Chapter 28 Checkmate

• Desmond’s laughter echoed through the cold, empty room, wrapping around Emma like a noose. She stood her ground, her body rigid, heart thundering beneath her ribcage as Maxwell’s shadow loomed just beside his father’s. The smugness on their faces was a venomous reminder that she was standing in the lion’s den—with no guarantee of coming out alive.
• “I’m done playing your game, Desmond,” Emma repeated, her voice steady despite the tremor in her hands. “I will get my mother’s inheritance. No matter what.”
• Desmond leaned back in his chair, his fingers steepled beneath his chin. “Still so naive,” he murmured. “You think this is about inheritance? About money? You never understood the game. This has always been about power.”