Chapter 296
Chapter 296:
Liam stared at her. His eyes were dead. There was no love in them. There was no hate. There was just a vast, empty numbness.
He knew what she was. He remembered the police report he had read during the investigation into the accident months ago. The details of her tampering were burned into his mind. He knew she was a murderer and a fraud. This new revelation changed nothing about his opinion of her; it only confirmed the depth of the hell he was trapped in.
“I don’t care,” Liam said. His voice was a whisper, but it cut through the room like a razor blade. “Test her. Don’t test her. Fake or real, it doesn’t matter. None of this matters p>
Beatrice gasped. “Liam! This is your legacy p>
“My legacy is a lie,” Liam said.
He turned and walked out, leaving Seraphina reaching for empty air.
Seraphina’s eyes rolled back in her head. It was a theatrical, desperate move. She slumped sideways, aiming for Dominic’s arms.
“She’s fainting!” Seraphina cried out before she actually fell, narrating her own drama.
Dominic caught her, his expression bored. He hauled her up like a sack of flour.
“We’re leaving,” he announced. “Clearly, this environment is toxic p>
He dragged Seraphina out of the room. Beatrice was left standing alone at the head of the table, clutching her chest, the crumpled receipt still lying on the polished wood.
Skye closed her laptop. The screen went black.
“Check,” she whispered.
The door to her dorm room opened. She didn’t jump. She knew who it was by the scent of sandalwood and rain that suddenly filled the small, sterile space.
Alistair Thorne stood in the doorway. He wore a dark trench coat, dripping wet. He looked out of place in the dingy dormitory, like a panther in a petting zoo.
He saw the closed laptop. He saw the faint, satisfied smirk on Skye’s lips.
“Are you happy?” Alistair asked quietly.
Skye looked up at him. “Happy isn’t the word. I’m… efficient p>
Alistair walked into the room. He reached out and touched her cheek. His fingers were cold from the rain, but his touch burned.
“You’re terrifying,” he murmured, admiration coloring his tone.
с𝗼𝘮pl𝖾𝗍e ѕ𝘁𝘰𝗿і𝘦s 𝗼𝗇 b𝖾.𝗰о𝗆
“I’m just getting started,” Skye replied.
Her phone buzzed on the bed. The screen lit up.
Incoming Call: Liam Kensington.
Skye looked at the name. Five years ago, that name on her screen would have made her heart stop. She would have answered on the first ring, desperate for a crumb of affection.
Now, she just looked at it as if it were a telemarketer.
She reached out and pressed the red decline button. Then she turned the phone facedown.
“Take me out of here,” she said to Alistair.
The rain in the city didn’t wash things clean; it just made the grime slicker. It drummed a relentless, heavy rhythm against the roof of Alistair’s black SUV as it cut through traffic. The interior was a sanctuary of silence and leather, sealed off from the chaotic world Skye had been orchestrating all evening.
Skye sat in the passenger seat, her head resting against the cool glass. The adrenaline from watching the Kensington implosion was fading, replaced by a bone-deep exhaustion. Her temples throbbed in time with the windshield wipers. She closed her eyes, letting out a long, shaky breath.
“You’re grinding your teeth,” Alistair’s voice broke the silence. It was low, vibrating through the quiet space.
Skye opened her eyes. She hadn’t realized she was doing it. She consciously relaxed her jaw. “Old habits p>
“We’re not going back to the dorms,” Alistair said. He didn’t look at her; his eyes were focused on the wet asphalt, his hands relaxed but firm on the steering wheel.