Alyssa was quiet on the way from Belbanks to Sna City. There was no hint of her good mood from
days ago. Her face was shrouded in gloominess.
Back at the hotel, she kept Sean out and locked herself in her office. Then, she plunged into her
investigations about L’s incident years ago.
“The anniversary celebration was the darkest moment in L’s life. Yet, it was because of this incident
that her rtionship with Winston Taylor blossomed,” wrote an article.
“The inte was in its early stages back in those days. People read their news from magazines or
newspapers.
“Winston Taylor was rumored to have bought all the publications that reported on the incident and
destroyed all the evidence to suppress the news.
“On top of that, he meted out punishments for the reporters who penned stories on L’s mishap.”
“Still, there were some foreign media at the event. Someone filmed the incident and uploaded it to the
inte. Winston Taylor had sent his men to take the videos down, but fragments of it lingered on the
Belonging ? N?velDram/a.Org.
inte.”
Alyssa inhaled deeply and stared keenly at theputer screen while typing away furiously. Before
long, she unearthed a blurry recording of the event that had remained buried for over two decades.
In the video, a visibly pale L Nelson was half squatting and shaking violently. She appeared
vulnerable,
teetering on the brink of a breakdown.
The spotlight shone mercilessly on top of her head, further intensifying her despair. The audience’s
horrified gasps and mocking jeers inundated her, almost drowning and crushing her.
At that moment, a tall figure rushed up to the stage and marched steadily toward her. Alyssa could tell
he
was Winston from the look of his back.
Without a word, he swiftly removed his jacket, knelt before L, and secured it around her waist.
A hushed silence fell over the audience. Then, the recording abruptly ended.
Alyssa stared nkly at the screen. She leaned into the chair with slumped shoulders. Was that how
Winston won L’s heart?
She mused, “Interesting? That old man is certainly an expert in wooing women. He could very well
have
founded his own school on the subject.”
She was interrupted by her phone’s ringing. Gathering herself, she picked up her phone and said,
“Sean,
what is it?”
“Landon Harper is here with his sister.”
Alyssa initially wished to turn Landon and Zoe away due to her foul mood over L’s past incident, but
she changed her mind when Sean revealed that Landon had brought Zoe over to offer an apology.
Perhaps the sight of a disgruntled Zoe would lift her spirits. She decided to see it as a form of
entertainment, as finding joy in another’s misfortune could be rather satisfying.
Sean, his expression marked by a frown, came to her by the entrance of the guest meeting room. He
whispered, “Sorry, Ms. Alyssa. I wasn’t informed that Jasper Beckett had tagged along as well. He’s in
there.”
She looked at him coldly and asked, “Why didn’t you punch him in the face and kick him out?”
“I’m sorry, Ms. Alyssa,” replied Sean, who knew he didn’t do his job right.
The problem was that Jasper was sneaky. When Sean led Landon and Zoe into the meeting room,
Jasper
wasn’t there.
However, when Sean came back to check, he was aghast to see that bastard sitting on the couch and
sipping coffee unabashed.
“Whatever. You can’t beat him anyway,” scorned Alyssa, who gestured at Sean to open the door with a
lift
of her chin.
Then, she strutted into the room with a regal air in her high heels and ck suit.
“Lyse…” Landon rose from the couch. His throat was dry from the nervousness.
Alyssa was as breathtaking as usual. She looked just like a beautiful and heartless gangster. Her
beauty
shook him.
Jasper nced at Alyssa, feeling tense all over. His heart skipped a beat.
All the while, Zoe was hiding behind Landon, staring squarely at Alyssa’s haughty expression with
clenched fists.
“Wow. Everyone’s here,” remarked Alyssa, who shook off her jacket from her shoulders. Sean promptly
received it.
Next, she turned to Jasper, who had been staring at her. She snickered. “Oh, Jasper, you are such a
darling. Are you here to lend your support for Ms. Harper?”
The way Alyssa mimicked Zoe’s tone irked Jasper. He shot her a begrudging look and coughed in
anger
at her taunting expression.
Alyssa had been mean to him as usual and would say things that he hated. That was Alyssa for you.
She
was no Alice White. And Jasper was willing to deal with a rose with thorns.
Zoe was gleeful to see Alyssa misunderstood Jasper’s purpose of visit. She grabbed her chance and
trotted over to Jasper with a pitiful look.
“Alyssa, I was a bad judge of character, that I admit. But why are you getting worse by the day as
well?”
Jasper remained poised and looked at her with an expression that wasn’tpletely innocent.
Jasper stated, “I’m not anyone’s lover. I’m just your ex-husband. I was exhausted enough as a
husband. I had no time and mood for anyone else.”
Hearing that, Zoe stood frozen as though she was struck by lightning. Jasper had cleared the air with
her some time ago, but she refused to let go and clung to her delusions.
The way he rified his rtionship with Zoe in front of Alyssa was a p to her face.
“I am indeed here to lend some support, but not to Ms. Harper,”mented Jasper, who quickly hid his
embarrassment by sipping coffee.
He forced himself to down the piping hot coffee, scalding his tongue in the process.
He was fine with these sentiments roaming his mind. Dering them out loud, however, was rather
embarrassing.
Frowning, Alyssa was surprised by the meaning behind his words. Who else would he lend his support
to if not Zoe? Was he here to support Landon?
Well, that was no different from supporting Zoe!