Married to the Billionaire Who Betrayed Me novel Chapter 91

Chapter 91 Surrounded by High Society Vipers

The tires of the black town car crunched over the gravel of the long, winding driveway.

I sat in the back seat. My hands rested in my lap. The bright lights of the capital city faded miles behind us. The road cut through

dense, dark woods, leading deeper into the isolated hills where the legacy families built their fortresses.

I looked out the tinted window. The autumn wind stripped the leaves from the branches. The bare trees looked like skeletal fingers/

reaching into the night sky.

I wore a tailored crimson blazer and matching trousers. The fabric felt heavy and structured. Harriet Montgomery told me not to

wear black. She demanded I treat this evening as a family gathering, not a funeral. I refused to let the matriarch dictate my armor.

gave her a color she understood. I wore the color of fresh blood.

Leo navigated the final turn. The Johnston estate loomed in the distance.

It did not look like a home. It was a massive compound constructed from gray stone and dark wood. Harsh security lights bathed the exterior in a cold, artificial glare. The architecture featured sharp angles and narrow windows. It looked designed to repel attacks

and trap anyone foolish enough to step inside.

My chest tightened. A cold knot formed in my stomach.

I left Elias safe in Port Sterling. Eduardo moved my son to a secure, unlisted property an hour before I left the city. The house had no digital footprint. If the Johnston security teams raided my penthouse tonight, they would find empty rooms. I was the decoy. I offered myself to the wolves to keep their eyes off my child.

The car stopped near the wide stone steps.

“Wait here, Leo,” I instructed.

‘I can walk you to the door, Miss Hayes, Marcus offered from the passenger seat. He turned around, his eyes scanning the dark

grounds. He did not like the isolation of the estate.

‘No, I said. “Keep the engine running. Stay close to the vehicle.”

I opened the door and stepped out into the freezing air. The wind bit at my face. I pulled my shoulders back. I smoothed the lapels

of my crimson suit. I walked up the stone steps alone.

A silent man in a dark uniform opened the heavy front doors before I reached the top. He bowed his head and stepped aside.

I crossed the threshold.

The foyer felt massive and hollow. The air smelled of wood smoke, old dust, and cold marble. High vaulted ceilings echoed with the sharp click of my heels against the stone floor. Shadows clung to the corners of the room.

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Chapter 91 Surrounded by High Society Vipers

The uniformed man took my coat without speaking. He gestured toward a long, dimly lit hallway.

I walked down the corridor. Portraits of past Johnston executives stared down from the walls. Their painted eyes judged my

presence. They built a century of wealth, and they guarded it with ruthless tradition. I was an intruder in their sanctuary.

A figure stepped out of a side room, blocking my path.

I stopped.

Tristan Johnston stood in the center of the hallway. He wore a dark charcoal suit. He lacked a tie. The top button of his shirt was

undone.

He looked terrible. Deep, dark bruises of exhaustion shadowed the skin beneath his eyes. The sharp, handsome lines of his face

looked harsh and drawn. He stared at me, his chest heaving as if he just ran a mile.

He did not know I was coming.

The shock registered in his steel-gray eyes. It quickly morphed into absolute panic.

“Minerva, Tristan breathed. The word sounded like a gasp. “What are you doing here??

‘I received a dinner invitation,” I replied. I kept my voice flat. I offered no warmth.

Tristan took a quick step forward. He closed the distance between us. The familiar scent of cedar and rain washed over me,

triggering a sharp ache in my chest. I forced the feeling down.

“You need to leave, Tristan commanded. His voice dropped to a frantic, harsh whisper. He glanced over his shoulder toward the end

of the hall. “Turn around. Walk out the front door. Get back in your car right now.”

I held my ground. “I do not run from a challenge, Tristan.”

“This is not a business negotiation!” he fired back. He grabbed my upper arms. His grip was tight and desperate. “You do not

understand what is happening in that room. My grandmother did not invite you for a polite conversation. She invited the entire

board. She invited my aunts and uncles. They are waiting to tear you apart.”

“Let them try,” I said.

I looked down at his hands gripping my crimson sleeves. I gave him a cold, hard stare.

He realized what he was doing. He swallowed hard and released my arms. He took a half-step back, running a hand through his dark

hair.

“You are walking into a slaughter, Tristan warned. The mask of the invincible CEO completely shattered. He looked terrified. He

looked like a man watching a train crash and lacking the power to stop it. “Harriet knows about the gap in your timeline. Frederick

is showing everyone the photograph. They think they have leverage over you. If you walk through those doors, you validate their

trap.

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Chapter 91 Surrounded by High Society Vipers

‘I validate my own existence,’ I corrected him.

I looked at the man who broke my heart a year ago. He wanted to protect me now. He wanted to push me out the door and shield me from his family. But his protection always came with a cage. He shielded me by hiding me in a penthouse. He shielded me by

denying my name in public.

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