Noticing Deirdre’s unusual behavior, Kyran immediately turned to her and inquired softly, “What’s going on, Deirdre? Is something wrong?”The voice from the speaker continued to speak. “The reason I abducted Miss McKinnon is very simple. I don’t have money, so I wanted to blackmail and extort money to spend.”‘The voice! It’s a man’s voice!’Deirdre shook her head desperately. “This isn’t right! This isn’t right!”“What isn’t right?”Deirdre said, “Trust me, Kyran. This man is not the mastermind of my abduction!”It was no wonder the mastermind of the abduction would be found—it was no wonder that Charlene would yield obediently. It turned out that she had figured out a way to find herself a scapegoat!Deirdre’s chest was burning with anger. She felt as if the man in the interrogation room was herself in the past.On the other hand, this was precisely Charlene’s special trick!She turned a blind eye to the law, and when she got herself in trouble, she would get someone random
The police officer wanted to ask for more, but Kyran stepped in. “Sorry, but I think we’ll have to stop here. She hasn’t exactly recovered from falling off the cliff. Coupled with the abduction incident, it’s only natural that her trauma is affecting her memory recall,” he said. “Once she has some time to process the entire thing again, she might remember something. We’ll come back and give new information by that point.”Although the police officer found the resolution quite disappointing, he could get behind Kyran’s explanation. Nodding, he said, “We’re counting on you, Miss McKinnon. Please contact us as soon as you remember anything more.”They shook hands, and Deirdre left with an icy feeling in her gut. She wondered how long she was supposed to hide from the public. Was she doing right by hiding?Was it right to accept injustice without raising any alarm or standing up against it so she could move to Germia with Kyran and start all over again?Why should Charlene McKinney be
”One thing’s for sure. I don’t want anything to do with him.”Kyran steadied his breath and turned the steering wheel. “If this is the origin of your hangup, then you don’t have to worry about it at all. Brendan will never know that you’re alive. Not in his entire lifetime.”Deirdre’s eyes widened. She was taken aback and pretty perplexed. “Where’s that confidence coming from?”He studied her calmly. “You said it yourself. Charlene did all of this for Brendan. Her motive was to ensure that you’ll never be near him. In other words, it’s well within her motive to ensure Brendan knows nothing about the abduction plot or your whereabouts. If he learns about the abduction and that she’s the one behind it, do you know how bad her position’s going to be?”Deirdre bit her lips. ‘He has a point, but…’“Do you really think she’s capable of hiding the whole plot from him?” she asked under her breath.Kyran chuckled regretfully. “I wouldn’t underestimate her if I were you. She’s good at keep
The police officer thought it would be unkind to snuff out Deirdre’s hope, so he asked tactfully, “Do you have any solid proof, Miss McKinnon?”“Proof?”“We can’t sentence someone based on he-says-she-says. We need more witnesses and evidence.”“Don’t I count as an eyewitness?”“You do, but since you’re blind, the defendant can easily weasel her way out of this accusation. It’s really hard to make a solid case if you’re the sole witness.”A person came into Deirdre’s mind—and the color in her eyes darkened. She thinned her lips. “I… I know another eyewitness, but I don’t know if she’s willing to help. Regardless, I’m willing to try. Can you help me summon this person? Then I’ll talk to her alone.”Maeve O’Keefe was brought in a while later. Despite her seemingly calm expression, she was gripping the edge of her skirt tightly as though she had predicted this outcome. The police escorted her into an interrogation room, where Deirdre was already waiting.The older woman almost coul
Deirdre had become sure of herself, confident, regal, and imposing, like, well… that man…Maeve’s shock gradually transitioned into feeling sorry for her. “Alright. I’ll do it. I’ll testify against McKinney.”“Thank you.” Deirdre nodded politely at her and left her seat. The police officer greeted her and entered the room after her. Kyran covered her with his coat and praised her. “You were excellent.”“Really?” Deirdre forced herself to smile through her fatigue. “I probably looked stoic and purely rational in there, but I was barely controlling my sadness and anger. I guess I’m just not mature enough.”“No, you’re wrong. You’re very mature. What you felt stemmed from your disappointment against her. That’s why you felt sad and angry.”Deirdre flashed him a pained smile. She cleared her throat and hoped all her emotions went down into her gut like a heavy load. “Reason tells me it’s only natural for a mother to do what she did. She was trying to save her daughter, her own flesh
After a long beat, Kyran finally found his voice. “And Steven?”“Fled.” Declan took another sharp inhale of smoke. “He is a smart man who knows you all too well. He foresaw things going south way ahead and withdrew his savings before disappearing. It’s impossible to find him.”Kyran’s eyes were nailed to the document. A maelstrom was kicking up in his chest, pressing itself against the inside of his chest and stinging him so much that his face turned white. It took him a while to recover. Exhaling a few breaths, he said, “He had no motive. He wouldn’t even have gained anything from it.”Declan flashed him a smile. “That much is obvious. What could he possibly gain from doing all of this to Deirdre? Nothing. As such, someone else must have ordered him to. Now, I don’t have any solid proof yet, but I’m sure who that mastermind could be. Question is… Do you want to hear it?’Kyran did not even blink. “Charlene.”“Huh? Right on the first strike. Only two people could have gained fro
Deirdre was all smiles and joy, her tone playful and adorable. But Declan sniped a concerned glance at Kyran and saw an icy visage shadowed by guilt. His eyes were so hollow and devoid of light they could have belonged to a corpse. “Let me do the honors, Miss McKinnon. Kyran’s a little tired from the drive.”She stopped, stunned for a moment, and smiled. “Well, I won’t say no to that. Thanks!”Declan rolled up his sleeves. “Pleasure’s all mine. Working in the kitchen could probably help me sober up.”He stepped into the kitchen and began looking. He found it easily enough, but as he passed it to Deirdre, she thanked him and asked, “Did you really drink?”He paused. His smile became a little mechanical. “What do you mean?”“You don’t smell like you had booze. You smell like cigarettes.”Declan sighed in relief. “No, I drank. The smell probably left on the journey, and then I smoked a cigarette outside. The smell must have covered it up.”“Huh?” Deirdre hummed noncommittally. “I
It was as if Kyran had something he wanted to say…Deirdre closed her eyes. Maybe she was overthinking it because she was pretty tired too. If Kyran had anything he wanted to tell her, he would just say so. There was no reason for secrets between the two of them at this stage of their relationship.Deirdre slept soundly. A long, long while later, her bedroom door creaked open. A man snuck inside from that little crack, his movement featherlight and careful, to avoid waking up the young woman. He took his seat near her bed.Moonlight sprayed into her room through her window and drenched her. Her skin was clear, like the surface of a silvery lake. As he studied her, her eyes gleamed with hunger while his lips curled into a shadow of a smile. That was until, suddenly, the smile died. It was as if someone had sucked away every oxygen in his lungs, and now his ribcage and its fleshy contents were imploding. His face paled, he knelt a little forward, and his eyes rested on the you