Chapter 146
Chapter 146:
“Both,” he answered without hesitation. “I need your fire, your ruthlessness. But I also want you—the woman who refuses to accept defeat, who fought her way out of foster care and built herself into someone formidable.”
Rose felt something unfamiliar stir within her. No one had ever wanted her for herself, for the qualities others found disturbing or dangerous. Stefan had wanted the mask she wore. Her adoptive parents had wanted the obedient daughter she pretended to be.
But Herod saw her—truly saw her—and wanted her anyway.
“Yes,” she said softly. “I’ll stay.”
A sudden chime interrupted them. Herod checked the notification. “Another data packet from the Grid. Section B is scheduled for tomorrow, but they’re running preliminary tests now.” He scrolled through the numbers. “The same patterns. Too perfect. Too predictable.”
“You’re certain they know?”
Herod nodded. “Which means we need to be prepared for resistance.”
“Let them resist,” Rose said, her voice hardening. “By the time they realize what’s really happening, it will be too late.”
Later, wrapped in tangled sheets, Rose lay with her head on Herod’s chest.
“No matter what happens tomorrow,” he said quietly, “remember that we’ve already won. We forced them to discover the sabotage. We made them change their plans, react to our moves.”
Rose nodded, understanding. If their plan somehow failed, it wouldn’t be the end—just one battle in a longer war they would eventually win together.
“I know,” she murmured, looking into his eyes. “But we won’t fail.”
As he pulled her down for another kiss, Rose realized that, for the first time in her life, she wasn’t fighting alone.
Morning light streamed through Victoria’s office windows, turning the silver in her hair to platinum. She stood at the head of the conference table, reviewing the Phoenix Grid’s reports.
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“Power distribution remains stable,” she noted, flipping through papers with practiced efficiency. “No anomalies detected overnight.”
Camille watched from across the table, noticing something off about her. Her normally flawless complexion had a grayish tinge, and faint circles underlined her eyes.
“Are you feeling alright?” Camille asked quietly while Alexander studied technical readouts beside her.
Victoria dismissed the question with a sharp wave. “I’m fine. Let’s focus on Section B. The activation is scheduled for noon.”
Alexander glanced up. “My security team reports no suspicious activity. If Rose and Herod are planning something, they’re being extraordinarily careful.”
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