Chapter 160 Plan
Chapter 160 Plan
Penelope stared at the high-resolution photo on the screen, the shock in her eyes lasting less than two seconds before it vanished completely.
Her wildly pounding heart quickly settled, and her brain kicked into overdrive like a precision computer.
The man in the mercenary tactical uniform in the photo was definitely Dominic.
And standing behind him was unmistakably Preston—the man who'd backed them into a corner.
But Penelope knew Preston's methods too well.
She zoomed in on the photo, her fingertip tracing the edge of the shadow behind Preston.
The pixel smudging was incredibly subtle, but to her, it was an obvious flaw.
The light refraction in the photo was off too—the sharpness of the vignette and the main subject differed by an entire compression algorithm level.
This was definitely a vicious attempt at manipulation.
More importantly, if Dominic really was Preston's mole, his protection at the abandoned pawn shop made zero sense.
The Dominic who'd risked his life for her couldn't possibly be the kind of traitor who sold out for money.
Penelope slammed her phone down on the glass table, her lips curving into a smile cold enough to freeze bone.
Dominic sat on the leather sofa, acutely aware of the subtle shift in Penelope's emotions.
Fighting through the tearing pain from his abdominal wound, he braced one hand against the armrest and struggled to his feet.
Dragging his battered body wrapped in white bandages, he moved step by step toward the console, his gaze landing on the phone.
He picked it up casually and glanced at the screen. The killing intent in his eyes instantly surged like a raging storm.
"His methods are getting more despicable by the day. He's actually stooping to this kind of bottom-feeding fake photo."
Dominic's finger swiped across the phone screen, tapping twice on the forged image.
"Has Preston lost his mind? Does he really think this pathetic trick can drive a wedge between us?"
He leaned down slightly, moving aggressively into Penelope's space until their noses nearly touched.
Penelope could feel his scorching breath against her cheek, so hot it made her heart skip a beat.
"Dominic, you're too close. The smell of blood on you is making me sick."
She deliberately put on a cold expression, but her body made no move to retreat.
Dominic's Adam's apple bobbed violently, the possessive madness he'd been suppressing nearly spilling over.
"Penelope, I've put my entire life in your hands. You're never getting rid of me."
Penelope lifted her head, meeting his aggressive gaze without flinching, absolute trust shining in her eyes.
"If you were really a mole, you should've thrown me into that fire at the pawn shop and let me burn to ash."
"Besides, that puncture scar on your body—Preston probably wouldn't even have the guts to look at it."
They stared at each other from a foot apart, the air thick with an intense understanding no outsider could penetrate.
This understanding left Sam and Sebastian standing frozen nearby, completely unable to get a word in.
The truth was, Preston was extremely paranoid—the mercenaries under him never got access to the real core secrets.
Like Rusty Nail, the execution team leader Dominic had taken down earlier. Though he was an elite member of the mercenary group, his orders had simply been to bring Penelope back to Aurelia alive. He'd had no idea about Subject 07's true identity.
In Preston's eyes, aside from himself and a few absolutely loyal confidants, no one was qualified to see Dominic's real face.
That's why when Rusty Nail fought Dominic to the death on the third basement level, he'd completely failed to recognize Dominic as the perfect antibody.
Preston's extreme selfishness and paranoia had ironically become the perfect cover for Dominic's hidden identity.
Penelope withdrew her gaze, turning to look at Sam, who was still standing there dazed. Her eyes held a ruthless decisiveness.
"Sam, drop whatever you're doing. Go down to the basement lab and make me a convincing fake antibody sample."
Sam stopped what he was doing and turned around, confusion written all over his face.
"Penelope, Preston's an old hand at this. Ordinary fake blood won't fool his medical team."
Penelope let out a cold snort, her fingers drumming rhythmically on the table.
"Who said I'm using fake blood to fool him? Seal a layer of high-explosive liquid at the bottom of the vial. Set it to trigger the instant the cap opens."
Sam's forehead immediately broke out in cold sweat.
Sebastian's eyes went wide.
"You're planning to personally deliver a bomb to Aurelia and take him out?"
Penelope nodded, her bloodshot eyes radiating a vicious determination to go down together.
"He gave me seventy-two hours. I'll use those seventy-two hours to blow his headquarters sky-high. He wants my blood to extend his life? I'll send him an explosion instead."
Half an hour later, Sam placed the sealed vial into a temperature-controlled case.
The dark red liquid inside the glass tube gleamed with a deadly sheen under the light, the film-thin explosive at the bottom disguised flawlessly.
Penelope looked at it through the bulletproof glass, her smile reaching absolute zero.
The moment Preston's medical team tried to forcibly open the vial's seal, this micro-bomb would detonate instantly.
With extreme care, Penelope placed the vial into a specially designed metal combination-lock case, her movements clean and efficient.