Chapter 114 Always Money
Violet
I feel it before I see it. The shift. The moment everything tips from controlled… to something else. Something dangerous.
Rowan doesn’t move at first. He just stands there, staring at the guard like he’s already decided how this ends. And that’s what makes it worse. Not the yelling. Not the anger. The stillness.
“I didn’t think they’d actually come inside,” the guard blurts again, his voice cracking under the weight of it.
The room goes silent. Dead silent.
My stomach drops. Because now... Now it’s real.
Rowan takes one step forward. Slow. Measured. Terrifying. “What,” he says quietly, “did you just say?”
The guard swallows hard, his entire body starting to shake now. “I—I didn’t think they’d actually come inside,” he repeats, faster this time, panic bleeding into every word. “I thought it was just—just surveillance or something, I didn’t think—”
Rowan laughs. And it’s the worst sound I’ve ever heard. Low. Sharp. Completely humorless.
“You didn’t think,” he repeats.
Theo shifts beside him. “Rowan—”
“Don’t,” Rowan snaps, not even looking at him.
And something in my chest tightens. Because I’ve never heard him like that before. Not like this.
The guard’s breathing is uneven now, almost gasping. “I swear—I swear I didn’t know they’d come inside,” he says quickly, words tripping over each other. “I just—I needed the money—”
That word lands. Money.
Rowan’s head tilts slightly. And somehow…That makes it worse.
“How much?” he asks.
The guard hesitates. That’s his mistake. Rowan takes another step forward. “How. Much?”
“Ten—” he stammers. “Ten thousand—”
Rowan’s jaw tightens. “From who?”
The guard squeezes his eyes shut for a second like he’s trying to hold it in. He can’t. “Hargrove,” he chokes out.
The room shifts. Theo goes still. Camille inhales sharply behind him. Even Devin looks up fully now.
But Rowan? Rowan doesn’t react. Not outwardly. And that’s what scares me.
“Say that again,” Rowan says.
“Hargrove,” the guard repeats, louder this time, desperation clawing its way through his voice. “But—it wasn’t her directly, it was—her assistant. He contacted me first—”
Devin steps forward slightly. “What assistant?”
“I don’t know his name,” the guard says quickly. “He just—he reached out. Said he needed camera access. Offered me a thousand for the footage.”
My stomach twists. Footage. The cameras. The same footage that was aired on the news.
Rowan doesn’t look at me. But I feel it. The tension. The awareness.
“And you gave it to him,” Rowan says flatly.
The guard nods frantically. “I didn’t think it was a big deal at the time, I swear—just the feeds, nothing else—”
Rowan moves again. Closer. “And the fence?” he asks.
The guard’s voice breaks. “He—he came back. A few days later. Said he needed the fence down. Just one section. Just for a little while.”
“And you did it,” Rowan finishes.
“I—I turned it off,” he admits, tears spilling now. “Just that section—I thought—”
“You thought wrong.”
The words cut like a blade. The guard is crying now. Actually crying. Snot coming from his nose and everything.
“I have the messages,” he rushes out. “I swear I do—I didn’t delete anything, I can show you—I can show Devin, I can show the police, I’ll cooperate, I’ll do whatever you want—”
Rowan doesn’t respond.
“I just—I needed the money,” the guard continues, his voice cracking harder now. “I’m behind on my mortgage, I have a family, I—please—please don’t fire me, I didn’t mean for this to happen—”
Rowan takes another step. And something in the air shifts. This is it.
Theo moves fast, stepping slightly in front of Camille again. “Rowan,” he says low. “Think.”
But Rowan isn’t thinking. He’s past that.
“I trusted you,” Rowan says quietly.
The guard flinches like he’s been hit.
“I put you on my team,” Rowan continues. “Inside my home.” His voice drops lower. “You stood in the same room as her.”
My breath catches.
“And you sold it,” he finishes.
The guard shakes his head frantically. “I didn’t know it would—”
“Stop talking.”
The room goes silent again. Rowan’s hands flex at his sides. His entire body is rigid now. Like he’s barely holding it together. And for the first time... I feel it. Not fear. But the realization of what he might do. This isn’t business. This isn’t strategy. This is personal. And he is furious.
The guard’s eyes flick to me suddenly. Desperate. Panicked. “Please,” he chokes out. “Miss Pierce—please—talk to him—he’ll listen to you—”
My heart stutters. Rowan goes still. Too still.
And I know... I know I shouldn’t move. I know Theo is about to step in again. I know Devin is watching everything carefully.
But I also know... This doesn’t stop unless someone stops it.
And Rowan? He’s not stopping. So I step forward.
“Rowan—”
Wrong move.
It happens too fast. The guard lunges. One second he’s on his knees... The next—
He’s grabbing me. I don’t even have time to react before I’m yanked back against him, his arm locking around my chest.
Something cold presses hard against the side of my head. A gun.
Camille screams. Theo swears. Devin moves—
“DON’T!” the guard shouts, his voice completely unhinged now. “Don’t come any closer!”
My heart is slamming against my ribs. My breath comes out sharp, uneven. Rowan doesn’t move. Not even an inch.
But his entire body changes. Goes still. Cold. Lethal.
“Let her go,” he says. Quiet. Deadly.
The guard tightens his grip on me, the gun pressing harder against my temple. “I didn’t mean for this to happen,” he rambles. “I just—I can’t lose my job, I can’t go to jail, I have a family—”
“Let. Her. Go.” Rowan’s voice drops lower.
And for the first time since I’ve known him... I think he might actually kill someone.
And the worst part? I don’t think he’d hesitate.
My breath shakes. My hands finally start to tremble.
But my eyes, my eyes lock on his.
And even now... Even like this—
I know one thing for certain.
He’s not scared. He’s calculating. And whatever he decides next... Someone in this room isn’t walking out alive.