Chapter 181

Vane rushed to the door, nearly tripping over his own feet. Nora was right behind him. But the second they saw who was standing outside, both of them stopped

dead.

Mouths hung open. Eyes widened.

It wasn't a salesman. It wasn't a neighbor. It wasn't even someone they recognized at first.

Standing there was a bald, middle-aged man in a white hospital patient robe. His left leg was encased in a thick plaster cast, and he leaned awkwardly on a pair of crutches, sweat beading on his shiny scalp. Behind him stood three men in black suits, clearly his private security detail. Every one of them wore earpieces and stone-cold expressions.

For a moment, silence choked the doorway.

Then the bald man smiled-too wide, too forced.

“Good morning," he said, his voice almost cheerful. “Declan Raze. President of Phantom Core."

Vane and Nora blinked at the same time. Their expressions didn't shift. They couldn't process what they were hearing.

Declan continued, grin stretching. "I just wanted to say... I'm deeply sorry for offending Mr. Rift and Ms. Verrick yesterday. I've been overwhelmed with guilt ever since. Couldn't sleep. Couldn't eat. It's been weighing on me all night."

He placed a hand to his chest as if to emphasize the gravity of his suffering.

"I came here this morning," he went on, "to offer my sincerest apology to you and your family."

There it was again-silence. Heavy and bizarre.

Nora's lips moved, but nothing came out.

Vane just stared, trying to reconcile what he was seeing with what he knew. Declan Raze. The same arrogant bastard who nearly started a war at the hospital yesterday. Now standing in their hallway, soaked in sweat, panting like he'd run a marathon, and talking like a repentant monk?

It didn't make sense.

Their eyes flicked back toward the dining table, where Jaden sat calmly feeding cereal to Mia.

Jaden didn't even glance their way. He scooped another spoonful of milk and oats toward Mia's mouth as if none of this was happening.

Could it be him?

The thought hit all three of them like a bolt of lightning. Jaden did say Declan would show up here. He even called it a certainty.

And now? Here the man was. In the flesh. Broken leg, suit-clad guards, pathetic grin and all.

Selena finally found her voice. "Are you being serious right now, Mr. Raze?"

Declan flinched like he'd been slapped. "Yes—yes, ma'am! Absolutely serious. I wouldn't joke about something like this. I-I'm truly sorry for all the trouble I caused."

His voice cracked under the weight of desperation. "To show how sincere I am, I insisted on climbing the stairs myself. Six floors. With crutches. No elevators, no assistance."

He panted again, chest rising and falling.

"Every single step... was for this apology."

They all looked him over. His robe was soaked in sweat, sticking to his body. His face was flushed, clearly exhausted. His cast was cracked at the edge from too much pressure. The man looked like he'd been to helf and back before breakfast.

Selena blinked slowly, her eyes darting from Declan to Jaden again. She didn't want to believe it-but there was no other explanation. Declan Raze would never do this. Not under normal circumstances.

No one had ever seen the man bow his head, let alone drag himself through six

flights of stairs like a broken dog.

This wasn't just out of character.

It was unnatural. Like watching a lion kneel before its prey.

Selena's

seemed to send

Declang further. His lips trembled. The grin on his face was fading now, replaced by pure anxiety The man who once strutted

through corridors surroun

by

power now stood like a beggar on their doorstep.

He shifted awkwardly on his crutches and spoke again, this time barely above a

whisper. "Please... I need your forgiveness."