My Husband Is a Million Years Old Vampire-Chapter 165

The room was so quiet, the ticking clock above the door sounded deafening.

"For that reason," Adrian continued, "your family’s contract—ten billion dollars—is hereby terminated."

Avery gasped, but no sound followed.

Adrian didn’t pause.

"The current offer that was being processed, which was to push you into the tier-one circle—it’s canceled."

He pulled out another file from the third briefcase, snapped it shut, and then added coldly, "And the staff member who was helping you internally—Mr. Henry Lasco—has been fired this morning. Effective immediately."

Upon hearing what he just said Avery blinked as if she hadn’t heard properly.

"You don’t have anyone at GSK anymore."

And then... silence, her lips trembled, her body gave out beneath her.

Her knees buckled and she collapsed flat to the floor.

Adrian’s expression remained unreadable as he turned slightly, signaling two uniformed security personnel standing by the entrance.

"Take her to the hospital," he said firmly, nodding toward Avery, who lay motionless on the floor.

"Yes sir," one of them replied immediately. They gently lifted her and carried her out with quiet urgency, her heels dragging against the floor, her pride shattered behind them.

At that moment the room was dead silent again.

Then Adrian turned his gaze toward Darren.

Darren didn’t need anyone to tell him he was next.

His throat dried instantly. His hands trembled slightly, tucked beneath the table as though hiding them might hide his fear.

He tried to hold Adrian’s eyes—but failed, Darren’s heartbeat roared in his ears. His mind raced with just one cold truth:

If Adrian announced a termination now... he was done, not just him, his father. His uncles. The entire family.

GSK wasn’t just a partnership to them. It was the oxygen they breathed.

Their contracts fed their factories.

Their loans fed their expansion.

GSK was the pillar. If that pillar cracked, everything else would fall.

And unlike Edward’s family—whose reach was wide enough to survive the storm, even if wounded—Darren knew one thing: if his contract was pulled, they wouldn’t make it till next week.

His father would disown him, there would be no second chance.

And for the first time in years, Darren felt real fear, he didn’t know what Adrian was about to say, he didn’t know if he could survive it.

Without wasting anymore time Darren’s knees hit the floor hard.

He didn’t care, he didn’t even feel the pain. His body trembled too much for that.

Tears streamed down his face, falling freely as his hands clasped together in front of him. "Please... Sir Raymond... I didn’t mean to— I swear I didn’t mean to... I was only following Edward’s lead. It was him, and Avery... and Emma... they made me say and do all those things."

His voice cracked, shame swallowing the rest of his words. He looked like a boy, not a man who once mocked others from a place of false pride.

He lowered his head to the floor again. "I didn’t know who you were... I didn’t know," he repeated, voice barely a whisper now.

Across the room, Edward sat frozen. His eyes stared at nothing in particular. His shoulders were slumped, lifeless, like someone had drained the strength out of him. He couldn’t move. Couldn’t speak.

He was a shell.

Still Adrian didn’t even glance in his direction.

Raymond stepped forward instead, his expression unreadable. Calm. Composed. Controlled.

Then he bent slightly—just enough to meet Darren at eye level.

Upon seeing Raymond in front of him, Darren lifted his tear-streaked face slowly, confused.

Then Raymond spoke, voice low, firm—without anger, without pity.

Raymond’s eyes didn’t flicker. His tone wasn’t angry—it was too calm to be angry. But beneath that calm was a storm so fierce it made Darren’s blood run cold.

"I don’t forgive," he said, voice low but clear. "Not when it comes to Valentina."

Darren, still on his knees, couldn’t even lift his head.

Raymond crouched slightly, leveling their gaze. "I made a promise to myself. If anyone, even by accident, pushes her—if she trips, gets hurt, or even frowns because of someone—I’ll destroy everything tied to that person."

Immediately Darren’s lip trembled. His hands were shaking.

"For making her question her worth..." Raymond’s voice dropped even lower, "for making her feel anything less than what she is... for stressing her, for mocking her in Front of me... you will pay."

Raymond’s voice didn’t raise, but the threat in it was louder than any scream.

"This is just the beginning."

He stood up slowly, brushed off invisible dust from his trousers, and glanced back down at Darren like someone staring at a smudge on glass.

"If you ever come near her again, even an inch... your family won’t just lose everything—they’ll vanish."

Then Raymond turned, and with the smallest curve of his lips, he smiled.

Darren’s eyes widened, glassy and hollow, like his soul had just slipped out of his body. He didn’t blink. He didn’t breathe. His knees didn’t even feel like they were on the ground anymore—they felt like they’d sunk straight through it.

At that moment Adrian turned to the room, his voice sharp and unyielding. "Darren’s family investment with GSK has officially been cancelled."

A few murmurs rose, but no one dared say a word.

"They’ve failed to meet the required terms, especially the interest attached to the agreement," Adrian continued. "We’ve given them time. We’ve shown mercy. But that grace expired today."

Darren’s lips trembled. His heart was hammering. He wanted to scream, to explain, to beg—but the words simply wouldn’t come.

"By tomorrow morning," Adrian added, "GSK expects a full payment of six billion dollars. Five for the principal investment. One for the accrued interest."

He paused for effect. "If they fail to meet that deadline, we will publicly declare a business war against your family. GSK will not be responsible for what happens next."

Silence fell like a boulder.

Darron didn’t move. His face was frozen, drained of life. And just like that, everyone’s eyes slowly turned to Liam.