A cold dread seized Julian's chest, tightening around his heart like a vice.
His gaze was locked on the screen, the words of Vance's ultimatum burning themselves into his retinas.
Surrender Thorne Enterprises, or Leo’s medical data – every vital record, every treatment plan, every diagnostic – would be publicly erased.
An orphan in the digital age, without a medical history, Leo would become untreatable. His critical care would cease. His life would end.
Julian’s breath hitched. A guttural growl rumbled deep in his throat, raw and primal.
This wasn't just a business threat. This was a direct assault on the innocent, a twisted, diabolical move that stripped away every shred of humanity Vance might have possessed.
Killing Laura wasn’t enough for him. Destroying Julian’s trust wasn't enough. Now, Vance aimed to eradicate an innocent child, a child Julian had grown to care for, simply to break him.
His knuckles whitened, his hands clenching into fists that trembled with suppressed violence. He wanted to smash the monitor, rip the building apart brick by brick, find Vance and tear him limb from limb.
But that wouldn’t save Leo.
Sweat beaded on his forehead, a cold clamminess that had nothing to do with the office’s air conditioning.
His empire. The legacy his father had built, the empire Julian had expanded with blood, sweat, and relentless ambition.
It represented decades of work, thousands of jobs, a global network of influence and power.
And Leo. A boy with a fragile heart, a kind smile, and a mother who had already endured so much.
How could he choose?
Julian closed his eyes, pressing the heels of his palms against them until kaleidoscopic stars danced behind his eyelids. The images of Laura, smiling, then gone, flashed through his mind.
Vance had taken her, brutally, maliciously. Now he was trying to force Julian to sacrifice another innocent.
He opened his eyes, staring at the digital file on the USB drive, a silent bomb ticking in his hands.
A sudden movement caught his attention. The office door opened softly.
Elara stepped in, her eyes widening slightly as she took in Julian's rigid posture, the tension radiating from him.