Chapter 649
Caitlin held the envelope in her hands. It was light, but to her it felt impossibly heavy.
Quincy stood quietly nearby, waiting without saying a word.
After a long pause, Caitlin drew a steady breath, opened the envelope, and pulled out the report inside.
Her brows knit tightly as she scanned the lines. Just then, Sebastian returned from seeing Federico and Magnus off. “Well? What does it say?”
“See for yourself.”
She passed him the report. Sebastian read it carefully, then nodded. “Exactly what you suspected. No blood relation whatsoever. It rules out a biological mother–daughter link.”
“If she’s not my mother,” Caitlin murmured, “then where is she?”
That was what tormented her most. The hand behind all this had planted someone who could mimic her mother so well it was almost flawless. Yet her real mother remained missing.
“Then we take her,” Sebastian said darkly. “Force the truth out of her.”
Caitlin shook her head. “If she’s just a pawn, hurting her will only push the real mastermind to extremes. That could trigger chaos we can’t control.
“For now, she’s still pretending to be my mother. That means she won’t risk acting out, at least not yet. My plan is to go along with the charade, use her presence as a cover until I recover the second half of the codex. Once we have that and the leverage of Atlantis, then we can confront her and force the truth. That way, we’ll have bargaining power to trade for my real mother’s life.”
Sebastian studied her and nodded. “All right. You’re right. We’ll play it your was.
Caitlin turned to Quincy. “I need you to station people at DanCa Estate. Guard Harrison’s safety, but also keep a close eye on ‘my mother.‘ She mustn’t realize she’s being watched.”
“Understood,” Quincy said firmly.
With arrangements in place, Caitlin turned her mind to another matter. Their flight was at dawn. That meant she wouldn’t be able to see Wendy off over the weekend. She decided she had to go see her one last time before leaving.
Her heart ached thinking of the rift between Wendy and Benjamin.
Dusk fell heavy and gray, the sky thick with cloud.
Benjamin leaned against his sports car, cigarette smoldering between his fingers. Smoke curled around his face, shadowing the anguish carved deep in his sharp features.
18:02 Fri, Sep 19
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After getting Wendy’s new address from Caitlin, he had driven straight there. And now he waited.
He had no idea how long he’d been standing there when, in the distance, two figures appeared–one male, one female.
The girl was Wendy. Beside her walked a tall, good–looking man carrying two grocery bags. They were chatting easily, their laughter faint but audible.
The man was Dennis, a colleague of Wendy’s brother and a longtime acquaintance. By coincidence, he lived in the same neighborhood. They’d run into each other after work. Seeing Wendy juggling heavy bags, Dennis had offered to help. They’d ended up talking about Simon, the conversation lively and pleasant.
Benjamin froze as he watched them draw closer. His chest constricted painfully.
He straightened from the car, trying to steady himself. He wanted nothing more than to walk to her, to speak with her, to beg her for another chance.
But then his eyes fell on Dennis again.
The man’s shoulder brushed close to Wendy’s. The distance between them was small, too small. From where Benjamin stood, it was obvious–his eyes gave him away. Admiration. Fondness.
Benjamin’s jaw clenched. His gaze dropped to the shopping bags, heavy with groceries and household supplies. They looked like a couple walking home from the market together. Domestic. Intimate.
The sight seared him, slicing straight through his chest.
The words he had rehearsed for her dissolved instantly. All that remained was the surge of fury boiling up from his gut, uncontrollable and raw.
“Wendy!”
His voice cracked across the street like a whip.
Wendy flinched, heart lurching. Slowly, she lifted her head.
There he was–Benjamin, standing by his car. He flicked the cigarette to the ground and ground it under his heel with deliberate force.
Even across the distance, the storm in his eyes crashed into her. The cold fury radiating from him made her shiver.
As he strode toward her, Wendy turned quickly to Dennis. “Thank you for walking me home. You should go.” She reached to take the bags, but Dennis didn’t let go.
“Is he your boyfriend?” Dennis asked curiously.
Wendy didn’t have time to answer. Benjamin was already upon them, his voice sharp as a blade. “Who is he? Is this why you broke up with me? Because of him?”
Benjamin had tortured himself with questions since the day she left him. None of her excuses had ever
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convinced him. But now, seeing her with another man, the answer seemed painfully clear.
“It’s not like that–he’s just a neighbor, we live in the same community-”
“The same community?”
Benjamin’s eyes blazed. He didn’t believe a word. His hand shot out, seizing Dennis by the collar. “So it’s you. You’re the reason. You’re why she left me. You bastard!”
His fist crashed into Dennis’s face.
“Benjamin, stop!” Wendy screamed, panic in her voice.
Dennis staggered back, groceries nearly spilling, blood trickling from his lip. He hadn’t lifted a hand in defense.
Benjamin lunged again, rage blinding him, but Wendy threw herself between them. “Benjamin! Calm down! He has nothing to do with us. Stop it!”
“You’re protecting him?” Benjamin’s voice cracked, his eyes fever–bright and red. Jealousy burned all reason
away.
Dennis straightened, wiped the blood from his mouth, and actually chuckled. “Wendy, your boyfriend’s not much of a man. Leaving him is the right choice.”
The taunt poured gasoline onto Benjamin’s fire. His fury detonated.
“Get out of my way!” Benjamin roared.