Chapter 25 - The architect of mirrors
The three bio-engineers froze, their hands raised in terror, but Clara did not flinch. She slowly rose to her feet, shielding Lily behind her legs, her expression hardening back into the cold mask she had worn on the balcony.
"Damien," she said softly, almost sighing his name. "You always were predictable. You followed the transponder token straight into the heart of the web."
"Step away from my daughter, Clara," Damien said, his finger tightening against the trigger. "Step away, or God help me, I will forget who you used to be."
"Daddy!" Lily cried out, trying to scramble from the chair, but Clara held her shoulder firmly in place.
"Don't move, Lily," Clara commanded softly, her eyes locked with Damien's. "Do you really think this is about money, Damien? Do you really believe the Hart Empire was built on banking and legitimate trade?"
"I know what the Sovereign Council is," Damien shot back, his jaw clenched so hard his teeth groaned. "I spent the last six years tearing down their corrupt foundations, hunting every last one of the old families who ruined our lives! Who killed you!"
A bitter, humorless laugh escaped Clara’s lips. "They didn't kill me, Damien! They offered me the seat at the head of the table! And do you know who nominated me? Do you know who handed me the ceremonial blade of the Black Sun six years ago?"
Damien’s breath caught in his throat. A terrible, gnawing cold began to spread through his chest. "What are you talking about?"
"Your father," Clara whispered.
The room seemed to tilt beneath Damien’s feet. "My father died of cardiac arrest when I was twenty-two. I watched them lower his casket into the family vault in Boston."
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"You watched them bury a hollow mahogany box filled with pig iron," Clara sneered, her voice venomous. "Alexander Hart did not die. He stepped into the shadows because the Sovereign Council had grown too visible, too vulnerable to modern international intelligence. He needed a proxy war. He needed an heir who believed he was an honorable reformer to clean out the disobedient council members for him."
Clara took a step forward, her hazel eyes blazing with an unholy fire. "You were his wrecking ball, Damien! Every rogue syndicate you dismantled, every offshore bank you seized, every corrupt archon you executed—you did not destroy the network! You consolidated it! You handed every last key straight back into his hands!"
