The Billionaire's Revenge Bride

Chapter Six

The ink on the marriage license felt heavier than the chains Tobias had spent five years forging. As the sun began to bleed over the Pacific horizon, painting the Knight Tower in shades of bruised purple and gold, I stood in the center of the penthouse, the weight of the pen still ghosting against her fingers.

I was no longer Lily Prescott. But I wasn't quite Lily Knight yet, either. I was a woman in the middle of a war, caught between a husband who had betrayed her soul and a savior who wanted to own it.

"The sun is up," Lucian said, his voice cutting through the silence. He had changed into a fresh white shirt, the sleeves rolled up to reveal forearms corded with muscle and old, faded tattoos from his days on the road. "The judge will be in chambers in an hour. By noon, the Prescott name will be nothing but a stain on your birth certificate."

I turned away from the window, my gaze landing on the black tablet still displaying Tobias secret note. He’s been riding on the evidence this whole time.

"You knew, didn't you?" I asked, my voice steady. "Tobias’s note. He claims the parts on that bike in your workshop are stolen evidence. That you've been tampering with the very thing that could have put Nora behind bars years ago."

Lucian didn't flinch. He walked to the kitchen island, where a fresh pot of coffee sat untouched. "Tobias is a master of the half-truth, Lily. I didn't steal evidence. I reclaimed it. The police were going to scrap that bike. They didn't care about a 'biker girl' and a hit-and-run once the bribe money hit their accounts. I bought the wreckage from the impound lot before the crushers could touch it."

He stepped closer, the scent of espresso and expensive soap clinging to him. "Every bolt I tightened, every piece of chrome I polished, it was a reminder of why I had to become the man I am today. If that makes me a criminal in your legal eyes, then so be it."

"It makes you a witness, Lucian," I countered, my lawyer’s brain already rearranging the board. "If we go to court with the Red Ledger, Tobias’s team will try to discredit you by bringing up that bike. They’ll call it obsession. They’ll call it a vendetta."

"It is an obsession," Lucian murmured, reaching out to tuck a stray lock of hair behind her ear. His touch was no longer rough; it was terrifyingly tender. "And today, the world is going to see exactly how deep it goes."

The headquarters of Knight Holdings was a fortress of glass and steel in the heart of the Financial District. When Lucian stepped out of the SUV, I was at his side, the swarm of paparazzi was instantaneous.

“Mr. Knight! Is it true you’ve acquired the Prescott shares?”

“Lily! Is the divorce finalized?”

“Are the rumors of a knight-Harrington merger true?”

Lucian didn't stop for questions. He kept his arm firmly around my waist, shielding me from the flashing bulbs, his body a literal shield against the world. He steered her through the lobby, where every employee stopped and bowed their head in a silent show of terrifying loyalty.

They reached the top-floor executive suite just as a woman in a sharp navy blazer stepped out of the conference room. It was Vivian, Lily’s best friend and now, her secret weapon.

"The board is losing their minds, Lily," Vivian said, handing her a folder before giving Lucian a wary, respect-filled nod. "Tobias’s lawyers are already here. They brought a specialist from DC. They’re going to argue that the share transfer was coerced under emotional duress because you’re his wife."

"They can argue until they're blue in the face," I said, my eyes flashing with the old fire of the courtroom. "The contract Lucian and I signed at the Knight Hotel is ironclad. And as of thirty minutes ago" I checked my phone. A notification from the court was sitting there. Petition for Dissolution: Granted."...I am no longer his wife."

"Then let's go inside," Lucian said, his voice dropping into that low, predatory rumble. "It’s time to show them what a real merger looks like."

The conference room felt like a shark tank. In the center sat two high-priced attorneys in three-piece suits, looking smug. Behind them, via a high-definition video link from the precinct, was Tobias Prescott.

He looked haggard, his charcoal suit wrinkled, his hair a mess. But when his eyes landed on me, they burned with a toxic mix of jealousy and hate.

"Lily," Tobias rasped through the speakers. "You look beautiful. Is that the dress he bought you? Or did you have to beg for it?"

I sat at the head of the table, Lucian standing directly behind me like a dark shadow. I didn't flinch. "I’m here as the Chief Legal Officer of Knight Holdings, Tobias. Not as your wife. And certainly not as your victim."

"You think this man loves you?" Tobias let out a dry, hacking laugh. "He’s using you to get to me! Once he has the company, he’ll toss you back into the gutter where he found you."

"Enough," Lucian commanded. The sheer power in his voice silenced the room. He leaned forward, pressing his hands onto the mahogany table. "The bail hearing is at two o'clock. My team has already submitted the arson evidence and the offshore ledger to the District Attorney. But I’m feeling generous today, Tobias."

Tobias narrowed his eyes. "Generous?"

"Sign over the remaining five percent of your personal holdings," Lucian said. "And I’ll ensure Nora is moved to a private facility rather than state prison. We both know she won't survive a week in general population."

Tobias looked at Nora, who was seated in the corner of the video frame, weeping. His lip curled in disgust. "She’s a liability. Why should I care where she goes?"

I felt a wave of nausea. He truly didn't care. Not about Nora, not about me, not even about the child he thought we were having.

"Because if you don't," I said, leaning into the microphone, "I will personally prosecute the hit-and-run case. I’ll open the files I 'won' six years ago. I’ll prove that you were the one who instructed the tampering of the witness statements. Arson will be the least of your worries, Tobias. You’ll be looking at twenty-five to life for conspiracy to commit manslaughter."

The room went dead silent. Tobias’s lawyers shifted uncomfortably.

"You wouldn't," Tobias whispered. "That would ruin your career, too, Lily. You were the lawyer on record."

"I don't care about my career anymore, Tobias," I replied, my voice cold and clear. "I care about justice. And I have a very powerful husband who doesn't mind if I get my hands a little dirty."

Lucian’s hand landed on my shoulder, a heavy, possessive weight.

Tobias looked at the screen, his face turning a sickly shade of grey. He looked at Lucian, then at me, and finally at the documents waiting for his digital signature. With a trembling hand, he hit the 'Sign' button.

"It's done," Tobias said, his voice breaking. "You have it all. Happy now?"

Lucian didn't answer him. He hit the 'End Call' button, wiping Tobias’s face from the screen.

The room cleared out quickly, leaving only I, Lucian, and Vivian.

"You did it," Vivian whispered, her eyes wide. "He’s gone. The Prescott empire is officially Knight property."

"Not yet," I said, looking at Lucian. "There's still the matter of the VIN number. If Tobias knows about the bike, others do too."

Lucian turned my to face him, his eyes searching mine. "I took care of it, Lily. The 'evidence' isn't on the bike. It never was."

He pulled a small, silver thumb drive from his pocket. "The real evidence was the dash cam footage from the car Nora was driving. Tobias thought he destroyed it. He didn't know the manufacturer had a cloud backup in its early stages. I’ve had it for years."

I gasped. "If you had the footage of Nora driving... why didn't you use it six years ago? Why wait?"

Lucian’s gaze darkened, a raw, jagged pain surfacing in his eyes. "Because six years ago, I didn't just want Nora in jail. I wanted to find the person who made her walk. I wanted to find you."

He pulled me closer, his voice a low, aching whisper. "I waited because I needed to make sure that when I finally took my revenge, the woman I was taking it from was someone I couldn't live without."

It wasn't the footage. It was the realization that Lucian’s "love" wasn't a byproduct of revenge, it was the goal. He hadn't just hunted Tobias; he had spent six years orchestrating a scenario where I would have no choice but to belong to him.

Suddenly, the office door burst open. Lucian’s head of security rushed in, looking pale.

"Sir, we have a problem. The hospital just called about the maternity wing."

My heart stopped. "Ava? Trisha?"

"No, ma'am," the guard said, looking at Lily with wide eyes. "It’s about your blood work from the emergency room last night. The toxicology screen came back."

Lucian gripped my waist. "And?"

"She wasn't poisoned, sir," the guard stammered. "But the HCG levels... they're through the roof. Mrs. Knight... you’re six weeks pregnant."

I went numb. I looked at Lucian, then at my own stomach. I had been carrying Lucian’s baby, the result of our first "contract" night at the Knight Hotel and I hadn't even known.

But Lucian’s expression wasn't one of joy. It was one of pure, unadulterated terror.

"Six weeks?" Lucian whispered, his face going white. "Lily... that's impossible."

"Why?" I asked, my voice trembling. "Lucian, what's wrong?"

Lucian looked at me, his eyes filled with a secret that threatened to burn their new world to the ground.

"Because six years ago... after the accident... the doctors told me I’d never be able to father a child again."