Memories of Carter were one of the few highlights in the tapestry of his past.


    A pang of sympathy struck me, and my hand reached out instinctively toward Colin''s, only to recoil


    before contact.


    What kind of person had I be? Was there a future for Colin and me?


    "Phoebe... you''re not a bad person," said Colin, his grip firm on my hand.


    In moments of self-doubt, he steadfastly believed in me.


    "Do you know why Finn changed his name?" Colin seemed eager to lighten the mood, straining to


    shift the conversation. "After Carter''s death, he was haunted by nightmares, believing Carter''s ghost


    was following him, that... Carter was still with him. He even got electrocuted at home, said he saw a


    ghost."


    Colin chuckled. "His parents consulted all sorts of specialists to exorcise the ghost, but eventually, a


    therapist said it was a hallucination from the shock. But Finn wasn''t reassured, so he had a fortune-


    teller change his name to ward off Carter''s spirit." Colin fell silent.


    His grip tightened around my hand, his Adam''s apple bobbing.


    Looking at Colin, I should have found the story amusing, but I couldn''t muster a smile.


    I saw his effort to cheer me up. His clumsy tenderness was heart-wrenching.


    "I just want you to be happy... but I always mess things up." Colin''s voice was hoarse as his grip


    loosened.


    The rest of our walk was silent; neither of us spoke again.


    Back home, I secluded myself in Colin''s basement.


    Staring at the web of clues on the wall, I was lost in thought.


    Who was Colin so protective of?


    It seemed his concernsy with two people: Carter and ''Phoebe''.


    Both were ''deceased''.


    The clues on the wall captivated me for a long time.


    From mistrusting ''Foebe Larson'' to now doubting ''Phoebe Caldwell'', I felt caught in a vast


    conspiracy.


    Perhaps regaining my memory wouldn''t be enough to untangle this mystery. Behind the fogy a


    deeper fog, and beyond the mountain, another mountain.


    Leaving the basement, Eric sighed. "Colin... he''s been drinking."


    I paused.


    Colin was drinking?


    With his injuries, what was he doing drinking?


    "Eric..." I was anxious to check on Colin but then remembered the All-Stars Consortium''s CEO.


    "The charity g..."


    Had the charity g been a sess?


    Eric looked surprised. "Didn''t he tell you? Seems he drank too much before he had the chance..."


    Eric continued, "He sold all hiswful shares to the CEO of the All-Stars Consortium. Your and the


    kid''s mishap must have shaken him. He''d give up everything for your safety."


    So, regardless of whether Colin and I lived or died, the Langley family had changed hands.


    I was shocked at Colin''s revtion, an extreme measure I''d never dared imagine.


    Colin had sold the Langley Group!


    This fool! Without those shares, he also lost leverage and enraged Henry, who could now take his


    life at any moment!


    Although Henry lost his reason to kill me, Colin would be branded a traitor to the Langley family.


    They would never forgive Colin!


    Why did he always bear all the pressure alone?


    "Bang!"


    Exclusive content ? by N?(v)el/Dr/ama.Org.


    Suddenly, barking erupted from the backyard, amotion from the house; Eric and I panicked and


    ran toward the bedroom.