Chapter 374
Lance shot an irritated look their way. Darwin was already glaring at Camilla, tossing a thick report straight at her. “What’s going on here? Are you really mixed up with people like this? Is your child from him p>
Darwin’s anger was intense, hotter than any time Camilla had seen him lose his temper before.
A nervous knot twisted inside her as if trouble was hiding in every shadow. Barnard’s threats echoed in her mind, and she couldn’t help but think about Jasper’s real father, the one who was always just out of sight.
Camilla checked her phone without letting anyone notice.
She had made a deal with Lean—if Barnard made a move, Lean would alert her right away. She stared at her blank screen, heart pounding. Nothing. No updates, no warning from Lean.
She called him instantly. The phone just rang and rang until voicemail picked up.
Lean wouldn’t just disappear, not with his parents overseas counting on him. That only left one explanation—something was wrong. Maybe Barnard had figured out Lean wasn’t Jasper’s biological father and decided Lean wasn’t useful anymore.
Darwin’s voice cut through her worry. “Well? Are you going to answer? Did you really have anything to do with someone like this in your past p>
Realizing she couldn’t count on anyone else, Camilla just pushed Jasper into the car, whispering gentle reassurances before closing the door. She was about to gather the dropped papers when Lance got there first. He didn’t hesitate—he grabbed them and ripped them to pieces, not even caring what was written on them. “How many times do I have to make it clear? Camilla is my woman, Jasper is my son. Nobody else matters p>
Shreds of paper drifted to the ground, but Darwin wouldn’t let it go. His words were cold, every syllable pointed. “Back in college, you worked selling drinks, right? That’s when you met Wallace, that thug. Then he went to prison for assault, and you hooked up with the Carter boy. So, is this kid Wallace’s? Is that the truth p>
Camilla felt both angry and unsettled. She had hustled through all kinds of odd jobs before meeting Barnard, working late to help pay for Elise’s medical care. One of those jobs was being a promoter for liquor at busy bars.
Wallace—the guy Darwin mentioned—was the street punk who kept trying to bother her. After Barnard came into her life, Wallace just seemed to vanish. The next thing she’d heard about him was that he’d landed in jail for manslaughter.
But if she thought about the timing, when she found out she was pregnant with Jasper, Wallace hadn’t been in jail yet. She remembered clearly—it had been the first snowfall of November in Cabinda when word came down that Wallace was finally locked up.
He had always been trouble, showing up at her school and following her around. Lean had mentioned once that he’d stepped away for just a moment, and when he came back… Her stomach clenched.
Could Wallace have done something she never pieced together? Had Tessa somehow discovered something even Barnard didn’t know?
“No,” Camilla replied, her voice steady and loud. She had doubts, but there was no way she’d ever let Jasper be tied to someone like Wallace, not even by a rumor.
Tessa scoffed. “Still lying? Your old flame already found his way to my door, Camilla. Honestly, I never would have guessed—young, top university graduate but full of lies from the start. You fooled around, got pregnant with some bastard’s child, and then you have the nerve to trick someone else into raising him, my son of all people? You brought this on yourself p>
Now that she’d said it, Tessa was determined to end everything between Lance and Camilla. She clapped her hands sharply. A servant immediately entered, leading in a gaunt, scruffy man.
He had a patchy beard and a scar that cut across his right cheek. His prison buzz cut was fresh, and his eyes gleamed with something wild and mean.
He looked Camilla up and down in a slow, greedy way, as if she were just a thing he could pick up. Then, he didn’t even hesitate—he moved toward her, hands eager. “Camilla! You have no idea how much I’ve gone through searching for you. You couldn’t visit, not once? That’s cold p>
He grinned, completely ignoring the energy in the room. “I get it though. You care about your image. No one wants to be seen at a police station. But now I’m out, and no one’s getting in the way of our family—just the three of us. Where’s our son anyway? He should be about this tall now, right? Come on, bring him out to meet his old man p>
He made a move to hug her, but Lance stepped in fast. With one clean kick to the back of the man’s knee, he sent him crashing down.
Wallace was so skinny he just stayed on the floor for a while, gasping, then looked up, spitting curses. “Who the hell are you? This is between me, my woman, and my boy. Butt out p>
Lance’s stare was full of ice and rage. Camilla didn’t hide behind him at all. She stepped forward, poised and fearless, and pressed the toe of her high heel right down on Wallace’s fingers.
“Who sent you here?” she demanded.