Free Web NovelChapter 202: A look-alike
Clarisse flinched as if she had been slapped.
Hearing Lyvana’s name felt like a knife twisting in her chest.
She wrapped an arm around her stomach as tears blurred her vision.
Behind her, servants rushed downstairs carrying her clothes and personal belongings.
"Don’t compare me to her!" she cried out.
Susan stared at her in disbelief. Then she laughed, a cold, bitter laugh.
"Compare you to her?" She took a step closer to her. "You are right, I shouldn’t."
Clarisse’s face paled.
The servants hurried out, placing the pile of clothes in the car.
"Look at you," Susan said, looking down at her with complete disgust. "You are nothing. Now get off my property before I do something stupid!"
Clarisse climbed into the car and drove away, leaving the estate behind. freeωebnovēl.c૦m
That same night, at one of the Chairman’s warehouses, the heavy iron doors opened.
Zara was dragged inside by two men and thrown onto the cold concrete floor.
Pain shot through her side as she hit the ground.
She let out a small gasp and quickly pushed herself up onto trembling hands. Her breathing was uneven as she looked around.
The warehouse was enormous and dark. Only a single light bulb hung from the high ceiling, casting a weak yellow glow over the center of the room.
"I want to speak with the Chairman," Zara hissed.
The guards didn’t move or answer. One of them just let out a short, mocking laugh, while the other kept his eyes fixed on the entrance, waiting.
The heavy door at the back opened once more. The Chairman walked in, with two of his men in dark suits.
He stopped right in front of Zara and looked at her coldly.
"I think your guards need some lessons in how to treat a woman," Zara said defiantly.
"Humph," the Chairman grunted. "You are in no position to tell me what my men should, or shouldn’t do."
He walked towards her.
"You lied to me. You completely broke me, Zara. Everything you did..."
"Everything I did was for my child," she interrupted, her voice shaking slightly. "And I didn’t lie to you. It was Adrian. I had your child, and..."
"Shut up!" the Chairman shouted.
His face was red with anger, and his breathing was heavy.
"You tried to kill my son. Do you deny that?"
"No, and I am sorry. Truly. Adrian planned everything. I thought I was doing this for my son. But... but my son died. Our child died and I didn’t know."
"Now you sound crazy."
"Andrew was with Adrian for a few years," Zara said, a tear finally running down her cheek. "But somewhere along the line, he died. And he replaced him with someone else. A look-alike. I never knew our child was gone until it was too late."
"Can you hear yourself?" the Chairman said, shaking his head. He stepped back, looking at her like she was completely crazy. "You expect me to believe this nonsense? You are making up stories to save your life."
"It is not a story!" Zara cried out, wiping her face. "Look at the medical records! Look at his blood type! Adrian fooled me."
The Chairman laughed.
"You are truly desperate, Zara. A look-alike? A dead child? Do you think I am an idiot?"
"I am telling you the truth!" Zara said, her voice cracking. "Check his blood type. Andrew was A positive, this new Andrew is B negative. Check anything you want. Adrian has been playing with us this whole time."
The Chairman stood quietly. If she was telling the truth, he would put a bullet in Adrian’s head himself.
The Chairman stood silently, his expression unreadable.
If Zara was telling the truth, Adrian was already a dead man.
But that didn’t mean he trusted her.
"And how do I know you’re not involved?" he asked coldly.
Zara lifted her head and met his gaze.
"I may have betrayed you," she said hoarsely. "But I would never hurt my own child."
The Chairman’s eyes hardened.
"No? Yet you wanted to murder my son."
Zara lowered her eyes.
"I’m sorry."
A bitter smile appeared on the Chairman’s face.
"Sorry?" he said. "You haven’t even begun to be sorry."
Zara felt a chill run down her spine.
The Chairman turned away from her.
"Lock her up."
Two guards immediately stepped forward.
Zara’s heart dropped.
"Please..."
The men grabbed her by the arms and dragged her across the warehouse floor.
In the far corner stood a large steel cage. A second later, she was shoved inside.
She stumbled and fell to her knees.
The cage door slammed shut behind her.
Zara sat alone inside the steel cage, her back pressed against the cold bars.
She knew the Chairman would probably keep her locked up for a long time.
Compared to what could happen to Andrew if he was caught, that was nothing.
At least he still had a chance to run.
Closing her eyes, she leaned her head against the bars.
"Damn you, Adrian," she muttered. ƒreewebɳovel.com
Everything had started with him.
An hour later, Henry stood before the Chairman, briefing him on the boating accident Lily had uncovered months earlier. The file she had forwarded contained those details.
The more Henry spoke, the colder the Chairman became. Arthur’s confession had already confirmed part of the truth.
Now the rest of the pieces were falling into place. It was obvious Adrian wanted to take over his fortune using the fake Andrew as well as become the King of the Underground, by killing Julian.
By the time Henry finished, the Chairman was fuming; Adrian had a great deal to answer for.
Now only one thought consumed him: Hunt down Adrian.
....
The next day, thousands of miles away, Lyvana and Julian were on a private island with Ethan and Emily.
It looked amazing.
The beach had beautiful white sand. The palm trees swayed gently in the warm breeze.
Out front, the horizon stretched out forever to meet the edge of the sky, while the water remained so crystal clear you could spot fish swimming right from the deck of the beach cabin.
It was perfect. Too perfect.
