?Chapter 965:


    William froze. Just for a moment. Then he wrapped his arms around her and quietly led her back into the bedroom.


    His voice was urgent, low. “Talk to me. What happened? Did they touch you?”


    Ste, shaking, could barely speak at first. But between ragged breaths and stifled sobs, she told him everything. Every word. Including the part where the mysterious man admitted to killing her mother.


    William’s jaw clenched, his whole face shifting. “What did he look like?” he asked, voice turning sharp. “Anything stand out?”


    She wiped her face, trying to focus. “Blond hair. Blue eyes. In his thirties. Way too pretty for someone that evil. Had a slight British ent.” She paused, then added, “He was wearing this silver ring on his right hand—looked custom. Snake wrapped around a sword.”


    William’s face went stone-cold. “A snake wrapped around a sword?”


    She nodded. “You know it?”


    He didn’t answer. He walked straight to the window and yanked the curtains closed.


    The silence between them suddenly felt heavy.


    Ste sat frozen, watching him wide-eyed. He turned around slowly, his expression unreadable. “That ring isn’t some fashion piece. It’s a mark. High-ranking members of an overseas organization wear it. The real kind of dangerous—burn-down-the-world-if-it-profits-them dangerous.”


    Ste’s blood ran cold. “What organization?”


    She’d never heard of anything like that—at least not outside movies or conspiracy theories.


    William lowered his voice, like the walls might be listening. “They’re called Erebus. Global, underground, ruthless. Arms trafficking, ck market science, political maniption—you name it. The deeper you’re in, the more detailed your ring.”


    Her stomach twisted. That man’s icy stare, the way he moved, how casually he talked about murder—it all clicked now. It wasn’t personal. It was business. A power y.


    She looked up at William, her voice barely a whisper. “How do you know this?”


    A beat of silence. Then he finally spoke. “Briggs Group… had a few run-ins with them. Old projects.”


    Ste sank onto the bed, hugging her knees tightly. “So what the hell do we do now? He gave me a week.”


    She hadn’t thought it could get worse. But here it was—darker, messier, and a hell of a lot scarier.


    William didn’t let the thought settle. “No.” His voice cut through the air like a de. “You can’t agree to that. Once you step into their world, there’s no walking back. Your mom… she’s proof of that.”


    Ste didn’t respond. If she backed down now, everything she had fought for would be for nothing. But her silence said everything.


    William studied her face. He knew that look. She wasn’t giving up. She was already thinking ten steps ahead.


    .


    .


    .