Chapter 351: I Was Reckless
Damien’s gaze remained fixed on the screen as the grainy footage continued to play.
For several seconds, nothing happened.
The street remained quiet and nearly deserted, illuminated only by the dull glow of streetlights lining the road. The entrance to the housing complex stood empty, with no sign of movement anywhere nearby.
Still, Damien couldn’t shake the growing tension in his chest. He leaned forward slightly, his eyes scanning every corner of the screen as he waited for whatever had happened that night to reveal itself.
Moments later, a black vehicle entered the frame.
It slowed near the housing complex before pulling over along the curb. The headlights went dark, but no one got out.
For a while, the vehicle simply sat there.
Then movement near the entrance of the building caught Damien’s attention.
Janice stepped outside.
She glanced around before pulling her cardigan tighter against the cold, rubbing one hand over her opposite arm as she made her way toward the waiting vehicle.
The driver’s door opened as she approached, and a man stepped out.
Damien’s attention sharpened immediately. He studied the man’s build, posture, and movements, searching his memory for any sign of recognition.
Nothing.
But he was certain it wasn’t Viktor.
, there was something about the man that raised Damien’s suspicions. He made no attempt to
conceal himself or even glance around to see if anyone was watching.
There
was an almost arrogant confidence in the way he moved, as though being seen outside
Janice’s building in the middle of the night was of absolutely no concern to him.
Damien had encountered enough men like him to recognize that kind of brazen confidence.
He didn’t need to recognize the man to know exactly what he was looking at.
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One of Volkov’s lapdogs.
There was no audio, but at first, the conversation appeared calm.
Then the man said something.
Janice’s entire expression changed.
하
Her hand flew to her mouth as she shook her head repeatedly. She took several steps backward,
clearly refusing whatever he had just told her.
The man immediately moved forward and grabbed her arm.
Janice tried to pull away, but his grip only tightened as he yanked her closer and said something
else, this time directly into her face.
Whatever he told her changed everything.
The resistance slowly drained from Janice’s body.
Fear replaced it.
Her eyes widened, and unmistakable worry spread across her face as she listened. After several
seconds, she reluctantly nodded.
Only then did the man release her.
He reached into his jacket and pulled out what looked like a small bottle. Before Janice could
react, he seized her hand, forced it open, and shoved the bottle into her palm.
Then he pointed a finger inches from her face and delivered what looked unmistakably like a
warning.
Janice nodded repeatedly.
Apparently satisfied, the man turned away, climbed back into the vehicle, and drove off, leaving Janice standing alone on the curb, whatever he had given her still clutched tightly in her palm.
Janice remained where she was, watching as the black vehicle disappeared down the street.
The moment it was gone, her entire posture crumpled.
Her upper body folded forward, and her shoulders began to shake, rising and falling with what
could only be silent sobs.
For a long moment, she simply stood there beneath the streetlight, visibly breaking down.
Eventually, she pulled herself together, wiped at her face, and slowly made her way back toward
the building.
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ElNpter 351 | Was Peckless
Before she could reach the entrance, the screen went black.
Ken switched off the projector, and the faint hum of the machine disappeared.
“That’s the last thing I could find connecting her to Viktor’s people,” he said.
“There were no more payments after that night. No more meetings. No phone calls I could trace. Nothing.”
Damien didn’t respond.
His gaze remained fixed on the now–blank screen as the suspicion that had been weighing on him since he first saw the date grew heavier.
“What the hell did they talk about that night?” he muttered. “What did that man give her? And why did the payments suddenly stop?”
He dragged a hand roughly over his face.
“Fuck! That son of a bitch!” His voice exploded through the room. “I’ll kill him. I swear to God, I’ll fucking kill him myself!”
“Calm down, Damien.”
Damien whipped his head toward Ken.
“You don’t understand. That morning was the first time I’d interacted with Maya outside the company.” He pointed sharply toward the blank screen. “I was coming back from an event when we happened to pass through that area. Maya and Jaime were standing at that exact bus stop. We stopped and offered them a ride to the hospital.”
His jaw clenched.
“And then, before fucking sunrise the next day, one of Volkov’s lapdogs suddenly shows up outside her building?”
Damien shook his head, his expression darkening.
“That’s not a fucking coincidence. Someone must have been watching. Viktor found out I’d
willingly given a woman the kind of attention I never gave anyone, not even his own daughter, and he sent one of his dogs to deliver a message.”
The realization hit him with enough force to momentarily silence him.
“I was reckless,” he muttered.
His anger suddenly turned inward.
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“Fuck. I shouldn’t have approached her that day. I should’ve known better.”
Then another thought struck him. His mind raced through one possibility after another, each worse than the last.
“Knowing Volkov, I wouldn’t put anything past him. Whatever the fuck that man gave her, I have a bad feeling it was meant to hurt Maya.”
Damien finally turned away and dropped heavily into the chair.
He leaned forward, planting his elbows on his knees before lowering his head into his hands.
“Just hours after that…” he said, his voice suddenly quieter.
His fingers tightened against his scalp.
“That piece–of–shit doctor took Maya.”
Ken immediately understood where his mind had gone.
“That was a coincidence,” he said firmly.
Damien’s head snapped up.
“I already looked into it,” Ken continued. “There’s nothing connecting Viktor or any of his people to that doctor. As far as I can tell, the kidnapping had nothing to do with them.”
Damien slowly lowered his gaze, his shoulders sagging beneath the weight of everything he had just learned.
That should have made him feel better.
It didn’t.
If anything, everything they had uncovered seemed to leave him with more questions than
answers.
Ken studied him for a moment.
“We may not have all the answers yet,” he said. “But at least now you know the truth about what
Viktor has been doing all these years.”
His expression grew more serious.
“And now that you know the game he’s been playing, you’re in a much better position to beat the
bastard at his own game.”
Ken rose from his chair and walked around the desk. When he reached Damien, he placed a hand
on his shoulder and gave it a firm squeeze.
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apter 351: Was Rexless
“But none of that matters right now. Viktor can wait, and once you find Janice, you’ll have a better
chance of getting the answers you need.”
He paused.
“Right now, there’s something far more important you need to figure out.”
Damien already knew what he meant, and Ken’s next words only confirmed it.
“You need to figure out how you’re going to tell Maya everything.”
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