“Oh, I’m making perfect sense,” she said, her tone dripping with amusement.

“But a puppet like you wouldn’t understand. You’re too busy dancing to someone else’s tune.”

She dismissed Wanda with a flicker of contempt and turned her focus fully to the laptop.

Miles away in Delta, Miguel, who had been watching everything through the chips implanted in Eva’s and Wanda’s minds, felt the color drain from his face. A chill gripped him. His pulse thundered in his ears. A terrible thought crept into his mind—one he didn’t dare believe.

Then, out of nowhere, Elliana’s voice rang in his head, clear as day.

“How are you doing these days, Miguel?”

Panic jolted through Miguel. He glanced wildly around the room. It was empty. Elliana wasn’t here. Elliana was at the Harmony Estate in Ublento—far too distant for any live connection. She hadn’t called. No device had been used. So where was her voice coming from?

Deep down, he knew the answer, but his mind refused to accept it.

Elliana’s voice came again, colder this time.

“What’s wrong, Miguel? Lost your nerve?”

Miguel collapsed onto the sofa, his body wracked with uncontrollable tremors. For years, he had used his chip technology to control others, turning people into mindless tools. Never once had he imagined the same fate could befall him.

He had tried to manipulate Elliana, to harness her genius for his grand ambitions—never realizing he was the one being played. Right now, he could still think, still feel—but that was only because Elliana hadn’t triggered the chip’s core function yet. Once she did, his will would vanish. He would obey her every command without question. And with him under her thumb, the Evernight Alliance would crumble. Everything he had built—his power, his legacy—would burn to dust.

The weight of it crushed him. He stared blankly at the wall, his thoughts spiraling, searching desperately for a way out. But there was none. The chip was already inside him. Unless it was removed, he was hers to command. One keystroke—and he’d be gone.

The technology developed by River, the legend of the AI community, was far beyond anything Miguel’s team had ever created. He had no defense. It was over. Completely, hopelessly over.

Your story source galnovc?m

Rage flickered, then died. What use was anger now? Only one question haunted him—when? When had she implanted the chip inside him?

He dug through his memories until one surfaced, sharp and cold—the snow-capped mountains. Realization struck like a blade. He closed his eyes, a bitter laugh escaping him.

He had betrayed the Griffiths family for a woman who never loved him. He had built the Evernight Alliance, plotted to destroy his own bloodline, and dreamed of ruling the world—all to make Rita his and his alone. But in the end, it was Rita’s daughter who brought him down. Rita’s daughter now led the family he’d sworn to destroy.

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