Chapter 279: Seventeenth !!
Inside the villa, silence ruled the air like an unspoken command.
The study room was dimly lit, its elegance reflecting wealth and authority, yet something about the atmosphere felt heavy, almost suffocating, as if the walls themselves knew the truth hidden within them.
At the center of the room, Gabriel Moreau sat alone behind a polished wooden desk, his hands moving slowly as he closed a black briefcase filled to the brim with neatly stacked bundles of cash. The faint rustle of paper echoed in the quiet, each note inside that case carrying a weight far greater than its value.
Ghost stood at the entrance, his figure half swallowed by shadow.
For a brief moment, he simply watched.
A man who had everything.
A life built on prestige.
A home surrounded by beauty.
And yet...
He had chosen this.
"I never imagined," Ghost said softly, his voice cutting through the silence like a blade, "that a man who lives in a place like this would sell himself for something so small."
Gabriel froze.
The briefcase snapped shut.
He turned sharply, his eyes locking onto the hooded figure.
"Who are you," Gabriel demanded, his voice rising as panic began to creep in, "how did you get in here... security!"
Ghost lifted a finger slightly.
"Shshshs... calm down, Mr. Moreau."
He stepped forward slowly, his movements controlled, his presence unsettlingly composed.
"I am here because your father sent me. Your transaction with Al Qiyan has been flagged by the DGSE, and they are already on their way to this place. I am here to take you and your daughter somewhere safe before they arrive."
The words hit like thunder.
Gabriel’s expression collapsed into shock.
"What... how is that possible," he stammered, his voice trembling, "they said the transaction would come from a clean source... a white channel..."
Ghost’s eyes did not waver.
"This is French Intelligence, Mr. Moreau. They do not miss things like this."
Gabriel took a step back, his breathing uneven.
"But I cannot leave," he said quickly, almost desperately, "the deal is not complete yet... there are still three days left."
Ghost’s tone hardened.
"Within three days, you will be captured, interrogated, and most likely tortured to death by the same system you betrayed. Think about your daughter, Mr. Moreau. Why destroy her future for your greed? Come with me."
For a second...
There was silence.
Then Gabriel laughed.
A broken sound.
"Greed?" he said, his voice rising, almost cracking. "You think this is about greed? What do you even know about me?"
His hand slammed against the desk.
"What do you know!"
His chest heaved as emotions poured out uncontrollably.
"I gave my entire life to that plant. My father gave his entire life to this country. And what did we get in return?"
His voice trembled, but it did not stop.
"My wife... she was a brilliant nuclear scientist. Back then I was just a supervisor. There was faulty equipment, outdated, dangerous. I reported it again and again. I begged them to replace it. But the funds were stolen, swallowed by corrupt officials who never cared."
His eyes burned with pain.
"And one day... it failed."
His voice dropped.
"Radiation leaked."
He swallowed hard.
"Eight people died. Eight."
His hands clenched tightly.
"My wife was one of them."
The room felt colder.
"The government called it an accident. But I know the truth. It was murder. Those people walked free. The system protected them. The country I served... betrayed me."
He wiped his tears roughly, anger replacing grief.
"So do not stand there and talk to me about greed. I do not care about this country anymore. Not after what it did to me."
Ghost stood still.
Silent.
Listening.
For a moment, he said nothing.
Then quietly, with a calm that did not judge, he replied,
"I understand your anger."
A pause.
"But this is not the time for that discussion."
His voice grew firmer.
"If you are caught, everything ends. Come with me. Everything is arranged. There is a helicopter waiting. You still have a chance."
Gabriel hesitated.
"But"
"There is no time," Ghost cut in. "Do you want your daughter to suffer because of your choices?"
That question lingered.
Heavy.
Unavoidable.
Then
A sound.
A faint flush.
From inside the adjoining bathroom.
Ghost’s instincts snapped instantly.
His eyes shifted.
Sharp.
Alert.
He glanced at the table.
Two cups of coffee.
Not one.
Two.
The realization hit immediately.
Someone else was here.
The briefcase was not brought by Gabriel.
Ghost adjusted his stance subtly, every muscle ready.
The bathroom door creaked open.
A man stepped out calmly, wiping his hands with a handkerchief as if nothing unusual was happening.
"Well, well, well..." the man said, his voice smooth, almost amused. "He is not going anywhere."
Ghost’s gaze locked onto him.
Cold.
Calculating.
"You are Aveline’s man," Ghost said.
The man paused.
Then smiled.
He stepped closer, studying the hooded figure carefully.
"What an occasion," he said, a faint excitement in his tone, "the Ghost of Graveyard himself... standing right in front of me."
And just like that...
The room that had once held tension...
Now held something far more dangerous.
The moment the words left the man’s mouth, the air inside the study shifted into something suffocating.
"The Ghost of the Graveyard..."
The name itself carried weight.
A legend whispered across dark alleys, feared by criminals who had never even seen his face.
And now that name stood inside this room.
Hearing it, Gabriel Moreau’s expression twisted instantly. The hesitation that had lingered in his eyes disappeared, replaced by raw suspicion and anger. His hand moved without warning, pulling out a handgun from the drawer beside him, raising it straight toward Ghost.
The click of the safety echoed like a final warning.
The man who had stepped out of the bathroom let out a low laugh, clearly enjoying the chaos unfolding in front of him.
"He is lying to you, Gabriel," the man said smoothly, his voice dripping with manipulation. "Graveyard never protects criminals, and right now, you are nothing but a criminal. I am sure your patriotic father sent him here to kill you because he is too cowardly to do it himself."
Ghost’s eyes sharpened instantly.
"What the hell are you saying," he snapped, his voice cold and dangerous. "Shut the hell up."
He took a step forward, ignoring the gun aimed at him.
"Mr. Moreau, trust me. I am here to take you somewhere safe. We are running out of time."
But Gabriel was no longer listening.
He stared at Ghost’s hooded face, his breathing uneven, his mind racing through something far more personal.
Then realization struck.
"You..." his voice trembled, but anger quickly consumed it, "you are him. You are the one my daughter keeps talking about."
His grip tightened on the gun.
"You bastard," Gabriel growled, fury blazing in his eyes. "You used my innocent daughter to reach me. How dare you."
Ghost’s expression flickered for a moment.
"It is not like that," he said quickly, his tone urgent. "We do not have time for this. We need to move now. Do you think these people will let you walk away? You took money from both sides. They will kill you for it."
The man beside them raised his brows slightly.
"What," he said slowly, turning toward Gabriel, "you took money from Nawwar too?"
Gabriel’s face stiffened.
"He is bluffing," Gabriel replied sharply. "He is trying to confuse you."
The man’s smile faded.
His hand moved.
A gun appeared in his grip, aimed directly at Ghost.
For a fraction of a second, everything stood still.
Ghost calculated.
Time was slipping.
DGSE could arrive any moment.
There was no more room for negotiation.
"Mr. Moreau," Ghost said again, his voice lower now, intense, pressing, "think carefully. There is no way out of this. You have to leave with me. Do not forget these people kidnapped your daughter."
The man smirked.
"And I heard a young boy saved her," he added, his tone mocking. "It must be you. Quite the plan you had. Get close to the daughter, reach the father."
"Do not take my daughter’s name," Gabriel snapped.
The man chuckled darkly.
"Today," he said, tightening his grip on the gun, "the entire underworld will praise me for killing you."
That was it.
Ghost moved.
Fast.
His hand shot forward, grabbing the man’s wrist, twisting it violently as he snatched the gun away in one fluid motion. Before the man could react, Ghost slammed the butt of the gun into his head with brutal precision.
The man collapsed instantly.
But
A gunshot exploded.
Ghost shifted.
Too late to fully evade.
The bullet grazed across his torso, slicing through fabric and skin before embedding itself into the wall behind him.
Pain flared, but he did not react.
His focus remained forward.
Gabriel still held the gun.
And he was about to fire again.
Then,
Another gunshot.
From behind.
Time slowed.
The sound echoed unnaturally loud.
Gabriel’s body jerked.
His gun slipped from his hand.
A dark stain spread across his chest.
Ghost’s eyes widened.
He turned.
At the doorway stood Louis Moreau.
His arm was extended.
Gun still raised.
But his hand trembled violently.
Tears streamed down his face.
"No... no..." Ghost rushed forward, his voice breaking this time. "What did you do..."
He grabbed Louis’s arm, forcing the gun down, then both of them dropped to their knees beside Gabriel.
"Son..." Louis whispered, his voice collapsing under the weight of what he had done.
Gabriel struggled to breathe.
Each inhale was shallow.
Painful.
"S... sorry, dad..." Gabriel managed, his voice barely a whisper. "I... I could not be a son you could be proud of..."
Louis shook his head uncontrollably.
"No... no..."
Gabriel’s eyes shifted weakly.
"Take care... of Chloe..." he continued, forcing the words out. "Tell her... I loved her... tell her the truth... about me..."
Ghost pressed his hand against Gabriel’s wound, trying to stop the bleeding.
"We can still save you," he said urgently. "We will get you to a hospital. I am calling an ambulance."
Gabriel gave a faint, almost peaceful smile.
"I will not survive... that long..." he whispered. "Either way... I was going to die... soon... I have cancer..."
The words hit like a silent explosion.
"The plant... took me too..."
Louis froze.
His world shattered completely.
Gabriel’s eyes slowly closed.
His body went still.
And just like that..
He was gone.
Outside, footsteps thundered.
Voices shouted.
Security forces were already surrounding the villa.
Then,
A door burst open from the side.
And she appeared.
Chloe.
Her breath was uneven.
Her eyes searching.
Then they landed,
On the floor.
On Gabriel.
Her world broke instantly.
"No... no..." she cried, running forward, dropping beside him. "Dad... please... do not leave me... Dad!"
Her hands shook as she held him, her voice cracking into desperate sobs.
Louis reached out, trying to hold her.
"I... I..."
But he could not finish.
She pulled away.
Her tear filled eyes shifted.
Toward Ghost.
She saw the gun in his hand.
And in that moment
Nothing else mattered.
Her expression changed.
Pain.
Shock.
Betrayal.
All at once.
She pushed him hard.
"Why..." her voice trembled violently, "why did you do this..."
Ghost stood frozen.
Unable to move.
Unable to speak.
"Who... are you...?"
Her question hung in the air.
Heavy.
Final.
And this time
Ghost was silent.