Chapter 1376:


    Once the task was finished, Cohen sparked the detonator’s fuse without hesitating. As the me crawled along the fuse, he kept his expression steady and unreadable.


    While the me advanced, he whispered, “One… two… three…”


    Every heartbeat reminded Cohen that the explosives would go off the moment the fuse reached its end.


    Another thought surged through him—Richard pulling him from the brink of death all those years ago.


    Under his breath, Cohen whispered, “Richard, that debt has been hanging over me for too long. I’m settling it tonight.”


    He narrowed his eyes and slid a set of modified rounds into the shotgun. The crisp metallic clicks rang through the small room with unnerving rity.


    A single st from that weapon could topple even the fiercest animal in the wild.


    Back in the banquet hall, Maia tightened her grip around Ss’s wrist until he felt as though a trap had snapped shut on him.


    “Mr. Court, since honesty isn’t an option for you, you’ll apany me instead,” she muttered, and the quiet tone only intensified his realization that he had just be her shield.


    Sweat gathered along Ss’s forehead as dread coiled inside him. He understood Raegan’s reputation too well. She never backed down once a mission was set in motion.


    Within The Mask, dying for a task was treated as a privilege, not a consequence.


    For that reason, abandoning a mission for the safety of a single member was unthinkable. Ss, however, had no desire to die.


    “Release me!” Ss shouted, trying to sound fierce. “Don’t make me do anything—I don’t want to strike a woman.”


    Even as he spoke, the words carried little weight and felt empty.


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    “Have it your way,” Maia answered, wearing a faint, almost yful smile that made the moment feel oddly casual.


    Taking in a shaky breath, Ss tried to wrench his arm free, only to discover that Maia’s grip was far stronger than he ever expected.


    Only after that attempt did he remember who he was dealing with—a woman rumored to dominate underground fight rings. That realization crashed over him, swallowing any remaining hope he had.


    Without warning, the hall’s lighting wavered again.


    Reacting on instinct, Ss dipped low and scurried back like a cornered animal desperate to escape. But this time, the bulbs only flickered instead of shutting downpletely.


    The host tried to salvage the situation and said, “Everyone, please stay calm. The staff is likely adjusting something.”


    Before he even finished, an explosion ripped through the venue.


    The st echoed from afar, and the entire hall was swallowed by darkness as the power finally copsed.


    Using pure adrenaline, Ss pulled Maia to the floor, no longer caring about appearances. His voice quivered when he whispered, “There’s a sniper out there.”


    “You seem rather attached to living. I almost expected you to throw yourself in the line of fire just to get rid of me,” Maia replied, her words cutting through the pitch-ck room.


    Ss suddenly felt as though she could see right through him, and fear tightened inside him while he prayed for a way out of this nightmare.


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