CHAPTER TWO HUNDRED AND TWENTY NINE – CONFESSIONS

Sebastian recoiled as if struck, his eyes widening with a mixture of disbelief and defiance. "You can't be serious," he sputtered. "After everything we've been through, everything I've sacrificed to uncover this conspiracy?" Gordon's jaw clenched, his features etched in granite. "That's precisely why you have to do this, Sebastian. You've seen the depths to which these people will sink, the depravity they're capable of. If you truly want to make amends, to expose their crimes and bring them to justice, you have to take a stand." Sebastian shook his head vehemently, his eyes wild with desperation. "No, no, you don't understand. They'll bury me, Gordon – they'll make sure I never see the light of day again!" Jasmine felt her heart constrict at the naked fear in Sebastian's voice, the anguish that radiated from his very being. "He's right," she said, her voice soft but laced with steel. "These people have resources, connections that we can scarcely comprehend. If you go to the authori