Chapter 281
A chill ran down my spine, the weight of the words pressing into my mind like an iron grip.X
Ryan, ever perceptive, immediately noticed my unease. His voice softened, steady yet laced with concern. “Jocelyn, what’s wrong?”
I hesitated, my heart pounding as I clutched my phone. My gaze flickered between the screen and Ryan, the message buming itself into my thoughts
“Someone sent this to me, I murmured
Ryan reached for my phone, his brows furrowing as he read the message. A deep frown creased his face, his grip tightening around the device.&
“And you believe him? His sharp tone made me flinch
I swallowed hard. “I don’t want to believe it, but why would he say something like that?
My voice wavered as I bit my lip, my mind racing. “Leo even mentioned the hotel from that night in New York. The night I…
I trailed off.
The night I blacked out after drinking at the club. The night I woke up in an unfamiliar hotel room.
For months, I convinced myself that I had booked the room in my drunken haze But that time the truth was unraveling before me- someone had been there. Someone had helped me
And that person was tangled in all of this.
Ryan’s gaze darkened, but his voice remained steady. “You must be scared right now. Don’t worry, I’ll have my secretary pull the footage from that night. We’ll find out exactly who it was ”
Without hesitation, he pulled out his phone and sent a message.?
I inhaled sharply, my thoughts spiraling. If he really took me to the hotel… then why didn’t he do a
What did he actually want from me?%
“Ryan?” I pressed, my voice barely above a whisper.
Finally, he met my gaze, his expression unreadable, his jaw clenched.
“Jocelyn, I’ll find out whoever he is. And when I do, I swear, i handle it.”
His promise was unwavering, but it did nothing to calm the storm inside me
anything to me?
Because deep down, I knew this was only the beginning. Something bigger was at play, and I was caught right in the middle of it. An hour later, Ryan’s secretary entered with a flash drive. The tension in the room was suffocating as she inserted it into the laptop. “Sir, this is the security footage from that night in New York,” she informed him….
Ryan’s hand tightened into a fist on the table as the video began playing.!
There I was–stumbling out of the club, barely able to stand. Then, a man appeared.
A man who looked exactly like Ryan.
“Ryan..” My voice trembled. “Is that you?”
Ryan’s expression remained stone cold &
“No” he said firmly. “I wasn’t in the US, that day, Jocelyn,”
My breath caught in my throat
Ryan’s secretary, maintaining her professional composure, confirmed his alibi. “Miss, on that date, we were in a business meeting with a client for the new project”
The footage continued. The man, who bore an uncanny resemblance to Ryan, helped me into the hotel. Moments later, he left the room, disappearing down the hall.
“From this footage, the individual only assisted Miss Nichols to her room and left shortly after. She remained alone until morning and checked out without any further interaction, the secretary clarified.
I exhaled shakily, relief washing over me
But then, I turned to Ryan. His face had completely changed
He had been tense since quarreling with Leo, but once the footage started, his entire expression had darkened.
Leo’s words.. he was not lying. The man in the video had surprised Ryan.
“You… you know him, don’t you?” I finally asked, my voice barely above a whisper
Ryan did not respond. He was lost in his own world, staring at the screen as if seeing a ghost
Instead, his secretary answered.
“Miss, I can confirm that the man in the footage is not Mr. Donovan,” she reassured me. “Additionally, we received information from the investigator before. before Leo ended his life.“%
I stiffened
“What… what did he say?” I whispered
The secretary hesitated, then answered. “Before his death, he left a coded message in Morse. But it was clear. The person aiding Leo
12:22 PM d
A scarl
I immediately tumed to Ryan. He had no such scar
So who was this man?
Ryan exhaled sharply, snapping out of his daze. “A scar, you say? His voice was lower now, almost distant.
“Yes, Sir.“E
Ryan’s eyes darkened, his hands clenched into fists.
And then, in the quietest whisper almost as if speaking to himself, “So, he’s alive?
A cold shiver ran through me. “Who’s alive, Ryan?”
Slowly, he turned to look at me.X
And for the first time since I had met him again after ten years, I saw fear in Ryan’s eyes.
My breath caught in my throat as I saw Ryan’s expression shift.
It was not frustrating. But raw, unmistakable fear.X
