Chapter 7
The reasons for my disappearance spiraled out of control, with rumors becoming increasingly absurd.
The most widespread theory was that I had conspired to murder Michael Findley and Yenny before fleeing the city. To make matters worse, someone even fabricated chat logs between me and the arrested hitman, Hendry, fueling the fire. I could see Bella’s fingerprints all over this–after all, exposing their family scandal wasn’t an option for Arthur.
Another rumor suggested that I had returned from Dungeness barely alive, disfigured and rejected by the Findley Family and had chosen to end my life out of despair.
But none of this mattered to me anymore. What mattered was what I had planned
next.
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Chapter 7
At the Findley Family mansion, Arthur sat in the dimly lit living room, chain-
smoking, his brows furrowed in
frustration. He slammed his fist against the table, shattering an expensive ashtray into pieces.
“How dare she?!” he roared, his voice echoing through the room. “How could Lilly vanish under my nose? She was the one in the wrong and now she’s acting like the victim. What right does she have to run away like this?”
Windy, his assistant, flinched at the outburst, cautiously stepping forward.
“Mr. Findley we‘ ve scoured the entire northern district of Birmingham, but… there’s still no sign of Miss Lilly. Should
we-
“Keep looking!” Arthur barked, his voice laced with fury. “She’s alive and I want her found. I don’t care what it takes! I’ll
make sure she regrets this!”
Bella crouched silently, sweeping the
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shattered glass into a trash bin. Then, like a dutiful confidant, she approached Arthur and placed a calming hand on his shoulder.
“Arthur, don’t get so worked up,” she cooed softly. “Lilly chose to run away. Even if you find her, do you really think her heart hasn’t already left you? Maybe… it’s time to let go and move on.”
Arthur collapsed onto the couch, his hands clutching his head as frustration gnawed at him.
“I don’t get it,” he muttered bitterly. “She used to love me so much. No matter how bad things got, she always fought, argued, begged for my forgiveness. But this time… she just disappeared. No explanations. No pleading. Nothing.”
He clenched his fists as memories of their tumultuous relationship resurfaced.
“She pushed me off the dunes in
Dungeness and tried to hurt my parents,”
he spat. “I didn’t even press charges and
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she still dared to run away! Why does she think she’s untouchable?”
***
Years ago, when Lilly was a fiery teenager, she had wrapped her arms around his neck. and demanded he promise to marry her. He had hesitated, saying they were too young, but she had threatened to jump off an eighteen–story building if he refused.
He had saved her that day, holding her tightly and whispering a promise he wasn’t sure he could keep. “I’ll marry you,” he had said and she had cried in his arms, calling him her entire world.
Since then, he had made it his mission to protect her, no matter what. No matter how bratty or bossy she became, he accepted it all, believing it was her way of loving him. Even when others mocked him for being a “wife protector,” he wore the label with pride.
But now, as he stared at the empty space
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where she used to be, he couldn‘ t understand how everything had unraveled so quickly.
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