Chapter 268: The Cost Of Power
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3rd Person’s POV
The room was filled with the sharp scent of burnt paper mixed with the heavy sweetness of spilled scotch, closing in around the two men as the delicate bond between father and son finally broke.
Adrien’s fist throbbed from where it had connected with Keith’s jaw; the pain was grounding in the emotional storm swirling inside him.
Keith was on the other side of the massive oak desk, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth, but the twisted smile on his face showed no sign of defeat...just a perverse pride that made Adrien’s stomach turn.
"I suppose when you get older and end up taking over the company, you’ll understand my actions," Keith had said, and those words echoed in Adrien’s mind, igniting the rage that had been building for years.
Adrien’s vision narrowed, the edges blurring into a red haze fueled by grief and betrayal so deep it felt like it might swallow him whole. He lunged forward without hesitation, vaulting over the desk in a surge of wild fury.
Papers flew into the air like frightened birds, the crystal decanter tipped and then shattered on the floor in a glittering burst of glass and amber liquid. Keith tried to dodge, but Adrien’s momentum brought them both crashing down into a tangled heap, the thick Persian rug beneath them hardly softening the blow.
They hit the ground hard, the impact rattling through Adrien’s bones, yet he barely noticed. His hands gripped Keith’s collar, fingers digging into the fine fabric of his shirt as he pushed his father backward.
Keith’s head thudded against the floor with a dull thump, but he rebounded quickly; years of suppressed ruthlessness surged forth. He bucked up, slamming an elbow into Adrien’s ribs, forcing a sharp grunt from his throat. The pain flared bright and hot but only fueled his fury, sharpening it into something primal and relentless.