Reborn Heiress Is Remarrying
Chapter 64: The Art Of Control

Chapter 64: The Art Of Control

Chapter 64: The Art of Control

"How pleasing..."

Richard was strapped to a hospital bed, unable to see, unable to move without assistance.

He was vulnerable, and finally helpless.

Exactly how Gabriel wanted him.

Gabriel stepped into the lowly lit room.

He didn’t speak at first.

Instead, he let the silence stretch, suffocating, until Richard finally shifted.

"Who’s there?" Richard’s voice was hoarse, sounding frustrated and paranoid.

Gabriel smirked. "I see the procedure hasn’t improved your manners."

Richard’s entire body went rigid. That voice. He knew it.

"Frost," he spat, his fingers curled into the sheets.

"What the hell are you doing here?"

Gabriel pulled up a chair and sat down leisurely.

"Funny. I was going to ask you the same thing."

Richard’s breathing was uneven, his mind likely racing like a mad dog’s.

"Adrian... Adrian brought me here."

Gabriel hummed silently. "He did. And where do you think here is?"

Silence.

Richard’s lips parted slightly, realisation came faster than any spring.

"This... this is your clinic?"

"Congratulations. You figured it out."

Richard inhaled sharply, his chest kept rising and falling down faster now.

"You— you can’t keep me here."

Gabriel chuckled. "But I can."

Richard gritted his teeth. "What do you want?"

Gabriel stood, pacing slowly around the room.

"Want? Want is such a simple word. I don’t just want. I plan. I create consequences."

He stopped beside the bed, lowering his voice to a slow, cold tone.

"You spent your life obsessed with perfection, Richard. Controlling others. Breaking them down to fit your impossible standards. But now? You’re the broken one."

Richard’s breathing turned shallow.

Gabriel smirked. "Tell me... how does it feel to be at someone else’s mercy?"

Richard’s jaw clenched. "If you think you can break me, you’re wasting your time."

Gabriel shook his head.

"Break you?" He let out a low laugh. "No, Richard. I’m not going to break you. I’m going to let you wither."

Richard stilled.

"I’m going to let you rot in your own mind," Gabriel continued. "Trapped. Helpless. Forgotten."

He moved closer, whispering into Richard’s ear.

"No more power. No more money. And the best part? No one’s coming for you."

Richard swallowed hard, his face tightened with all his wrinkles.

"Diane did this," he muttered under his breath.

Gabriel smiled. "Yes. She did."

Richard’s teeth ground together. "She’ll regret it."

Gabriel leaned back, slipping his hands into his pockets. "We’ll see about that."

He turned to leave but paused at the doorway. "Oh, and Richard? Enjoy your stay."

Meanwhile, Diane was at home, sipping tea in the quiet.

She could feel the changes in the air, the power shifting in her hands.

Richard was gone. Rachel was being handled. And now?

Now, it was time for the next move.

She glanced down at her phone, a single unread message glowing on the screen.

-Micha: Is this how you play the game, rabbit? I’m impressed.-

Diane smirked.

"Watch closely, Micha," she murmured to herself. "I’m just getting started."

Diane leaned back against the couch, exhaling slowly as she stared at the ceiling.

The tea in her hands had gone cold, untouched.

Richard was gone.

Not dead, not yet—but gone in every way that mattered.

His power, his arrogance, his ability to manipulate—Gabriel had taken all of it, and Diane had been the one to light the match that burned his world down.

She should have felt satisfied.

Then why did it feel like there was still something missing?

Her phone buzzed again. Another message.

-Micha: Don’t tell me you’re hesitating now, rabbit.-

Diane rolled her eyes, smirking slightly. Micha knew exactly what to say.

She typed back.

-Diane: I don’t hesitate. I plan.-

A few seconds later, another reply.

-Micha: And what’s the next step?-

Diane’s fingers hovered over the keyboard.

What was the next step?

Rachel was still lurking, and Isla... well, Isla was a different kind of enemy entirely.

Then there was Gabriel—whose intentions were as messy as her own feelings toward him.

Before she could respond, the sound of the front door opening made her look up.

"Gabriel?" She said, raising an eyebrow.

He stepped inside, rolling his shoulders as if shaking off the whole night.

Diane lowered hereyebrow. "Long night?"

Gabriel smirked, tossing his keys onto the table before walking toward her. "Productive."

She set down her tea and crossed her arms. "Is he still alive?"

Gabriel sat beside her, resting an arm against the back of the couch. "For now."

Diane looked at him carefully. There was something different about him tonight—something sharper.

"What did you do to him?" she asked softly.

Gabriel lifted his head. "I simply returned the favor."

Diane didn’t press further.

She knew Gabriel well enough to understand that whatever had happened to Richard, it was far worse than anything she could imagine.

Instead, she changed the subject. "Rachel’s still out there."

Gabriel’s smirk faded. "Not for long."

Diane sighed, leaning her head back against the couch.

"She’s desperate."

Gabriel reached out, tracing his fingers over the edge of her sleeve. "Let her try."

Diane turned her head to look at him.

Yet again, there was something possessive in the way he touched her.

"You enjoy this, don’t you?" she murmured. "The power. The control."

Gabriel smirked. "And what about you?"

Diane exhaled, her voice dropped so low, it seemed like she was just whispering.

"I don’t know."

"You should."

Diane closed her eyes for a brief moment before pulling back.

"I need to finish what I started," she said confidently.

"Then let’s continue."

Rachel Hoffman wasn’t exactly a woman who would give up so easily.

If one building was going down, she was ready to build another one.

The next day came faster than anyone expected...

Richard was still in his hospital bed, his breathing was so shallow, his body wasn’t exactly moving.

The drugs in his system kept him sedated, but even in the haze of medication, he could feel the room—the cold sterility of it.

Something was wrong.

He wasn’t in a normal hospital.

The door opened, and the sound of footsteps were heard against the tiled floor.

Richard forced himself to stay still, listening.

Then—Gabriel’s voice.

"Comfortable?"

Richard’s entire body tensed.

Gabriel smirked, sitting beside the bed. "You’re probably wondering where you are."

Richard clenched his jaw. "Go to hell."

Gabriel chuckled. "Oh, Richard. You’re already there."

Richard’s breathing hitched.

"Welcome to my world."