Chapter 1173:

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Phil folded his arms, mulling over the situation. “And if we move carelessly, we’ll tip them off, making them harder to catch.”

Marc gave a slow nod.

“Exactly. Right now, flushing out the traitor isn’t our priority.”

His eyes flicked to Charlee and Liam. “The Ellis family is already making their move. That means we need to be twice as cautious going forward.”

Just then, a soft knock interrupted the tense conversation.

It was Silvia.

She stepped in hesitantly, her gaze flickering over Charlee, Marc, Phil—and the scowling Liam.

She looked like she was debating whether to speak.

Charlee caught the hesitation and waved a hand dismissively.

“It’s fine. We’re all on the same side here. Go ahead.”

At that, Marc’s gaze turned ice-cold, snapping toward Liam with a look of pure disdain.

“On the same side?”

Liam? Seriously?

Liam felt that glare like a dagger between his shoulder blades.

With a forced chuckle, he pushed himself up from his seat.

“Charlee, I’ve got some business to handle at the office, so I’m heading out. Keep me posted once you’ve got the fire situation figured out.”

Truthfully, he just couldn’t take another second of Marc’s hawk-like stare. It felt like the man was seconds from tearing him apart. Without waiting for a response, Liam practically bolted.

Charlee watched him go, shaking her head with a knowing smile.

Lₐtєst chαptєrs in g𝓪l𝑛ovєℓ𝑠.𝓒oм

Even after all this time, Marc was still jealous of Liam.

Not that she minded—it was harmless.

She turned back to Silvia. “Alright, tell me what you found.”

Silvia took a steady breath. “Ms. Sullivan, I had the tech team alter the footage. They replaced the recording of us entering the depository with something else.” She pulled a small USB drive from her bag, handing it over.

“I also copied all surveillance footage from the expo. I skimmed through it and found a few things that stand out.”

Stepping forward, she plugged the USB into the room’s display equipment.

The screen flickered to life.

It showed a frozen frame of a shadowy figure near the back entrance of the depository.

The timestamp was just minutes before Charlee and Silvia had found the anaconda skin—and before the police arrived.

A tall man in a black suit lingered near the depository door.

He turned his back to the camera, lighting a cigarette.

The tiny glow of the ember pulsed in the darkness. Then, with a casual flick, he tossed the still-lit cigarette into a pile of discarded materials.

Seconds later, wisps of black smoke curled into the air. Flames followed.

The fire spread fast. Charlee’s eyes narrowed.

So, it wasn’t an accident after all.

Silvia fast-forwarded the footage.

“Wait. There’s more.” The screen shifted.

The arsonist didn’t run or panic. Instead, he calmly slipped out the back door.

He made his way to a black sedan parked nearby.

Silvia zoomed in on the license plate. Her voice was steady, but her words carried weight. “We traced the car. It belongs to Jax.”

Marc’s expression turned deadly, a cold, humorless laugh escaping his lips. So much for trying to keep the inner circle clean. A traitor had been under their noses the entire time.

But Charlee? She didn’t even flinch. Instead, she let out a quiet, knowing chuckle—like she had expected this all along.

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