Marrying A Secret Zillionaire: Happy Ever After Novel

Chapter 856: A cold shiver snaked its way down her back. Gorman, cool as a cucumber, didn't miss a beat and breezed out of the room, his steps practically bouncing. The hotel room fell quiet, holding just Linsey, Caylee, and the tiny Zander nestled in Linsey's arms. After a moment, Linsey's fingers softly danced through Zander's downy hair. She leaned in close, her voice a gentle whisper. "Be a good boy, Zander. Your sister's in there, out like a light. Why don't you slip in and snuggle up with her?

I need a quick word with Caylee." Zander gave a small nod and tiptoed into the room, easing the door shut with a soft click. That faint sound snuffed out the last flicker of hope Caylee had been clinging to. The last, frail glimmer of hope in Caylee was extinguished as the door clicked gently shut. Without a word, Linsey moved with a grim, no-turning-back resolve to the sofa and sank into it. The brutal showdown with Gorman had clearly wrung her dry, sapping her strength. But she knew this mess was far from settled.

Caylee sucked in a shaky breath, her hands locked so tight her knuckles gleamed white. She took a hesitant step toward Linsey. "Why?" Linsey's voice sliced through the thick silence, sharp and out of nowhere. ᗰ尺乇 ひ卩ᗪ卂ㄒ乇丂 丨几 galηveƖs. ¢σм That single word hit like a thunderbolt. Caylee got it in a heartbeat-Linsey had seen right through the whole charade. Linsey was no fool; Gorman hadn't needed to spell it out for her to connect the dots. The offhand way Gorman had bossed Caylee around, like she was just a piece on his chessboard, sealed it. This wasn't a one-off; it was a pattern.

And it explained why, ever since she rolled back into Grester, Gorman always seemed one step ahead, like he had a tracker on her life. He was always in the know first. Caylee had been his eyes and ears, the mole right in her orbit, feeding Gorman every scrap of intel. Caylee's voice broke, heavy with tears she hadn't let fall. "Linsey, I'm so sorry. I swear, I was backed into a corner... My grandma's really sick, needs surgery bad, and I didn't have a dime. Mr. Green was the only one who'd help. I'm telling you, I had no choice...

After pausing for a moment, she continued, "My grandma's all I've got, Linsey. We're all each other has. I couldn't let her go... my only family. Please, you gotta believe me. I didn't do anything shady for Mr. Green... swear I didn't..." Linsey let out a long, slow breath, her voice dropping to a frosty edge. "And what exactly counts as 'shady' to you, Caylee?" The casual, almost mocking question landed like a sucker punch. Caylee stared at Linsey's blank, stone-cold face, her eyes burning, a sick dread twisting tight in her gut. A slow, eerie grin crept across Linsey's face.

"Gorman sure knows how to deal a winning hand." He had revealed Caylee's betrayal with surgical precision, striking when Linsey was vulnerable. . . .