Chapter 374: How it ends
Kael’s POV
The hotel’s conference hall was windowless, gilded in excess, and suffocating with the smell of expensive cologne and cigar smoke.
Five hours of negotiation, and every word had been a performance, one that ended, as always, with money shaking hands with ambition.
The politicians were courteous, polished, and predictable. They wanted access to XE’s logistics arm, and in exchange they’d "consider" lowering trade tariffs on imported materials. It was theater. They needed us more than we needed them, but I’d learned a long time ago that the illusion of partnership kept wars quiet.
By the time the last document was signed, my patience was gone.
The moment I rose, the doors opened again.
And there he was.
My father.
My father walked in like he owned the air. The officials straightened at once, all eager smiles and reverent nods.
"Mr. Roman," one of them said, rising to shake his hand. "An honor to see you again."
"Likewise," Ewan replied smoothly, his eyes cutting to me just once. "I hope my son hasn’t been too difficult."
A ripple of polite laughter went around the table.
I didn’t laugh.
After a few more formalities, the men excused themselves, leaving us with the echo of their goodbyes and the stale scent of cigars.
I sank back into my seat, pulled out a cigarette, and lit it with the slow, deliberate calm of someone forcing down the urge to explode. The first drag burned enough to steady me.
"You make good friends," I said dryly, exhaling smoke. "Men like that and vultures would get along fine. At least vultures wait until their prey’s dead before they start tearing flesh."
Ewan smiled faintly. "And yet you do business with them."
"That’s because you trained me to."
"Exactly," he said. "So don’t act disgusted by your own reflection."
I tapped the cigarette against the ashtray. "Don’t compare me to them."
"You already are them," he said mildly. "You just dress your greed better."
I looked at him, half-expecting the smirk that always followed, but his face was unreadable.
"Speaking of family matters," he continued as if we were discussing the weather, "Andrew has requested to oversee the domestic operations of XE Corp. I’ve granted it."
The words hit harder than I wanted them to. "You what?"
"He said he wanted to learn from his older brother," Ewan said, adjusting his cufflinks with practiced nonchalance. "I think it’s about time you two work together. You’ve kept him on the sidelines long enough."
I stared at him, incredulous. "You think he wants to learn? He wants control. He wants a stage, and you just handed him one."
Ewan’s tone never shifted. "You sound threatened."
"I don’t get threatened," I snapped. "I get cautious."
He smiled, faintly, as though I’d just proved his point. "Then be cautious, but be smart. Andrew should be arriving at the tower as we speak."
A muscle in my jaw ticked. "And you’re just telling me?"
He nodded, completely at ease. "He said he’d like to surprise you. Consider it a family reunion."
I crushed the half-burned cigarette into the tray, the sound sharp in the quiet room. "You should’ve consulted me first."
"I don’t consult my sons," he said smoothly. "I inform them."
That was it, the final crack in my composure. I pushed up from the chair. "Then inform Andrew to stay out of my way."
I started for the door, but his voice followed, low and deliberate, each word a blade sliding under my ribs.
"You’ve allowed yourself to get soft, Kael. I saw it the moment she entered your life."
I froze, my back to him.
"It’s the same mistake you made with Ivan," he went on, tone almost casual. "Attachment makes men careless. And careless men make corpses."
Something cold and violent pressed against the inside of my chest, begging to be let out. But I didn’t turn. Didn’t give him the satisfaction.
"You think you know how this ends?" he asked quietly. "Then tell me, son. How does it end this time?"
I didn’t answer.
Because the truth was, I didn’t know.
I walked out, letting the door slam behind me.
Outside, the rain had begun again, streaking across the city’s marble skyline. I pulled the cigarette case from my pocket, stared at it for a second, and shoved it back.
There were too many fires already.
And now Andrew was one more spark waiting to catch.
The city outside the hotel looked washed raw, the marble and glass bleeding silver beneath the rain. I didn’t even bother with the umbrella one of the aides offered. The air was cold enough to bite, and I needed the sting to think.
By the time I reached the car, my mind was already made.
Andrew.
Back at the tower.
Even when I wanted to be away.
He’d always known where to strike, never loud, never messy, just patient and precise, like Ewan taught him. If he’d shown up unannounced, it wasn’t to "reconnect." It was to make a point. He was planting himself right in the heart of everything that mattered to me. To her.
I slid into the backseat and grabbed my phone off the console. Two missed calls.
Both from Aria.
Each one a sharp reminder that while I’d been across a table from men with too much money and too little soul, she’d been waiting for me to simply show up.
I stared at her name on the screen, thumb hovering over it. It would’ve been easy to call. To say I’m fine, I’m on my way back, I didn’t forget you.
But a phone call wasn’t enough. Not this time.
Not after Sarah’s threat. Not with Andrew suddenly walking into her orbit.
If there was even the smallest chance he’d already found her, I couldn’t leave that to chance or distance.
I pocketed the phone, voice low when I spoke to the driver. "HQ. Now."
The man glanced back, startled. "Sir, your flight—"
"I’ll handle it. Just drive."
The car shot forward, tires hissing against the wet asphalt. I leaned back, pulse still hammering, watching the rain streak across the window until the city blurred into motion.