Chapter 1193:
In a sudden panic, he slashed the blade he now held across Rylie’s neck — not deep, but enough to draw a thin line of blood. “What are you talking about?” he shouted. “You couldn’t have known!”
“Only my people knew the plan,” Kristen stated flatly. “There was no leak.”
Unhurried, Rylie counted the seconds in her head. She needed just three more minutes.
“Those border crossings aren’t easy to slip through unnoticed, are they?” she said calmly. “Did you really think your men passed without a trace?”
Frank’s eyes widened. “Brad let them through on purpose?” he blurted. “Is this a setup to expose my family?” His mind immediately leapt to the worst conclusion — that Brad meant to brand their family as traitors.
“What do you even matter to us?” Rylie replied with quiet disdain.
Kristen shoved Frank aside. “Don’t listen to her lies,” she snapped. “You’re just buying time, hoping for a rescue that isn’t coming.” She raised the spiked bat. “Do you really think you scare me? I’ll break you piece by piece, record it all, and send the footage straight to Brad.”
“That encounter with VS’s operative at the restaurant — you think that was a coincidence?” Rylie said, not flinching as the weapon swung toward her.
Frank lunged and caught the bat mid-air. “What are you doing? Let go!” Kristen screamed, her control unraveling completely.
𝖠𝖼t𝘪𝗏𝗲 𝖼𝗼𝘮𝗆u𝘯𝘪𝘁𝘆 оո galոо𝘷е𝗅𝘀.соm
Frank, clinging to a shred of reason, shot Rylie a sharp look. “How could you know about VS’s operative? Did Brad tip you off that they were working together?”
“Because I arranged it,” Rylie said, her voice calm and almost teasing.
Frank froze. “What… what do you mean?”
Rylie shifted her gaze to Kristen, who hovered warily behind Frank. “If I hadn’t made this move, how else could I lure Ares into deploying their operatives when their only heiress was in peril?”
Kristen took a deep, shuddering breath, struggling to regain her composure. Her jaw tightened with fear for her family. When she spoke, her voice was low and sharp. “What is your connection to VS?”
A faint, knowing smile touched Rylie’s lips. “I am VS.”
Both Kristen and Frank stared, mouths open, struggling to comprehend the words.
“No way!” Kristen burst out, her voice trembling. “You — you can’t be.”
Frank let out a short, derisive laugh and slowly passed the bat back to Kristen. “Everyone knows VS is led by a man. You’re just a woman.” A contemptuous sneer twisted his lips. “Don’t buy her bluff, Kristen. She’s lying.” He stepped back, a cruel smirk playing on his face. “Go on, start your show. I’ll enjoy every second and capture every frame.”
Just as Kristen raised the bat for another swing, a sudden burst of gunfire erupted outside, freezing her mid-motion.
Frank whirled around, heart pounding. “What’s happening?”
Kristen froze, the bat suspended, her fury flickering into doubt. She spun toward the tunnel, but the entrance was blocked by jagged rock. The sounds of approach grew louder, closer.
They had been assured the mine was untraceable, the plan flawless.
Could Rylie truly be VS — and had she brought backup?
“Melvin?” Kristen called into the darkness, her voice cracking with fear.
.
.
.