Chapter 93

Chapter 93

"Let her go!"

Jason pressed his tongue against his cheek, his smile deepening. "And if I say no?"

"What if I make you choose between this deal and your wife?"

Simon's reply came in less than three seconds.

"What feelings could I possibly have for her? Maybe it started as love, but eventually, the marriage was just a tool to help me climb up. The deal will always come first. I'm just telling you to stop playing games."

With that, Simon hung up.

Out of sight, Simon's chest heaved. He'd always known Jason came back to fight for the family inheritance. But he'd thought there was still time, and never imagined Jason would go after Aurora now.

Then again, maybe it was just a threat.

Given how much Yosef cared about Aurora, if Jason actually did something to her, how would he ever clean up the mess?

Simon let out a quiet scoff. "I don't believe you'd be stupid enough to go that far."

But there was a hint of uncertainty in his voice, and his expression quickly became unreadable.

His secretary came to get him shortly after, saying the signing ceremony was about to begin.

Simon pushed down his unease and turned his full attention to work.

Once this deal was done and his position in Skyview City was secured, he could convince Aurora to come back with Mia.

Maybe then, the two of them would have a real chance to start over.

Meanwhile, in the dim, cramped warehouse, Aurora sat quietly, listening to the sounds coming through the phone.

When Simon finished his last words, the line went to a dial tone. Jason pocketed his phone and asked, "You heard all of that?"

The call had been on speaker the whole time, just so Aurora could hear every word.

Aurora sat tied to the chair, eyes cast down, her expression unreadable. But a shaft of light fell across her face, and Jason could just make out what looked like despair.

That despair made something stir in him. He couldn't stop the smile spreading across his face. "Now do you finally see what kind of man you married?"

"Aurora, you were the Venture Capital Queen. You were doing so well in this industry. If you hadn't married Simon, you'd probably have quite a name for yourself by now."

Aurora said nothing.

The truth was, the moment she felt Simon's coldness, something inside her had gone completely numb.

They should have divorced long ago. They'd dragged it out, but the love between them had died long before this. Still, Aurora had believed they'd once loved each other fiercely, that there was still something real left between them, and that at the very least, they could wish each other well.

She never expected that when she needed Simon most, she'd hear him say with her own ears that marrying her had been nothing more than a business decision.

"There's nothing between us but interests. Using her to threaten me is just laughable."

The words played over and over in her head like a blow that shattered every last hope she had.

Jason watched Aurora stay silent for a long moment, then narrowed his eyes in satisfaction. "Don't worry though. I grabbed you just to see where Simon stood. Now that I know you don't matter to him, I've got other plans."

"So I'm not going to do anything to you. You can relax."

Aurora thought to herself — she'd never met anyone quite like this.

Knowing full well this wouldn't just blow over, she raised her head, her voice cold and unsteady. "Aren't you afraid I'll go to the police once you let me go?"

Jason laughed. In the darkness of the warehouse, the sound was chilling.

It made Aurora's skin crawl. She clenched her jaw and told herself not to show a single emotion.

Jason leaned in close, eyes narrowed, still smiling. "I don't think you will."

"Because the moment you go to the police, every dirty secret the Coldridge family has will be out in the open. Are you really willing to risk giving Yosef a heart attack?"

Aurora never expected that this man of all people would use Yosef against her.

Her temples throbbed with anger. Maybe it was Simon's coldness still eating at her, making it hard to think straight. "You don't even care about him. So why would you—"

"Exactly because I don't care about him, I can ask you to keep quiet without losing a second of sleep."

Jason was a bad man.

Aurora knew that perfectly well.

What she hadn't expected was that he seemed more than happy to admit it.

"When you first came back, you acted like such a considerate uncle in front of me."

Jason gave an ambiguous smile. "People are complicated, Ms. Montague."

From the day he decided to come back and go up against Simon, he'd been clear with himself — what he wanted was never just a short-term gain.

"If you've been in this world this long and still haven't figured that out, I feel sorry for you."

He finished speaking, then raised his hand and called one of his men inside. "But I'm not really in the mood to give you a free lesson today."

"We'll save that for next time, if we cross paths again..."

He hadn't planned on talking much with Aurora today anyway. He had other things to take care of.

This signing deal of Simon's wasn't really the point for him. He just wanted to see how Simon would react.

What he hadn't counted on was Simon throwing himself into the deal without hesitation — and in doing so, seemingly losing whatever love Aurora still had for him.

Either way, it was exactly the outcome Jason had hoped for. As far as he was concerned, Simon never deserved that kind of pure, genuine love in the first place.

That day Blair had stormed into the house and said those things — telling everyone Aurora couldn't have children — Aurora had stood there in front of everyone and declared, out loud, everything she felt for Simon.

From the time they met, through everything they'd shared, it had almost always been Aurora who gave more.

Even when she lost her chance to become a mother, Aurora had chosen to save Simon.

Jason had been there that day, and all he could think was — what had Simon done to deserve that?

He never had any respect for Blair. But he'd heard Aurora's name long before any of this.

Jason reached into his pocket and pulled out a lighter. In the darkness, he flicked it open, and a small flame rose up.

The sudden movement startled Aurora.

His men were already filing in through the door at his signal, waiting for orders.

"Let her go. Get a car and take her back."

He'd barely finished speaking when the warehouse door was shoved open again.

A woman in a white dress came rushing in, frantic, calling out, "Where is she?"

The moment she spotted Aurora tied to the chair, Blair froze for a second, then burst into loud, exaggerated laughter. "I can't believe you actually pulled it off — you really did kidnap Aurora!"