Diamant's POV
The private jet touched down just after sunrise.
Country B greeted me with cold air and flashing lights.
Police vehicles.
Emergency services.
Construction officials.
Even from the runway, I could already see helicopters circling above the district where the hotel project stood.
Or rather...
Where it used to stand.
The convoy drove in complete silence.
No one spoke.
No one needed to.
The first sight of the collapse was enough.
Thousands of tons of concrete had folded into themselves, leaving behind a mountain of twisted steel and broken pillars. Dust still lingered faintly in the air despite the rain that had fallen overnight.
I stepped out of the vehicle.
The project manager hurried toward me.
His expression was pale.
"Mr. Reed."
"Walk."
He immediately fell into step beside me.
Rescue personnel were still searching every section one final time.
"Confirmed?"
I asked.
"No additional victims."
"Good."
"All eleven injured workers are stable."
One problem reduced.
Many remained.
I crouched near what had once been one of the primary support columns.
The exposed reinforcement bars were visible now.
Clean cuts.
Not breaks.
Cuts.
I ran a gloved finger lightly across the damaged steel.
Professional work.
Not vandalism.
Not an accident.
Someone knew exactly where to strike.
I stood.
"Seal every remaining construction material."
"It has already been done."
"No shipment leaves this site."
"Yes, sir."
My gaze swept across the surrounding buildings.
Media crews waited behind police barricades.
Phones pointed toward the wreckage.
People always wanted answers.
Especially when someone powerful stumbled.
"Status?"
"The first videos have already begun circulating online."
I looked toward my legal director.
"Remove them."
He nodded immediately.
"Our legal team has already begun filing emergency takedown requests."
"Continue."
"The local news stations?"
"Handled."
"Social media?"
"We're suppressing the footage as quickly as possible."
Good.
I wasn't trying to hide the truth.
I was preventing panic before facts existed.
Rumors destroyed reputations faster than evidence ever could.
By noon, representatives from the injured workers' families had gathered inside a nearby conference hall.
Their anger filled the room long before I entered.
I understood it.
If their positions were reversed...
I would be furious too.
I stood before them without security speaking for me.
"This project carries my name."
The room quieted.
"And that means responsibility also belongs to me."
No excuses.
No carefully rehearsed corporate statements.
"Every injured worker will receive full medical coverage."
Several heads lifted.
"Rehabilitation."
"Compensation."
"Salary continuation until recovery."
"And if further treatment is required..."
I paused.
"Reed Enterprises will bear the cost."
One elderly woman wiped tears from her eyes.
Another man clenched his fists before slowly relaxing them.
"I cannot erase what happened," I continued evenly.
"But I will not abandon those affected by it."
Silence settled over the room.
Not forgiveness.
Not yet.
But the shouting stopped.
Sometimes...
Responsibility spoke louder than apologies.
The rest of the afternoon disappeared beneath investigations.
Structural engineers.
Forensic analysts.
Insurance specialists.
Government inspectors.
Everyone wanted answers.
Everyone reached the same conclusion.
The collapse shouldn't have happened.
By evening, I stood alone inside the temporary operations office overlooking the ruined construction site.
Every report lay spread across the conference table.
Material tests.
Blueprints.
Surveillance timelines.
Employee records.
None of them explained it.
Someone had gone to extraordinary lengths to make the collapse appear accidental.
Which meant this wasn't merely sabotage.
It was a message.
I stared out the window.
Whoever had planned this possessed patience.
Resources.
Knowledge.
Enough knowledge to interfere with one of the safest construction projects my company had ever undertaken.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
I picked up another report.
Someone had made the first move.
Now...
It was my turn.
Noah's POV
The house felt strangely empty.
Too quiet.
I glanced toward the staircase before looking back down at my untouched cup of tea.
It had been almost a day.
Not a single call.
Not a single message.
That wasn't like Diamant.
He wasn't overly affectionate.
He wasn't the type to send random texts throughout the day.
But he always informed me when he arrived somewhere safely.
Always.
I unlocked my phone again.
Nothing.
Maybe he was busy.
That was the logical explanation.
Yet logic wasn't winning today.
Not against the images already living inside my head.
Country B.
That woman.
The restaurant.
His smile.
The photographs.
I closed my eyes.
Stop.
I had promised myself I would trust him.
After everything.
After the conversation about the baby.
After the day we spent together.
After seeing the way he held me like he was afraid I would disappear.
So why...
Why wouldn't these thoughts leave me alone?
I stood and wandered toward the floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the gardens.
The estate looked peaceful.
Security personnel quietly patrolled the grounds.
More than usual.
He had left so many guards behind before leaving.
That alone told me something was wrong.
Diamant never overreacted.
If he increased security...
There was a reason.
So why hadn't he told me?
My fingers tightened around my phone.
Was he protecting me?
Or hiding something?
I hated that both answers seemed possible.
The afternoon passed painfully slowly.
I tried reading.
Couldn't focus.
Tried watching television.
Every news channel looked completely ordinary.
Business.
Politics.
Sports.
Nothing about Country B.
Nothing about Reed Enterprises.
Nothing about Diamant.
Maybe...
Maybe I really was worrying over nothing.
My phone vibrated.
I looked down instantly.
Not Diamant.
Unknown Number.
A message.
No text.
Just...
One video.
My heartbeat slowed.
Then quickened.
For a long moment...
I simply stared at the screen.
My thumb hovered above the play button.
Something deep inside me whispered not to open it.
But my finger moved anyway.
The video began to load.
And my blood ran cold.