CHAPTER 142: CHAPTER 142

At that moment, Samuel leaned closer, his voice low and coated in a falsely gentle tone that didn’t match the desperation tightening in his eyes. "Rebecca," he began, his fingers fidgeting slightly at his side, "you know I’m doing this for us... for everything we planned, for everything we talked about."

He paused, letting his gaze linger on her face, hoping to find even the smallest crack in her calm expression, something to grab onto, something to manipulate. But Rebecca remained composed, unreadable.

"This mess," he continued, gesturing vaguely around the room as if the walls themselves held the weight of the scandal, "it can all go away. It really can. But I need you to do just one thing for me, just one. Something so simple, yet so powerful. You, of all people, you have what it takes to fix this. To set the record straight. You can save everything."

He slowly began pacing again, his hands behind his back now like a man giving a business pitch, not a plea to someone he once claimed to love. "All you need to do is hold a press conference. That’s all. Just go out there and say it was all a lie. Tell them you don’t know me. That we were never together. That it was a stunt... a mistake... anything. Just say whatever you have to say to make them doubt the story."

He turned around quickly to face her again, locking eyes with her now. "You know I wouldn’t be asking this if I didn’t believe it was the best way out for both of us. Because look at the way things are going... if this scandal keeps spreading, you’re not the only one who’ll lose, we will lose. Everything. Our future. My career. Your peace, and happiness. All of it."

Rebecca’s fingers curled lightly around the edge of her wheelchair. Her lips were still sealed, but her eyes had begun to narrow ever so slightly.

However Samuel mistook it for consideration, and pressed on.

"I know you love me, Rebecca. I know you do. I’ve always known. And I appreciate it. I do," he said, stepping forward again, now crouching beside her, his voice thick with counterfeit sincerity. "That’s why I’m asking you to do this for me. For us. You fix this, and I promise you, I’ll go back to taking care of you like I always have. Like we planned. And when the time is right, I’ll come back fully... just like we promised each other."

At that moment, Samuel leaned in gently, his fingers slowly wrapping around Rebecca’s hands with careful precision, as if afraid she might pull away again. His palms were slightly cold, but his grip was firm, intentional. He gave her hands a small squeeze, and then, like a man rehearsing an apology too many times in his head, he began tapping her knuckles softly, pretending it was a comforting gesture.

"Rebecca..." he whispered with a trembling breath, his voice almost cracking, not from genuine remorse, but from pressure. "I know you’re hurting. I can feel it. And I know I’ve failed to give you all the answers you deserved. That’s on me. That’s my mistake."

She didn’t respond. Her eyes didn’t move. Again Samuel took the silence as a small opening.

"I just want you to know," he continued, shifting his tone as he subtly tried to bait her, "that I understand how something like this doesn’t just happen out of the blue. You wouldn’t go this far unless someone pushed you, unless someone fed you lies or twisted things in your head. And I know exactly who that someone is."

Rebecca blinked once. Barely. But Samuel caught it.

"It’s Cora, isn’t it?" he asked softly, feigning sorrow. "That woman... I know she would be hovering around you. She’s always wanted to get in between us. You think I don’t know that? I do. She’s jealous. Bitter. She never got over the fact that I said no to her."

He tapped her hand again, this time more tenderly, lowering his gaze to seem broken. "That’s why she came to you. That’s why she whispered poison in your ears, trying to make you see me as a monster. But I’m not. You know I’m not. I’ve never stopped loving you, Rebecca. You and our daughter... You two are my entire world."

Again Samuel leaned in a bit more, trying to draw a response from her eyes. "And that’s exactly why I kept my distance for a while. You don’t know what it’s like out there. People like Cora... they’ll do anything to tear someone down, especially someone like me. That’s why I needed to protect you. To protect us. But I should’ve told you. I should’ve told you everything."

He gently placed her hand over his heart. "I’m sorry, Rebecca. I truly am. If I had explained things better... if I had trusted you more... maybe none of this would have happened. Maybe we wouldn’t be here, like this."

His voice lowered into a whisper, as if he was confessing a sacred truth. "I’m very, very sorry."

At that moment, Rebecca’s eyes were like blazing coals. Her hands trembled not out of fear, but from holding back the storm raging within her. With one sharp, swift motion, she yanked her hand out of Samuel’s grip, her face twisting into an expression so filled with rage and hurt that it made even the arrogant man take a step back.

"Don’t you dare touch me," she said, her voice cracking but strong, bitter with pain. "You disgust me, Samuel."

Immediately Samuel opened his mouth to speak again, but Rebecca raised a hand to silence him.

"I wasn’t even supposed to be here," she hissed. "But I came. You want to know why? I came because I wanted to see what kind of lie you would cook up this time. I wanted to see what version of the truth you would invent for me today, Samuel. Because that’s what you do best, isn’t it? Lie. Manipulate. Twist things around until you look like a victim and I look like a fool."

Her voice rose, not in hysteria, but in fury. "Do I look like a child to you? Like someone who doesn’t think, who can’t reason for herself? Do you think I’ve lost my mind completely? How many years, Samuel? How many years has it been since you abandoned us, me, and your daughter? Huh? How many years did you pretend like we didn’t even exist?"

At that moment Samuel swallowed hard, but she didn’t wait for his answer. She didn’t need one.

"You think you can come in here and blame another woman for everything? That lady, yes, the same one you’re demonizing right now, she didn’t whisper lies to me. She helped me. She brought me things we needed when you were nowhere to be found. She paid my hospital bills, she bought food, she gave our daughter a reason to smile again. And you know what else she did?"