My Husband Is An International Idol

Chapter 17: The Thread Begins to Unravel

Victor Reyes did not sleep that night. Not even a little.

For the first time in weeks, he had an actual lead.

A real lead.

Not Mrs. Torres explaining Chris’s barbecue preferences.

Not blurry photographs. Not internet theories created by bored fans.

An actual person claiming to know why Chris St. Claire kept returning to Sterling Village.

Victor stared at the ceiling of his hotel room, thinking and analyzing. Also, overthinking.

By six in the morning, he had consumed three cups of coffee and developed at least twelve different theories.

By eight, he was waiting at the agreed meeting place.

A small café near the edge of town. The kind of place where everyone knew everyone. And the kind of place where secrets rarely stayed hidden.

Victor checked the time. Again then one more time.

Finally, the café door opened.

A middle-aged man entered, nervous. He was wearing a baseball cap pulled low over his face.

Victor immediately stood. The man sat down across from him.

Neither spoke for several seconds.

Then Victor broke the silence.

"You contacted me."

The man nodded.

"Yes."

"You said you knew something about Chris St. Claire."

Another nod.

Victor leaned forward. His heart was pounding. "What do you know?"

The man hesitated. Then lowered his voice. "I worked for the St. Claire family years ago."

Victor froze.

That was very unexpected.

"What kind of work?"

"A driver."

Victor’s pulse accelerated.

Finally, this was real. Something real.

The man continued.

"I drove Matthew St. Claire several times."

Victor quickly opened his notebook.

"And?"

The former driver looked around nervously. As if checking whether someone was listening.

Then he spoke. "Five years ago, Matthew visited Sterling Village."

Victor immediately started writing.

"And?"

"He wasn’t alone."

Victor’s pen stopped.

The driver swallowed. "Chris was with him."

Victor frowned.

That wasn’t particularly shocking.

The St. Claire family had already admitted knowing the Sterlings.

The driver noticed his reaction. Then smiled. "You haven’t heard the important part yet."

Victor sat upright.

The driver lowered his voice even further. "The visit wasn’t about Grandma Sterling."

Silence.

Victor’s heartbeat accelerated. "What do you mean?"

The man hesitated. Then answered.

"It was about a marriage."

The entire world seemed to stop.

A marriage?

Victor stared. His mind raced.

A marriage? Whose marriage? What marriage?

Questions exploded inside his head.

Before he could ask another one, the driver stood.

Victor blinked. "What are you doing?"

"I’ve said enough."

"What?"

The driver adjusted his cap. "You’ll figure out the rest."

Then he walked away. Just like that.

Victor sat frozen. Completely stunned.

A marriage.

The visit had been about a marriage.

His notebook suddenly felt much heavier.

Meanwhile, back to the city, Chris was having a terrible day.

A truly terrible day. Not because of rehearsals. Not because of interviews. Not because of photoshoots. Because of his bandmates.

The moment he entered the rehearsal studio, he knew something was wrong.

Everyone was smiling. And that was never a good sign.

Chris immediately became suspicious.

"What?"

Nobody answered. Which somehow made it worse.

One of his bandmates slowly held up a phone.

Chris narrowed his eyes.

"What now?"

The screen displayed a fan discussion forum.

Chris regretted looking immediately.

The title read:

"How Many Children Would Chris St. Claire Have?"

Chris stared.

His bandmates were already laughing.

"What is this?"

One of them shrugged.

"A discussion."

"Why?"

"People are curious."

Chris closed the page instantly. He didn’t need this.

Unfortunately, fate wasn’t finished with him. Because the next post was even worse.

"Chris St. Claire Husband Material Ranking."

Chris walked away, immediately.

But on his mind was the first question.

How many kids? He actually wanted two. A girl and a boy.

A girl that looked like Liliana. Pretty and kind. And a boy as charismatic as him.

Chris smiled. Then shook his head. It might not happen. Because Liliana wouldn’t like it.

Back in Sterling Village, life remained peaceful.

At least for Liliana.

The garden needed attention. The house needed cleaning. And Grandmother needed company.

Everything felt familiar.

Comfortable. Normal. Which was exactly how Liliana liked it.

Unfortunately, Emily existed. And her existence automatically eliminated the possibility of peace.

The front door flew open. Without warning. Again.

"LILIANA!"

Liliana didn’t even look up from her gardening gloves.

"What now?"

Emily appeared carrying a tablet.

A dangerous sign.

"I found something."

"No."

"You haven’t even seen it."

"No."

Emily ignored her. Then sat beside her.

"Question."

Liliana sighed. "That’s never good."

Emily smiled. "I know."

At least she was honest.

Emily rested her chin on her hand.

Then asked casually:

"When did you realize you loved Chris?"

The gardening gloves immediately stopped moving.

Silence. Complete silence.

Emily’s eyes widened. Because that reaction meant something.

Liliana looked away. "I’m not answering that."

Emily gasped dramatically. "You do love him."

"No."

"That’s not what your face said."

Liliana immediately regretted everything.

Emily grinned.

Like a shark discovering blood in the water.

"Oh my God."

"Emily."

"Oh my God."

"Emily."

"You really do."

Liliana buried her face in her hands.

This conversation was a terrible mistake.

Unfortunately, Emily wasn’t finished. Not even close.

"When?"

"I’m not answering."

"Was it before marriage?"

"No."

"After marriage?"

Silence.

Emily pointed triumphantly. "After marriage."

Liliana wanted to throw a flower pot at her.

But in her mind, it wasn’t after marriage. She loved him for a long time. And that was decades ago.

That evening, Chris called as usual.

By now it had become routine.

A habit neither mentioned. And a habit neither wanted to lose.

The moment Liliana answered, she heard exhaustion in his voice.

"Tough day?"

"Very."

She smiled.

"What happened?"

"My bandmates discovered the internet again."

"Oh no."

"Exactly."

Liliana laughed softly.

Chris immediately felt some of the stress disappear.

Not all of it. But enough.

Eventually, the conversation shifted naturally. As it always did.

From work, to daily life. To random things. To nothing important. Yet somehow, they were important in their marriage in many ways.

Then Chris paused.

Unexpectedly.

"Liliana."

"Hm?"

"When was the last time you left the village?"

The question surprised her. She thought for a moment. Then blinked.

"Three months ago."

Chris paused.

"Three months?"

"Maybe four."

"Liliana."

"What?"

"Do you want to go out..." He paused again. "with me?"

Liliana froze. Then bit her lip. Her heart pounded so loud.

"You mean..." She gulped. "like a date?"

"Yes." He quickly answered.

She paused. Not because she hesitated to agree, but she was caught off guard.

"I-I love to. When? Where? And how?"

He chuckled. "Hey. Don’t worry about it. The day after tomorrow we have a one day break before the concert. I’ll pick you up at home."

She nodded, even though he couldn’t see her. "Yes. Sure!"

The call ended several minutes ago, but Liliana was still on it.

She could hear her heart pounding. And her cheeks felt warm.

She giggled like a teenager while touching her chest.

"We’re going on a date." She whispered with a smile.

Then she screamed out of excitement. Because in their five years of marriage, it would be their first date.

Elsewhere, Victor Reyes sat alone in his hotel room.

Staring at his notes.

A marriage.

The words refused to leave his mind.

He opened the old festival photograph again.

Chris and the woman with glasses. Standing together. Looking comfortable.

Then Victor looked at another photograph.

The supermarket reflection. The almost hand-holding. The subtle glance and the unguarded expression.

His pulse accelerated. Slowly and carefully.

The impossible theory began forming. At first it sounded ridiculous. Absurd and completely insane.

Then he remembered every clue. Every rumor. Every inconsistency. Every unexplained detail.

And suddenly, it didn’t seem ridiculous anymore.

Victor slowly leaned back in his chair. His eyes widened. "No way."

The realization hit him like lightning.

Everything suddenly fit together.

If he was right, then this wasn’t just entertainment news. But the biggest celebrity secret of the decade.

Still, he needed proof.

Just one proof that could make the entire internet upside down.