The Third Child Died, So Did the Wife He Wanted Chapter 07

The Third Child Died, So Did the Wife He Wanted Chapter 07

I let out a chuckle, looking toward the heavy entrance doors.

Arthur gave a firm nod and stepped out.

Seconds later, the heavy, synchronized thud of combat boots echoed from the corridor.

Twenty heavily armed Vance operatives marched into the hall, pushing three bound men ahead of them—Garrison’s primary naval captains.

Five years of absolute peace had made him incredibly sloppy.

“His private military has already been liquidated.”

Garrison snapped his head toward me, true, primal terror finally bleeding into his eyes. It was the exact expression I had been waiting to see.

“When did you…”

“The exact night you chartered a private jet to take Amber to Mount Silverthorne Resort. That was the night I began setting the chessboard.”

I calmly sat down at the head of the mahogany table.

“Garrison, did you honestly believe I shredded those navigation charts out of submission? I was clearing the space for my father’s old guard to redraw our tactical defense perimeters.”

“Did you think I arranged those beautiful women for you out of wifely devotion? Every single one of them was an asset on my payroll, tracking your every location and asset deployment.”

With every sentence I spoke, the color drained from his skin until he looked like a corpse.

“Your elite mercenaries now answer directly to Arthur. As for my dear father-in-law…”

I paused, looking toward the open double doors.

Two Vance operatives dragged Garrison’s father into the room.

The old man’s cane had already been tossed into the ship’s furnace.

Supported entirely by his arms, his face was flushed purple with fury, but he didn’t dare resist the rifles at his back.

“Your father’s old guard… they have all pledged their allegiance to the Vance this morning.”

The old patriarch snarled at me, spitting rage.

“Alison Vance! You ungrateful bitch! The Sterling family protected you for five years!”

“Protected me?”

I stood up, walked directly to him, and unleashed a brutal backhand that cracked across his jaw.

“That slap is a return investment. You knew the truth from the very beginning, didn’t you?”

“You protected me by letting your son murder my three children? By letting this trailer-trash whore stomp all over my head?”

I raised my hand, running a finger gently along the scab on my face.

“Old man, I remember every single one of the strikes you gave me.”

“Let’s settle the invoice right now.”

I gestured with my hand, and the operatives slammed the old man onto his knees.

“Per the customs of the sea, a mutineer earns six holes from three blades.”

“But out of respect for your years, I’ll grant you a swift execution.”

I pulled the tactical knife from my boot, knelt down, and pressed the edge against his jugular.

Garrison roared like a wounded animal.

“Alison Vance! Don’t you dare!”

With a swift twist of my wrist, I drove the blade straight into the old man’s heart.

His eyes bulged out of his head.

I ripped the knife out, crimson blood dripping steadily off the tip onto the polished floorboards.

The entire room fell into a dead silence. Not a single person breathed.

I wiped the blade clean against the edge of my cashmere coat and slid it back into my boot.

“Care to test me?”

Garrison stood frozen, staring at his father’s corpse. His lips trembled violently, but he couldn’t form a single syllable.

Amber let out a blood-curdling shriek, her legs giving out as she collapsed into her own vomit.

I sat back down, my voice as calm as a morning tide.

“Garrison, it’s your turn.”

He looked up at me, the light completely dead in his eyes.

“Are you going to kill me?”

“Hmm… no.”

I tilted my head, feigning interest in a fascinating question.

“Killing you is far too cheap. Five years of agony and three dead children—a swift death doesn’t even cover the interest.”

I pointed a finger at Amber.

“Arthur, get her out of my sight.”

“Per the code, conspiring against the heir is punishable by death by a thousand cuts.”

“But don’t be too efficient—I want her alive until sunrise.”

Arthur waved his hand, and the enforcers dragged a screaming Amber away.

She thrashed like a wild animal, spitting toward me.

“Alison Vance! You will burn in hell! Garrison! Save me! Save our baby!”

Garrison tried to lunge after her, but Marcus delivered a devastating kick to the back of his knee, forcing him back down onto the blood-stained floorboards.

He fought to lift his head, his gaze a volatile mix of hatred and a sudden, agonizing realization.

“Alison… you aren’t this monster. Please, don’t do this. Our children…”

“Don’t.” I cut him off.

“You don’t get to say their names.”

I walked over and stood right over him.

“Garrison, you want to know what’s truly pathetic?”

“I actually thought—after the boy died—that we could have another one.”

“I really thought that maybe, just maybe, another child could bring some warmth back into this house.”

I crouched down, bringing our eyes to the same level.

“I was so incredibly naive.”

He reached out a trembling hand, trying to touch my scarred cheek, but I flinched back effortlessly.

Tears finally spilled over his eyes, leaving him looking thoroughly broken.

“I’m sorry.”

“I am so deeply sorry, Alison. Kill me if you want, just… please don’t cast me out.”

“Too late.” I stood up, turning my back on him completely.

“Lock him in the lowest cargo hold. Chain him through the collarbones. Give him exactly one cup of water a day.”

“Keep him alive. Let him listen to Amber die, and then let him watch exactly how this ocean strips the Sterling name from history.”

The guards dragged Garrison out.

He stopped fighting entirely. As he passed my side, a low, hollow laugh escaped his lips.

“Alison, you won.”

“But for the rest of your life, you will never find another man who loves you the way I did.”

I didn’t even turn my head.

“I don’t need a piece of shit’s love.”