Chapter 171

No.1

The heavy, metallic taste of adrenaline flooded Elisa's mouth.

Allena's breath was hot and smelled of copper from her bleeding lip. The threat hung in the air between them, sharp and lethal. **Allena had just threatened to use the family trust to seize the Ainsworth Antique Gallery-**the last remaining pieces of her grandfather's legacy.

Before Elisa could process the sheer malice of the ultimatum, the Chambers Group lobby security guards finally snapped out of their shock. They rushed forward, their heavy boots thudding against the granite floor, trying to form a physical barrier between the screaming Meredith and the bleeding Allena. One of the guards, seeing the situation spiraling out of control, spoke urgently into his shoulder-mounted radio. "Code Three in the main lobby. All units to the west fire exit. Mr. Chambers's security team is requested."

Taking advantage of the sudden chaos, Allena's hand shot out. HHer manicured fingers, slick with her own blood, clamped down on Elisa's wrist like a vice.

Allena's eyes were wide, manic, and filled with a toxic desperation.

"We are going to talk," Allena hissed, her voice a ragged scrape against Elisa's ear. "Now."

Elisa felt a sharp spike of pain shoot up her arm,but the threat to her grandfather's artifacts paralyzed her natural instinct to fight back. She swallowed the bile rising in her throat. She allowed Allena to drag her away from the center of the lobby, moving toward the isolated corner where the emergency exit signs glowed a dull red.

Allena pushed her weight against the heavy metal fire door. It groaned open, revealing a dim,concrete stairwell.

They stepped inside. The heavy door slammed shut behind them, instantly cutting off the noise of the lobby. The silence in the stairwell was thick and oppressive. There were no security cameras here.Just bare concrete and harsh fluorescent lighting.

No.2

Before Allena could even open her mouth to dictate her terms, the fire door was violently thrown open again. It crashed against the concrete wall with a deafening bang.

Meredith Hastings stood in the doorway. Her chest heaved. Her eyes were completely bloodshot, fixed on Allena with the terrifying focus of a rabid animal.

"You think you can run from me?" Meredith screamed, her voice echoing shrilly up the concrete shaft.

She lunged.

Meredith pointed a trembling finger directly at Allena's face. "You filthy, cheap whore! You ruined Julian! You destroyed his entire life just so you could play house with August!"

Allena wiped the blood from her chin. The panic in her eyes vanished, replaced by a cornered, vicious arrogance. She had nothing left to lose in front of Meredith.

"Julian ruined himself," Allena spat back, her voice dripping with absolute contempt. "He was weak.He was a pathetic loser who was only good for keeping

my bed warm until August finally noticed me. He deserved to lose his trust fund."

That sentence was a lit match dropped into a powder keg.

No.3

Meredith let out a sound that was barely human-a raw, guttural roar of pure maternal fury. She threw herself at Allena. Her hands shot out, her fingers curling into claws, and locked directly around Allena's throat.

The impact sent both women crashing against the metal railing.

Elisa was standing two steps higher on the landing.Her body tensed, her instinct urging her to step back. But the heavy carbon-fiber brace strapped tightly around her torso restricted her movements.She could not bend. She could not twist. She was physically trapped, forced to watch the violent struggle unfolding inches away.

High heels scraped frantically against the concrete.Allena gagged, her hands tearing at Meredith's wrists.

In a desperate bid for air, Allena's nails dug deep into

Meredith's cheek, dragging downward and leaving three bloody parallel tracks.

Meredith shrieked in pain. The sting of the torn skin pushed her completely over the edge of reason.

With a surge of adrenaline-fueled strength, Meredith shoved Allena backward. Hard.

Allena's expensive stiletto heel caught the very edge of the concrete step. Her ankle twisted violently.

No.4

For a fraction of a second, time seemed to stop.Allena's arms flailed in the empty air. Her eyes locked onto Elisa's, wide with sudden, absolute terror.

Then, gravity took over.

A piercing scream ripped from Allena's throat as she fell backward. She tumbled downthe steep,narrow flight of stairs like a broken doll. Her body slammed against the sharp concrete edges.

The sickening thud of her head glancing off the metal landing post echoed through the stairwell.

Allena crumpled onto the lower landing. She lay perfectly still. Bright red blood immediately began to pool beneath her head, soaking rapidly into the

pristine white fabric of her blazer.

Meredith stood at the top of the stairs, her chest heaving violently. She stared down at her own hands,then at the unmoving body below. The blind rage drained from her face in an instant, replaced by a stark,paralyzing horror.

The heavy fire door above them was suddenly yanked open.

August burst onto the landing, flanked by two massive bodyguards. He had heard the scream and been directed by the security call.

No.5

His eyes swept the scene. They bypassed Meredith.They bypassed Elisa. They locked instantly onto the blood pooling around Allena's head on the lower landing.

August's pupils dilated. The color completely drained from his face. His heart physically stuttered in his chest.

Meredith saw August. She saw the absolute teror in his eyes. In a fraction of a second, the survival instinct of a woman who had spent decades protecting her wealth kicked in. If August realized

she had nearly killed his fiancée, she would lose her family trust shares forever. She would be destitute.

Meredith collapsed against the wall. She forced her body to shake violently. She raised a trembling hand and'pointed a finger directly at Elisa.

"August!" Meredith wailed, her voice cracking with perfectly feigned hysteria. "Elisa has lost her mind!She pushed her! I tried to stop her, but she pushed Allena down the stairs!"

Elisa's breath caught in her throat. Her stomach plummeted as if she had just stepped off a cliff. She stared at Meredith, completely stunned by the sheer audacity and speed of the lie.

Down on the landing, Allena was not unconscious.

Through the haze of pain and the blood dripping into her eye, Allena heard Meredith's accusation. Even with a severe head wound and a possible concussion, her opportunistic malice remained intact.

No.6

Allena slowly, agonizingly turned her head. She looked up at August. She did not say a word. She just let a single, thick tear roll down her blood-stained

cheek, her eyes wide with fabricated terror as she looked at Elisa.

It was the perfect performance of a victim.

August's head snapped toward Elisa.

The look in his eyes made Elisa's blood run cold.There was no question. There was no doubt. There was only pure, unadulterated hatred. He looked at her not as a wife, not even as a human being, but as a monster who had just tried to murder the woman he loved.

"August, she-" Elisa started to speak, her voice tight.

She didn't get to finish.

August lunged down the stairs. He didn't walk past Elisa; he drove his shoulder directly into hers,violently shoving her out of his way.

The brutal impact sent a shockwave of agony straight into Elisa's injured spine. The world exploded into a nauseating flash of white ligh. The carbon-fiber brace, meant to protect her, became an instrument of torture, digging its rigid edge sharply into her ribs and hip bone. She stumbled hard

No.7

against the rough concrete wall, a choked gasp escaping her lips as the pain blinded her.

She opened her eyes just in time to see August drop to his knees in the pooling blood. He gathered Allena into'his arms, his hands shaking as he pressed his expensive suit jacket against her bleeding head.

Elisa stood against the cold wall. She looked at the blood. She looked at Meredith's fake tears. She looked at August holding the woman who had stolen her life.

The trap had snapped shut. And she was locked inside.