Brettley’s expression darkened as he switched off his computer. “I’m coining home right now.”
“Sir, I have good news. Someone is involved in the promotion of that news article,”
Lucas’ voice rang out through the phone.
Brettley frowned at the report. “Did you manage to find out who it was?”
“I can’t seem to track him down. The spammers were hired by a foreign company, and some Andrew Walter owns it, but there’s no information about this person at all. I think it might be an alias.”
Brettley’s brows furrowed even tighter together. “
Keep looking.”
Brettley hung up the phone, and his grip on the steering wheel grew tighter. How much had Alice changed within the last six years? Was there anything else about her that he had yet to find out?
The car soon arrived at Blue Bay Villa.
“Brettley! “
Alice had been waiting at the front door, and as soon as Brettley’s car stopped, she approached him with a smile and draped a coat over his shoulders. “It’s a bit chilly outside, isn’t it?”
Brettley glanced at her. “Yes, it is. Autumn is coming.”
“I’ll go out tomorrow to buy you some warmer clothing.”
Alice slipped her arm through his, and they both headed toward the house together. “I asked the servants to prepare some snacks for Neil and Nellie. I called you home before they even became hungry. I ‘m genuinely trying hard to be a good mother to them, ” said Alice in a gentle voice.
Brettley frowned upon hearing this. “Have you seen the news today?”
Alice’s eyes widened. “What news are you talking about?”
Brettley smiled at her. “The one with you and Bethan in it.”
“Oh, that’s the one you meant. Well, I saw it, but I don’t know who’s behind it. I wonder who thought it was a good idea to send the security footage to the press.
“When I went over to visit Granny today, she mentioned it to me as well and got so worked up when she found out. She wanted to go over to Morrison Group Tower and confront Bethan, but I stopped her.”
Alice gave Brettley a feeble smile. “Old people always believe news like this.”
Alice was so kind and understanding that, for a moment, Brettley forgot about Bethan’s threat. “Let’s go in.”
Brettley and Alice entered the house arm-in-arm.
This time, however, the two children were nowhere to be found. Brettley immediately glanced at the stairs.
“I thought you didn’t want them to welcome you home. You’re not angry, are you?”
Brettley froze, but after a moment, he shook his head.
As the two made their way to the dining room, Alice shouted in the direction of the second floor, “Neil, Nellie, it’s time for dinner! “
By the time they were seated in front of the table, the two children were still nowhere to be found.
Alice sent Lily upstairs to check on them.
A few minutes later, two heads appeared above the second-floor railing. Neil pursed his lips and declared, “I’m not hungry.”
Nellie, too, pouted and said, “Me neither. I don’t want to eat.”
With that, the two children disappeared once more. Brettley could not help but frown at this.
“See, this is why I didn’t want to let them have snacks.”
Alice sighed. “Children don’t have any self- control. If you let them have too many snacks, they end up being too full for their regular meals.”
She batted her eyes at Brettley. “Why don’t I go back to banning them from eating snacks tomorrow?”
Brettley did not answer. After a long pause, he let out a sigh. “I’ll go talk to them later.”
The smile on Alice’s face stiffened. She had no choice but to relent. “Alright, then.”
With that, she instructed for dinner to be served.
This was Alice and Brettley’s first meal together alone. Alice could not hide her excitement and kept offering Brettley more food during their meal. Brettley had wanted to talk to her about what happened on this day, but seeing how enthusiastic she was, he could not bear to bring it up.
After he finished his food, Brettley set down his cutlery. “Alice, I have something to tell you.”
Alice was in the middle of clearing the table as she handed the dirty plates to a servant and smiled at him. “Can’t it wait? What’s so urgent that you have to bring it up right here?”
“There was a surveillance camera in the art gallery that day.”
Brettley gave her a meaningful look. “The painting Bethan ruined was a fake one. However, there was a pinhole camera embedded in the painting.”
Alice’s hands stiffened at that. Then, after a moment, she let out a strained laugh. “How’s that possible…”
Theo was there on the day Bethan ruined the painting. I f he did have surveillance footage of the entire incident, why did he not provide it as evidence?
“That’s all I want to say. “
Brettley stared at her. “We used to be honest with each other in the past. You used to tell me everything. It was because of our shared honesty that I could trust you, and I was willing to help you and support you in everything.
“Now, I don’t know who you’ve become anymore. “
With that, Brettley stood up and turned around to leave.
Alice clenched her teeth. “Where do you think you’re going?”
Brettley paused mid-step, but after a moment, he continued walking. “Since you’re not truthful to me, I don’t think I’m obliged to tell you everything either.”
Alice’s expression darkened as she watched the man’s retreating figure. Finally, she stormed upstairs and into her room. She pulled open the bottom drawer of her nightstand and took out a phone. “Mr. Walter, stop everything, ” she snapped into the phone.
Alice knew Brettley would not lie to her about this. However, if Bethan had surveillance footage of what truly happened that night, all her plans would be ruined. She could not take this risk.
Brettley drove his car all the way to Swan Lake Residences.
This was the place where Theo and Bethan’s new house was located. Last night, after he heard Bethan mentioning her move, Brettley had ordered Lucas to track down where Theo lived.
When he arrived at the building, Brettley saw a moving van pulling away, leaving Bethan and Theo standing on the front steps. Bethan held a duffel bag while Theo had her suitcase with him. Together, they entered the building and disappeared from Brettley’s sight.
Brettley frowned and contemplated for a moment before he got out of his car and followed them.
“There’s a farmer’s market nearby. I’ll bring you there tomorrow to have a look, ” said Theo to Bethan as they got out of the elevator. He wheeled Bethan’s suitcase along until they arrived at her front door. Then, with a smile , he left the suitcase next to her and turned to leave. “Alright then, I’111et you unpack in peace now. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Alright.”
Although Bethan and Theo would be living near each other, they were not exactly next -door neighbors. The units at Swan Lake Residences were studio apartments, and there were six or seven units on each floor. Bethan lived three doors away from Theo.
When Bethan went to sign the contract, the landlord had told her that the two units between Theo and her were empty. He was curious as to why Bethan did not want to live next to him.
Bethan had a reason for this arrangement. She was afraid that if Neil and Nellie were to come over in the future, they would make too much noise and end up disturbing Theo. Besides, Bethan wanted to keep a respectful distance from him. Therefore, she decided that it was best to live a few doors down from him instead.
Theo seemed to understand that, so he did not insist on coining in but instead went back to his unit. Bethan let out a sigh of relief, reached for her keys, and unlocked the door.
Just as her door swung open, she heard footsteps behind her, followed by the sound of her suitcase being pushed. Thinking it was Theo, Bethan let out a laugh and said, “I thought you wanted to go home. “
She pushed the door open and stepped aside. The person behind her wheeled her suitcase into the dark house. The entire place was pitch black, so Bethan fumbled around in the dark until she found the light switch and flipped it on.
Just as the lights came on, the door behind her slammed shut with a loud thud. She furrowed her brows in mild irritation. She turned around and said, “Theo, didn’t you say…”
Bethan’s voice trailed off as she finally laid eyes on the man standing before her. Brettley plopped onto the couch in a swift and graceful motion, shooting her a cold glance. “Why do you look so disappointed to see me?”
“You?”
Bethan said nothing else when she realized it was Brettley who entered.
She shut the door to the room and leaned against the door. She looked at him coldly. “It’s late. What are you doing here instead of being with the missus, Mr. Morrison?”
It did not faze her that Brettley managed to locate her.
After all, with his power in Banyan City, locating her whereabouts was a piece of cake.
Brettley leaned back on the sofa and was rather pleased.
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.