silence in the penthouse was stifling, not calming.It felt heavy, as if the entire world was holding its breath, poised for something to shatter.Leila walked purposefully through the space. The expansive dining table, usually reserved for quiet meals or occasional strategy discussions, was now a disorderly array of tablets, graphs, Gwen’s notes, and encrypted flash drives. Each item hinted at a chilling truth.Camille was far from finished.Not even close.And this time, her attack was from within.Leila hovered over Gwen’s latest data stream, meticulously examining lines of code, financial transactions, and metadata with intense scrutiny. Even after hours of analysis, she kept uncovering fresh details that made her uneasy.They had narrowly withstood Camille’s last offensive. The manipulated audio intended to undermine Adrian's credibility was countered by their own leak. The media had bitten, and analysts were already dismantling Camille’s alleged “smoking gun,” reveali
Dernière mise à jour : 2025-04-11Trapped with a Ruthless Billionaire Chapter One Hundred Six – Ghost Key
The gentle blue glow from Gwen’s diagnostic interface reflected across Adrian Blackwell’s face, casting shifting light against his features like a flickering alert. Yet, this wasn’t a tale of caution; it was a call to arms.Seated alone in his private office, located in the penthouse's highest corner—an architectural fortress of dark glass and steel—he was surrounded by a minimalist, intentional, and strategically quiet environment. This setting reflected his own mindset: orderly, contained, and armored. The temperature was set two degrees cooler than comfort demanded, a habit developed through years of training himself to forgo softness.On the screen before him, a complex digital model of the Blackwell Trust's security infrastructure took form. It appeared like a fusion of bone and steel—interconnected systems driven by aged code, drafted long before AI became standard. Back when loyalty meant something. Back when Camille was a confidante. Back when he thought legacy could be safegu
Dernière mise à jour : 2025-04-11Trapped with a Ruthless Billionaire Chapter One Hundred Seven – The Thief and the Architect
The sirens wailed like the beating of war drums, casting a red and white glow that bled across the corridor walls. The noise was deafening and suffocating, creating a weight in Leila’s chest that matched her rapid heartbeat as she sprinted alongside Adrian. He held the briefcase tightly, his grip locked around it as if it were a precious artifact from a lost empire.And in a way, it was.The ghost key, the blueprint, the system that Camille had molded into her kingdom—now in their possession. The final piece to undo her reign, or possibly bring everything crashing down.They communicated in silence; speaking felt like a waste of breath. Time was of the essence.“Security’s re-routing,” Connor’s voice came through their comms, strained with urgency. “Camille’s activated the emergency override—she’s locking down all exits above ground. You’re running out of time.”Adrian didn’t pause. “Then we go underground,” he replied.His tone was steady, but Leila could sense an underlying intensit
Dernière mise à jour : 2025-04-12
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Trapped with a Ruthless Billionaire Chapter One Hundred Sixteen – The Life We Chose
LeilaThe gallery was empty now.Not just cleared out—but tranquil and solemn, as if the space had finally exhaled after holding its breath throughout the night. The only sound was the faint hum of the ventilation, a muted whisper amid the quiet. A subtle scent of fresh paint lingered, mingled with traces of expensive perfume and champagne bubbles that had long gone flat. Bathed in light from the high windows, the hardwood floors showcased slanting rays that caught dust motes swirling like languorous stars—small, drifting thoughts yet to settle.Leila stood alone in the middle of it all.With her arms crossed tightly over her chest and her gaze fixated on a single photograph—the one of Adrian.It was the final piece of the exhibit. Not because it was the most visually captivating, but because it resonated most personally. A black-and-white shot of him in a moment of quiet vulnerability, trapped in the pause between an exhale and a confession. She had almost removed it from the show mu
Trapped with a Ruthless Billionaire Chapter One Hundred Fifteen – What Still Lingers
The city greeted them not with warmth, but with a cacophony of sound and a brisk urgency that felt jarring after the tranquility of the forest. Horns echoed in the distance, a siren shrieked two blocks away, crosswalks flashed impatiently, and strangers hurried past, their brows furrowed and coffee cups held tightly like armor.It was still the same city they had left, yet they were somehow stepping into it as transformed individuals.Leila first noticed the change in Adrian's demeanor as they turned onto their street. He sat silently in the passenger seat, scanning the sidewalks and shadows with a tense jaw. When they passed a dim alley illuminated only by a flickering neon sign, she observed how his shoulders instinctively squared, as if a primal instinct had resurfaced before he could quell it.His gaze darted to every reflective surface they encountered—glass storefronts, car mirrors, bus windows—taking in more than just the passing sights.At first, she refrained from speaking. P
Trapped with a Ruthless Billionaire Chapter One Hundred Fourteen – The Place We Found
The Weekend Trip The cabin was tucked away deep in a serene forest, bordered by tall pines that swayed gently in the morning breeze. Its roof slanted at unusual angles, softened by a thick layer of moss and the passage of time. Smoke lazily puffed from the chimney into the lightening dawn sky, and the windows emitted a soft glow from a fire that had kept the place warm throughout the night.For Leila, it felt like she had stepped back into a quieter era.Standing on the squeaky wooden porch wrapped in a blanket, her wool socks damp from taking a barefoot step outside with her coffee, she held a chipped mug—its rim worn from previous use. She appreciated items with a story—objects that had endured.There was no noise of traffic, no phone alerts disrupting the calm, no underlying tension.Just the songs of birds. Just the wind weaving through the trees. Just the simple act of breathing.Inside, the world she shared with Adrian was still slumbering. He lay curled under the quilted cover
Trapped with a Ruthless Billionaire Chapter One Hundred Thirteen – What We Build
The Return to the CompanyEntering the office felt like revisiting a nostalgic moment that had become mismatched with his current self.The marble floors shone brightly under the harsh fluorescent lighting, and the familiar mix of wood polish and aged leather lingered in the air, just as it always had. His footsteps echoed softly on the familiar carpet, and the skyline stretched beyond the glass walls, unchanged in its towering indifference. But, everything seemed slightly off, like a song being played in a different key.It wasn't the office that had changed; it was him.Adrian sensed it in the subtle details—in the brief hesitation before pressing the elevator button, in the way his thumb hovered over the biometric scanner, feeling almost foreign. That scanner had once access to his empire. Now, it seemed like a reminder of a past he was unsure about reclaiming.As he entered, Claire—still composed, polished, and reliable—rose from her desk with an ingrained smile. She didn't flinch
Trapped with a Ruthless Billionaire Chapter One Hundred Twelve – Soft Edges
Adrian hadn’t realized just how overwhelming the quiet could be.Not the kind of quietness that brought peace, but the kind that made his skin crawl and amplified his thoughts. It settled over him like fog—light yet completely suffocating. He picked up on the smallest of sounds: the gentle clink of a second mug on the counter, Leila’s footsteps on the floor, the soft hum she made while brushing her hair. Even the bustling city outside felt muted.For weeks, they had been caught up in chaos—running, fighting, poised for deception. Now, the stillness resonated through every room like an unfamiliar tune.Initially, Adrian held fast to routine, attempting to impose structure on the quiet. He woke early, prepared breakfast, scrolled through news feeds with a sense of suspicion, and walked with Leila along cobbled streets, pretending life was normal.Yet, peace was not an act. And pretending only made the emptiness more obvious.For Adrian, peace didn’t feel liberating; it felt like an afte
Trapped with a Ruthless Billionaire Chapter One Hundred Eleven – After the Storm
lLeilaThe rain had ceased before dawn.The world now lay in a peaceful silence that Leila had nearly forgotten existed. No gunfire pierced the night, no encrypted messages lit up their screens, and no looming threats haunted them with whispers of grudges.Only the steady tick of the wall clock in the kitchen, occasional sounds of life from the streets below, and the soothing aroma of coffee drifted through the house like a gentle sigh.Barefoot by the window, Leila found herself enveloped in Adrian’s oversized hoodie—its comforting smell of cedar and rain still lingering. Outside, the city slowly stirred back to life after the storm, the sky a muted gray with clouds hovering like bruises, but the danger had effortlessly passed. The wind had calmed, and the battered city had survived.Inside their apartment, for the first time in what felt like ages, they woke up without a mission—no target, no emergency plans, no sign of Camille or Ethan. Gone were the days of calculated hush and ur
Trapped with a Ruthless Billionaire Chapter One Hundred Ten – The Architect’s Reckoning
AdrianVienna felt colder than he imagined.This wasn’t the sharp cold that numbs fingers and ears—this was something different. A deeper, quiet chill that seeped into the bones. It was a cold that didn’t announce itself with snow or gusts of wind, but with an eerie stillness. A lingering frost hung in the air like a breath held too long.It fit the moment perfectly.Connor had organized everything perfectly—their arrival, the van discreetly parked outside the surveillance zone, the untraceable credentials, the encrypted communications. It was all clean, precise and efficient—like everything Connor did.They were positioned on a narrow road outside the estate, with trees closing in and stars barely visible through a cloudy sky. The manor loomed in silhouette—covered in ivy, with tall iron gates, a relic from an earlier time. Its isolation felt too intentional. No guards. No visible technology. No sign of movement.“She’s alone,” Connor murmured from the back of the van, scanning the t
Trapped with a Ruthless Billionaire Chapter One Hundred Nine– Inheritance
The burden of the blueprint lingered heavily.Hours had passed since their arrival in Paris, yet Adrian found it impossible to look away from the photograph. His father, Camille, Ethan Graves—their posture, their closeness, the knowing glint behind their smiles—it wasn't a spontaneous shot but a deliberate moment, as if they were commemorating the inception of something that only they could grasp.Since arriving, he had been mostly silent, not due to a lack of thoughts—he had too many. They churned within him like thick smoke, hot and suffocating, impossible to release without setting everything ablaze.Leila sat across from him on the edge of a table, her focus fixed on him rather than the photograph or files. Her gaze was filled with a concerned patience that waited without pressure.Finally, he broke the silence, his voice gravel laced from hours of silence. “I can’t stop thinking about it. The notion that everything—the empire Ethan built, Camille's neural network, even my father'
Trapped with a Ruthless Billionaire Chapter One Hundred Eight – Blueprints of Betrayal
They paused in a village so still that questions felt unnecessary.Situated just beyond the French border, the village appeared as if it had been plucked from the past—stone cottages snug against misty hills, narrow paths winding like lost recollections. It was the kind of place where the outside world would only arrive for good reason. Leila understood—this wasn’t merely a stop. It was a moment of stillness.The van was parked in the dimness of an old barn on the village’s outskirts, condensation fogging its windows. Silence clung to them like dust, settling heavily in the air.Leila sat on an overturned crate next to Adrian, her legs aching from the journey, but her mind sharp. Clutched in her hands was the photo again—creased and worn from her fingers tracing its contours.Camille. Ethan Graves. And Adrian’s father.Captured in black and white, framed in a moment of laughter that felt more like a deception the longer she gazed at it.“She never mentioned him,” Leila said quietly.
