Love Beyond the Mask by Adelaide Sinclair

Chapter 157

Her heart shattered like a delicate wine glass dropped on a stone floor, and she could barely muster the strength to keep her trembling fingers still.

He cradled the back of her head, wishing he could merge her into his very being. If it were not for the child they were expecting, he would have pinned her down and never let go.

Whitney felt the storm raging within him, and her tears cascaded down her cheeks, glistening like pearls, tapping softly against his skin.

Her small hands clenched into fists against his chest and neck, only to unfurl, powerlessly relaxing.

Eyes closed, she mourned silently, “Mom, Grandpa, forgive me for this betrayal, this shame. It’s the last time, I swear. Maybe… Maybe it’s all a mistake? Maybe it’s not him?”

Soon, the fever and the drunken haze pulled him into the void, and his lips loosened.

Whitney slumped next to the bed, her mind a whirlwind. She hastily rummaged through her bag and pulled out her grandfather’s contact book.

Skimming through it desperately, she stumbled upon a torn page with a single name: Bartels.

Bartels?

The following pages were all missing.

If her grandpa had not torn them out, then who did, and why were the pages with Ludwik’s name still intact?

A memory flashed in her mind of her uncle mentioning that before coming to Banyan City, her Grandpa had been pushed out of the medical field by unscrupulous competition.

The only Bartels she knew was Elaine, and the Bartels were a dynasty in the medical field of Emperor City!

Could it be a coincidence? Was it the Bartels who forced her Grandpa to leave, leading him to Banyan City?

As her head spun with these thoughts, Whitney suddenly considered that maybe the name Ludwik in the address book was a red herring.

She looked up at the feverish man before her, her heart pounding on hot coals. “Ludwik, it wasn’t you, was it?” She whispered hoarsely, clutching the ring in her hand as everything began to heat up.

Downstairs, Natalie was relieved to see Whitney had not come down. But as dizziness took hold of her, Taryn suggested they call the family doctor to stay with her.

Just then, the house phone rang. Taryn answered it and hesitated before speaking, “Ms. Natalie, it’s Ms. Elaine. She wants to visit for New Year’s Eve. Shall I invite her?”

Natalie frowned, the thought of that girl sending shivers down her spine, and fear bloomed within her.

and Whitney upstairs, she shook her head. “Decline her. Tell her we’re having a family reunion.”

the message as

her assistant relayed Taryn’s words. She had planned to use this New Year’s Eve to get closer to Ludwik, especially since Whitney would not be back because of her blunder with the company’s project. It would be the

hearing what her assistant had said, her fingers clutched with resentment. “What? A family reunion? No way Ludwik

had to

teeth. She

opportunity to celebrate New Year’s Eve with Ludwik. Yet, Natalie was way too

certain she would not be able

reunion, it will be their last.” She snickered as if certain of Whitney’s doom.

his eyes, still feverish and dizzy from the alcohol. His throat felt scorched, but he caught sight of

the temperature–controlled room, she lay uncovered, and with their child growing inside her, Ludwik’s brows furrowed with

at

woman’s pale face was etched with exhaustion. As she met his gaze, he saw a flicker of complex emotions, a softening from

weak,” Whitney advised in a raspy voice.

you been crying?” His voice was even more hoarse, his energy

to the snowy dawn

mingling with the raw vulnerability of the past days. Without hatred, perhaps

she spoke, “Take

was too weak even to lift

had a fever. You need to rest, or even

before finally asking, “What about the five–star hotel project? The investors are bound to make a fuss. What’s

his face flushed with fever. “It’s manageable. I have other companies. I’ll reallocate funds to cover the

other global enterprise, which

no idea Whitney already knew

him in, and he feebly reached for her hand, “The real issue is,

ring on.”

instead grasped his

leave you. Look.” She sobbed softly, showing him

in surprise, then softened into

his smile, intertwining her fingers with his. “I’ll try again. To stay by your side.

love you, Ludwik.” She said his real name in her

closed his eyes for

When you wake up, we’ll face it together,” she whispered, injecting him

He needed rest.

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sound asleep, taking the contact book from her bag. It was time to confront her uncle to prove that