Her Rebirth.-Chapter 96

Lilac held a napkin to her nose, her hand on Ace’s as they descended deeper into the heart of the diamond excavation site. After a lot of sweet talking and pillow talking, she had finally been able to convince Ace to bring her here. Since the Blackwoods were responsible for the mining and extraction, it was normal that at times they might come just to see the work going on.

Lilac knew that Mason would never bring her here; he might even become suspicious, wondering how she knew of the contract. And besides, there was an underlying tension brewing in the family, so she had been careful with her every step, else she’d be the bearer of his anger. And now, as she stood beside Ace, eyes wide with false wonder, she played the part of the wide-eyed admirer perfectly.

The head supervisor, a broad-shouldered man in a worn jacket and protective gloves, walked just ahead of them. His helmet’s lamp flickered as he turned to address Ace.

"We’ve cleared through Layer C2 this week," he reported, voice steady and seasoned with years of experience. "The yield’s been better than expected. We found a fresh vein about seventy meters deep. It was clean, dense, and stable. Processing’s already begun on the surface."

He gestured toward a small cart filled with raw stones, still dust-covered but already gleaming faintly. "Our latest scans show the vein extends eastward, possibly another thirty meters. If it holds, we’re looking at a twenty percent increase in extraction volume over last quarter."

Ace nodded thoughtfully, pulling his hand from Lilac’s to examine a piece of the rough diamond ore. "And the seismic activity?"

"Minimal," the supervisor replied. "No tremors in the last two weeks. Reinforcement’s holding, and we’ve upgraded the ventilation in Shaft Three to keep the lower crew safe."

Lilac trailed a step behind them, her eyes darting around. The men were absorbed in their conversation, and the workers nearby were too busy operating drills or carting loads to notice her.

Then her eyes caught a small, jagged piece of diamond just beside a discarded set of tools near a pile of rubble, likely broken off during extraction and forgotten, half-buried in dust.

She knelt slightly under the guise of fixing her heel, fingers moving quickly. Then she plucked the stone from the ground and slipped it into her pocket, her face still calm despite the triumph blooming inside her chest.

By the time she straightened up, Ace was looking over his shoulder.

"Everything alright?" he asked, brows slightly raised.

Lilac smiled sweetly, brushing imaginary dirt from her skirt. "Just a little uncomfortable in these shoes," she said. "But it’s nothing I can’t handle."

She tightened her grip on his arm again and leaned in. "It’s amazing down here. I’ve never seen anything like it."

Ace chuckled, pleased by her awe. "This is just the beginning," he said. "Wait till you see the refinement process."

. . . . .

On the floor were various bodies, and Kai was at the centre, bloodied but still standing. His black shirt was torn and clinging to him, soaked with blood, some of it his, most of it not. His chest rose and fell, and his every breath was laced with pain. One arm hung limply by his side, while the other shakily pulled a phone from his pocket.

He didn’t bother wiping the blood from his hands as he raised it to his ear.

"Ye Jin," he rasped. "The contract... to fight beside the Song family."

There was silence. His gaze swept the wreckage, then locked on the open doors ahead.

"I think it’s time we put it into action."

He didn’t wait for a reply and ended the call with a soft beep.

Kai’s hand dropped to his side. His legs trembled under him, and for a moment, he swayed but he caught himself, gritting his teeth against the pain. Blood trickled down his temple, causing his vision to blur.

"I need to get to her," he muttered under his breath as he stumbled toward the exit.

Each step he took was heavy and filled with pain. "Before they hurt her..."

. . . . .

The underground tunnel was dark, and Amelia could barely see the road ahead, but she kept on walking. She placed her hands on the brick wall to guide her step. She had to find Kai before Song Ren hurt Song Yue. Then she began to hear footsteps from behind her.

"Fan out. She should’ve come through here."

Amelia’s breath passed. They were already this close? ƒreewebηoveℓ.com

She began walking faster and faster, she must get to the end of the tunnel.

"I can hear footsteps," she heard one of them say, and the incoming footsteps became louder and louder, and the lights from their flashlights became visible.

Amelia kept walking and walking. If she could run, she would have, but she was in the dark; she could not run without seeing where she was headed.

"Stop!" a voice barked from behind. "Don’t move!" The light from the flashlight fell on her figure.

She didn’t stop. Instead, adrenaline rushed in, and she began to run, faster than she ever thought she could. Her fingers scraped along the brick walls, bleeding but she didn’t register the pain. She couldn’t. She didn’t even think about the fact that she could see no more than a foot ahead of her.

"Get her!"

She could hear their every step, moving closer and faster, their loud shouts ordering her to stop.

But she was almost there, she could see the faint light. Almost—

"Ahhh!" she groaned in pain as a rough hand clamped her mouth tightly, yanking her backward.

"Got her," the man growled.

Amelia thrashed, kicking back with her legs, but the second man grabbed her arms and pinned them behind her.

"Shh," the first one whispered mockingly by her ear. "No need to scream. You’re coming with us either way."

Tears fell down her cheeks.

I’m sorry, Song Yue, but I couldn’t complete what you asked of me.