Chapter 211

Vincent Lowell's head throbbed with excruciating pain.

He strained to recall what happened before he lost consciousness, but only fragmented flashes surfaced.

A burlap sack had been thrown over his head.

A sharp blow to the back of his skull.

Then, endless darkness.

"Who was it...?" he muttered, fingers tightening around the hospital sheets. The answer mattered more than anything, yet his memory had been erased like pencil marks under an eraser.

Worse, he realized his legs had gone numb.

The doctor said the head trauma might leave lasting damage.

"Dad, you're awake?" Sophia Lowell's voice pulled him back to reality.

Vincent jerked upright, ignoring the pain. "What about the company?"

The air in the room turned to ice.

Margaret nudged their daughter. "Tell him."

Sophia bit her lip, her grip whitening around her purse.

"Speak!" Vincent barked.

"Lowell Group..." She inhaled sharply. "Is about to go bankrupt."

"What?!"

Three gasps rang out simultaneously. Margaret's glass slipped from her fingers and shattered on the floor.

Vincent's face drained of color. The heart monitor screeched an alarm.

When medical staff rushed in, they found the patient heaving, his glare locked onto his daughter in the corner.

"The patient needs rest!" the doctor snapped at the family.

Sophia hid behind the curtains but still felt the daggers in her father's stare—as if he wanted to carve her to pieces.

One month.

Just one month, and the empire he'd built over decades had crumbled to dust.

"What happened?" Margaret's voice shook. "You said professionals were handling it!"

Sophia exploded. "What could I do?! The shareholders panicked and dumped their stocks! Sebastian Royston vanished overnight!"

Tears spilled down her cheeks.

"Those contract traps were impossible to decipher! Selling assets was the only option!"

Her hysterical sobs filled the room.

Vincent shut his eyes, chest heaving. He remembered the sleepless nights reviewing reports, the humiliations endured to build his empire...

"How much is left?" His voice was gravel.

Every word sounded wrenched from his teeth.