'I Do' For Revenge
Chapter 197: He’s Gone
CHAPTER 197: HE’S GONE
~LAYLA~
The sound boomed loudly in the r oom. Marco’s head snapped t o the side, and a red mark immediately bloomed acr oss his cheek. His guard tensed, reaching for his weapon, but Marco held up a hand to stop him.
For a moment, n obody m oved. It was just silence.
Marco slowly turned his head back to face me, his hand rising to touch h is cheek. His expression was unreadable, but it was somewhere between shock, a nger, and something that can be classified as ad miration or was it amusement.
"That," I said quietly in a steady voice even though my heart was racing , "is for near ly killing my husban d. Business is business, Marco. But that bo mb was personal. Don’t ever forget the differ ence."
Marco st ared at me for a long moment. Then, incredibly, he smiled a genuine smile th at rea ched his eyes.
"Yes," he said softly, almost to himself . "Definitely like my moth er."
He lowered his hand and gave me a small nod, almost a bo w.
"Th e debt is settled, Mrs . O’Brien," he said formally. "You have my word. No more bombs, no more t hreats. When Mr. Porter returns my seventy mill ion, and when we colle ct fr om Mr. Watson , w e are even. The Sinaloa Cartel has no further busine ss with O’Brien Group."
"Good," I said.
"But the slap?" Marco added, his smil e turning dangerous. "That we are not even for . One day, I will collect on that debt . Not today, not tomorr ow, b ut one day."
"I’ll be waiting," I sa id.
Marco laughed and walked out, his guard following behind him.
The door closed, and I was finally alone.
My hand was stinging from the slap, and I realised it was shaking now. The adrenaline that had kept me standing was starting to fade, leaving me exha usted.
I looked down at my hand, at the red mark across my palm; it was definitely worth it.
Tye stepped out of the shadows of the next conference room, looking shocked but also impressed. "Did you just slap a cart el boss?" he asked with a spark in his eyes and a smile.
"Yes," I said simply.
"Are you insane?"
"Probably," I admitted. "But he respected it. Men like Marco understand strength. If I’d co wer ed, if I’d acc epted his handshake like a grateful little vi ctim, he would have seen weakness. This way, he knows exactly who he’s dealing with."
"You’re terrifying," Tye said, but there was approval in his voice.
"I learned from the best," I said quietly, thinking of Axel.
I picked up my purse and walked toward the door.
"Come on," I said. "We have a hospital to get back to. And we need to send federal agents to Charles Watson’s house before Marco’s people get there first. I want h im a rrested, not disappeared."
"On it," Tye said, already pulling out his phone.
I paused at the doorway, looking back at the boardroom one last time. At th e boarded windows and the dust-covered table. At the scene of so much destruction and pain.
But also at the place where I had won... where I had protected my husband, my company, a nd my futu re.
I turned off the lights and walked out.
The drive back to the hospital was quiet. The city lights bl ur red past the windo w in a stre am of neon and gold that felt surreal after the boardroom’s darkness. I watched the buildings slide by, still p ro cessing everything th at had happened in the last hour.
"Status on the Feds?" I asked Tye, breaking the silence.
"FBI is en route to Wat son’s estate," Tye said from the driver’s seat, though his eyes was fixed on the road. "Marco’s guys are probably five minutes behind them. It’s going to be a race."
"I d on’t care who ge ts there first," I said, leaning my head against the cool glass. "As l ong as Charles is caught. As long a s he can’t hurt anyone else."
"He will be," Tye assured me. "The Feds hav e a warran t. They’re mobilised. Watson won’t sl ip away."
"Good," I said, though for some unkn own r easons, I felt uneasy. Charles was smart. He’d survived decades in business by always being three steps ahead. But surely, e ven he couldn’t escape this.
When we arrived at t he hospital, I felt the exhaustion settle deep in my bones, pu lling at every muscle. B ut the thought of Axel, waiting for me, gave me enough strength to keep mov ing.
I walked into the ICU, pushing through the doors that had become so familiar. The room was peaceful, the only sound th e steady beep of the heart monito r.
Axel was awake.
He was staring at the door, as if he’d been willing i t to open. When he saw me, the tension in his shoulder s, even brok en and bandaged a s he was, seemed to evaporate.
"Layla," he breathed in a rough voi ce that was st ronger than before.
I went to him, careful not to jar the bed, and took his hand. His finger s wrapped around mine with more strength than earlier. "It’s done."
"What’s done?" he asked, his ey es sear ching my face.
"Henry is gone," I said. "Marco took him."
Axel’s eyes widened slightl y, processing this information. "Helena gave you the evidence?"
"Yeah. So I intro duced Henry to Marco," I said, a slig ht smile tugging at my lips despit e th e exhaustion. "I showed Marco the proof that Henry sto le his money. Marco took Henry a s... collateral . He’ll return him to us for prosecution once h e recovers his funds."
Axel let out a low, rough laugh that turned into a cough. He s quee zed my hand weakly. "My ruthless wife. I knew you had it in you. I knew you could handle them."
"And Marco?" Axel asked, his eyes searching mine for any sign of fear o r lingering threat. "Where do you stand with him?"
"We came to an understanding, " I said, de ciding n ot to mention the slap just yet. Axel’s blood pressure didn’t need the spike. "The debt is s ettled. T he O’Brien Group, Eclipse Bea uty is clear. No more threats. No more bombs. It’s over."
"Thank God, " Axel whispered, closing his eyes briefly. "Thank God you’re safe."
I allowed my se lf to breathe.
"Come here, " Axel whispered softly.
I leaned down, carefully resting my head on the pillow next to his, facin g him. His breath was warm a gainst my forehead, and I could smell the antiseptic mixed with something that was uniquely him.
"You saved us," he murmu red, his fingers br ushing my cheek with feather-lig ht touches. "I built this empire, but you saved it. You saved everything."
"We saved it," I whispered back, closing my eyes and letting myself have this moment. "Together. Now you just have to get better. No more bomb s or cartels. Just physical therapy and boring board meetings ."
"Sounds like paradise," he murmured, his thumb tracing small circles on the back of my hand.
For a moment, we just exist ed in that quiet space... two people who had survived the worst and co me out the other side.
S uddenly, the doo r op ened. It was Tye.
"Axe," T ye said warmly as he approached the bed. "Good to see you awake. You scared the hell out of us ."
"Tye," Ax el said, his voice strengthening slightly. "Still ugly as ever, I see."
"And you’re still a pain in my ass, even from a h ospital bed ," Tye shot back, but there was genuine relief in his eyes. "Glad you’re back with us, man."
"How bad is the building? " Axel asked.
"We’ll rebuild," Tye said fir mly. "Don’t worry about that now. Your wife here ju st took down a cartel boss and a CFO in the same night. I’d say she’s earn ed employee of the month."
"Employee of t he year," Axel corrected, squeezing my hand.
Tye s miled, but then his expression shifted. He pulled out his phone, glancing at the screen, an d his entire demeanour changed. The smile faded, and his ja w tightened.
I sat up, pulling away from Axel slightly. I was expecting a nod of confirmation that Charles was in custody, that this nightmare was truly over. But Tye’s face was grim, and he was holding his phone so tight his knuckles were turning white.
"Tye?" I asked , a cold knot forming in my stomach. "What is it? What happened?"
Tye looked from me to Axel, then back to me.
"He’s gone," he said flatly. "C harles Watson is nowhere to be found."