Chapter 850

Alexander lay in his hospital bed, hooked up to an IV,his battered body aching from the concussion and shattered leg.

Bruises mapped his skin, but his eyes, ringed with exhaustion, glinted with a feverish excitement as he stared out the window.

He could practically taste it.

He'd almost had Daniela-almost managed to undress her,almost claimed what he'd wanted for so long.

Even with blood loss draining his strength, a rush of satisfaction surged through him.

He hadn't expected her to be so defenseless, so easily undone.

Daniela, who always met him with cold detachment,

had crumbled into helplessness up on that rooftop.

Without the tranquilizer, she was completely fragile.

The memory made his pulse race with sick delight.

In that raw, unfiltered moment, he convinced himself he still had a chance to win her back.

Just one more try.

All he needed was a single opening to pull Daniela back to his side.

He would claim her for himself

Once she was his, Cedric would drown in remorse,tormented by guilt until it destroyed him. With Cedric out of the picture, he could finally have Daniela all to himself.

Suddenly, a violent gust tore the hospital door open.rattling it against the wall.

Inside, the overhead lights sputtered, casting jagged shadows as they dimmed, while the hallway outside vanished into darkness.

Alexander's smirk froze mid-formation, his features sharpening with alarm as he made out a shadowy figure standing in the doorway.

He strained his eyes, heart thudding as recognition hit.

"Cedric?" he gasped.

The memory of Cedric's earlier rampage sent a jolt of dread through Alexander's chest.

Instinctively, he edged backward, his hands trembling beneath the hospital blanket. "Cedric, this is a hospital. Don't do anything crazy."

The storm outside lent a grim, bluish cast to everything,rain battering the windows and soaking the world in a dreary haze.

Cedric stood motionless in the doorway, his face carved from ice, expression utterly unreadable.

"Cedric, you can't kill me. You'll go to jail! There are security cameras everywhere."

Cedric said nothing,his jaw clenched and eyes burning with a dark, suffocating intensity.

Panic shot through Alexander. His trembling hand flew to the call button, stabbing at it desperately-nothing happened.

"You can stop trying. I've already cut the power to the entire hospital."

The words hit Alexander like a slap. His blood ran cold."The security camneras..."

Cedric's gaze was ice-cold. "Are you out of your mind?Still clinging to your pathetic fantasies?"

Alexander's face went slack with shock. He was unable to muster a single word.

A relentless rain hammered the city that day, washing away all but the fiercest of sounds.

When Cedric arrived home, he shrugged off his coat,scattering droplets onto the polished floor

Damon, Nikolas, and Carol immediately turned at the sound of the door creaking open.

Cedric appeared in the entryway, dressed head to toe in crisp black, shadows clinging to him.

"Is Daniela awake yet?" he queried, his voice low and steady.

Carol glanced at the clock as she answered, "She's still sleeping." She then peered at him curiously. "You were only gone an hour. Where did you disappear to?"

He shrugged off the question, heading toward his downstairs room where he kept his clothes. "I'm taking a shower. Keep your voices down-she wakes up at the slightest sound."

The three watched as Cedric slipped into his room,closing the door so quietly it was barely audible.

Damon asked, "Did you notice? He reeked of blood when he walked in. He's really just going to shower and pretend nothing happened?"

Nikolas stared at the closed door, suspicion flickering in his eyes. Carol let out a soft click of her tongue. "He's hiding something, that's for sure."

Right then, the shrill buzz of a phone shattered the quiet.

Nikolas pulled outhis phone, the screen glowing in the dim room as thunder cracked beyond the window.

He answered, straining to make out the frantic voice barely cutting through the roar of the storm.

Whatever he heard left him frozen-his eyes wide and unblinking, as if the world had stopped spinning.

Damon noticed first. "Nikolas? What is it?"

Carol shot him a worried look, but Nikolas just stood there, silent and frozen in disbelief.

Damon stepped closer, his concern growing. "What's going on? Who was that? You look like you've seen a ghost."

It took Nikolas a long moment before he could drag his gaze up to meet Damon's eyes.

He swallowed hard, his voice brittle with shock. "That was the hospital. Alexander's whole body has been shattered."

Damon reeled,barely able to process it. Nikolas' voice trembled as he pressed on. "They told me Alexander is completely paralyzed. He'll never stand again. The only thing he can move now is his eyes. He'll be stuck in that hospital bed for the rest of his life."

Damon, usually so composed, was briefly at a loss for words as the gravity of the news set in.

Nikolas added, "Alexander's bones are so shattered,the doctors only managed to put him back together in the rough shape of a mman."

Just then, Cedric's bedroom door swung open.

He stepped out, now dressed in pale, comfortable loungewear that softened his appearance.

The moment his gaze met Nikolas', a cold shiver crept up Nikolas' spine.

A sharp understanding dawned on Nikolas-he would never be the one to control the McCoy family. That throne belonged to Cedric.

Cedric's tone was almost gentle, the casual softness belying the words. "Hamilton's punishment will make Alexander's look merciful. Hamilton likes to exploit people's weaknesses, doesn't he? 'm curious how he'll handle it when his own vulnerabilities are dragged into the light." Cedric dipped his head, shadows gathering around him like a storm about to break. "I'm looking forward to the show."

The last words slipped from his lips like a threat whispered in the dark-barely audible,but they carried enough weight to suffocate the room.

Without another glance, Cedric turned and ascended the stairs, leaving Nikolas and Damon rooted to the spot,their eyes wide with shock and a chill crawling up their spines.