Chapter 16 - Receiving an anonymous package from overseas delivers a chilling warning that the global cartel's revenge has only just begun today.
Later that afternoon, a sleek black courier vehicle pulled up to the estate gates, dropping off a small wooden crate stamped with foreign seals.
Marcus brought the crate into the master study, setting it carefully on the desk before Julian and Clara.
Julian used a small crowbar to pry open the wooden lid, revealing a layer of black velvet lining the interior of the box.
Inside lay a single silver pocket watch with a cracked glass face, its hands permanently frozen at twelve minutes past midnight.
Tucked beside the watch was a handwritten note on expensive parchment paper bearing a crest from Zurich, Switzerland.
"A victory in New York is merely a pause in an international war; we are coming for what is ours," Julian read the note aloud.
Clara's hand instinctively flew to her mouth, her dark eyes widening with renewed anxiety for Lily's safety.
"They won't give up, will they?" Clara asked softly, her voice trembling slightly despite her best efforts to remain brave.
"No, they won't," Julian answered, his face hardening back into a stoic mask of absolute determination and defensive readiness.
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"But they don't know who they're dealing with; we are going to take the fight directly to their doorstep," Julian declared.
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