More than a year of searching and investigating, even the police couldn't find anything. But why did suddenly all the evidence appear now?
“You still want to believe that bastard?” Old Master Huxley was fuming, seeing how Gerard was still questioning the evidence right under his nose.“But.. What was his motive?” Gerard’s hand was clenched tightly; he crumpled the papers he was holding.Old Master Huxley quickly took the papers away from Gerard, afraid he would ruin them.“His motive? Did you not read their chats? It’s to make you the sole heir of the Huxley Group and Ivy as his daughter, and your wife will get the benefits!” Old Master Huxley answered with annoyance and especially emphasized the words ‘your wife’ to Gerard.Gerard was too shocked and in a state of disbelief that his mind was blank, and he couldn't remember much of what was written. Hearing his grandfather’s words, he became even more doubtful.Ivy’s family was a wealthy, middle-class family. If Gerard became the sole heir of the Huxley Group, Ivy would indeed gain more benefits, especially if he died.But all these times, Ivy’s dad seemed content with what they had. He never even asked for the help of the Huxley Group to further his career. He wasn't the type of person who was greedy.“Grandpa... Could the evidence be faked?” No matter what, Gerard was still in doubt. Knowing Ivy’s dad’s character, he would not have the courage to do it.Old Master Huxley slammed his hand on the table. He was so angry that Gerard was still talking up the murderer of his grandson, Gerard’s own biological brother!While he was fuming, the police came into the Huxley Manor.They were very polite and professional, knowing the identity of the Huxley Group.“This is all the evidence my investigator had collected. Go to Ivy’s family’s house and investigate everything properly. If he’s found guilty like the evidence pointed out, arrest him!” Old Master Huxley said with authority.The police knew what to do. They were involved in the case before, but the lead died off, so they couldn't do anything at that time. With these new leads, they acted fast and went straight to Ivy’s dad’s place with a search warrant.“You stay here until we have news from the police!” Old Master Huxley ordered Gerard.Gerard wanted to leave, but hearing his grandfather’s words, he had no choice but to stay put.His mind was in a daze. He felt that there were many loopholes in the whole thing.That day, when his brother was murdered, Ivy and Mia were kidnapped. The kidnappers called Gerard and his brother to come and save them. The problem was they were kept at different locations.Gerard, Ivy’s husband, naturally went to save Ivy, while Gerard’s brother went to save Mia.When Gerard arrived, he saw Ivy being tied and gagged, with tears streaming down her face. Gerard was heartbroken to see Ivy in such a state and quickly went to untie her, only to be shot in the arms by the kidnapper.Gerard, being used to fighting, could easily subdue the kidnapper even though he was injured. He didn't think of the reason why there was only one kidnapper there and how easy it was to save Ivy. All he could think about was to bring Ivy to the hospital as soon as possible to check for any injuries.Fortunately, the doctor found nothing wrong with Ivy, only that she was shocked and scared. Gerard had also his wound treated.When he was looking at Ivy sleeping peacefully, he suddenly heard a commotion and found out that his brother had been killed with multiple gunshot wounds; even Mia suffered from a single gunshot wound, just like he did.He was devastated over his brother's death and found out from Mia that when Louis arrived to save her, he was shot once but still managed to free Mia from being tied. But the kidnapper kept shooting his brother. It was apparent that he wanted to kill Louis. Mia tried to stop the kidnapper from shooting more bullets into Louis’ body. But she got shot instead.The puzzling thing was after the kidnapper put lots of bullets inside Louis’ body, he committed suicide. And that was when Mia called Old Master Huxley using Louis’ phone, and the police came to save them, but it was too late for Louis to be saved.Louis’ death was a devastating blow to the whole family. Gerard became depressed since he was close to Louis, but fortunately, Ivy was there for him. He was difficult to handle during his depression, but Ivy didn't give up. She still showed him warmth and took great care of him until he recovered.The police investigated the matter at that time. They found out that before Ivy and Mia were kidnapped, they were at Ivy’s house with her dad. The surveillance cameras in the house showed them being in Ivy’s dad's office. They said they were doing their assignments for their classes, and it was an everyday occurrence for them to study together.After that, they left for the mall, and that was when they got kidnapped.Gerard found out from the police that Ivy’s kidnapper had also committed suicide. The calls they received came from the kidnappers’ phones, but there was nothing else on the phone. And thus, the lead went cold.Of course, Old Master Huxley didn't give up on searching for justice for his elder grandson. He asked the Huxley private investigator to look into the case.It had been over a year, and at last, they found the evidence of the crimes.But Gerard still didn't want to believe it. He knew Ivy’s dad was not a murderer. Why would he kidnap Ivy at the same time if it was his own doing?While Gerard’s mind was in a mess, Old Master Huxley’s phone rang. He picked it up and listened to the other person’s voice. His face looked grim and turned darker by the end of the phone call.“Arrest him!” Old Master Huxley bellowed and hung up the call.“Grandpa?” Gerard was scared of hearing what would happen, but he needed to know. After all, it was related to the murder of his brother.“The police found the email exchanged between him and the kidnappers. And he had the nerve to email them in front of Ivy and Mia, acting like nothing was happening!” Old Master Huxley was fuming. His face became red, and his chest moved up and down violently.He emailed them in front of Ivy and Mia? Was it during the time they were in the study together before they got kidnapped?Nigel quickly gave him a cup of tea to calm his Master.After sipping the cup of tea, Old Master Huxley looked sharply at Gerard. “Divorce Ivy!” he ordered again.“But Grandpa, Ivy knew nothing about it,” Gerard still defended Ivy.He didn't want to divorce her. She was the love of his life. She was always there when he was feeling low and helped him to come out of his depression, whether after his parents or brother died.“Divorce her, or I’ll kill myself!” Old Master Huxley roared, which stunned Gerard.His grandfather had given him a hard choice, and Gerard was caught in a dilemma. He didn't want to divorce Ivy, but he didn't want his grandpa to kill himself either.In the end, he chose to divorce Ivy, thinking he would investigate the matter after divorcing Ivy, and proved that Ivy’s dad was not the mastermind behind Louis’ death. He firmly believed Ivy’s dad was not that type of man. Gerard felt something fishy was going on, like someone deliberately framed Ivy’s dad.After he proved that Ivy’s dad was innocent, then he would remarry Ivy, or so he thought.He knew Ivy wouldn't agree to their divorce if he asked her nicely or even told her about what his dad had done. She most probably would join hands with Gerard to find out the truth.So, he sought out Mia’s help and told her about his plan to act like they were lovers and let Ivy see them together.The plan went well. Ivy saw them together and signed the divorce paper. Gerard was heartbroken when he saw Ivy’s signature on the divorce paper, but he knew it would only be temporary.But what he didn't expect was that Ivy was pregnant. When he saw the pregnancy report Ivy left behind, he became frantic and quickly searched for Ivy, but it was too late...Gerard searched around the hotel but couldn't find Ivy, which made him anxious. Did she go home?He called North and asked if he had driven Ivy back home, but North replied that he had left once he had dropped Ivy at the Starlight Hotel. Gerard became even more frantic. Where could Ivy go? Then he remembered the bridge he used to bring her to watch the sunrise and sunset. She loved it there; could she have gone to the bridge?Gerard quickly walked out of the hotel but was stopped by his bodyguard. Gerard had two trusted bodyguards other than North, and the one in front of him, Fred, was one of them.Fred was panting and sweating as if he had run quickly to find Gerard.“What happened?” Gerard asked quickly.“Boss... The Missus..” the bodyguard looked nervous, scared, and hesitant to continue.His reaction only made Gerard more anxious. “What happened? What happened to her? Tell me!”“The missus... The missus..” Fred gulped, afraid to say his following words.“TELL ME!” Gerard roared
North was worried sick looking at his boss’ condition at present - pale face, beads of sweat formed on his forehead, fast and short breathing, and his body shaking badly.Hearing his boss’ words, North moved fast.He reached into his pocket, took off a small medicine bottle, and handed his boss two pills.Gerard popped the pills into his mouth without even needing water, nearly dropping them in the process due to his shaking hand.North was anxious, looking at his boss. He knew what his boss was thinking when he had his episode. The only thing that could set off his boss’ panic attack was the thought of Ivy’s death. No one knew of Gerard’s condition except his psychologist, North, William, and no one else - not even his trusted bodyguards or Old Master Huxley.William and North always carried a bottle of Gerard’s anti-panic medication in case he had an attack and needed it. They were always prepared to give him his medication anytime and anywhere as long as they were with him.North w
Once they landed at Modestria, a car was already waiting for them. They went straight to the Moonlight Hotel, another hotel owned by the Huxley Group.When they arrived at the hotel, Gerard and Mia waited in the lounge while William went to get their keys.While they were waiting, suddenly, a man, a butler, approached Gerard.“Mr. Huxley, I am the butler of Senator Morgan. He heard of your arrival at Modestria and would like to invite you to his birthday banquet tonight,” the butler bowed a little as he handed an invitation card to Gerard with both hands.Gerard took the invitation languidly and had a mind to refuse, but then the butler added, “It is a special banquet. Senator Morgan will introduce his wife for the first time to the invitees. He hopes Mr. Huxley could attend as the representative of the Huxley Group.”Gerard raised an eyebrow. Senator Sebastian had taken a wife? He knew then this was important, so he had no choice but to agree to attend.Once the butler heard his word
Mia didn't know why, but she felt very anxious even though she had heard the girl was called ‘Amelie’ instead of ‘Ivy’.There couldn't be people with identical voices. There just couldn't, she thought.“You... You don't have to keep going. The dress looks nice, and I believe it’d suit me perfectly. Just help me take it off and wrap it for me,” Mia told the sales assistant who was helping her.There was only one thing on her mind now: to run out of the dressing room and see this Amelie person.“Hurry up!” Mia shouted to the sales assistant, who took too long to get the dress off. Her well-behaved, gentle, and kind demeanor was no longer visible as she shouted at the sales assistant and fidgeted in her spot.The sales assistant was stunned and scared after being shouted at, and she hurriedly loosened the lace at the back of the dress, not caring if the delicate materials could be ruined. This person would buy it anyhow, she thought.Once out of the dress, Mia quickly donned her own dre
Gerard shrugged, hearing Nathan’s question. He then answered lightly, “One can never get enough money or power.” If he were more powerful back then, he would be able to save Ivy. He wouldn't need to listen to his grandfather’s requests.Still with a gentle smile, Nathan took a sip of wine before throwing another provoking sentence. “As can be expected from the Ice King of Artea.”Gerard also took another sip of his wine before answering Nathan with a lazy smile. “Surely I can't be compared to the Cunning Fox of Esmea.”They both looked at each other with a smile on their exquisitely handsome faces. It looked and sounded like they were complimenting each other, but William knew they were asserting their dominance.Suddenly William saw an image of an Ice King above Gerard’s head, looking down coldly at the image of a small orange fox above Nathan’s head. But even if the fox was way smaller, it wasn’t afraid of the Ice King; it instead smiled cunningly.William shivered as he felt their
Gerard’s body was trembling as he held Ivy from behind, feeling the familiar softness of her body. He lowered his head and buried his face at the top of her head, inhaling her scent. She still has the same faint rose smell, Gerard thought.“Ivy, I’ve missed you so much,” Gerard mumbled.Gerard was so immersed in his feelings that he didn't notice that the woman in his arms had turned pale and that extreme fear was etched on her beautiful face.“Why didn't you come back to me? Why did you pretend to die? Why did you leave?” Gerard asked her a barrage of questions softly.The moment Gerard uttered his questions, the woman in his arms began struggling.Gerard was confused, yet he tightened his hold on her. “Ivy, it’s me, Gerard, your husband.”After hearing that he was her husband, he thought the woman would settle down, but she struggled even more violently until she broke free from his hold.The woman quickly but clumsily ran away from him.“Ivy!” Gerard called her and ran after her.Un
When Amelie arrived at the private lounge, and Ellie led her to sit on the sofa, her body started trembling, and her face turned pale. She was afraid...She had been afraid ever since she was forced to be held in the arms of the man in the garden. She was scared when they were seated at the same table during dinner.It was fortunate that she was able to maintain her calm, gentle, and elegant demeanor due to her hard effort not to embarrass or make her husband angry for her not having any poised.But she was afraid... Afraid of that man.“Amelie, Amelie!” Ellie’s voice broke her out of her reverie.“Jesus, Amelie, are you alright? You are shaking and look as pale as a sheet.” Ellie was worried, looking at her friend’s condition.“I’m fine,” Amelie croaked. She cleared her throat to make her sound return to normal. “I’m fine, Ellie. Just a little bit tired. You know I don't like being in a crowd.”Ellie knew her friend hated being surrounded by so many people due to her blindness. She wo
Ivy naturally knew why Mia came to her. Firstly, it was because she looked like Ivy, and Mia might want to ensure her identity. Secondly, she wanted to let everyone know that she was Gerard’s fiance. It would be beneficial for her if she were really Ivy in Mia’s mind - to stop Ivy from pestering Gerard or thinking of getting back together with Gerard.Unfortunately, Ivy would never return to the man who tried to murder her. Even being in the near vicinity of him made her so afraid. She was scared he would try to kill her again, especially if he knew Amelie was actually Ivy.“Oh, I’m sorry for being so brazen, Mrs. Morgan. I didn't mean anything by this, but you look too much like my best friend,” Mia answered Ivy’s previous question.Ivy was surprised when she heard the word ‘best friend’ from Mia’s mouth. Would your best friend sleep with your husband and have an affair with him while he was married to you? She felt Mia was insulting the word ‘best friend’.“Your best friend?” Ivy pre