Reborn To Marry The Untouchable Titan

Cold water dripped from a crack in the warehouse ceiling, landing right on the raw, red line circling Chloie Mckenzie's wrist.

Each drop hit her skin like a tiny electric shock. She yanked at the coarse rope binding her to the iron chair. The only result was a screech of rusting metal scraping against concrete.

The heavy steel door flew open with a deafening bang, kicked in from the outside. A gust of cold wind swept through, carrying the thick, metallic smell of blood.

Chloie's head snapped up. Her eyes strained to see past the single swaying bulb that lit the cavernous space.

Two massive men in tactical gear dragged a body through the doorway like a sack of garbage. They heaved it into the center of the room. It hit the dusty floor with a sickening, heavy thud.

Chloie's breath caught in her throat. Her pupils shrank to pinpricks. Even in the dim light, she recognized the fabric of the custom-tailored suit, now soaked and stained a dark, horrifying red.

Adrien Riddle. The titan of Washington D.C., the man whose empire she had spent seven years meticulously tearing apart. And he was dying on the floor in front of her.

He pressed a bloody hand to the ground, muscles straining as he tried to lift his head, to look at her.

A cold fist closed around Chloie's heart. This wasn't part of the plan. He wasn't supposed to be here.

The crisp, sharp click of high heels on concrete echoed from the doorway. Bailey Johnston stepped out of the rainy night, a black umbrella held perfectly over her head. She glided to a stop beside Adrien's broken form, looking down at him with a smile made of pure ice.

"What is he doing here?" Chloie screamed, her voice raw. "Bailey, this wasn't the deal!"

Bailey turned. Her expression was one of pity, as if she were looking at a particularly stupid child. She shook her head slowly.

She walked over to Chloie. Her leather-gloved hand shot out and gripped Chloie's chin. She forced her head to the side, making her look at the man bleeding out on the floor.

"He knew, you idiot," Bailey whispered, her voice a soft poison in Chloie's ear. "He knew you were the one leaking Apex Holdings' internal data."

The words hit Chloie like a physical blow. The air left her lungs. Her mind went completely blank. The struggle left her body.

"Not only did he know," Bailey continued, savoring every second, "he personally fed you non-core commercial secrets and isolated the main systems. He let you play your little game, thinking you were tearing it all down. He took the massive financial losses in silence, just to humor your revenge."

Tears streamed down Chloie's face. She shook her head, a frantic, desperate denial. It wasn't possible. It was a lie.

Just then, Adrien managed to lift his head. His gray eyes, usually so cold and unreadable, fixed on her. They held something she had never seen there before. A deep, wrenching tenderness.

He coughed. Blood speckled the concrete. His voice came out a shredded rasp, but the words were impossibly gentle.

"Don't be afraid."

That soft reassurance shattered the last of her defenses. A scream tore from her throat, a sound of pure animal agony. She thrashed against the ropes, fighting to get to him, to undo everything.

Bailey gave a subtle nod to one of the mercenaries. The man lifted a heavy iron pipe and brought it down with full force across Adrien's back.

The wet, cracking sound of bone echoed in the vast empty space. Adrien's body convulsed, but he clamped his jaw shut, refusing to scream, refusing to scare her further.

Chloie watched, her vision blurred by tears, as the pipe rose and fell, again and again. Her throat was raw from screaming his name.

His gaze never left her face. Not even as the light in his eyes began to fade, dimming into a dull, empty gray.

One final, brutal blow. His head dropped to the concrete, landing in the growing pool of his own blood. He was still.

The world went silent. Chloie's screams died in her throat. Nothing was left but a vast, crushing emptiness.

Bailey kicked Adrien's lifeless arm out of her path and walked back to Chloie, who stared blankly into space.

From her designer handbag, Bailey pulled out a document. She slapped it against Chloie's pale cheek, the paper stained with Adrien's blood. A share transfer agreement.