Chapter 166
Chapter 166:
In the room next door, following Paige’s orders, the kidnappers had injected Vivien with a sedative. Now, she lay motionless on the floor, unconscious and completely unaware.
Paige lounged on the sofa, casually sipping from a cup of coffee, her eyes locked on the surveillance footage streaming from her own phone. The moment Cole’s tall, magnetic figure appeared on the screen, her heart skipped a beat. Her gaze softened, filled with longing and admiration. Every time she laid eyes on him, she found herself even more captivated by his charm.
Although Paige had once claimed herself as Cole’s fiancée, she had never earned even a flicker of his attention. She had never been allowed into his inner circle. Watching Allan, Merlin, and Manley now trailing behind Cole like trusted allies, she felt a wave of discontent rise within her. Raylan seemed entirely unremarkable. Even though the Hudson family held a respected name in Ublento, they were nothing compared to the Evans, Shaw, Swain, and Blakely families. Cole stood at the pinnacle of Ublento’s elite, and his friends were far more remarkable than Raylan. As the city’s most celebrated socialite, Paige believed she shouldn’t settle for the likes of Raylan. With every passing thought, her frustration with her current situation only intensified.
As her frustration grew, so did her resentment toward Elliana in the room next door. Had Elliana not disrupted her plans, she would have already become Cole’s wife, enjoying her rightful status among the elite. Whatever the outcome today, one thing was certain—Elliana had to disappear. She would not stand by and watch Elliana claim the life that was meant to be hers.
Meanwhile, guided by the men in black, Cole and his group entered a grand hall.
The hall was furnished with extreme extravagance, featuring plush sofas and tables sourced from elite global luxury brands.
Though the decor screamed opulence, the mood in the room was anything but relaxed—tension hung in the air like a storm about to break.
𝗦𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗰𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗿𝘂𝘁𝗵:
The ceiling stretched up to the second floor, leaving the hall feeling wide and open.
At ground level, every corner was guarded by men dressed in black, each holding an assault rifle, and in the shadowed sections above, even more gunmen stood ready. Together, they formed a layered, inescapable trap. If things went south, Cole and his group would be torn apart in seconds by a rain of bullets.
While anyone else might have been paralyzed by fear in such a situation, Cole remained entirely composed. His gaze held an edge of arrogance, even a glimmer of dark amusement.
Trailing closely behind him, Myles, Aron, and Hugh stood like seasoned warriors, every inch of them alert and battle-tested. Their presence alone sent a clear message—Cole was well-guarded.
Allan, Merlin, and Manley, each a dominant force in his own right, appeared completely unbothered. They moved with ease, like spectators at a high-stakes game rather than players caught in danger. Manley, in particular, looked the most relaxed, his hands casually tucked into his pockets, gum between his teeth, and his grin laced with mischief.
After scanning the entire space with a sharp glance, Cole made his way to the center and settled onto the grand sofa.
Behind him, Myles, Aron, and Hugh naturally assumed their protective positions, standing like sentinels.