Chapter 272
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Chapter 272:
Martha, the former head maid of the Schneider household, sat across from him. She looked exhausted, her eyes darting nervously toward the diner windows, a worn canvas bag clutched to her chest.
Kieran reached into his suit pocket, opened his checkbook, wrote a number with five zeros, and slid it across the sticky laminate table.
“Tell me everything about the attic,” he said, his voice tight.
Martha looked at the check. She swallowed hard.
“Mr. Douglas,” she whispered, her hands trembling as she reached for the paper. “The girl who was locked in that attic… it was never Aspen. It was always Jocelyn p>
Kieran’s fingers clamped down on his ceramic coffee mug. The muscles in his forearm bunched. The mug jerked, sloshing scalding black coffee over the rim and onto the sticky table. He didn’t feel the heat.
“Say that again.” His voice was a low, terrifying rasp.
𝗠𝘰ѕt 𝗿𝘦𝘢𝖽 th𝗂s 𝘄𝘦е𝘬 𝘰𝘯 ѕ.𝗰оm
Martha shrank back against the vinyl booth, clutching the check tighter. “It was Jocelyn. Aspen used to get so angry when Jocelyn got better grades. She told Cory to push Jocelyn into the old attic and lock the heavy iron latch p>
“Why did no one say anything?” Kieran demanded. His chest heaved. He couldn’t pull enough air into his lungs.
Martha let out a bitter, tired laugh. “Say something to who? Elouise knew. She heard the banging. But she wanted to keep Mr. Schneider happy. She pretended not to hear p>
She leaned forward, lowering her voice. “That time you came over… Jocelyn had been in there for three days. No food. No water. When you broke the lock, her hands were covered in blood from tearing at the wood. Aspen just grabbed a pink dress from a trunk and started crying the moment she heard your voice p>
The words landed like a blow to Kieran’s sternum. The air rushed out of him. The jagged scar on Jocelyn’s wrist. The way she always flinched when a door slammed too hard. The pieces clicked into place, forming a picture so ugly it turned his stomach.
Martha unzipped her canvas bag and pulled out a crumpled piece of legal paper. “Before the wedding, Miss Aspen got paranoid. She knew I remembered things. She fired me and forced me to sign this Non-Disclosure Agreement before I left. She said she would ruin my son’s college applications if I talked p>
Kieran stared at Aspen’s messy, frantic signature at the bottom of the page.
He stood so fast the table shook. “Keep the money. I will have my legal team void that NDA by tomorrow morning. You are safe p>
He bolted from the diner, ran to his car, and threw open the door. He collapsed into the driver’s seat, slammed his fists against the steering wheel — once, twice — then pressed his forehead against the leather and let out a raw, agonizing sound that tore his throat.
For years, he had treated Jocelyn as though she were ungrateful. He had accused her of being jealous of Aspen. He had played the arrogant savior to a monster while actively punishing the real victim.