The Prison-Made Queen novel Chapter 1013

But their delusions wouldn't save them. The end of the line had arrived.

On the other side of the master suite, Leilani knelt beside Dante’s bed. She was intensely focused, expertly administering traditional holistic medicine to stabilize the old man’s failing vitals. Fine beads of sweat gathered on her forehead, but her hands were rock-steady.

Callahan cast a frigid glare at Reese. He knew his uncle. Talbot was greedy and ruthless, but he lacked the spine to actually murder his own father. It was Reese who had poisoned his ear. She was the venom in the veins of this family.

When Callahan spoke, his voice was deathly calm, yet every word was a blade. "You both must have been thrilled when you got the news of our so-called deaths."

He slowly circled them. "You didn't even bother putting on a show. No memorial service. No mourning period. You just rushed straight into an emergency board meeting to carve up his legacy and seize the company's assets."

He paused, looking dead into Talbot's eyes. "It must be devastating to realize I'm still breathing."

Talbot’s face turned a mottled, bruised purple. He desperately tried to puff out his chest, clinging to his crumbling authority. "Callahan! Watch your tone! I am your elder. How dare you hurl these baseless accusations at me?"

He swallowed hard. "We didn't know you were alive! The company needed leadership. I couldn't just let the Langley Group fall to ruins or be snatched up by outsiders!"

"I'm not talking about the company," Callahan fired back, letting out a dark, mocking laugh. "I'm talking about my grandfather."

"No! You're lying!" Talbot gasped, struggling to breathe as his toes barely scraped the floor. "He collapsed from the grief! He couldn't handle your death! We were just about to call a doctor!"

"A doctor?" Callahan laughed, a hollow, bone-chilling sound. He glanced at the shattered porcelain cup of herbal supplement on the floor, the sealed windows, and the deadbolt on the bedroom door.

"You need to barricade the doors from the inside to call a doctor? You need a dozen armed guards stationed outside to keep everyone else away?"

He yanked Talbot closer, their faces inches apart. "Do you really think I'm still some naive little kid you can pacify with a pat on the head and a pathetic lie?"