Love Beyond the Mask by Adelaide Sinclair

Chapter 287

Within the oppressive walls of Banyan City Penitentiary, Bryce, accompanied by a lawyer, discreetly escorted Whitney inside.

The visiting room was steeped in a cold, unnerving silence. When Whitney laid eyes on her uncle, now a mere shadow of his former self-gaunt and pale as if life had been drained out of him-tears cascaded down her cheeks uncontrollably. "Uncle..." she choked out.

Keegan, equally overwhelmed, struggled to sit down with the aid of a cane. His eyes were rimmed red as he stammered, "Whitney, it's been three years... I feared Ludwik had sought his revenge on you, making your life a living hell." Indeed, Whitney's last three years were a tale too complex and painful for simple words.

Bryce, having bribed the guards for a momentary reprieve, returned and comforted Whitney with a gentle pat on the shoulder. "Let's focus on the matter at hand."

"Uncle, this is the lawyer I've hired. He's recording our conversation. There are no bugs here, so quickly, tell us everything about what happened a month ago. You're the only one who knows the truth."

"It was a setup!" Keegan slammed his hand on the table, his voice laced with urgency. "A month ago, my cellmate was suddenly thrown into solitary without explanation. Then, they brought in a new inmate, Lyle, a burly ex-truck driver. I kept my distance, fearing him... But that very night, he forced pills down my throat!"

Whitney clenched her fists.

Keegan continued, "I didn't know what those pills were, but after three days, I began feeling violent and delirious. Then, they accused me of starting a fight with Lyle, a segment of time I have no memory of. Later, Lyle coerced me into the bathroom where he gave me one final pill, and I blacked out. When I came to, I was holding a sharpened toothbrush, its end buried in Lyle's throat."

The room was heavy with a silence that bore the weight of injustice and despair.

"Drugs are the key," Kelvin, the lawyer, deduced grimly.

quickly drew a blood sample from her uncle, hoping to find traces of the drugs used against him. "Think, Uncle. Did Lyle ever mention anything that could give

about how his family had settled abroad after receiving a fortune," Keegan recalled bitterly. "A clear case

the blood sample secured, Whitney mapped out their next steps, including

"Thank you," Whitney expressed, her spirits lifted by the prospect of the company's relaunch. She extended an invitation to Bryce to join Skye Gem Ltd. as its Chief Advisor, a proposal

herself trapped in a passionate embrace, her protests fading into muffled acquiescence under the fervent advances of

of Banyan City and its inhabitants, each maneuvering in a high-stakes game where the lines between ally and enemy blurred.

was between us is ancient history. We went our separate ways. What are you doing running from New York to Miami?" "I've missed you. All these years, couldn't shake your

view of the glasses on the table. His eyes narrowed slightly as he discreetly dropped a powder into one of the glasses. Elaine observed his silhouette and posture; he was indeed a top-tier catch back in New York, especially being the adopted son of Jason Lippert, a high-profile general. But compared to Ludwik, Jason's biological son, Jarvis just

with him was just

now. We're getting married soon. You should forget

smile, grabbed her waist, and spun her onto his

Elaine's face flushed instantly.

Ludwik since he was married, so you

well. Can

in

his arrival in Miami was abrupt, especially given he was Ludwik's

resisted and slid off his lap, "I love Ludwik. Everyone in our circle knows he's the only one for me.

up a glass, "But we can at least share a drink for old times' sake, right?" Elaine wanted