Is this the end?

“Lucian?!” Madame Verna hissed, her voice rising in a harsh whisper. “I told you to stop sleeping with him!”

Riya shifted uneasily, her eyes flitting nervously to Lucian to ensure he wasn’t paying attention. He remained engrossed in his phone, oblivious to their conversation.

“I did stop, Mom! It was just that one night months ago. I couldn’t help it, okay?”

Madame Verna pressed her palm to her forehead, clearly exasperated. “Oh, for God’s sake, Riya. Not again. How many times have you had to terminate a pregnancy because of him? How many times have you aborted his child? I explicitly told you to take every precaution to avoid this situation. So why does it keep happening?”

Riya looked down, her voice barely above a whisper. “I don’t know.”

Madame Verna sighed heavily, her tone firm as she continued, “We’ll have to change our plans for today. Forget the divorce for now, we need to take care of this. You are going to get rid of that baby. We can’t let anything jeopardize our chances of finding you a better man, someone who can truly change our lives for the better, understand?”

Riya nodded, replying, “Okay.”

“As usual, do nothing to make him suspicious. He might seem like an ordinary pauper, but there’s something off about him, something… dangerous,” Madame Verna cautioned, casting a wary glance toward Lucian.

Meanwhile, Lucian, still unaware of the conversation, received a message from Jakob confirming the time for their meeting.

Lifting his gaze from his phone, Lucian spoke loudly enough for them to hear, “I have somewhere to be. It's work-related.”

Without waiting for a response, he left the house, exited the mansion, and hailed a taxi to the address Jakob had provided.

Despite the early hour, it seemed necessary to deal with this matter promptly.

Arriving at the small coffee shop, he paid the driver and stepped out, scanning the place through its transparent windows. It struck him as peculiar that someone of Jakob’s stature would choose such an ordinary location for their meeting.

This area was far from the main city, nestled in a neighborhood where ordinary people lived—a far cry from the luxurious settings Jakob typically favored.

Lucian sighed, feeling a sense of unease about the situation. His phone buzzed with a message from Jakob: “Turn around. I’m in the black SUV across the road.”

Turning around, Lucian spotted the SUV. Its tinted windows obscured any view of the occupants, adding to his suspicion.

He wondered why Jakob chose to stay hidden inside instead of meeting face-to-face. Shouldn’t he reveal himself so I know it's really him?

Lucian thought, his instincts on high alert as he contemplated his next move.

Lucian sighed in frustration and stepped into the road, noting that traffic was sparse.

But as soon as he moved onto the asphalt, the sudden roar of a car engine caught his attention. Narrowing his eyes, he spotted a black van speeding toward him.

Before he could react, the sound of another engine revving from the opposite direction confused him further. His eyes widened in alarm as the first van barreled into him with tremendous force, sending him sprawling backward. He groaned in pain, the impact jarring every bone in his body.

Before he could gather his senses, the second van slammed into him from behind, launching him into the air. He crashed onto the ground with a bone-crunching thud, his leg twisting unnaturally beneath him.

Blood spurted from his mouth as he coughed, his vision blurring as he stared up at the sky with heavy breaths.

Is this it? The end?

Through the haze of pain, he saw the black vans speeding away in opposite directions. His consciousness ebbed away as he lay there, broken and bleeding.

Jakob, watching the scene unfold from his vantage point, sneered with satisfaction.

He started his engine, muttering to himself, “Let’s see you try to fight me for anything now that you’re dead. No one stands in my way, you dead bastard!”

He laughed maniacally and drove off.

Two weeks later.

[Golden Eye System initializing…]