Donavan's men hesitated as they delivered the news, their heads glued to the ground and tongues too heavy to convey their failure."Boss, there was a cop, Tom, snooping around the casino. He was asking questions about you," The one who led the group relayed, leaving a reasonable distance between him and Donavan. Donavan's face contorted into a scowl, his frustration obvious. "A cop?" He mouthed, tasting the word. "Did you catch him?"One of his men shifted uncomfortably before replying, "No, boss. He had backup, and they managed to slip away. We're sorry."Donavan's anger erupted. "Incompetence! I can't afford any slip-ups, and you fools let a cop waltz in and out of here freely. Find him, and make sure he doesn't interfere with my plans!"As the men rushed to rectify their mistake, Donavan seethed with irritation, squirming in his seat. It was infuriating to be involved with a cop.Cursing under his breath, he paced the room, brooding over the unexpected intrusion of law enforcement
Pascal's attitude didn't sit well with Tom. He might be corrupt, but he was still a cop, and he knew something was fishy. Pascal had been impulsive enough to put a target on his back; now Tom was hellbent on finding out why he'd tried to stray him off of Donavan.The first few days of following him yielded no good results, but it was quite visible that Pascal wasn't innocent in all of this. Any cop involved with Oliver Lionheart could never be termed as innocent.Behind his wheels, he had his eyes keen on Pascal's car. Tom sighed, hoping that this hunch of his wasn't a waste of time. What if he'd missed something, and Pascal wasn't the right person to follow?Then again, Tom's deduction skills were one of the things he had the most faith in. It had brought him that far in the agency, and if he wasn't good enough as a cop, Viktor wouldn't have trusted him with this mission.He leaned against the steering wheel as he parked his car just a few blocks away from the building that Pascal h
The tall gates of Oliver's estate resisted Viktor's initial attempts to gain entry. The security, stern-faced and unyielding, stood in the way, demanding an explanation for his visit.Oliver had instructed them never to let Viktor in as he was rarely ever up to say good. Viktor, unfazed, responded that he carried crucial information that Oliver couldn't afford to ignore. "Tell him I'm here to talk about Donavan. That should help him rethink his decision."After a brief deliberation, the security reluctantly conveyed Viktor's presence to Oliver. It wasn't an easy decision, as Viktor wore deception on his sleeves every moment of the day, but Oliver took a leap of faith. It was his territory, anyway.Moments later, Viktor found himself being ushered into Oliver's mansion. The air was thick with tension as he faced Oliver, who, seated behind a grand desk, wore a look of impatience.Just as expected. Viktor made his way across the room and stood before Oliver, his hands tucked in his pock
It wasn't an apartment per se. It was a single garage in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by nothing but greens and the toe-coiling sounds of crickets. Mia stiffened against the wheel after she'd been instructed to turn off the engine.Her assailant was still unknown and Mia's stomach dropped countless times over. Fear crept up her skin in bumps, and the cold wind against her face was inexplicable torture.She had no way out of this hole, and the distance was an impossible trek to the city. It dawned on her that she'd been screwed over. This was one of the reasons Oliver had always wanted her to move around with bodyguards.Hopping out of the seat with the gun still pointed behind her, ordering her into the house. No matter how hard she racked her brain, no means of escape occurred to her. She hadn't even been able to get a clear look at whoever it was.Nothing felt right.Finally, she entered the large space. It was empty enough to carry her echoing footsteps through its walls, ampl
The night hung heavy over Oliver's mansion; the tranquility shattered when the peace was ruptured by the abrupt entrance of a dozen masked men. The bodyguards at the gate had already been defeated, and Donavan matched them into the mansion, his eyes keen on every part to make sure every form of movement was aborted. Donavan, orchestrating the intrusion, barked orders with a ruthless intensity that set the scene for chaos. "Attack! Leave no stone unturned!" Donavan's command echoed through the halls as the men, armed and determined, flooded into the mansion like a relentless wave on a sunny morning.It was a scary sight to behold. Donavan gritted his teeth, snarling as his hand pressed against his gun. Oliver was the only one in his mind now, nothing else mattered.If Oliver wouldn't answer to threats, he was pretty sure he'd answer to bullets.The inner room was void of any of that chaos until a guard barged in and relayed to Oliver the appalling scene that was currently unfoldin
The air was thick with tension as Oliver rushed to Mia's workplace, the thoughts of the recent confrontation still reverberating in his mind. Anxiety gripped him as he approached the security at the entrance, desperation etched on his face."Have you seen Mia?" he blurted out, his voice edged with urgency.The security guard, sensing the distress in Oliver's demeanor, shook his head. "No, sir. She left a while ago. Seemed fine, nothing unusual."A knot tightened in Oliver's stomach. "With who?" He inquired again. He'd tried to call her but to no avail. Something was wrong. He could feel it.It wasn't a coincidence that she went missing on the same day he got attacked. He demanded access to the CCTV footage, his impatience driving him to unravel the mystery of Mia's sudden disappearance. All he could do was hope she wasn't hurt. It was simply menacing to think about. The security room became more of an interview room, and Oliver's eyes fixated on the screen as the footage played.Mi
The ringing phone pierced through the tense air in Oliver's office. He eyed the caller ID and, with a heavy sigh, reluctantly answered Viktor's call."What do you want, Viktor?" Oliver's voice dripped with a mix of irritation and weariness. Viktor was the least of the problems now that he had a wild dog like Donavan running around.Viktor had been tamed and was less and less of a threat to Oliver. Viktor's chuckle on the other end grated on Oliver's nerves. "Oh, Oliver, my friend, I thought you might want to know how much of your business was in the streets, bouncing on and off the ears of your enemies."Oliver's patience wore thin. "Cut to the chase, Viktor. I'm not in the mood for your games."Viktor's tone shifted to one of mock sympathy. "Well, well. It seems your dear friend Pascal has been up to some mischief. Got his hands dirty, didn't he?"Oliver's eyebrows furrowed in confusion, before it finally clicked, and he sighed… "What are you talking about?""Tom, my dear friend, ma
It was funny how easy relationships got tipped over in the face of betrayal. The weight of it sank on Oliver's shoulders, and he tried to reason— why?Why would Pascal have done that to him, laid his hand on Mia all for an inheritance that wasn't even confirmed to be his? Had his power hunger been something Oliver didn't notice? Because never in a thousand years would Oliver have suspected Pascal to stab him in the back like this It still occurred to him like a nightmare, but reality and reason had already surpassed that. Every single thing Pascal had done was a conscious action, and only he was to be blamed for that. There were no excuses for his actions, no matter how hard Oliver pondered upon it.To betray friends like that took a depth of maliciousness that didn't just spring up out of the blue. It had always been there, deep inside of him, waiting to be ticked off.And now, they were going to meet face to face. Pascal had reached out to Oliver the morning before, and with a fear