My Billionaire king 219

? Views, Released on February 19, 2025

Chapter 219

Chapter 219

-Grayson’s POV-

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“You really screwed up this time,” Isabella said, her voice cutting hrough the night air like a blade. “And you must know that because you didn’t ask for my help this time.”

I didn’t look away from the fountain. My hands rested on my knees, fingers clenched tight, but I didn’t move. I just watched

my head. the water ripple under the soft moonlight, trying to lose myself in the small waves, trying to quiet the chaos in

Ava had just ripped my world apart.

And it was worse than before. Worse than when I thought she had betrayed me. Worse than anything I’d ever felt.

Because this time, I knew the truth.

And yet, none of that mattered now. Not when Damien was still out there, watching us like we were pieces on his board. Not when Ava was in danger. Not when everything I had left was slipping between my fingers.

I finally turned my head and met Isabella’s gaze, “Do you have something to say? Remind me of everything I’ve done wrong? Because I’m not in the mood.”

She studied me, arms crossed, looking just as exhausted as I felt. And for the first time, I realized how much this was wearing on all of us. We all carried the same haunted expression now. Gone were the days when she had sat in her house, chewing loudly on some snack just to piss me off. Back then, everything had felt so much simpler even with things still being complicated between Ava and I.

She sighed and took a step forward. “I just promised Lilian that I wouldn’t do anything to make us mad at each other, so I’m just going to leave this here.”

She pulled out her phone and dropped it on the ledge of the fountain.

I glanced at it, then back at her but didn’t say anything.

“Are you seriously not going to check the screen?”

“If you’re not going to tell me what it is, I’m not-”

“Oh, for fk’s sake, Grayson.” Her tone sharpened, “Lilian just got a text. From Damien. Along with pictures of every single one of us. He’s watching us–right now, as we’re having this conversation, he’s watching. He said that with a single word, he can make any one of us a target if she doesn’t meet him alone.”

The words hit me like a sledgehammer to the chest.

Before my brain could fully catch up, I was already moving.

But Isabella grabbed my arm, stopping me in my tracks, “She hasn’t left yet. She’s inside. She said she was going to call her mother, but you and I both know she’s not calling anyone. She’s going.”

I clenched my jaw, “Where’s the location?”

“It’s on my screen.” She glanced at the phone. “I don’t know how you’re going to do this, but listen to me–Damien has eyes everywhere. You cannot let him know you’re following her. And you cannot let her know either.”

I barely heard her. My mind was already moving five steps ahead calculating.

“This pity party you’ve been throwing yourself,” Isabella continued, her voice dropping lower, sharper. It needs to stop. The

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Chapter 219

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realm needs the Grayson Blackwood that makes people tremble at the mere mention of his name. Snap the hell out of it.”

The words echoed in my head.

Snap the hell out of it.

And just like that, something inside me shifted,

Like a switch flipping, like a fire reigniting after being smothered for too long.

I didn’t just hear her–I felt the weight of her words settle deep my bones and all the things, of all the people that I thought would be the one to make my brain click like it was resetting, I wouldn’t have thought it would be Isabella.

For too long. I’d been spiraling, letting my emotions control me letting my anger and my grief weaken me.

No more.

I turned and picked up the phone, scanning the location. A restaurant. Open space. Public. Damien wanted to talk first. He wouldn’t risk causing a scene. That told me something–he still needed something from Ava.

Which meant I had time to set a trap.

I pulled out my own phone and started dialing as I turned to leave. But then, I paused and glanced back at Isabella. “Thank you.”

Her lips parted slightly, like she hadn’t expected that. But I didn’t wait for a response. I was already making the call, my feet moving quickly, my brain clicking into place as the old me–the version of me I needed to remember I was–took over.

The second the call connected, I didn’t waste time. “I need a team at this location in thirty minutes. No marked cars. No obvious surveillance. I want eyes on every entrance, exit, and every face in that restaurant.”

There was a brief pause on the other end. Then, a voice responded, “Understood. How many men?”

“Four inside, two outside. One as backup. I want someone watching the security feed in real–time.”

“Got it.”

I hung up and immediately dialed another number.

This one answered on the first ring, “Sir.”

“I need a line tapped into a restaurant’s security system. Quietly. I will send you the details of the restaurant. I want a live feed and access to any surveillance anyone else might have on site.”

“I can have that in fifteen.”

“Make it ten.”

I ended the call and walked back to the car thr brought me here, my mind racing. Damien was too smart to come alone, which meant he had backup. Possibly hidden. Possibly waiting for a signal. If he wanted Ava alone, it meant he thought he had control.

I was about to take that control away.

grabbed my jacket and checked my gun. I wouldn’t be using it not yet–but I needed to be prepared.

Because if Damien thought he was the one hunting tonight….

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Chapter 219

He was wrong.

I slid into the backseat of the car, the door shutting with a firm cck. My driver glanced at me through the rearview mirror, waiting for instructions.

“Pull back,” I ordered, my voice even, sharp, “I want a view of the house, but I don’t want to be seen.”

He nodded once and smoothly maneuvered the vehicle into a darker, more concealed position behind a row of parked cars. From here, I had a clear sightline of the front entrance.

I leaned forward slightly, resting my elbow on the door as I watched, waiting..

If I knew Ava–and I did–she wouldn’t wait the full hour before making her move.

Damien’s message was a direct challenge. A test to see if she’d comply. And Ava… Ava never could stand being backed into a corner. She wouldn’t waste time.

The seconds ticked by, slow, deliberate. My fingers tapped against my knee as I kept my eyes fixed on the front gate. I barely noticed the way my other hand was clenched into a fist, the way my body hummed with a familiar energy I hadn’t felt in a long time.

Control.

Power.

This was where I thrived.

And then, just as I expected–movement.

Ava stepped out of the house, hesitation in her posture as she glanced around. My grip tightened. Even from this distance, I could see the determination set into her features, the way she squared her shoulders like she was walking toward a battlefield.

She was alone which was predictable.

She slipped through the gate without anyone stopping her because that idiot Ricardo was damn nonchalant about security too comfortable in his arrogance.

A car rolled up almost instantly, its tires whispering against the pavement. Ava didn’t hesitate. She pulled open the door and slipped inside.

I waited.

Counted the beats of my own pulse.

Then, just as the vehicle pulled away, I gave the order, my voice steady.

“Wait ten minutes.”

My driver acknowledged the command without question, settling into an idle position. I didn’t move. I didn’t let myself

react.

Because right now, this wasn’t about emotions. This wasn’t about Ava and whatever tangled mess lay between us. This was about strategy and I arrived just in time to see her staring at the door of the restaurant not moving.

My driver packed and then I watched from the shadows as she stepped towards the door. She was tense, but her face didn’t show it. She was trying to act calm, trying to keep control. But I knew her too well. I saw the way she clenched her hands just slightly before exhaling.