My Sister Stole My Mate And I Let Her (Seraphina) novel Chapter 405

Chapter 405: Chapter 405 SPOILS OF WAR

SERAPHINA’S POV

The moment I stepped into the hall, I felt the tension.

It hung in the air like something alive, settling into every gaze that turned toward me.

My eyes swept the room, taking everything in with one glance.

Clusters of OTS members dotted the room. Some stood close together; others had pulled back, as if distance could protect them from whatever was happening.

Then my gaze settled on the five strangers at the center.

Judy faced them, shoulders squared, a folder clutched too tightly in her hand. There was tension in her grip, strain in her posture.

I walked forward, each step purposeful.

The crowd parted without being asked.

“Sera,” Judy breathed, the relief in her voice barely contained.

I didn’t look at her immediately. If I did, I might soften, and this was not the moment for that.

Instead, I stopped a few feet from the man who had been speaking, meeting his gaze head-on.

“You’ve made quite a disturbance,” I said, tone flat.

His lips curved slightly, not quite a smile.

“You must be Seraphina.”

“I am.” I didn’t bother to ask how he knew.

He stretched out a hand. “I’m—”

“Standing in a place that doesn’t belong to you,” I cut him off.

A flicker of amusement crossed his expression. “That depends on your interpretation of ownership.”

My gaze didn’t waver. “It doesn’t.”

For a brief second, neither of us spoke.

Then he inclined his head.

“Perhaps not emotionally,” he said. “But legally?”

He gestured toward the folder Judy held. “That’s a different matter.”

I extended my hand.

Judy didn’t hesitate. She passed the folder to me immediately, as if its weight was too much to bear.

I opened it, keeping my expression blank as I looked through the contents.

My fingers stilled on the page when I recognized Lucian’s signature.

Oh, Lucian. What did you do? Why?

I thought about the resigned look on his face the last time I saw him.

Did he know this would happen when he gave me the seal? Was the deal already done?

I closed the folder.

When I looked up, the man was watching me with interest.

“Well?” he asked.

I let the silence stretch just long enough to settle into something uncomfortable before I spoke.

“These documents are valid,” I said.

The reaction was immediate.

Sharp inhales. Muted curses. The sound of something fragile cracking just a little further.

Judy turned to me sharply. “Sera—”

“I didn’t say I accept them.” My voice was calm, carrying easily. “I said they are valid.”

The man’s smile tightened. “What’s the difference?”

“You claim Lucian sold OTS,” I continued. “Full operational control. Transfer of authority. Ownership of assets.”

“All clearly outlined, notarized and witnessed,” he confirmed.

I nodded once, as if acknowledging a point in a negotiation rather than a threat to everything we had built.

“Then let’s be equally clear,” I said.

I reached into my coat and pulled out the seal Lucian had given me.

It caught the light as I held it up, the room going quieter by the second as recognition spread.

“This,” I said, “grants me executive authority in Lucian Reed’s absence.”

The man’s gaze flicked to it, then back to me.

“So?”

I stepped forward, closing the distance between us just enough to shift the balance of the conversation.

“So, it means that your claim doesn’t erase mine.”

There was a small pause in which his mouth parted and closed. It was brief, but making him speechless was mighty satisfying.

“Lucian Reed—”

“Isn’t here,” I cut him off again. “And thanks to this seal, I carry the same authority as he, and I refuse your claim to OTS.”

His expression sharpened. “That’s not how contracts work.”

“That’s how power works,” I countered.

Silence followed, and I could practically see the gears whirring in his head as he figured out his next move.

Finally, he spoke. “So, what are you proposing?”

I didn’t answer immediately.

Instead, I let my gaze drift past him, taking in the room again. The faces. The uncertainty. The fear. The quiet, desperate hope clinging to something—anything—that could hold.

In truth, I knew that Lucian’s signature held as much power as Lucian’s seal. There was only so much I could do.

But OTS was more than a building. It was the people within.

I drew in a slow breath before speaking.

“You keep the building.”

Judy’s head snapped toward me. “Sera—”

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABELVerify