The Million-Dollar Heart by Rebecca Ryan

Patrick’s limbs were beyond his control, his body betraying him as he followed Vivienne’s retreating steps.

Behind him, Gillian’s heart-wrenching cries for her father echoed through the air, but he was powerless to respond.

Patrick finally felt the command of his body returned when they reached a secluded cabin on the ship.

But now, with both Percival and Anna guarding the door, escape was an impossibility.

“Kneel,” Vivienne commanded, her voice serene as she sat on the seat representing authority.

Patrick fell to his knees with a thud, not out of compulsion but from the sheer force of Vivienne’s presence.

His legs tingled with numbness, sharp pains shooting through his knees as if a thousand needles were pricking them.

Beads of sweat formed on his brow, trickling down his temples and disappearing onto his shoulders.

Vivienne sat with her legs crossed, her slender neck held high with disdain, a hint of scorn in her gaze.

As Patrick knelt, Vivienne wondered what her mother had seen in him. How could such a spineless man be entrusted with the critical technology of bionics?

She regarded him with contempt and curiosity, slowly pulling the small “Morning Glory” from her pocket and tossing it at Patrick.

Instinctively, he caught it, his forehead bulging with veins, paralyzed with fear.

When he saw what it was, he finally heaved a sigh of relief.

He had thought she had thrown a knife at him!

“Madam, what is this?” he stammered.

Vivienne raised an eyebrow, her voice calm. “A miniature bomb.”

Shocked to his core, Patrick scrambled behind the couch for cover.

He thought it was a knife, but it was even worse – a bomb! Vivienne was more reckless than his boss.

Who in their right mind tosses a bomb around like a toy?

Observing Patrick’s reaction, Vivienne could almost be certain of his innocence regarding the bomb incident that evening.

your ship,” she stated, her legs shifting

I had no idea about this. Even if we set aside your presence on the ship, my daughter and I were there, too. I would never risk our lives by planting a bomb. This has nothing to do with

murmured

relief and began to rise,

as she looked

party fiasco, I cut all ties with the Boyd family. But for the sake of the bionic tech, I could not completely sever our relationship. I thought of sending an invite, and the Boyd family’s head came

represent her. I agreed, and during preparations yesterday, my men told me the Boyd family’s head wanted to drop off a floral arrangement. I did not question it, but it’s suspicious now that I think about it. I had

a signal beeped in her earpiece—it was

The shipment had arrived.

He wanted to check it but could not do so in front of Vivienne,

eyes closing.

that, she

to move. He knew Vivienne was

a nerve, and his

his phone continued to vibrate in his

shipment had

Why bother messaging him?

outside the cabin and were

had secured the docks, sealing off all incoming shipments and detaining the

Thomas reported, handing over a bag of what seemed to

notorious new drug on the black market, identical to

brow furrowed.

a glance with Leopold before revealing an

“Three tons.”

Anna gasped. “How much?”

“Three tons,” Thomas repeated.

could profit enough to buy a small

anticipated a significant haul but had not imagined it would

we’ve found nothing

following leads to the Ashford family’s harbor, expecting a shipment for

the base, so

eyes on Patrick’s movements from the ship’s cabin; each of his moves was a potential key to unraveling

securing the experimental substance, they had

all people, was neck-deep in drug trafficking, a

substance was a dead end by now. Three tons of Keco was no small find, and it demanded

he took the Keco bag. “And keep this under wraps; we