Chapter 305: The Collapse

Bobby asked his men to load Charlotte into the car and quietly gave them their instructions. They had to be careful. No one could see them taking her there, and they certainly couldn’t be caught on any of the surrounding cameras.

Everything had to look as though Charlotte had done it herself.

Once his men had left, Bobby returned to Maximilian. He hesitated for a moment, clearly struggling with how to begin. There was something he needed to say, but he wasn’t sure how to put it into words.

“There’s something I need you to know,” Bobby finally said. “While you were out… Catherine went to…” He cleared his throat.

He wanted Maximilian to know everything before he married his sister. Bobby knew how terrible male jealousy could be, and the last thing he wanted was for Catherine to suffer because something from those days had been left unsaid.

Maximilian smiled faintly. He had expected this. He knew Catherine’s brothers would eventually bring it up, each of them wanting to make certain that the man she was about to marry understood everything.

“Catherine and I talked about it, Bobby. We’re fine,” he said calmly. “She wanted to get back at him, and she did what she had to do. She won. That’s all there is to it. She’s safe, and that’s all I care about.”

He had said the same thing to Catherine, and he would repeat it to every member of her family if it would put their minds at ease. He didn’t mind. This was simply how they showed their love for her.

Bobby stared at him for a moment before stepping forward and pulling Maximilian into a hug.

“Good… good,” he murmured.

When he finally let go, he gave Maximilian a firm pat on the shoulder.

“Soph said the wedding gowns are almost ready. We need to start discussing the wedding date.”

Maximilian smiled. His mind was already filled with a hundred things he needed to handle, but the thought of marrying Catherine pushed everything else aside for a moment. Just imagining her as his wife brought a smile to his face.

“We shall,” he said with a nod.

Bobby walked away, already turning his attention back to the matter of Charlotte.

He would handle that.

For now, Maximilian had a wedding to look forward to.

—–

Dorian stepped out of Noah Renfield’s house and began walking, letting his legs carry him wherever they wanted. He removed his suit jacket and draped it over his shoulders as he tried to piece together his next move.

The Majority Leader would stall the investigations for him, but that was only one problem. He still needed to safeguard the money he had stashed away. If the FBI found those accounts…

His phone rang.

Dorian glanced at the screen. It was his man inside the FBI office.

“Sire… something is happening. You’d better be careful,” the man said.

“What?”

“Someone is meeting with the FBI Director. They’re keeping the meeting completely secret.”

Dorian’s expression hardened. “Find out who.”

“I’ll try, Sire, but—”

“Keep watching. I want to know the moment anything changes.”

He ended the call and continued walking, irritation simmering beneath his skin.

Then he tried William. He did not answer. Dorian called again. Still nothing.

Before he could try a third time, his assistant called. “Sire, another major investor has sold a huge block of shares. The stock is falling rapidly.”

Dorian fisted his hands.

“Where are you, Sire?” his assistant asked. “Do you need help?”

“I don’t need anyone! Keep me updated,” Dorian said.

The assistant searched for words, when Dorian snapped.

“What was the name of the company that sold? And why wasn’t I informed that so many LLCs were investing in our stock?”

His voice rose with every word.

The assistant swallowed. “It was… Dravencourt Royal Inc., Sire.”

Dorian stopped walking.

Dravencourt?

For a moment, the world around him seemed to quiet. Could this be connected to… Maximilian?

“What was the name of the other major company that sold earlier?”

The assistant hesitated and Dorian could hear the click of keyboards from the other end.

“Elyndra Orchards Inc., Sire.”

Dorian’s knees weakened. He knew those names. The names of the Kingdoms of Katerina and Maximilian. There was no way this was a coincidence.

This was Maximilian.

But how?

Maximilian was a history professor. Even the Whitmore family wasn’t wealthy enough to move billions through shell companies without anyone noticing. And he was DEAD!!!

So what was going on?

“Find out who owns them.”

“I’ll—”

“Now!”

Dorian ended the call and shoved the phone into his pocket. He kept walking, breathing hard, his thoughts racing.

A homeless man sitting beside the pavement suddenly called out to him. “Spare some change, sir?”

Dorian stopped. Something about the man’s voice irritated him beyond reason. “Get away from me.”

The man raised his hands defensively. “I only asked—”

Dorian’s hand moved inside his coat. The gun was in his grip before he had even consciously decided to draw it.

The homeless man froze. Dorian raised the weapon. For one terrible second, he was ready to pull the trigger.

Then he noticed the people around them. Pedestrians had begun looking in their direction. A woman had stopped several yards away. Someone was already holding up a phone.

Dorian slowly lowered the gun. His jaw clenched. He shoved it back beneath his coat and walked away without another word.

He had to get somewhere private. Somewhere he could think.

A few minutes later, his phone rang again. It was William. Dorian answered immediately.

“Where the hell were you?”

William sounded tired. “It’s late. I was going to bed.”

“Bed?” Dorian repeated incredulously. “Now?”

“Yes. We can talk tomorrow.”

The call ended.

Dorian stood there staring at the dark screen. He looked around. People were walking past him. Cars moved along the road. Lights glowed in apartment windows. Somewhere, someone laughed.

The world was continuing as though nothing had happened. But Dorian could feel his own world collapsing around him.

He had spent his entire life believing that there was always another door, another ally, another fortune, another person he could threaten or buy.

Now, one by one, they were disappearing.

His phone rang again, and it was the FBI informant.

Dorian answered immediately. “What?”

“They’re reopening the investigation into BioQuant and you, Sire.”

Dorian’s face went blank. “Who was it?”

The voice on the other end dropped to a whisper. “They say he’s family. Preston, I think. And I heard James Preston met with the Senate Majority Leader earlier.”

Dorian’s control finally snapped. He hurled the phone onto the pavement. “Damn it!”

He kicked the nearest lamppost, then another, cursing as he paced.

James Preston.

Of course.

It had to be Jonathan Preston who met with the director. He was the one with the legal connections and the influence to make something like this happen.

Dorian bent down and retrieved his phone. The screen was cracked, but it still worked. He was about to call his contact when his assistant called again.

Dorian answered with a snarl.

“Sire… we found the owner of those shell companies.”

“Who?”

“They belong to that legendary investor, Leon Aureus.”

Dorian frowned.

“Leon Aureus?”

“Yes, Sire.”

“What is he? Greek or something? Why the hell have I never heard of him?”

There was a pause.

Then Dorian’s expression slowly changed.

No.

He had heard that name before.

But where?

“Sire?” his assistant prompted.

Dorian barely heard him.

A memory surfaced.

A song.

A bard singing long after Katerina had died. A song about Maximilian’s valor, about the king who had survived impossible battles and even changed the direction of rivers.

Dorian had heard it years ago. And Katerina had given an important part of those lyrics to the bard.

Leon Aureus.

His breathing stopped.

That song. The song of Maximilian.

Dorian stared into the darkness as the realization settled over him.

Leon Aureus was Maximilian.

Was he not dead?

Shock gave way to horror. Maximilian had been hiding in plain sight.

“I’ll kill you right this time, Maximilian!” Dorian grunted.

While Dorian was still struggling to process what that meant, a woman’s voice drifted from behind him.

“There you are, Dorian…”

The voice was eerie, almost cheerful.

“I found you. How lucky am I?”

Dorian turned. Before he could make out who was standing behind him, something slammed into his abdomen.

For one stunned instant, he thought he had been punched.

Then the pain came… Sharp and deep.

And suddenly, he understood.

It wasn’t a punch. It was a blade.

Dorian’s eyes widened.

Standing before him was…

Charlotte.

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