Free Web NovelChapter 89: Chapter 89
On the third day of Robin’s hospitalization, Oliver arrived at the hospital.
Zoey came with him.
The moment she spotted Elise, she grabbed her by the arm and dragged her into the family lounge next door.
As soon as the door closed behind them, Zoey pushed Elise onto the sofa and immediately reached for her stomach.
"How’s my goddaughter doing?" she asked eagerly.
Elise couldn’t help smiling. "The baby is doing great."
"Good." Zoey nodded approvingly before asking, "And what about my goddaughter’s mother? Is she doing okay?"
Elise shot her an amused look.
"Her mother is fine too. What about you? Have you adjusted to working at Bennett Corporation?"
"Don’t even get me started!" Zoey rolled her eyes dramatically.
"Everyone around Dylan is infected with that corporate executive disease! Oliver treats me like his personal assistant. Printing documents, buying coffee, running errands—he even uses me as a chauffeur!"
The more she talked, the more indignant she became.
"Dylan’s been overseas these past few days, so Oliver has been attending all sorts of business functions and industry events on his behalf. Every day I’m either driving him around, carrying paperwork, or helping him fend off drinking invitations. I’m losing my mind!"
Elise frowned slightly. "How does he treat you?"
"What kind of attitude do you think he has?" Zoey snorted. "The man walks around with that cold, professional expression twenty-four seven. I don’t care how handsome he is—I can’t appreciate it. My beauty trap strategy doesn’t work on him at all."
A faint smile tugged at Elise’s lips.
"Oliver was personally trained by Dylan. He’s an orphan, and he’s only twenty-eight, but his value within the city’s elite circles is already immeasurable. Officially, he’s just a special assistant, but with his abilities, he could easily run a publicly listed company on his own."
"I can see that." Zoey shrugged dismissively. "But men like that devote their entire lives to work. No hobbies, no fun, no romance. Probably incapable of having a normal relationship."
She shuddered. "Honestly, that makes him even less attractive."
Elise was rendered speechless.
A moment later, Zoey suddenly remembered something.
"Oh, right. That’s not actually why I came today. Oliver and I went to Orchard Residence."
Elise’s smile faded.
"Oliver handed me the job of interrogating Quinn."
That immediately caught her attention.
"I have to admit, that was the only part of my week I actually enjoyed. Originally, we planned to question her and then hand her over to the authorities for intentionally harming Robin. But after hearing everything she had done, prison felt far too merciful."
Zoey crossed her arms.
"In the end, Oliver followed Dylan’s orders and sent her back to the crapsite she came from. Her mother and younger brother took one look at her disability and immediately sold her to an elderly bachelor in a neighboring village for five hundred dollars."
"I don’t need to hear the rest." Elise pressed her fingers against her temple. "Get to the important part."
"Fine." Zoey leaned forward. "The point is, Quinn has done far worse things than we originally thought."
Her voice darkened. "Dylan trusted her enough to let her act as Robin’s mother. On the surface, she played the role perfectly. Behind closed doors, she was using him the entire time."
Elise’s expression hardened. "What do you mean?"
"She allowed the nanny to abuse him. Remember when Robin injured his hand? That wasn’t an accident. Quinn deliberately left a fruit knife where he could reach it."
A chill crept down Elise’s spine. "And the nanny?"
"The nanny abused him whenever Dylan wasn’t home. Quinn saw everything and pretended not to notice."
Zoey’s voice filled with disgust. "The nanny threatened him repeatedly and warned him not to tell Dylan."
Elise felt her chest tighten. "How long?"
"Apparently since he was around three years old." Zoey clenched her jaw. "The nanny knew how to hide the evidence. She targeted places that wouldn’t easily be noticed... Sometimes she even used needles."
Elise’s face turned pale. "He’s just a child. How could anyone do something like that to a child?"
"Because she’s a sick psychopath." Zoey’s expression twisted with anger. "The nanny blamed everything on her failed marriage. Said her husband cheated and left her. She took all that resentment out on a little boy."
Her hands tightened into fists. "The worst part is that Robin tried to ask Quinn for help."
Elise looked up sharply. "He told her?"
"Many times." Zoey laughed bitterly. "But Quinn told him he deserved the beatings. She convinced him that the nanny punished him because he wasn’t obedient enough. Because he wasn’t good enough."
Zoey’s voice turned colder.
"Then she warned him not to tell Dylan. She said that if Dylan found out how badly behaved he was, he’d stop loving him and abandon him."
A flicker of fury appeared in Elise’s eyes.
"Poisoning a child’s mind like that... Unforgivable."
"Exactly." Zoey scoffed. "Considering she betrayed even the person who sponsored and helped her, none of this should surprise us." ƒrēewebnoѵёl.cσm
After a brief pause, she added, "And that’s not all. You remember the time we went to her house looking for evidence of Dylan’s affair?"
"Yes."
"That was staged."
Elise’s eyes narrowed.
"The setup was arranged by Quinn and the nanny. In reality, Dylan rarely stayed overnight there. Even when he did, he usually slept in Robin’s room."
Zoey folded her arms. "As for the recordings and videos you received? Most of them were fabricated."
"Fabricated?"
"AI-generated. Edited. Manipulated."
Elise wasn’t particularly surprised.
Ever since learning about the agreement between Dylan and Quinn, she had already suspected as much.
Quinn had been extraordinarily calculating.
After a moment, she asked quietly, "Then what about five years ago?"
Zoey immediately knew what she meant.
"When I was kidnapped... the kidnappers called Dylan, but he never answered. Was he really with Quinn at the time?"
Zoey snorted. "As if she was that lucky." She rolled her eyes. "The woman lied about everything else. Why would this be different?"
Then she grinned mischievously.
"I may have borrowed a small venomous snake during the interrogation."
Elise stared. "You did what?"
"It worked!" Zoey looked entirely unapologetic. "She nearly wet herself. Started crying and confessing all kinds of things."
Elise pinched the bridge of her nose. "Go on."
"Apparently she only learned afterward that the kidnappers had called Dylan and that he didn’t answer. But she has no idea where he actually was. I questioned her over and over to make sure she wasn’t lying. I don’t think she knows."
Elise fell silent.
Then she asked, "Did you ask Oliver?"
"Oh, I asked." Zoey rolled her eyes. "The man wouldn’t say a thing. But don’t worry. Sooner or later I’ll figure something out."
Elise immediately looked concerned.
"What does that mean?"
"I’m thinking of drugging him, arranging a beautiful woman for him, recording everything, and then blackmailing him. Men like him care way too much about their reputation. Once I have evidence, he’ll tell me whatever I want."
Elise nearly choked. "You absolutely cannot do that."
"Why not?"
"Because it’s illegal!"
Zoey immediately looked disappointed.
"The legal methods are so much harder."
Elise was once again speechless.
After a moment, Zoey patted her shoulder. "I know finding out the truth about that kidnapping matters to you. Don’t worry. I’ll get to the bottom of it."
"Zoey, I—"
Knock. Knock.
A sudden knock interrupted her.
A familiar voice sounded from outside.
"Madam, it’s me."
Oliver.
Elise exchanged a glance with Zoey. Zoey rolled her eyes and went to open the door.
Oliver barely acknowledged her before turning respectfully toward Elise.
"Madam." His posture remained perfectly professional. "I assume Assistant Paige has already informed you about Quinn."
"Some of it." Elise stood up. "But there are still things I’d like to hear directly from you."
Oliver’s eyelid twitched.
"Of course. Anything I know, I’ll answer honestly."
Elise stepped closer, her gaze locking onto his.
"Five years ago, when I was kidnapped, where exactly was Dylan?"
The room instantly grew tense.
"And why didn’t he answer the phone?"
Oliver froze. His expression remained composed, but he lowered his eyes to the floor.
"I’m sorry, Madam. I don’t know."
"You don’t know?" Elise’s voice sharpened. "Or Dylan doesn’t want you to tell me?"
Oliver said nothing, but that silence was answer enough.
Elise took another step forward.
A chill entered her voice.
"Oliver."
He immediately felt sweat forming on his back.
"You really are loyal to Dylan."
His head lowered even further.
"Then pass a message to him... If he wants me to return to our villa, he can tell me everything about the kidnapping five years ago. The complete truth."
She paused.
"I’m only giving him one chance. If he refuses..."
A bitter smile appeared on her lips.
"Then this marriage has no future left to save."
