“You …” Charles frowned deeply, squinting his eyes as he tried to make out the man who had dared to walk into his family’s wedding with such arrogance.
But … he couldn’t see him clearly.
“Who are you?”
Even the guests were stunned.
They strained to get a better look, but the lights outside were too blinding.
As the tall figure stood directly against them, his silhouette was swallowed by the glare.
Not even the guests seated closest to the entrance could make out his features.
All they could see was a tall, daunting figure of a man standing in the doorway, clad in darkness against the blinding light.
“Capo Beaumont, looking for the Mercers?” His cold, magnetic voice filled the silence.
“Too late.
You’d be disappointed if you tried looking for them now.”
He paused, taking another step into the hall.
“Or …
you might just find that you can’t reach them anymore.
At least not tonight.”
His voice remained calm and level, but Charles sensed the unmistakable arrogance beneath every word.
It was the kind of the arrogance that deliberately tested both his patience and his authority.
Who dares challenge him on his own turf??
Charles’s brows furrowed.
His fingers tightened around his phone.
“Young lad, you sound quite arrogant.” His voice hardened.
“Arrogance isn’t always well received.
Not on my territory, at least.”
The man standing against the light gave a quiet, almost amused smirk.
“Territory doesn’t matter as long as you’ve got what it takes.” He took another step forward.
“And I certainly have everything it takes to stand here tonight, Capo Beaumont.”
The way he repeated Charles’s title wasn’t respectful.
It was deliberate.
A reminder that he knew exactly who he was speaking to.
Evelyn, standing slightly behind her father, couldn’t stop herself from frowning.
She couldn’t understand what was happening.
His appearance was supposed to happen.
She wasn’t surprised to see him here.
But his attitude…
He seemed unnervingly different —different from the man she knew.
“Damian…” His name slipped past her lips in a quiet whisper of confusion.
Yet Charles, standing close enough to hear her, caught it.
His gaze immediately turned toward her, a warning flashing in his eyes.
But he didn’t ask her anything.
Instead, he turned back toward the man.
“You aren’t supposed to be here.” His voice was dark and authoritative.
“Leave while you still have the chance, or …”
The threat beneath his words was unmistakable.
Anyone else would have at least flinched.
But the man standing at the entrance didn’t even falter.
Not the slightest bit.
His complete lack of reaction only added to the mystery surrounding him.
There was something unnervingly composed about his presence —something that made his arrogance feel less like recklessness and more like absolute confidence.
The guests were quietly shaken.
No one dared to comment, but everyone could sense that something dreadful was about to happen.
A bloodbath.
No one had ever dared stand so arrogantly before Charles Beaumont.
And of all days, it had to happen today.
In front of hundreds of witnesses.
A man of Charles Beaumont’s status would never take such humiliation lying down.
He might have been only another Capo under Don Alexander Caldwell, but he was one of the most influential.
Charles waited.
But when the man still hadn’t moved after several long seconds, his expression hardened.
He didn’t wait another moment.
“Gilbert.” His voice cracked through the hall.
“Drag him out and take him to the den.”
The order should have sent shivers through everyone present.
But it never had the chance to be carried out.
The moment Charles called for one of his most trusted men—
BANG!
A gunshot exploded from outside.
Everyone froze.
Even Charles.
Before anyone could react, a body came flying through the open doorway and slammed onto the floor near Damian’s feet … lifeless.
A collective gasp tore through the hall.
People stumbled backwards, desperate to put distance between themselves and the corpse.
Some were familiar with death.
To them, the sight was horrifying but not entirely unfamiliar.
But for those who belonged to the legitimate world, the sight of a dead body thrown into their midst was enough to shatter whatever composure they had left.
Several guests immediately rushed toward the exits.
But the moment they reached the other doors, panic spread through the crowd.
They were either locked or blocked.
Every escape route had been cut off.
The carefully controlled elegance of the wedding hall collapsed into chaos as terror washed over the guests.
Even Evelyn flinched.
Her gaze dropped briefly to the body before snapping back toward Damian.
She stared at him as though trying to reconcile the man standing before her with the man she thought she knew.
She knew him.
But this wasn’t the him she knew.
“Damian…” His name came out as barely more than a breath.
“What are you doing?”
She took a hesitant step toward him.
“You didn’t need to do this.”
He was supposed to come here tonight.
He was supposed to stand beside her in front of her father.
But that was all.
She was supposed to handle the rest.
She was supposed to take his hand, tell her father that she had chosen him, and make it clear that he was the only man she would marry.
Then why had Damian taken everything into his own hands?
Why had he turned her carefully planned confession into this?
That too … in this way.
Damian’s gaze shifted towards her.
For a moment, his eyes lingered on her face.
But he didn’t explain.
He didn’t reassure her.
He simply turned his attention back to Charles.
“Isn’t he the one you just called?” His gaze dropped briefly toward the body at his feet.
He didn’t wait for Charles to answer or confirm.
He just smirked and added right after,
“I had him delivered right to you.”
A faint, cold smile touched his lips.
“Saves you the trouble, doesn’t it?”
Charles’s gaze fell to the lifeless body on the floor.
Something in his expression changed.
His eyes reddened with fury.
His fingers curled tightly at his sides before one hand disappeared beneath his suit jacket.
Evelyn noticed the movement before anyone else did.
Her pupils dilated and she snapped her head toward him.
“Father, no—”
“Who are you?” Charles cut her off.
He pulled out his pistol and aimed it straight at Damian.
The intent in his eyes was unmistakable.
“You think you can walk into my territory and challenge me?” His finger settled against the trigger.
“Who gave you such audacity?”
But before he could pull it—
Evelyn rushed forward.
She stepped directly in front of Damian, shielding him with her own body.
“I did!”