Chapter 20
Balfour looked devastated, his face etched with pain as he realized Lynne was completely ignoring him.”
He hesitated, lips trembling, trying to gauge where Lynne was standing.
“Lynne, I was wrong. Everything that happened before was my fault. I never knew you were taken because of me, I-”
“Enough!”
Lynne cut him off sharply.”
Right then, Balfour couldn’t see how Lynne was shaking, or the raw disgust in her eyes as she looked at him.”
But Whitfield saw everything.
He pulled Lynne into his arms, wrapping her in a warm embrace, shielding her from the chill that threatened to overwhelm her.
Lynne glanced up at him in surprise, only to find Whitfield’s gaze fixed coldly on Balfour.}
“Balfour, all of Lynne’s suffering started with you, and now you want to brush it off with a simple ‘I didn’t know‘? Do you even deserve to call yourself a man?“}
With those words, he took Lynne’s hand and led her away, never once looking back.”
Balfour listened helplessly as the sound of Lynne’s heels faded down the hall. He scrambled to his feet, only to stumble and bang into the doorway in his haste. Clutching his knee, he staggered after them in a desperate attempt to catch up.
But as soon as he stepped outside, the echo of Lynne’s footsteps had already vanished.
He let out a guttural, powerless cry, pain numbing his senses. For the first time, he realized just how useless he was–he couldn’t even hold onto the woman he loved.”
Suddenly, as if struck by a new idea, he fumbled for his phone and called Sexton back home.
“Sexton, Lynne’s alive! She’s really alive!“}
“She’s still mad at me, and now I can’t even see. She won’t listen to me. Book the next flight out, please come and help me explain this to her!”
On the way home, Lynne sat quietly in Whitfield’s car, her gaze fixed on the passing city lights outside the window.
Whatever peace she’d managed to find had shattered the moment Balfour appeared.
Old wounds, pushed down and hidden for so long, were ripped open all over again.
Back then, it was the Tobin family’s council that had caused the biggest uproar.
They all opposed Saul Tobin’s decision to hand the family business to Balfour.
But Saul was unyielding and refused to listen to anyone.”
The family tried again and again to get rid of Balfour, sending people after him with deadly intent.
But that time, the men they sent had no idea who Lynne was.}
She was cornered in a back alley, forced to call Balfour and warn him not to attend the meeting, or else those men would take turns with her–one after another.”
Terrified and desperate, she made the call.
But Balfour never answered.
That night, she wasn’t assaulted, but they stripped her and filmed countless degrading videos.
Afterward, she completely broke down, sinking into a deep depression. It was Balfour who stayed by her side, helping her piece herself back together.
She never told Balfour the full truth, afraid he’d blame himself even more.
Yet she never imagined that the man she’d risked everything to protect would one day turn on her–stab her in the heart for the sake of another woman.
Lynne hadn’t died that stormy night seven years ago. Instead, she died during what she’d thought was the happiest time of her life.!!
She’d never lied to Balfour.
The Lynne he remembered had died a long time ago.”
Long before that, beneath the fleeting shimmer of the northern lights.
“Lynne, do you trust me?“%
Chapter 20
The car came to a sudden halt. Whitfield’s hands tightened on the steering wheel.”
Lost in her own thoughts, Lynne was jolted back to reality by the sound of his voice.
She turned to look at him, exhaustion clouding her eyes. Ahead, a streetlamp flickered on, casting a warm pool of light that chased away the darkness.
“Whitfield, I’m sorry.”
“I don’t want anything to do with the Tobin family anymore.“}
10 55
Chapter 71
