Chapter 183

"Do you think he's lost his mind?" Selena asked, her brow furrowed, voice low with disbelief.

Jaden tilted his head, eyes calm as ever. "Not quite. He's just... relieved. That kind of panic and pride don't mix well. Man's high on desperation.”

His smile lingered, unreadable.

Selena glanced back toward the door where Declan had vanished. She still couldn't wrap her head around the spectacle. A man like Declan Raze-begging on his knees? It didn't sit right.

She turned to the others. Vane and Nora looked just as confused, their expressions frozen in quiet disbelief. No one had touched their breakfast.

The silence hung for a beat.

Then, once they all returned to the table and tried to act like things were normal, Vane finally broke the quiet.

"I have to ask," he said, eyeing Jaden closely. "Earlier... you said Mr. Raze would show up today. You were so sure of it." He narrowed his eyes. “Tell me the truth. Did you have anything to do with what just happened?"

Jaden leaned back slightly in his seat. Calm. Relaxed. Almost amused.

"Coincidence,” he replied, voice smooth. "That's all it was.”

Nora snorted. Loudly. “See? I told you. This man barely moved from that couch last night, let alone orchestrate something like that."

She gave Jaden a dismissive glance, like he was a half-baked theory not worth exploring.

“Besides,” she continued, "what kind of magic do you think a broke stray like him could pull off? This is Declan Raze we're talking about-not some street drunk who feels bad over a rude comment. Raze doesn't grovel. He doesn't beg. Unless..." She paused, raised her index finger like she was delivering some divine insight.

"Unless it was karma," she said solemnly. "The weight of his own sins must have started to haunt him. Maybe he saw something in a

dream

warning. Retribution And

he woke up today terrified that the

universe was coming for him."

Selena gave her mother a side-eye. "You think karma made him throw away his crutches and risk shattering his leg?"

"I think fear did. And fear comes from guilt," Nora said, like it was gospel. "You think heaven lets men like that sleep peacefully?"

Vane grunted. "I don't know about karma. But I know what I saw."

He turned his gaze back to Jaden, frowning. "You knew he'd show. You said it with confidence, like you already knew the outcome."

Jaden didn't answer right away. He was focused on peeling a boiled egg, slow and methodical, like none of this concerned him.

Nora shook her head, annoyed.

"Don't feed into his nonsense, Vane. You're giving him too much credit.

He can't even hold down a job. You think he's pulling strings befind the Scenes?

"I didn't say that," Vane muttered, though the doubt was thick in his voice.

But the question was already hanging in the air.

How did Jaden know?

He hadn't made any calls. Hadn't left the apartment. Hadn't spoken a word to Declan Raze.

Yet somehow... he predicted the man's arrival down to the hour.

Selena said nothing, but her eyes lingered on Jaden for a long moment. Something

in her gut twisted—uncertainty mixed with a strange sense of unease.

Vane leaned back in his chair,

exhaling deeply. "Whatever it was, I guess the bastard finally realized the kind of man he was becoming. His conscience must've snapped him awake."

He reached for his coffee, trying to push the moment away.