Love Beyond the Mask by Adelaide Sinclair

Chapter 251

After parting ways with Orion, Whitney hopped into her car and immediately opened her text messages, eagerly awaiting Tiana’s current address.

But there was no text. Tiana had backed out.

Whitney sighed. The once fearless Tiana had now become so cautious.

She had no choice but to seek help from Bryce, asking him to dig up some information.

Bryce quickly provided her with a precise address.

After thanking him, Whitney drove off.

As the GPS guided her past the bustling downtown area, the neighborhoods grew shabbier, and she finally pulled up in front of a narrow, dilapidated old building.

Staring at the worn alley and the squalid surroundings, Whitney could not believe Tiana and her parents were hiding in a place like this.

What on earth had happened in the past three years to bring the Melford family to such a state? Taking a deep breath, Whitney got out of the car and slowly entered the building.

Just as she was about to knock, the door swung open, and she came face–to–face with the last person she expected.

Valerie, holding an empty can of baby formula, looked up, and her eyes widened in shock.

The two friends stood there, tears glistening in their eyes.

“Valerie,” Whitney called softly.

“Whit… Whitney?” Valerie dropped the can, her voice trailing off as she turned and called back into the apartment, “Tiana! It’s Whitney! She’s here!”

Footsteps echoed from inside.

Tiana appeared behind the door, her formerly round cheeks now slender, her long hair cut to a bob that brushed her pale shoulders.

The sweet, brash girl Whitney remembered from three years ago had transformed into a quiet, slick woman.

Her features were soft, with a hint of motherly allure, but her eyes lacked sparkle. She looked at Whitney in shock, tears welling up.

Whitney took another deep breath, her lips trembling as she stepped inside without a word.

“Whitney… What are you doing here?”

Tiana quickly wiped her eyes and cautiously glanced outside before swiftly shutting the door.

Chapter 251

observed Tiana

different from the spacious villa the Melford family once had. Tiana had been a

Tiana, I came back too late. Tell me everything that’s happened to you in these

Bryce got out… He managed to get word to me, and I knew you

reach out; she feared giving herself away, her wings not yet fully grown. She clenched her fists as she looked at Tiana. “My biggest regret is dragging you down with me!

three years,” Tiana replied with a

down and afraid, and it made Whitney’s heart feel as if it

I’ll do everything I can to back you up, to restore

understand the power of Ludwik Lippert, the

and all the subsequent horrors that ensued like a flood of wild beasts, causing her to shake her head almost

with sorrow and anger. “Tiana, the three of us have ended up like this all because of Elaine Bartels. You need to tell Whitney what you’ve been

make her feel worse,” Tíana tried

insisted. “We’ve been cowards for three years because of Elaine’s tyranny. How long will you keep

knees by a single word from Ludwik, and with Elaine manipulating behind the scenes, you’ve been pushed to the brink of begging!

countless wrongs, and I refuse to believe that no one can

story of Tiana’s visit to the sanitarium to save you, accusing you both of trying to slander her with a fake kidney donation, saying you deliberately went into early labor to spite Ludwik. That jerk believed it all and turned against you

Chapter 251

the Melford family, and Elaine quietly ran them into the ground,

also leaving them with a massive debt. Tiana was so vilified that no man would consider

daze, and if she had not needed to care for her parents, she might have taken her own life by then. What’s more despicable is

no choice but to have the child, and to this day, after so many men that night, we don’t know who the

her face turning a ghastly pale. “Stop talking!”

to hold her, “Ludwik abandoned her to her fate, and Elaine ruthlessly finished them off. Anytime Nolan Fuller and I tried to help Tiana, Elaine would whisper in Ludwik’s ear, and

threatening me, too. I’ve been useless!

desperate, somehow found work, only

minions.

broken, and the Melford family ended up

increasingly wary, to the point where she wouldn’t even see me. I could only secretly buy some

with a fiery red. Her friends were

was a tyrant; her misdeeds

should have had her pick of the most eligible bachelors in Banyan City. All ruined, a scandal, an unwed mother, three years

Tiana, Whitney only despised Ludwik and Elaine. However, now that she found out about how Ludwik had destroyed Tiana’s family and how he completely ignored Elaine’s sins, Whitney’s hatred for Ludwik and Elaine soared through

on a specific spot…

a baby’s cry

mommy…” The infant girl’s tender cries took

immediately rushed in. “Sweetheart, why are