2025-06-15 15:34:09Charles knocked on the gate once.
Silence.There were no guards outside. Fair. It was midnight. Since he met Sadie, she hadn’t been getting midnight visitors, so the lack of presence didn’t feel off—at first.But two seconds later, after knocking again—then again—and still getting no response?Something was off.The guards shouldn’t be asleep. Not in this house. Not on his watch.He pulled out his phone and dialed Hardin. Let him check the gate. If these fools were actually sleeping, Charles wasn’t going to let it slide.Hardin picked up on the second ring.“Took you long enough,” Charles snapped. “Open the gate.”There was a chuckle on the other end.A chuckle?“You’re not pulling my leg, are you?” Hardin asked, sounding amused.Charles frowned. “What?”“My house doesn’t have a gate,” Hardin said. “And I can’t even hear your voice—”“Your house?” Charles cut
Previous Chapter
Latest Chapter
73
Charles gave him a side glance. “Do you need me to repeat myself?”“No, sir. My brain just malfunctioned for a second. I’ll handle it.”“Thank you so much, sir. I really—” the man broke into grateful tears.Charles cut him off coldly. “Let’s just hope we never meet again in real life.”He ended the call.By now, all the guards had gathered in front of the house. None of them said a word. Eyes on the ground. Silent.Sadie had already questioned them earlier, asking if anything strange happened overnight. But what were they supposed to say? “Sorry ma’am, we ate takeout and passed out like kids at a slumber party”? They knew they were done for.And this job? It wasn’t your average security gig. Sadie paid them real money. More than most got in a year under other A-listers.Now Charles was standing in front of them—and that made everything worse.It wasn’t his looks. It was the aura. The man
72
She darted a glance at Charles—who was already walking toward the mirror.“You did this?” he asked, his voice low, cautious.“Must’ve been one of those fans,” she said with forced casualness, though her feet wouldn’t carry her even an inch farther into the room. “Don’t tell me you’re scared, Charles.” She tried a light tone. “Stuff like this happens to celebrities all the time.”Charles turned to her, disbelief etched across his face. “What?”“I guess someone broke in,” she shrugged. “Nothing new. That’s why I keep telling you—I’m not just some regular girl in New York.”Her eyes flicked toward her phone on the nightstand—but there was no way she was going near it. Not when she didn’t even know if she was still alone in that room.“I… I can’t find my phone, though,” she added, pretending to search around her.“Here.” Charles picked it up and handed it to her.She smiled, taking it. “You’ve got sharp ey
71
Charles knocked on the gate once.Silence.There were no guards outside. Fair. It was midnight. Since he met Sadie, she hadn’t been getting midnight visitors, so the lack of presence didn’t feel off—at first.But two seconds later, after knocking again—then again—and still getting no response?Something was off.The guards shouldn’t be asleep. Not in this house. Not on his watch.He pulled out his phone and dialed Hardin. Let him check the gate. If these fools were actually sleeping, Charles wasn’t going to let it slide.Hardin picked up on the second ring.“Took you long enough,” Charles snapped. “Open the gate.”There was a chuckle on the other end.A chuckle?“You’re not pulling my leg, are you?” Hardin asked, sounding amused.Charles frowned. “What?”“My house doesn’t have a gate,” Hardin said. “And I can’t even hear your voice—”“Your house?” Charles cut
70
“Just tell me who—”The man cut him off with a sharp look.“I don’t know who. But if you want, I can tell you the nine other men I made that necklace for.”“Why won’t you tell me who killed—”“Shut your mouth, bastard, and let me think.”He shuffled over to a pile of cloth stacked on a rusted bedframe—how he got it down here was anyone’s guess. He pulled out a folded piece of paper and handed it to Charles.“Their names are all I have,” the man said. “It’s been ages. I don’t know what they’re up to now. They graduated high school years ago.”“You’re really not going to tell me who the murderer is?” Charles asked, sliding the paper into his pocket.The old man stared at him for a long, cold second. “Get out of here,” he muttered.“I’m going already.” Charles paused, annoyed but oddly respectful. The guy was infuriating—and yet, kind of easy to talk to. “If you want, I could help you get a new house.”
69
____Wednesday – 9 p.m.____Charles gently opened the door to Sadie’s room. With caution, he walked over to her. A soft snore was coming from her.Tonight, he was meeting the goldsmith who made the necklace the murderer of his brother owned—the same one now hanging around his own neck. If he could find the man tonight, maybe he’d finally get answers about who murdered his brother.He sighed as he closed the door.Damn him for being the bad guy, but he’d added sleeping pills to her drink. A strong one—something that would keep her knocked out for the next five hours, no matter what.He should be back before then.And honestly, this was better than having to explain where he was going.A lie would’ve been easier, sure—but Sadie wasn’t someone you lied to. Not without paying for it.The front door clicked shut behind him. A flashlight flickered once from angle 270 of the compound—Hardin’s signal.Charl
68
____Harrington Villa_____“Emmy’s a pretty woman. No man can resist her. Not even that fool,” her elder sister said, flipping her hair confidently.“It’s Charles’ behavior that baffles me,” one of her brothers chimed in, sipping his drink. “He married into a rich family. What more does he want?”The other brother glanced toward the hallway, checking if their father was nearby. “Look, if Emmy somehow manages to bring that bastard back, I’ll make him wish he never returned.”“What are you talking about?” the sister smirked. “I’m planning to make him my kids’ nanny. He played the role well enough before.”“Seriously. That lowlife dares to pull this kind of stunt on us?” the eldest snapped, yanking the blinds aside in frustration. “Who the hell does he think he is?”“It’s Dad’s fault, honestly,” someone muttered. “If he’d put that idiot in his place early on, we wouldn’t be in this mess. Who sits down to have drinks with a nobod
You may also like
The Billionaire Pauper
JOHNSON196.4K viewsThe Lowly Son in Law is Quadrillionaire
Riku Ormstrom86.2K viewsThe Ruthless Son-in-law
Bella Starr134.7K viewsUnknowingly The Billionaire's Heir
Winner Girl76.4K viewsLegitimate Heir-At-Law
Victoria T.O45.5K viewsInfinite Wealth App: I Become A Tycoon After Divorce
Purple Dragon Lord 132 viewsLegacy Of The Chaotic Heir
Daniel Solomon 4.5K viewsRevenge For The Restaurant Kissing
Amanfu1.3K views