His Bride, Her Revenge-Chapter 79: The Choice of the Queen

Cambria’s breath caught in her throat.

The shadows that framed Lucien Vale seemed almost alive, curling like smoke around the edges of the past she had tried so hard to bury. He was older now, gray at the temples, lines chiseled into the harshness of his face, but the eyes remained unchanged. Cold. Calculating. Dangerous.

She didn’t move. Didn’t speak. Her mind raced to reconcile the impossible. Lucien Vale had died. She had seen the wreckage. Attended the funeral. Buried the myth.

But the man standing before her wasn’t a ghost. He was real. And very much alive.

"I asked you a question, Cambria." His voice was a gravel drawl, every syllable soaked in menace. "Are you ready to choose a side?"

Silence stretched between them like a wire about to snap.

"I mourned you," she said at last, her voice low. "I built my life on the lie of your death."

"And you built it well," Lucien said, stepping closer. "But everything built on ashes eventually burns."

She stiffened, instinctively reaching for the pistol concealed under her blazer.

Lucien gave a soft laugh. "You think you can kill me, just like that? Do it. But remember if I’m dead, you’ll never know what really happened in Prague."

Cambria flinched.

The mention of Prague again. Always Prague. Always the night that changed everything.

"What do you want?" she asked.

"To finish what I started."

"You started a war," she snapped.

"No, daughter. Evelyn started the war. I only designed the battlefield."

Cambria’s fingers twitched at her side. She had dreamed of this moment for years dreamed of seeing him again, of asking why he had abandoned her, betrayed everything they stood for. But now, all she felt was fire.

"You left me to rot. You let her break me," she whispered. "You watched while Evelyn and her monsters tore my world apart."

"And you rose," Lucien said, smiling. "You became everything I hoped you would. Strong. Unbreakable. Dangerous."

She shook her head. "No. I became despite you. Not because of you."

Lucien stepped into the light now. His suit was flawless. His presence was undeniable. He didn’t look like a man resurrected from the grave. He looked like a king returning to his stolen throne.

"I know about the syndicate," she said, voice harder now. "I know you’re rebuilding what Evelyn lost. But why reveal yourself now? Why not stay in the shadows?"

"Because you’re no longer a child. And because the game has changed."

He pulled a small remote from his coat pocket and clicked it. The screens lining the study walls flared to live news broadcasts, surveillance feeds, and live drone footage. Riots in the East Quadrant. Fires in the financial district. Elite guards attacking civilians.

"Your press conference," Lucien said. "It lit a fire. But every fire needs fuel. And chaos? That’s my specialty."

Cambria’s knees trembled, but she didn’t fall.

"You engineered this?" she asked.

Lucien turned to face the largest screen, where an aerial shot showed her own face broadcast from earlier that night.

"No. You did. With every truth you spoke, you cracked the world open. I’m just walking through the fire you started."

He turned to her again. "And now, you must choose. Join me and I’ll give you the tools to win this war. Or fight me and watch everything you built turn to dust."

Cambria’s voice was ice. "And what happens to people like Elara? Maddox? Knox?"

Lucien’s face hardened. "Maddox is compromised. He’s weak. Knox has always been a wildcard. And Elara..." His eyes gleamed. "She’s more important than you know. But she’s not your weakness. She’s your leverage."

Cambria’s jaw clenched. "You touch her and I’ll burn your empire to the ground."

He smirked. "There it is. The fire."

She stepped forward, every inch a queen. "I will not become you."

Lucien tilted his head. "You already have. The question is what will you do with it?"

He handed her a data chip. "Proof. Of everything. Evelyn, the syndicate, the real reason I vanished."

Cambria took it, heart pounding.

"One week," Lucien said. "That’s all I’ll give you."

He turned toward the door.

"Wait," she called.

He paused.

"What was in Prague?"

Lucien didn’t turn back.

"Everything you fear. And everything you are."

Then he disappeared into the dark, leaving only silence behind.

Twelve Hours Later – The Vault Room

The room was buried beneath ten floors of concrete and surveillance traps. Only Cambria and Brienne knew its location.

Cambria sat at the terminal, watching as the decrypted files slowly filled the screen.

Photos. Ledgers. Blueprints. Death records forged and edited.

Then videos.

The first one made her breath stop.

It was Evelyn. Screaming.

Strapped to a chair. Blood on her temple. Lucien’s voice behind the camera.

"You thought you were playing chess," he said. "But you were just another piece."

Cambria leaned forward.

The second video was worse.

A hospital room. White walls. Sterile equipment.

A young woman on the bed bloody, broken. Hooked to machines.

Cambria.

A doctor’s voice: "She survived the Prague incident. But her memory..."

Then static.

Cambria pulled back, hands shaking. "They wiped me," she murmured. "They rewired my past."

Brienne leaned over her shoulder. "This isn’t just corruption. This is a reprogramming."

"And Lucien let it happen."

"No," Brienne said slowly, pointing to the date stamp. "This happened after his supposed death."

Cambria’s eyes narrowed. "Then who authorized it?"

They stared at the screen. A single name appeared at the bottom of the digital authorization.

K. Blackwood.

Cambria stood up so fast her chair toppled.

"Knox."

Brienne gasped. "He was there?"

Cambria turned to fire in her veins. "He was behind it."

Three Days Later – The Summit of Sovereigns

World leaders, corporate magnates, and syndicate delegates gathered in secret under the façade of a trade summit.

Cambria arrived last. Dressed in black. A crown was woven into her braid. No smile. No pretense.

Knox Blackwood stood at the head of the room, confident, sipping wine.

When he saw her, he smirked. "You came."

She walked right up to him. "Tell me about Prague."

Knox’s smile faded. "So it’s true. He’s alive."

"You lied to me," she said, voice flat. "You said you weren’t in Prague that night. But you signed the order."

He placed his glass down. "You weren’t supposed to remember."

"I remember now."

The room held its breath.

Cambria stepped onto the stage. Addressed the assembly.

"I will no longer be silent," she said. "The truth has been weaponized for too long. No more."

Someone stood an ambassador from the Baltic Syndicate. "Are you declaring war?"

Cambria looked at him.

"No," she said. "I’m ending one."

A blast shook the hall. Screams erupted.

Glass shattered.

Guards poured in.

Brienne’s voice crackled in her ear. "It’s Lucien. He’s making his move."

"Evacuate the delegates," Cambria barked. "Now."

Knox caught her arm. "You can’t do this alone."

She pulled free. "I’m not alone."

And from the smoke, another figure stepped into the chaos.

Maddox.

Bleeding. Armed. Grim-faced.

He tossed her a pistol.

Cambria caught it.

Their eyes locked.

"Ready?" he asked.

She nodded.

"Always."

Outside the Summit – Ten Minutes Later

The world burned.

Lucien’s men stormed the building. Brienne led the counterstrike.

But the final confrontation was already in motion.

Cambria climbed to the rooftop alone where Lucien waited.

He stood at the edge, arms outstretched like a prophet.

"This is where it ends," she called.

Lucien turned, eyes wild with fire. "No. This is where you begin."

She raised her weapon.

He laughed.

"Will you shoot me, Cambria? Will you finally choose a side?"

Tears burned in her eyes.

"Not for you. Not anymore."

Lucien stepped forward. "Then choose for the world."

Behind him, a drone hovered. A trigger in his hand.

"One press," he said. "And the city dies."

Cambria’s heart thundered.

And then

A shot rang out.

Lucien staggered back, dropping the detonator.

A second shot. He collapsed.

Cambria rushed forward grabbed the device smashed it beneath her heel.

Lucien looked up at her, blood on his lips.

"Checkmate," she whispered.

He smiled. "Game’s not over."

Then he went still.

But the screen wasn’t done yet.

Back in the war room, Brienne’s terminal beeped.

A live feed opened automatically.

A new figure appeared.

One no one had seen before. A woman.

Hooded. Smiling.

She looked into the camera.

"I was always the queen behind the curtain," she said. "Lucien was just my knight."

Cambria’s breath caught.

Who the hell was this?

The woman’s smile deepened.

"Let’s begin again, shall we?"