Chapter 219 Chapter 219

Chapter 219 Chapter 219
Violet

I stared at him in shock as he leaned back and lifted his glass, swirling the drink idly.

“Did I tell you that you look absolutely gorgeous tonight? Deep blue suits you.”

I gave him an awkward smile. “You look good too.”

“It was truly an effort to get out of the hospital but then I forced myself. After all, how could I not, considering I would be meeting you.”

His eyes twinkled with delight.

Words failed me again so I simply reached for the glass and took a sip to give myself something to do.

He poured himself another drink from the bottle as he continued. 

“What did you mean about me being an insider?” I asked, getting straight to the point.

“I really thought we wouldn’t talk about work tonight but as you wish” He said, taking a sip.

I waited for him to finish his drink impatiently.

"I don't always agree with Mirella," Dane said, leaning forward to lower his voice in a conspiratory whisper. "But I have to admit, I liked her idea of planting you as our spy."

The words hit me like ice water. "You want me to spy on Elijah?"

Dane's smile widened, taking on a sharper edge. 

"He played dirty when he forced you to work for him, didn't he? Threatened to destroy my company if you didn't sign that contract?"

I hesitated, unsure how to respond. The waiter chose that moment to arrive with appetizers, small plates of beautifully arranged food that probably cost more than my weekly grocery budget.

Dane picked up a fork and took a bite, seemingly unbothered by my silence. After swallowing, he continued in that same casual tone.

"Mirella overheard him threatening you. Or maybe you told her yourself?" He looked at me expectantly. "But it's the truth, right? He forced your hand?"

I still didn't answer, but my silence spoke volumes.

"Then why should I not destroy someone who vowed to destroy me? He struck me when I was at my most vulnerable, took my star employee under gunpoint. His focus isn’t even in jewellery but other businesses yet he can’t stand the fact that somebody dared dream!" Dane muttered, and there was something harder in his voice now. Something that reminded me he was a businessman, capable of ruthlessness when necessary.

I looked down at my untouched plate, my mind spinning. On one hand, he was right. Elijah had manipulated me, forced me into this position through threats and blackmail. He had made a bet about me with Nicole, tricked me into falling for him and played cruel games with my heart.

I should want to help Dane, should want to see Elijah face consequences for his actions especially when Dane had never hurt him.

In fact, the last time I had mentioned wanting to destroy Elijah, he was the one to have asked me to simply ensure that our designs stood out among the others and calm down on my hatred.

And now he was the one suggesting I do exactly the opposite.

Despite that, the thought of actively working to destroy Elijah made my stomach turn, made me feel sick in ways I couldn't fully articulate.

Dane must have seen the conflict on my face because he leaned forward, his expression softening into something more sympathetic.

"Let me tell you a story," he said quietly. "About what Elijah Lockwood did to my family's company three years ago."

I looked up, meeting his eyes.

"We had a deal in the works. A major contract that would have secured our financial stability for the next decade. Grandpa had been looking forward to it because that deal would have cleared all our existing loans. But then Elijah swooped in at the last minute and made an offer we couldn’t match even if we sold everything. Not because he actually wanted the contract, but because he simply could. Because destroying our deal amused him."

Dane's jaw tightened, real pain flashing across his features.

"We lost everything that day. We had to lay off half our staff. My grandfather, who'd built the company from nothing, had his first heart attack when he saw what we'd been reduced to. We almost went bankrupt, Violet. We almost lost everything our family had worked three generations to build."

He paused, noticing my reaction and taking a sip of wine before continuing.

"And do you know why Elijah did it? Not for business reasons. Not for profit or strategic advantage either. He did it because my grandfather had once refused to partner with Alaric Deveraux, because our family dared to say no to the great and powerful Deveraux."

The bitterness in his voice was unmistakable.

“He did it out of pure boredom and spite. Elijah Lockwood would do anything his father asked of him without guilt or remorse, like his faithful dog. And yet Alaric didn’t even give him his surname.”

My eyes widened at that line.

“Yeah I know about his twisted lineage. He destroyed my family once so I made it a point to learn it all about him. But that’s not important right now.”

I shifted uncomfortably in my seat, recalling the words Elijah had said to me. Of how he snatched and caged people.

Hell, he had done the same to me. Thankfully, Dane didn’t need to know how Elijah had destroyed my heart and dreams.

"That's who you're protecting," Dane said, his eyes searching my face. "A man who destroys lives on a whim. He is a man who uses people like chess pieces and discards them when they're no longer useful. He manipulates and threatens and ruins innocent people for no reason except that he can."

Each word hit like a hammer blow, driving home truths I'd been trying to avoid. This was who Elijah was. This was what he did. The bet about me hadn't been an isolated incident but a pattern of behavior.

"I don't want revenge," Dane continued, his voice gentler now. "I just want to make sure he never destroys another family the way he destroyed ours. I want to stop him before he ruins more lives. I fucking want him to feel what it means to lose everything"

He reached across the table and took my hand, his grip warm and steady.

"Will you help me?" he asked. "Please? Not for me, but for all the people he'll hurt in the future if someone doesn't stop him?"

I looked down at our joined hands, feeling torn in directions I couldn't even name.

I wanted to see Elijah hurt, wanted to see him broken too, right?

"What would you need me to do?" The words came out barely above a whisper.