Chapter 9%
Brandon touched his stinging cheek, dazed for a moment, but the twisted smirk still clung to his face. “You’re wrong. The one who carried me down the mountain wasn’t Leia–it was Maisy.”
“You’ve got some nerve bringing her up again!” Howard’s voice thundered across the room. In a flash of rage, he hurled a thick stack of photographs at Brandon’s face. “Look at these! This is the woman you’ve been defending so blindly!“}
The photos scattered across the floor like fallen leaves–each one more damning than the last. Maisy was shown in one intimate scene after another, tangled with men of all ages, all types. Compared to the private photos Brandon had leaked of Leia, these were on another level–vulgar, brazen, unmistakable.
Brandon’s expression twisted as he scrambled to his knees, gathering the photos. “This… Did Leia give you these? She’s trying to set her up, don’t let her fool you!“&
“We didn’t need Leia’s help to find this filth,” Howard spat, his face flushed with fury. “One background check was all it took. And since you might still doubt it, here–take a look.” He flung a USB drive at him.
Brandon caught it reflexively. His hands trembled as he loaded the files onto a nearby laptop. The screen lit up with video after video- each one aligned with the photos. Maisy was unmistakable in every clip, performing daring, almost gymnastic acts that required full physical mobility.
There wasn’t even the slightest limp.
But that snowy night… hadn’t he been carried down the mountain by a girl who broke her leg in the process?}
Elisa’s voice came soft but heavy with grief. “Leia shouldn’t have saved you that day.“}
After a pause, she continued, “She didn’t want you to worry, so she kept quiet. Right after saving you, she checked herself into a rehab center. I was the one who visited her–every day for three months. You know what she went through? Metal pins drilled into her bones. The pain was unimaginable, but she never cried. Never even whimpered.“}
Brandon reeled backward, the breath knocked from his lungs. Three months in rehab. So that’s why Leia had vanished right after the accident. That was why she never showed up again–while he lay in bed thinking she’d abandoned him.”
He used to resent her for not visiting once. All the while, Maisy stayed loyally at his bedside, tending to him like some devoted angel: And now, it turned out….
He had mistaken the wrong person for his savior. Betrayed the one who had nearly lost her leg to save his life.}
He staggered toward the door, ignoring the raw sting of the rope burns on his wrists. Blood smeared down his arms, but he didn’t stop.
“Where are you going?!” Howard shouted from behind him.
“To bring her back.” His voice was hollow, hoarse. “I have to find her.“}
“Don’t you dare!” Elisa cried out, stepping forward with desperation etched into every word. “She doesn’t want to see you anymore–she hates you now!”
Brandon paused, his hand on the doorframe. His shoulders shook once. Then, without a word, he opened the door and stepped out.
“There has to be a way… a way to make things right. There has to be,” he muttered to himself as he made his way to the car. The words repeated like a prayer. “There has to be…”
But when he finally arrived at the airport, the flight had already departed.
The woman at the counter told him it was bound for a layover in a transit country. But as for Leia’s final destination–there was no record. She had flown under a private booking, one not even the airline staff could disclose.}
Panic clawed up his throat. He called Freya without hesitation.
“Freya–tell me where she went.”
“I don’t know,” came her cool reply.
“You do,” Brandon said firmly. “Leia wouldn’t keep it from you. Did she ask you not to tell me?“}
Silence.
Then Freya’s voice lowered. “No. She didn’t ask anything. But Brandon… after everything you’ve done, do you really think you have the right to chase after her?“%
Before he could respond, she hung up. A moment later, he saw the word “blocked” flash on his screen.
Brandon stood frozen in the middle of the departure hall. Around him, the terminal buzzed with life–passengers rushing to their gates, flight announcements blaring overhead. But in his world, there was only static.
He looked up and spotted a figure that resembled her–shoulders, posture, the way her hair fell. He lunged forward and grabbed the woman by the arm. “Honey?”
The girl gasped and stepped back in alarm. Her frightened eyes met his and only then did he realize–he’d grabbed a stranger.”
He let go slowly, his hand dropping limply to his side. A bitter laugh escaped his lips.
Just then, his phone buzzed. It was his assistant.
“Mr. Willis,” the man said, “Madam has filed a lawsuit against you for illegal auction practices. But I’ve already paid her ten times the compensation for her loss. I also hired a firm to wipe every photo and post from the internet. She’s withdrawn the case.”
Brandon’s voice dropped into a gravelly whisper. “Who told you to do that?”
The assistant hesitated. “What?“%
