Chapter 178

Outside the hospital, more than a dozen black luxury cars were parked in a neat, imposing line. The engines were silent, but the presence alone carried an unmistakable sense of pressure. Dominic and Sloane got into the first car in the convoy. The interior was spacious to the point of excess. Soft leather seats, soundproofed walls, and a small tea table set neatly between them made it feel more like a private lounge than a vehicle. The faint scent of tea leaves lingered in the air. But Sloane had no interest in drinking tea. From the moment the car door closed, her attention never left Dominic. She watched him carefully, his posture, his breathing, the subtle tension in his shoulders, alert for even the smallest sign of discomfort. Ever since the poisoning, her nerves had been wound tight. She wasn’t sure if it was her imagination, but the side of his face she kept glancing at seemed faintly flushed, no longer carrying its usual icy pallor. The sharp, oppressive chill that usually surr