Chapter 72: She’s acting
(Clara’s POV)
With pressure on her neck, my face flushed red. A chill ran down my spine like ice water.
I had promised not to provoke Olivia. Yet here I was, speaking ill of her again. But this was a once–in–a–lifetime opportunity. I would not let it go no matter what.
I wrapped my hands around Theodore’s neck. My eyes turned seductive as I softened my voice.
“Professor Killian’s research institute is full of experts. Gina, who was there that night, is a computer genius from the
institute.”
I pressed closer, feeling his grip tighten slightly. “It’s not impossible that she tampered with it.”
Just then, his phone rang. It was the pack’s technical department.
“Alpha Theodore, I’m sorry. It took us three days to restore the hotel’s video. A master had grafted the footage, leaving almost no trace.”
My heart leaped with hope. This was it.
“We had to ask a hacker friend for help to find the flaw. I’ll send it to you right away.”
Hearing this, I clung to it like a lifeline. “Alpha, I swear on my life, everything I said is true.”
Theodore opened the video. It immediately played on his phone screen.
As he watched, seeing person after person run out of the lounge, Theodore’s face grew darker and darker. A triumphant smile played on my lips.
I felt the grip on my neck loosen. I pressed my red lips against his, saying softly.
“Alpha, what were Olivia and Professor Killian doing in that cramped lounge? So much so that she even lost the personal moonstone bracelet you gave her?”
A fierce glint flashed in his eyes. Theodore shoved me away and walked out of the study.
I fell to the floor, coughing and clutching my aching neck. But as I watched Theodore’s furious, retreating figure, I felt immense satisfaction.
No matter how much Theodore doted on Olivia, he would never tolerate her being involved with another male. This time, I was sure I had won.
(Theodore’s POV)
I stood in the corridor, looking down at the kitchen on the opposite side of the building. Olivia was affectionately taking
care of Elara and Leo.
Leo was fussing that Elara’s piece of cake was bigger than his. This forced a helpless Olivia to divide it back and forth.
Despite the helplessness, she was happy. It was the first time she had shown a smile since being discharged from the infirmary.
Just then, Gina walked into the kitchen. She took a miniature laptop out of her bag.
Olivia took the computer. Her hands moved over the keyboard like she was playing a symphony. This was a stark contrast
+ Points
to the woman I remembered who didn’t even know how to create an Excel spreadsheet.
A sharp light reflected in her eyes. Her brow was set with unstoppable determination.
I frowned, tightening my grip on the bracelet in my palm. The video had confirmed Clara wasn’t lying.
At that time, Olivia and Killian were in the storage room of the lounge. This meant that she must have heard my conversation with Clara and learned about our relationship.
However, she did not expose us at that time. Not only that, but since she disappeared and returned, she never mentioned her desire to end the relationship that day.
She never mentioned my conversation with my mother either. Why was that?
“Theodore.” Evelyn walked up to my side.
This was the first time Evelyn had appeared at a social gathering since our unpleasant parting and Caleb’s engagement. I gave her a cool glance, my gaze still fixed on Olivia.
Olivia was staring at the computer with unprecedented focus. She was so absorbed that she didn’t even notice me smearing cake on Elara’s face, letting the two children playfully throw cake at each other.
Evelyn stood beside me and began. “There are some things I didn’t want to tell you, lest you think I’m trying to ruin your relationship.”
“Then don’t say it,” I cut her off, uninterested.
Evelyn was taken aback by my words. She looked annoyed, but quickly suppressed it.
“If I don’t, I’m afraid you’ll regret it later.”
Seeing my lack of interest, Evelyn continued nonchalantly. “Livvy found out you were cheating with Clara long ago.”
Hearing this, I abruptly turned to her. My indifferent gaze carried a hint of danger.
“You’re lying.”
“Her reaction was indeed different from what you expected, wasn’t it? You thought she would condemn your betrayal, break down in sorrow, and sever the mate bond?”
Evelyn smiled faintly. “She was planning to leave you quietly. She told me this herself.”
Evelyn met my increasingly cold gaze. “I heard from your mother about Livvy being taken by an unknown organization and how you locked down all of Stonehaven City, forcing them to release her.”
My jaw clenched. Where was she going with this?
“Although I don’t know why the surveillance didn’t capture her leaving, it’s certain that Livvy was alone in the master bedroom on the second floor. It could only be that she climbed down with bedsheets and escaped the Redgrave Estate herself.”
The words hit me like physical blows. “She escaped on her own. She wanted to leave you quietly, so you could never find
her.”
Evelyn’s lips curved into a sneer. “If I can’t be happy, then no one else can be either.”
I remembered hearing Olivia tell Killian at the infirmary that she would be leaving in a few days. I strode downstairs, flashes of Olivia’s recent strange behavior piecing together in my mind like shattered fragments of a mirror.
I walked into the kitchen. I wrapped a large hand around her slender waist and pulled her tightly into my embrace.
A turbulent energy instantly enveloped her as my chest heaved like a rollercoaster. I whispered, “My love.”
“Chapter 72: She’s acting
“Kiss, kiss!” our surrounding friends began to chant, seeing us in such a close embrace.
A look of fear was in my eyes as I stared intently at Olivia’s frail face. I searched for any flaw in her expression.
Her expression made me feel like the wolf fur on my back was standing on end. How long has she known? Is that why she could so resolutely say she wanted to sever our mate bond?
Olivia, as usual, shyly buried her face in my chest. Her sweet, coquettish voice pleaded, “Tell them to stop teasing.”
“Still shy after all these years of mating, Luna?” someone joked.
“Alpha Theodore was willing to risk his life for you, even going down a ten–thousand–foot cliff. You have to give him some kind of reward, right?”
A chill ran down my back. My palms were sweating.
I pressed my face against Olivia’s, slowly moving towards her lips. “My love, don’t leave me.”
She hadn’t kissed me voluntarily in a long time. I remembered the last two times I’d asked for a kiss, she had refused and turned away. My heart clenched instantly.
The mere thought of Olivia leaving me, of her not loving me anymore, was as agonizing as the bone–chilling cold I endured at the bottom of the cliff. I had searched for her among the plane wreckage.
My world was collapsing.
(Olivia’s POV)
Hearing the sorrow in Theodore’s voice, I froze. In my peripheral vision, I saw Evelyn’s triumphant smirk.
She told him! The realization hit me like a physical blow.
The thought of Theodore locking down Stonehaven City when I went missing made me realize what he might do if he knew I was aware of the truth and planned to leave. At that point, not even Matthew could get me out smoothly.
I couldn’t push him away. I couldn’t let him suspect me.
I wrapped my arms around Theodore’s neck. The disgusting images of the two of them flashed through my mind. Fighting back the urge to vomit, I stood on my tiptoes to kiss his lips.
