Chapter 194

At the question, the masked driver let his icy facade crack-the same cold mask he had shown Katelyn earlier-and in an instant, his demeanor shifted.

He turned his head, offering lsaac a respectful nod."Rest easy, Mr. Bennett. I've already spoken with Elmore-he'll pretend to knock Mrs. Bennett unconscious just to make it convincing. He knows the line that must never be crossed. Mrs. Bennett will not be harmed."

Yet even with that assurance, lsaac could not shake the thorn of unease, buried too deep in his chest to ignore.

His jaw lifted slightly, his voice steady but edged with steel."Go."

"Understood." The driver snapped the wheel.

Moments later, the black vehicle slid onto the main road.

Certain she had lsaac firmly under her thumb,Katelyn made her way to the abandoned factory on the outskirts to meet Elmore.

She stepped out of the car and found him waiting at the factory entrance, looming like a sentinel on guard.

"She's still unconscious, isn't she?" Katelyn asked.

Elmore, with his bald skull and a centipede-shaped scar etched across his brow, looked like a walking nightmare dressed in flesh.

At her words, he bobbed his head with slavish eagerness.

"Yes, she's still tied to the chair. Out cold."

A cruel smile curved Katelyn's lips, chilling in its delight.

Eager to see Verena collapse to her knees in despair,she strode inside quickly. Elmore hurried in after her.

Outside the factory, a black car idled quietly at the roadside.

Isaac cast a glance toward Jacob in the passenger seat. "What's the situation inside?"

An earpiece clung to Jacob's right ear, while his hands held the binoculars steady as stone.

From where he sat, he had a perfect view of the factory interior.

"Bodyguards, snipers, police-all are already in place. Everything is ready."

Isaac's gaze hardened, cold as tempered steel."Tell them-stay sharp. Verena's safety comes first. Not a scratch on her."

Jacob pressed the earpiece, his voice low as he relayed Isaac's command.

Inside, Katelyn stepped into the factory and spotted Verena slumped in a chair, tied fast, her head hanging.

A rush of warped joy ignited within her, her nerves sizzling as though the storm itself raged inside her skin.

Her laughter shattered the silence, jagged and manic, ricocheting off the hollow walls.

The echoes twisted in the darkness, eerie as restless spirits weeping in the night.

But just assuddenly, it cut off.

"No. This isn't enough. I want her awake. I want her to witness every moment of me breaking her."

Fixing her eyes on Verena, Katelyn stretched her hand toward Elmore. "Water. Now."

He scrambled to pass her a bottle.

Katelyn twisted the cap and flung the contents across Verena's face.

Elmore, long since bought with Verena's money, had staged the earlier brutality. That blow to Verena's head had looked vicious, but landed light.

Verena had slackened on purpose, feigning unconsciousness as she let Elmore tie her down-a snare carefully laid to drag Kátelyn into her own undoing.

Among the men who had restrained her here, only Elmore answered secretly to Verena. The rest? They were Katelyn's loyal hands.

Hearing Katelyn demand water, Verena had already stolen a hidden breath.

As the water struck her face, she forced a ragged cough,letting her head loll weakly to the side.

Wet strands of hair clung to her cheek, her frail,trembling frame making Katelyn shudder with perverse pleasure.

She stepped closer, clamping Verena's chin in a hard grip. "Look at me. Look who stands before you."

Verena cracked her eyes open, feigning shock. "Katelyn?" A manic grin spread across Katelyn's face. "That'sright. Me. Didn't see this coming, did you? So what ifyou won lsaac's heart? In the end, you still landed inmy hands."

Verena blinked,as though only now realizing herplight, her voice cutting like frost. "Do you evenrealize this is a crime? You'll pay for it in court.

Katelyn's laugh turned low and venomous, her griptightening."Crime? By the time anyone finds you, !'lbe gone overseas. No one will trace it back to meVerena, your end comes from my hand. And l won'let it be quick. Every ounce of humiliation you dealme-l'll return, carved back into you piece by piece.

The more she spoke, the wilder the gleam in her eyesbecame.

Grinding her teeth,she squeezed Verena's jawharder."You always thought yourself above medidn't you? Always looking down on me. Now it's myturn. You'l kneel before me. Beg. Apologize. Cry for mercy."

Katelyn shoved Verena's chin away and barked at Elmore, "Force her down. Make her kneel."

Elmore moved to obey, but before his hand could reach, Verena snapped her head up and spat straight into Katelyn's face.

"You want me on my knees? Keep dreaming. You really think tying me here means no one will know?Isaac's sharp-he'll know it was you. And he'll never let you walk free."

Katelyn had long known Isaac's heart had never been hers-she had swallowed that bitter pill long ago.

He had shattered her once, so completely that she no longer cared for his affection.

But what she could never endure was watching him pour all of it into Verena.

Each time Verena spoke his name, each time she basked in his devotion, it struck Katelyn like a slap across the face. Isaac would not even spare her a glance, and that wound cut deeper than hatred itself.

Rage seared through her, her body trembling with envy and spite.

"Never let me walk free?" Her lips curled into a twisted sneer. "Then you think I'll let him live? Since you're so certain he's coming to save you, I'll make sure you never reunite-except in the afterlife."

She shoved Verena's head downward, forcing her toward the floor.

Through clenched teeth, Katelyn spat, "Isaac can't even save himself. Did you truly think he could save you? I've already sent an assassin after him. There's a bomb beneath his car. One word from me, and he's blown to pieces. But don't worry-before he dies,he'll see it all: his precious woman being humiliated,broken and begging. I'll carve you up and leave the rats to feast on what remains."

Her eyes burned crimson, her voice twisting into something monstrous. Meanwhile, in the black car outside,Jacob tracked the scene through his binoculars.

"Mr. Bennett! Mrs. Bennett's head is being forced down. Katelyn's hysterical-she could snap at any moment."

Isaac's fists clenched, his throat tightening.

His voice cracked out, sharp as a whip. "Move in."

Jacob started to respond, but froze as a flicker caught in his lens-Verena, wrists bound behind her,had flashed the stop sign they had agreed on.

It was her command: hold. Wait.

Jacob relayed instantly, "Mrs. Bennett says wait.Don't move yet."

Isaac's brow furrowed, every instinct screaming to strike, yet he knew Verena's mind worked with its own design.

Through clenched teeth, he swallowed his worries and forced the words."Follow her lead." Inside, Verena kept her gaze locked on Katelyn,wrists bound behind her. The signal had gone unnoticed.

Her brow arched, her voice dripping with scorn."And you think this changes anything? In the end, nothing truly changes. Did you truly believe stealing my name could make lsaac yours? Pathetic. You were never Evelyn. You never had the skill. In the end, you gained nothing-dragging yourself through the mud.When you stole my name, you must have thought yourself untouchable, parading as Evelyn. But the truth? I am Evelyn. Always have been. And you?You're a fraud, too afraid to stand on your own name.You were never my equal. You're trash. Even your hospital job overseas-you clawed your way there through disgrace. Everyone knows. Even bound here,I'll never lower my head. If you think I'll kneel and beg,keep dreaming."

Every word Verena flung struck like shards of glass,each slicing Katelyn's pride raw.

Her chest rose and fell in furious heaves, her glare blazing with twisted rage.

Jealousy, fury, and bitter resentment burned like live coals in her eyes.

At last, pushed beyond the edge, Katelyn broke into a wild, unhinged laugh. "So you won't listen, and you won't kneel? Fine. Then I'll carve you apart and bleed you ddry!"

Her gaze snapped toward Elmore. Without hesitation,he pressed a hidden knife into her palm.

Katelyn's eyes blazed red, her face twisted into the mask of a madwoman.

She lifted the blade high, her scream tearing the air."P'l kill you! I'll kill you!"

But in the very heartbeat the knife came slashing down, Verena jerked her bound wrists behind her,flashing the agreed signal.

From the shadows, the sniper-waiting like a coiled hawk-needed no second cue. His finger tightened.

The shot rang out, the bullet slicing through Katelyn's arm with merciless precision.

The knife tumbled from her grip, clattering to the floor as crimson spread swiftly across her sleeve.

She clutched the wound, her face twisted in agony,eyes darting in frantic disbelief.

"Who's there?" she shrieked.

But before her cry could even rebound from the walls, armed officers poured in from every side,weapons leveled and unshaking.