Chapter 161 Where am I?
~Hermes~
"Natalya!" I roar as Dominic’s bodyguard slams the butt of his pistol into the back of her head.
My eyes go wide as she collapses. What the actual fuck?
What game was Dominic playing—hitting his own daughter like she meant nothing?
This… this was far beyond what I’d prepared for. Everything up to now had been controlled—calculated. Getting my father secretly extracted to this venue without Dominic catching on. Keeping him out of sight until it was time to expose the truth.
But now? Everything has escalated m the planned evacuation, fire alarms, bomb threats.
Dominic—of course—came ready for war.
"What are you doing, Dominic!" my father shouts, bracing himself against the mic stand.
I scan the room, mind racing. I need a way out. I need to keep them alive.
And all of this—every second—is being live‑streamed. Not that it matters much if we end up dead afterward.
"Oh, shut up, Lucien," Dominic spits, pointing a gun directly at us. "You don’t get to speak. All the doors are sealed. Nobody leaves. Nobody enters."
Fuck. Someone is going to die if I don’t take control.
Slowly, I step down from the podium, raising my hands. "Why don’t we all calm down and discuss this?"
The police I set up beforehand should already be closing in. I just need Dominic talking long enough—for the confession for the world to see.
"What did we ever do to you, Uncle Dom?" I ask, voice low, steady. "I thought we were family."
Dominic begins pacing, slow and theatrical, the gun swinging casually at his side.
"Oh, dear boy. You don’t have a single clue what your father has taken from me."
I look at my father. His eyes drop—avoiding mine.
Until now, I thought Dominic’s grudge came from jealousy… the scandal… power.
But the way my father’s expression folds—guilt, old and buried—tells me this is deeper, and older. Something I was never told.
Dominic stops pacing and snarls, "He took the very thing I cherished most—and forced me to celebrate with him."
My father lifts his head sharply. "Dominic, that was years ago! I thought we settled that. Lisa never loved you. She wanted me—and you accepted that!"
My heart stops.
My mother’s name slams through me like a punch.
"Father? What is he talking about?" I demand.
Dominic turns to me, eyes wild. "Your father is a thief. A stealer of lives. He stole my Lisa from me—and made her die."
"Do not lie to the boy!" my father fires back, voice shaking. "Do not insult Lisa’s memory. Lisa died from natural causes."
I stand frozen, mind fracturing between two versions of the same past.
My parents’ marriage.
Dominic’s hatred. And a secret no one ever told me.
What was all these all about? Have I being dragged into aged-old quarrel.
Dominic keeps going, voice rising to a manic pitch.
"Your father also took my company!" He presses the pistol to his own neck, a deranged show of conviction. "Yes—Apex was meant to be mine. He stole the contract meant for my company!"
My father’s jaw locks. "Your company wasn’t qualified for that contract. I did you a favor."
Dominic laughs—a raw, deranged sound that echoes up the chandelier.
"Well, it’s time I take the company back. You know—I could’ve killed you in your sleep when you stayed with me. But no. I wanted you alive long enough to witness this moment."
"Hitler," he snaps.
His bodyguard strides forward and hands him a folded document.
Dominic opens it with a flourish.
"Here’s what’s going to happen. You sign your rights over to me. We walk out of this building unharmed. And you announce to the public that you and your son are stepping down."
I scoff, glancing at my watch.
"And what makes you think we’re going to do that? The police are already on their way. It’s over, Dominic."
He then laughs again, this time slow, and indulgent, like he’s amused by a child.
"Oh, poor boy. You think I didn’t know that. I planned everything. I have a surprise for you."
He claps sharply.
The doors burst open. Several bodyguards drag two people in, their heads covered with black hoods.
My breath stops.
No.
No. No. No. This can’t be—
The hoods are ripped off.
It's June, and Ted.
No.
A violent numbness shoots through my veins. My chest tightens so hard I can’t breathe.
They force Ted and June to their knees.
June’s eyes search blindly, terrified and trying to be brave.
Ted’s jaw clenches, fury and terror mixed.
"June…" I whisper, stepping forward—
A gun presses to her temple, and I freeze mid step.
"Not another step." Dominic flashes a triumphant smile. "You’ll do exactly as I say. Otherwise she goes first. If the police enter, Hitler presses the button and you all die. And we walk out."
Behind him, murmurs ripple through his men.
Dominic turns sharply. "What now?"
Hitler snatches a phone from one of the guards and hands it to him.
Dominic’s eyes widen as he watches the screen, seeing himself ranting, threatening and being live streamed to the entire city.
I see they’re distracted, so I move.
I charge forward, grab Natalya’s limp body, and pull her into my hold, using her as leverage.
"Release June," I snarl, arm tight around Natalya, "or she dies. You’re already exposed. There’s no point to any of this anymore."
Dominic lifts his head slowly from the phone.
His expression is… wrong. It's too calm, and resolved.
"Well, you can take her," he says. "Her work here is done. I adopted her for this very reason, but she failed. Again."
He sneers.
"You think I’d let a biological child of mine marry into your family? Hell no."
Natalya’s body twitches faintly in my arms—starting to wake up.
Dominic nods at Hitler. "You’re right. Everything is over. My entire plot exposed. So I suppose I’ll just kill all of you and go to jail. At least no one gets Apex. We all lose."
As Dominic speaks, Natalya stirs, her fingers twitch, I hear her breathing change.
Then—
A sharp ringing slices through my skull.
A deafening, slicing sound.
I shut my eyes, clutching my head for a split sec
ond—
When I open them…
I look around, confused, disoriented, cold rushing into me.
"Where am I?" I whisper.
"What… am I doing here?"