Chapter 134
Chapter 134:
“My personal life is no longer your concern.” Rose signaled to a passing server. “Vodka martini, extra dry.”
Stefan leaned forward. “I know what you’re planning, Rose. You and Preston. With the Phoenix Grid.”
Rose’s eyes narrowed to slits. “Been talking to your new friends at Kane Industries? Or perhaps directly to my dear sister?” The last words dripped with venom.
“Eduardo Martinez told me.” Stefan watched her reaction carefully. Eduardo had been a longtime friend of the Rodriguez family, someone with connections throughout the city’s business community. “He saw you with Preston at the marina last week. Heard you talking about the Grid launch.”
Rose’s laugh held no humor. “Eduardo always did have an overactive imagination. And loose lips.” She took the martini from the server with a cold smile. “You called me here based on secondhand gossip? How pathetic.”
“It’s not just Eduardo.” Stefan kept his voice low and steady. “The whole city is talking about the sabotage.”
Rose’s hand moved so fast he didn’t see it coming. The slap cracked across his face, sending his head snapping sideways. The bar fell momentarily silent, dozens of eyes turning toward them.
“You’ll pay for this,” Rose hissed, her perfect composure shattered. “You’ll pay for the embarrassment. For the betrayal.” She leaned down, her face inches from his. “I gave you everything, Stefan. And this is how you repay me? By crawling back to her?”
Stefan touched his stinging cheek, feeling a strange detachment from the pain. “I’m not crawling back to anyone. I’m trying to do one right thing after a lifetime of wrong ones.”
“How noble.” Rose’s voice dripped venom. “Well, enjoy your newfound conscience while you can. Because in a few days, you’ll be just as ruined as Camille and Victoria Kane.”
She straightened, smoothing her dress with trembling hands. “Goodbye, Stefan. The next time we meet, you’ll be begging me for forgiveness.”
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“Rose, please.” Stefan made one last attempt. “Whatever you and Preston have planned, it won’t bring you peace. It won’t fix what happened in your past. It will only make things worse.”
“Peace?” Rose’s laugh was brittle. “I don’t want peace, Stefan. I want justice. And I’ll get it, with or without you.”
She turned on her heel and strode toward the door, her back rigid, her steps swift and precise. The bar patrons watched her go, then returned to their drinks and conversations, the drama already forgotten.
But Stefan couldn’t forget. Rose’s words echoed in his mind, each one laden with threat. A few days until the Grid launch. Three days until whatever catastrophe she and Preston had engineered.
.
.
.