Patrick's limbs were beyond his control, his body betraying him as he followed Vivienne's retreating steps.
Behind him, Gillian's heart-wrenching cries for her father echoed through the air, but he was powerless to respond. Patrick finally felt the command of his body returned when they reached a secluded cabin on the ship.
But now, with both Percival and Anna guarding the door, escape was an impossibility.
"Kneel," Vivienne commanded, her voice serene as she sat on the seat representing authority.
Patrick fell to his knees with a thud, not out of compulsion but from the sheer force of Vivienne's presence.
His legs tingled with numbness, sharp pains shooting through his knees as if a thousand needles were pricking them.
Beads of sweat formed on his brow, trickling down his temples and disappearing onto his shoulders.
Vivienne sat with her legs crossed, her slender neck held high with disdain, a hint of scorn in her gaze.
As Patrick knelt, Vivienne wondered what her mother had seen in him. How could such a spineless man be entrusted with the critical technology of bionics?
She regarded him with contempt and curiosity, slowly pulling the small "Morning Glory" from her pocket and tossing it at Patrick.
Instinctively, he caught it, his forehead bulging with veins, paralyzed with fear.
When he saw what it was, he finally heaved a sigh of relief.
He had thought she had thrown a knife at him!
"Madam, what is this?" he stammered.
Vivienne raised an eyebrow, her voice calm. "A miniature bomb."
Shocked to his core, Patrick scrambled behind the couch for cover.
it was even worse - a bomb!
in their right mind tosses a bomb around like
Patrick's reaction, Vivienne could almost be certain of his innocence regarding the
shifting
presence on the ship, my daughter and I were there, too. I would never risk our lives by planting a bomb. This has
murmured
to rise, "Could this
sharpened as she looked
of the bionic tech, I could not
preparations yesterday, my men told me the Boyd family's head wanted to drop off a flora
then a signal beeped in
The shipment had arrived.
it but could not do so in
her eyes closing. "Let
that, she
move. He knew Vivienne
nerve, and his pale excuses and baseless suspicions held little
anxious as his phone continued to vibrate in his
had arrived,
Why bother messaging him?
cabin and were now at the Sea City harbor. Leopold and Thomas had secured the docks, sealing off all incoming shipments and detaining the dockworkers. "Percival, we found it—it's Keco,"
the black market, identical to flour and often sold alongside
furrowed. "How
exchanged a glance with Leopold before revealing an
"Three tons."
Anna gasped. "How much?"
"Three tons," Thomas repeated.
profit enough
but had not imagined
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