Dumped My Cheating Ex. Now I'm Sleeping Next to a Billionaire CEO novel Chapter 1558

"Wait, James!" Will shouted frantically. "Don't do anything rash! We still haven't found Emmy. If this lunatic dies, we'll lose our only lead to her whereabouts!"

James's movements stalled in midair. He locked his jaw so tightly that the muscles in his cheeks bulged with the strain of extreme restraint, his burning gaze fixed solely on the madman standing opposite him. Hearing Will's words, Dean did not feel a shred of relief. Instead, an expression of euphoric obsession washed over his face. He relaxed, tilting his neck back to expose his most vulnerable artery and throat entirely to James's crosshairs. He spread his arms wide, looking as though he were embracing a long awaited baptism.

"Come on. Shoot me right here," Dean coaxed. "Just one bullet, and I'll finally be free." He looked into James's furious eyes, a manic brilliance sparkling in his own. "Who knows? Maybe after I die, God will give me another chance. Maybe when I open my eyes again, I'll go right back to the very beginning. Back to the time when Emmy and I loved each other the most." Dean smiled a sick, tender smile, looking every bit like a severely unstable psychiatric patient. "When that happens, I will relive our entire lives with her all over again, and absolutely no one will be able to interrupt us."

Suddenly, Dean raised his voice to a hysterical scream, taunting James wildly. "Do it! Shoot me! Send me to see her!"

"What the hell kind of nonsense are you spewing?" Will yelled from the sidelines, feeling a cold dread crawl across his scalp.

Monstrous, surging violence ignited in the depths of James's dark eyes. He suddenly lowered the muzzle of his rifle and pulled the trigger.

Calony's men immediately surged forward with their rifles raised. The six loyalists protecting Dean tried to put up a desperate fight, raising their weapons to return fire. Several crisp gunshots echoed rapidly, and the three mercenaries at the very front were killed on the spot. The remaining three were instantly tackled to the ground, their arms wrenched behind their backs, and secured with heavy handcuffs.

James coldly withdrew his gaze and turned to Will with flat orders. "Throw Dean into one of the empty shipping containers. I am going to have a private chat with him." Will marched over, grabbed Dean roughly by the back of his collar, and dragged him like a dead dog across the pavement toward a rusted shipping container nearby. With a powerful heave, Will tossed Dean inside. Will pulled one of the heavy iron doors shut and stood guard outside, his rifle at the ready.

Inside the container, the lighting was dismal, and the air was thick with the scent of rust and salty ocean water. James took deliberate, heavy strides until he stood towering over the man who now looked like a defeated stray dog. "I don't think you were spewing nonsense just now," James said softly, though his tone carried an oppressive weight that suggested he knew everything. "You and Emmy... you both died once already, didn't you?"