Chapter b155 /b

bChapter /bb155 /b

bADRIAN’S /bbPOV /b

bThe /btension in the room was thick, suffocating almost, like the air itself had frozen in ce. The sound of the front door creaking bopen /bbbroke /bthe silenc followed bby /bthe heavy steps of Dan’s men entering the room. Their presence brought an added weight to the already bcrazy /bbatmosphere/b.

My elbow remained firm against Mr. Grayson’s throat, pinning him hard to the wall. His face was red, eyes darting around bin /bbpanic/bb, /bbsearching /bbfor /ban escape that didn’t exist. He was trapped–in more ways than one.

b“/bWhat is he talking about? Who’s Margaret?” Mrs. Grayson asked, her voice trembling with fear. She tried to keep herposure, bbut /bthe cracks were starting to show. I could see the slight quiver in her fingers, the way her eyes widened in confusion–or perhaps guilt masked as confusion.

I turned my gaze to her briefly, a dryugh escaping my lips. These people–these maniptors–knew exactly what they were doing. bThey /bbhad /bperfected the art of pretending. Just like they pretended to love Olivia. Just like they pretended to care about anything other than themselves.

They wore their masks so well, but not today. I was going to rip those masks off and force them to see what they had done. What they had destroyed. They can’t just forget my mother like that after what they did to her

“Adrian, why are you doing this?” Mr. Grayson choked out, wincing beneath my hold. “What has changed in youb? /bI’ve told you–I don’t know bwho /bthat name belongs tob.” /b

I scoffed, tightening my grip just slightly before stepping back. I didn’t need bto /bbcrush /bhis windpipe to make my point, Words would be sharper btoday /bbthan /bfists.

“You don’t know who I’m talking about? Fine,” I said, my tone dark but calm, which only made the room feel colder. “Let’s humor your lie for a bmoment/bb. /bMaybe you’ve forgotten her name because of old age. Or maybe there were too many Margarets in your dirty past and byou /bcan’t tell one from the other. That’s not a problem–we can fix that.”

I snapped my fingers.

One of Dan’s men stepped forward with purpose, reaching into the thick envelope that sat on the table. He pulled out a photo and handed bit /bto bme /bwithout a word. I didn’t even look at it. I didn’t have to. The image was burned into my memory.

I took the photo to Mr. Grayson, who had slumped slightly now that he was no longer pinned. His eyes cautiously met mineb, /bthe bravado beginning to drain from his face.

“Does this ring a bell now?” I asked, holding the photo mere inches from his face, making sure he got ba /bgood, long blook/b.

He stared.

For a moment, nothing.

Then… something shifted.

Recognition flickered in his eyes like a match being lit in the dark. His mouth opened slightly as if to speak, but nothing came out, bHis /bbgaze /bquickly from the photo to my face, then back again, bouncing between bthe /bpast and the present, reality and guilt.

“You remember her now, don’t you?” I said softly, mockingly. “It’s funny how pictures jog the memory.”

He swallowed hard, his throat working as he tried ito /ifind the right words. And then, finally, with ba /bsigh of resignation, bhe /bbspoke/b.

bmoved /b

“bDon’t /btell me… she’s your mother,” he muttered. The tone in his voice wasn’t apologetic. It wasn’t remorseful. It was bt/bb. /bbDisappointed/b. As bif /bbI /bbhad /binconvenienced him by being her son.

That was all I needed to hear.

With a burst of fury, I shoved him with force. He crashed to the floor, the thud echoing through the silent broom/b. bHe /bgroaned bin /bbpain/bb, /bbclutching /bbhis /bbside /bbas /b

bChapter /b155

bhe /bblooked /bbup /bbat /bme.

bI /bbtowered /bover bhim, /bbmy /bfists clenched, my voice cold and steady.

“bYou’re /bvery much correct. She’s my mother,” I said coldly, with disgust in my eyes.

b“/bSam, are you alrightb?/bb” /bshe asked, her voice shaky but filled with concern as she twisted her wrists in vain still trying bto /bfree herself,

Then she turned to me, confusioncing her words. “Adrian, what’s gotten into you? And who is the woman in that bphoto/bb?/bb” /b

I took a step closer, my expression hardening. “Aren’t you going to tell your wife to drop the act?” I asked, fixing my eyes on Mr. Grayson.

Mr. Grayson let out a weary sigh, his shoulders sagging as if a great weight had finally been lifted. “He knows everything. There’s no point in bpretending /banymore.”

That was when Mrs. Grayson’s entire demeanor shifted. The fear and confusion vanished, reced by something far more chilling–calmness. Composure. The look of someone who had worn a mask for far too long and was finally free to take it off.

“How long have you known?” she asked softly, her tone calm.

“Since the day it happened,” I said, my gaze boring into her as if I could shatter her with

e alone.

She nodded slowly, as though she’d expected the answer. “So if you knew all along, why wait until now to make your move?b” /b

a whip. “You don’t expect me to just charge in without I gave a dark chuckle and rolled my neck until it crackedb, /bbthe /bsound cutting through the room like proper proof, do you? Besides,” I added with a smirk, “haven’t you heard that slow poison is the most effectiveb?/b”

Mrs. Grayson’s eyes narrowed. “So what now? You n to take revenge? That sounds a bit childish, don’t you think? And I’m pretty sure bthe /bauthorities don’t know about this little revenge mission of yours–which, by the way, makes it illegal.”

“Oh, I know it’s illegal,” I said, stepping even closer. “And you’re right–the authorities don’t know. But I don’t n on them finding out. Because as far as I’m concerned, it’s not ba /bcrime if no one discovers it.”

“You’re overreacting, Adrian,” Mr. Grayson cutted, his voice trembling slightly now. “If you know what happened, then you also know that we didn’t mean to kill your mother. It wasn’t intentional. It’s not like we wanted her to die…We did what we did, and the next morningb–/bwe heard she was dead.”

“And that’s supposed to make it okay?” I snapped, my voice rising. “You didn’t care about what could happen She trusted you, believed in you. And you took everything from bher /b

when you carried

My voice echoed across the roomb, /bthick with pain and fury. The air was tense. That’s when I heard it–a soft grunt from Dan.

iout /i

your little bscheme/bb. /b

I turned my head just in time to see him stumble backb, /bclutching his leg. Mrs. Grayson had stomped down hard on his foot bwith /bthe sharp heel of her shoe. The pain must’ve been unbearable, because Dan released his grip immediately, letting her slip free.

She didn’t hesitate. She dashed toward the center table, her eyes locked on the phone sitting there. Her fingers reached out, desperate, fumbling bfor /bbthe /bdevice–no doubt to call for help or record something that would turn this moment in her favor