By the ti the jet landed, it was already the next day. A sleek black car waited outside the terminal. As soon as Anne and Augustine got into the back seat, Anne leaned against him and quickly fell asleep again, exhausted from the long flight.
The drive through the city was quiet. Augustine stared out the window, his face calm but thoughtful.
This was the city where he had spent ten years building his life, where he had created his business and faced his darkest monts. It was his ho now, a place where things happened on his terms. And now, he was bringing Anne into that life completely. He still had fears and doubts, but more than anything, he was ready.
The car stopped in front of a large, elegant villa.
Anne was still fast asleep, her head resting softly on his shoulder, breathing evenly. Augustine looked at her with a faint smile. She looked so peaceful that he didn’t want to wake her.
He got out of the car and scooped her into his arms. She moved slightly, mumbling drowsily as her arms wrapped around his neck.
"How long will it take?"
"We are almost there," he replied softly, carrying her up the steps and into the house.
The villa was quiet and dimly lit. Augustine walked through the hallway with steady steps, holding her close. For the first ti in a long while, he wasn’t just coming ho, he was bringing soone important to him.
The housekeeper appeared promptly, a middle-aged man with a warm grin already forming on his face. He opened his mouth to greet him, but Augustine shushed him, "Shh," nodding toward the sleeping woman in his arms.
The housekeeper gave a silent nod and stepped aside respectfully, allowing Augustine to pass.
Augustine headed straight to his bedroom. He gently laid Anne down on the bed, her body instinctively curling to one side, but she didn’t wake up.
"You sleep like a log," he murmured with a chuckle, tugging the blanket over her. He sat beside her, brushing a loose strand of hair away from her face. He leaned down and pressed a soft kiss on her cheek.
anwhile, his phone buzzed in his pocket, shattering the silence.
He pulled the device out, frowning when he saw Gustave’s na on the screen. Rising to his feet, he slipped out of the room and answered the call.
"Hello?"
"There is an update about Denis," Gustave said, his tone grim. "He has already boarded a flight. He is coming here."
"Denis is coming here?" Augustine’s brows pulled together, a flicker of irritation crossing his face. His mind raced. Did Denis know he was on his honeymoon?
"Yes," Gustave confird. "My source says he is looking to et you as soon as possible. The land issue in the model city project is almost resolved—thanks to Denis pulling strings on the inside. He’ll be expecting sothing in return."
Augustine’s lips twitched into a faint smirk. He had anticipated that Denis would handle the issue, but he hadn’t expected him to move this fast.
"That’s good," he said coolly. "Let him co."
Gustave hesitated on the other end. "So... are you going to work with him?"
"Why not?" Augustine replied bluntly, but his eyes glead with a hint of sothing sharper. "Without getting close to them, we can’t destroy them. Since Denis has solved the issue, let him take the project."
Gustave’s voice grew cautious. "Are you sure? It’s a massive project. We are investing so much into this. Can Denis be trusted?"
Augustine’s expression shifted, the air around him turning colder. The playful softness from earlier was gone, replaced by calm calculation. "The land mafia in that area is dangerous," he reminded Gustave. "They’ll keep causing problems. It’s smarter not to get involved with them directly. Let Denis be the shield. Let him handle them."
There was a brief silence on the other end of the phone. Then Gustave spoke, more slowly this ti, realization dawning. "So that’s it. If the mafia strikes back, it won’t be us—it’ll be Denis. And that’ll hit the Beaumont family hard."
A sharp glint lit Augustine’s eyes. "Exactly. This is how it starts."
Gustave fell silent again before asking the next question carefully. "Will you reveal your identity to him?"
"Not yet," Augustine said promptly. "The ti hasn’t co. Let him et with the vice president. Keep it that way."
"Understood, sir. I’ll inform you once the eting is scheduled."
The call ended with a soft beep. Augustine lowered the phone, staring ahead. His smirk deepened.
At the very start of his honeymoon, he had already received a victory. His plan was unfolding just as he had planned it.
"This is the beginning of the Beaumont’s destruction," he murmured, the smile on his lips disappearing as a cold, focused darkness overtook his expression. "Gabriel... you will pay for every single cri you committed."
The housekeeper’s quiet voice broke Augustine’s mont of stillness. "Sir, what would you like to eat? Shall I prepare sothing special for Madam?"
Augustine turned his head slightly, slipping his phone back into his pocket. "She is sleeping. Don’t disturb her. Bring a cup of coffee."
He walked toward the study beside his bedroom. He reached for the light switch and turned the lights on, the room flooding with a warm, golden glow.
Augustine walked directly to the bookshelf and pressed a hidden button behind the books.
The wall beside the bookshelf split with a gentle hiss and slowly slid open, revealing a concealed passage.
Augustine stepped through. The entrance sealed behind him with a faint click. Overhead lights buzzed to life as soon as he stepped in, illuminating the hidden room brightly.
The space was unlike the rest of the villa. It was small, simple, and deeply personal. One wall was lined with old photographs of Augustine as a child, smiling in his mother’s arms, standing beside his father.
Across from that, a massive board stretched across the wall, covered with charts, newspaper clippings, photos, and red string connecting nas and dates. At the center were two bold nas: Gabriel and Denis. Around them, arrows, notes, and plans were scrawled in Augustine’s handwriting. This was his plan to destroy Gabriel and his family.
The ga was in motion. Everything he had worked for, every step he had taken, was bringing him closer to his goal.
Augustine stood motionless in front of the photograph of his younger self standing between his mother and father, all three smiling under a bright sun. Ti had faded the edges of the photo, but the emotions it carried were still vivid in his heart.
His hand reached out to brush the fra, fingers trembling slightly. His eyes glistened with the sheen of unshed tears, the mories crashing down on him with unforgiving weight.
"Mom... Dad...I survived this ti." The words broke at the edges, his throat tightening. "And I’ll fulfill the promise I gave you. I’ll destroy those who destroyed our family. I’ll punish them. Justice will be served."
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