Dan took a deep breath, his eyes still sharp and dangerous, his tone even more threatening than before.

"No need for you to leave," he said coldly. "I''ve got some questions for you myself."

There was no mistaking the hostility in his voice, mixed with a heavy dose of disgust.

Derek''s temper red, but before he could explode, Adelle caught his eye and gave him a calming look.

In an instant, the raging lion inside Derek was forced back into his cage.

Adelle spoke first, her voice gentle. "Go ahead, ask."

Even in the face of Dan''s icy demeanor, she kept herposure, her expression warm and patient.

Dan shot her a frosty re-a look sharp enough to cut ss-but Adelle just met it with the same gentle patience, as if she could melt his anger with nothing but kindness.

But Dan knew better. He''d seen the real Adelle, the one who could be truly vicious when she wanted to be. There was no way the woman who''d had a hand in his mother''s death could win him over with a few soft looks.

"So, which one of you took Susanna?"

The question was aimed at both Derek and Adelle, but Dan''s cold gaze never left Adelle''s face.

His usation was like a knife, and Derek all but exploded. “Dan, that''s enough! None of us took Susanna."

"How convenient," Dan sneered. "Last I checked, Susanna''s at ck Gate. Don''t tell me it was Finch who took her."

Dan''s voice was colder than ever.

Derek''s fists clenched. "You''re unbelievable."

This was ridiculous. Was there no justice left in the world?

Adelle, sensing the tension rising, kept her serene expression, but a flicker of frost shed in her eyes.

"Dan, Finch didn''t take Susanna either. Your father''s right-we didn''t take her."

"Oh, really? That''s a problem, then," Dan replied, his words dripping with sarcasm. Yvonne, Xander,

not forget-Mr. Miguel, they all believe Susanna''s Gate.

aBalet''s

Hull''s already on h

way to

Litamark."

s

?

Adelle fell silent.

Derek''s face darkened, his anger barely contained. "This is all your fault!" he snapped at Dan, his jaw tight.

At that moment, Dan was certain Derek''s people had taken Susanna.

Meanwhile, Derek was convinced

Dan was using Susanna as a

pawn-trying to get back at him and

hand everything over to Finch,

stirring up trouble by drawing in

Outsiders

like MP: Quinn and Mr. Mr

Schultz.

s

Dan raised an eyebrow, letting out a coldugh. "Whether I took her or not, you''re going to have to figure out how to get her back to them. Because..."

He paused, a mocking smirk on his lips, looking from Derek to Adelle "If you want to keep ck Gate in one piece for Finch, repeating We didn''t takè Susanna'' isn''t going to cut it."  s

With that, Dan turned and walked out, leaving Derek and Adelle alone. Derek, shaking with anger, mmed his fist onto the table. "That ungrateful brat! He''s the one who took Susanna, I know it," he growled.

Derek was convinced that Dan knew all about Susanna''splicated ties-he''d taken her on purpose, dragging in Mr. Quinn and Mr. Schultz to stir up trouble and go head-to-head with Derek.

Adelle let the chill slip from her eyes as she turned to him. “Derek, you really need to stop always assuming the worst about him. Maybe it wasn''t Dan."

"Who else could it be? He hates me, he hates Finch, and... he hates you too!"

Adelle fell quiet. Who else, indeed? Dan''s heart was full of old grudges—against Derek, against her, against her precious Finch.

"After all those years you raised him, he doesn''t seem to care one bit," Derek muttered bitterly.fn717f Updates are released by Find★Novel/fn717f