Chapter 18
Standing in front of the rall floor–to–ceiling window, Vincent held a freshly lit cigarette between his fingers.
Ever since realizing that Keira was the one he had truly been looking for, he had immediately launched a city–wide search.
Yet, there was still no trace of her. Even all his attempts to contact her had failed. Every communication channel he tried showed that her account had been deactivated.
His heart was filled with guilt and anxiety. He felt guilty for not realizing that she was the one after all this time. At the same time, he was filled with anxiety over all the unforgivable things he’d done–and now, he didn’t even have the chance to explain.
At this moment, only one thought consumed him. He had to find Keira no matter the cost
When he heard a knock on the door, be snuffed out the cigarette immediately.
way of threatening me?” Vincent’s voice was frigid
“I heard you were planning to report this to the Slater family. Is that your way
The temperature in the room seemed to drop drastically. Frank felt a chill nun down his spine immediately upon stepping in
“No. That’s not it! T–That wasn’t what I meant…” he staminered. “I just didn’t want to see such a good marriage fall apart over nothing ”
The arrogance he had once displayed vanished entirely when he was before Vincent. His tone was now full of nothing but flattery.
“A good marriage? Do you really take me for a fool?” Vincent let out a cold laugh.
The deadpan stare he directed at Frank was so crushing that the latter couldn’t even lift his head. But as he thought of Kimberly, who was refusing to eat at home, he forced himself to speak. “My wife and I think highly of you. How could we possibly deceive you?
“Look, you and Kimberly got along well. Whether or not she was the one who cared for you shouldn’t really matter, should it? Why don’t we just accept the mistake that was made and make do with it?”
Frank’s shameless proposition left Vincent momentarily speechless. He growled, “So you’re admitting the one who took care of me wasn’t Kimberly but Keira. Is that correct? If you don’t tell me the truth, I’ll throw you out that window myself ”
Without warning, he shot forward and grabbed Frank by the collar.
Already shaloen, Frank collapsed to the floor in terror after glancing out the window.
He confessed in a panic, “It was… It was Keira. Not Kimberly! At first, we didn’t know either, Kimberly told us you were looking for someone who looked a lot like Keira… So, we had Kimberly take her place. That bracelet. It originally belonged to Keira”
Vincent lowered his gaze and frustratedly said, “You claim to think highly of me. Is that why you think any daughter of yours would do? Why did you deceive the?”
“Kimberly is the daughter we worked so hard to have. Keira was only burn to save her. Of course they’re not the same,” Frank said without hesitation.
The moment he spoke about his two daughters, his blas was evident. In his mind, only Kimberly was his real daughter. He couldn’t have cared less about Kaira. As Kimberly’s father, he thought he should give her whatever she wanted,
After hearing him draw such a harsh distinction between his two daughters, Vincent finally understood why Keira had chosen to sever ties with them.
At that moment, his heart ached for Keira even more.
“Where is Keira now? Did you hide her away somewhere?” Vincent’s voice grew urgent
“She… She went to Endor,” Frank answered.
Vincent quickly asked, “Do you have her address?”
Frank shook his head
Vincent stared at him for a moment. Even now, he seemed completely unrepentant about what he had done to Keira
With a snap of his fingers, Vincent ordered his bodyguards to detain Frank. He then instructed them to have Melinda thrown into the basement with him, too.
Frank was shocked to hear that. He exclaimed in disbellet, “I’ve already told you everything! How can you do this? Have you ever heard of something. called karma? You’ll get it…”
His shouting soon faded into silence in no time, the only sound left in the room was the steady ticking of the clock
Vincent walked back to the window and tried lighting another cigarette. But no matter how many times he flicked the lighter, the flame went out
In frustration, he hurled the ashtray to the ground.
Glass shards shattered across the floor. Die plece sliced across his forearm and drew blood. The sting was sharp and vivid. Yet, he felt nothing. Absentmindedly, Vincent murmures, “Keira, where are you? I know everything now. I need to see you once more. Please”
