Chapter 340 Locking Horns\u00a0<\/p>\n
The air went thick with awkwardness. Under the table, Yolanda kicked Denton in the shin.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Zero sense of timing, this kid.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Irene chuckled and broke the silence. \u201cHey, they say nephews always take after their uncles.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Curtis still didn\u2019t so much as glance at Gary, as if none of this involved him.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He calmly picked the bones from a piece of fish and laid the meat on Adriana\u2019s plate.\u00a0<\/p>\n
+10 Free Co\u00a0<\/p>\n
Adriana tugged on his sleeve. \u201cThere\u2019s something I need everyone\u2019s help with. I don\u2019t think I can handle this alone. I want all of us in on it\u2026\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The fact that Curtis had chosen to show his face in front of Gary and Irene at all meant one thing\u2014he trusted them. Completely.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He might still carry resentment toward Gary, but he wasn\u2019t guarding himself against him.\u00a0<\/p>\n
All eyes shifted to Adriana.\u00a0<\/p>\n
>\u00a0<\/p>\n
She looked straight at Curtis. \u201cGary told me the reason he wanted to have you committed back then wasn\u2019t because he hated you. It was to protect you. Things were \u2026 complicated. The Lincolns weren\u2019t safe.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Saying it out loud like that, at the table, in front of everyone, was Adriana\u2019s way of ripping off the bandage. She wanted Gary and Curtis to at least shelve their grudges long enough to drag the real mastermind into the light.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Gary clearly hadn\u2019t expected her to yank the curtain back so bluntly. He choked on his pumpkin juice and nearly sprayed the table.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Next to him, Irene propped her chin on one hand and watched him with open amusement.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It was the first time she\u2019d seen anyone shut Gary down like that. No wonder this was her niece.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Curtis froze for a second, then slowly turned to look at Gary.\u00a0<\/p>\n
On the other side of the table, Denton and Yolanda traded a look and immediately dropped their heads, attacking their plates as if their lives depended on it. In their hearts, they chanted the same prayer: please don\u2019t drag us into this, please don\u2019t drag us into this\u2026\u00a0<\/p>\n
Neither of them wanted to be collateral damage if Curtis and Gary decided to go to war in the dining\u00a0<\/p>\n
room.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cSince we\u2019re all sitting here together, that means everyone here is someone we trust more than anyone else,\u201d Adriana said, sweeping the table with her gaze.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Denton and Yolanda both bobbed their heads and kept chewing.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cRight now, the Gills are our most obvious suspects. We need to work together, rip through their\u00a0<\/p>\n
OKR\u00a0<\/p>\n
<\u00a0<\/p>\n
ne to hit back. Hard.\u00a0<\/p>\n
they use us as chess pieces.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s not the Gills,\u201d Curtis said, setting down his knife and fork. His tone dropped a few degrees as he looked across the table at Gary. \u201cThey\u2019re just taking advantage of the chaos. They\u2019re not the ones pulling the strings. Honestly, there\u2019s a good chance they\u2019re being used too.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Adriana blinked, stunned.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Not the Gills?\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Gill patriarch is an old fox. Smart. Careful. All these years, sure, they\u2019ve come out of this mess with fewer bruises than the rest of us\u2013but they haven\u2019t made any huge plays either. When three out of four families get hammered, and one stays relatively untouched, that\u2019s way too obvious.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
In Curtis\u2019s view, the mastermind wanted everyone to suspect the Gills.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Pull one family out of the line of fire, let them stand off to the side while the Lincolns, Bartons, and Harrisons bleed\u2013that was how you painted a target on their backs. Once suspicion solidified, the three wounded houses would naturally focus their anger on the Gills, teaming up to crush them. The puppeteer in the dark would just sit back and enjoy the show.\u00a0<\/p>\n
In the end, their real aim was simple: destroy all four old families and rewrite Harborton\u2019s power map from scratch.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cExactly because he\u2019s an old fox, he knows how to dodge risk and stir up trouble without leaving prints. The way I see it, that\u2019s his whole play\u2013make himself look a little suspicious, sure, but not too suspicious, just enough to split public opinion. Some people are sure he\u2019s guilty. Others are sure he\u2019s not. The safest place is the one everyone\u2019s looking at.\u2019 That\u2019s textbook Gill thinking. He tossed Marcus out front as a lightning rod and vanished into the background. He sits at home in the countryside like a harmless retiree while he runs the board from behind the curtain.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He believed the Gills were the ones behind it all.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMy father always warned me\u2013the Gill patriarch didn\u2019t build his empire clean. He made his fortune stealing deals from his so\u2013called brothers\u2013in\u2013arms. When the money got big enough, he knifed his partners in the back and took everything for himself.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The temperature at the table dropped again. Curtis and Gary stared each other down, neither willing to give an inch.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Two men with enough presence to suffocate a room on their own\u2013put them on opposite sides of an argument, and the pressure was almost physical.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Yolanda ducked her head even lower and ripped another piece off Denton\u2019s apple pie, pinching his sleeve under the table. Big shots were circling each other\u2013her only goal was not to get caught in the blast zone.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYolanda, how about we go for a walk? I can show you the Vatican\u2026\u201d Denton was a fox through and through. Pick your timing right, and Yolanda would agree to anything\u2013because she wanted out.\u00a0<\/p>\n
2\/3\u00a0<\/p>\n
16:26 Thu, Jan 8 M G\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 340 Locking Horns\u00a0<\/p>\n
smokescreens, and stop letting them hide in the shadows while they use us as chess pieces.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
It was time to hit back. Hard.\u00a0<\/p>\n
+10 Free Coins\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s not the Gills,\u201d Curtis said, setting down his knife and fork. His tone dropped a few degrees as he looked across the table at Gary. \u201cThey\u2019re just taking advantage of the chaos. They\u2019re not the ones pulling the strings. Honestly, there\u2019s a good chance they\u2019re being used too.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Adriana blinked, stunned.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Not the Gills?\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Gill patriarch is an old fox. Smart. Careful. All these years, sure, they\u2019ve come out of this mess with fewer bruises than the rest of us\u2013but they haven\u2019t made any huge plays either. When three out of four families get hammered, and one stays relatively untouched, that\u2019s way too obvious.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
In Curtis\u2019s view, the mastermind wanted everyone to suspect the Gills.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Pull one family out of the line of fire, let them stand off to the side while the Lincolns, Bartons, and Harrisons bleed\u2013that was how you painted a target on their backs. Once suspicion solidified, the three wounded houses would naturally focus their anger on the Gills, teaming up to crush them. The puppeteer in the dark would just sit back and enjoy the show.\u00a0<\/p>\n
In the end, their real aim was simple: destroy all four old families and rewrite Harborton\u2019s power map from scratch.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cExactly because he\u2019s an old fox, he knows how to dodge risk and stir up trouble without leaving prints. The way I see it, that\u2019s his whole play\u2013make himself look a little suspicious, sure, but not too suspicious, just enough to split public opinion. Some people are sure he\u2019s guilty. Others are sure he\u2019s not. \u2018The safest place is the one everyone\u2019s looking at.\u2019 That\u2019s textbook Gill thinking. He tossed Marcus out front as a lightning rod and vanished into the background. He sits at home in the countryside like a harmless retiree while he runs the board from behind the curtain.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He believed the Gills were the ones behind it all.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMy father always warned me\u2013the Gill patriarch didn\u2019t build his empire clean. He made his fortune stealing deals from his so\u2013called brothers\u2013in\u2013arms. When the money got big enough, he knifed his partners in the back and took everything for himself.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The temperature at the table dropped again. Curtis and Gary stared each other down, neither willing to give an inch.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Two men with enough presence to suffocate a room on their own\u2013put them on opposite sides of an argument, and the pressure was almost physical.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Yolanda ducked her head even lower and ripped another piece off Denton\u2019s apple pie, pinching his sleeve under the table. Big shots were circling each other\u2013her only goal was not to get caught in the blast zone.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYolanda, how about we go for a walk? I can show you the Vatican\u2026\u201d Denton was a fox through and through. Pick your timing right, and Yolanda would agree to anything\u2013because she wanted out.\u00a0<\/p>\n
2\/3\u00a0<\/p>\n
16:27 Thu, Jan 8 Ma D\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 340 Locking Horns\u00a0<\/p>\n
Yolanda nodded fast, and the two slipped away without a sound.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Back at the table, Curtis and Gary were still locked in silent combat.\u00a0<\/p>\n
+10 Free Coins\u00a0<\/p>\n
Irene rubbed her temples and turned to Adriana. \u201cLet them keep glaring holes in each other. We can at least finish dinner while they pretend the other one doesn\u2019t exist.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Adriana cleared her throat to smooth the tension and looked at Curtis. \u201cHonestly, I think you\u2019re both making good points. The Gills really are the most suspicious right now. We can\u2019t afford to just rule them out. Better to assume they\u2019re involved than assume they\u2019re clean.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2026\u2026\u2026..\u00a0<\/p>\n
Curtis shot her a look, clearly offended. So, now she thought Gary had a point, too? To him, it sounded a lot like she was taking her uncle\u2019s side.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m with Adriana. If we\u2019ve gotta hit the wrong target to make sure we don\u2019t miss the right one, so be it. Whether the Gills are the mastermind or just playing along, treating them as hostile is the safest move. And if, in the end, we really do get played and both sides\u2013us and the Gills\u2013end up bleeding each other dry? That just means they were dumb enough to stand in the blast zone. When the nest falls, none of the eggs survive. We go hard. That\u2019s it.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
7\u00a0<\/p>\n
80\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland\u2019s breathtaking cold.<\/p>\n
When Time Tried to Heal Me But I Refused to Listen by Kael Niro Senn 340 Chapter 340 Locking Horns\u00a0 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[67],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-24251","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-the-comeback-queens-crown-novel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24251","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=24251"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24251\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=24251"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=24251"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=24251"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}