Fool Me Once のすべてのチャプター: チャプター 121 - チャプター 130

Cassie’s POVThe silence in the boardroom was like nothing that had ever been experienced there before. No carefully prepared presentation, no carefully devised key talking points. Just men and women who were real, imperfect men and women, facing across the highly polished walnut table, uncertain what the future held when the mask had fallen.At the head of the table, Jeffery sat, his back straightened up and face calm, but his knuckles were white against the dark wood. The man who once bore the weight of his father's legacy was now carrying the weight of his own redemption.By his side, I sat - not as the girl who lingered in the background or the female who found herself in the throes of scandal, but as an equal. An addition to the board, yes - my placard proudly sported my initials, but the aura that enveloped me was that of victory won through the battles of war.Jeffery cleared his throat and spoke. "Our shareholders deserve to know the truth. Our employees deserve a future found

Jeffery’s POVI stared at the text on Cassie's phone long after she'd handed it to me, the message glowing like a warning signal in the dark:Your mother lied again.The words curled inside my gut like poison. Not because I believed them but because someone out there wanted Cassie to unravel. Someone who knew precisely where to cut her.Edward's network... the 'ghost signals' in Geneva... the photo... the anonymous voice on the telephone line.It was no longer about my father. This was now an organized attack.And the next hit landed less than twelve hours later.***I was in the study with an already half-composed email glowing brightly on the computer screen - a courteous request for an undercover Swiss investigator when my private line phone rang. The number was unknown to me, but something about the international code made my skin tighten."Richards," I answered.A woman's voice slipped through the line like silk dipped in ice."You don't know me yet," said the voice, "but your fa

Jeffery’s POVThe flight to Geneva had been long and tiring, but sleep was impossible. My thoughts were a blur due to Cassie's worried eyes, Elise's smirk when she handed me the DNA results, and the goddamn envelope that started all this.Now I stood outside the cold, modernist vault nestled beneath one of Edward's many shell corporations. The receptionist barely looked up as I signed in. Whatever Edward had stashed down here, it wasn't just money. It was a legacy. All lies in smoke and mirrors.The vault buzzed open after biometric confirmation — Edward's retina scan was still on file, but I had full access as the next of kin.When I got inside, I moved slowly, not from fear but from reverence. My father's sins clung to the air like the scent of old tobacco — sharp, cloying, and impossible to ignore. The floor-to-ceiling shelves lined the chamber, and in the center stood a desk stacked with file boxes, a thick metal case locked by fingerprint and a digital passcode. Next to it was a

Jeffery’s POVThe boardroom had never felt this claustrophobic before.Not during my father’s worst scandal, not even during the Celine fallout. And absolutely not even when I was ousted and dragged through the press. But this... this was different.This was betrayal blooming in real time, right through my nose.Twelve people sat around the table, but only six looked me in the eye. The others… were already hers.Elise.She sat directly across from me, poised like she belonged here, as if she had always belonged here. Her black suit was sharp and deliberate; it was expensive in a quiet but terrifying way. She hadn’t said much, but the silence around her was louder than a war drum.She didn’t need to fight. She let the board do it for her.“We can’t ignore the DNA test,” Graham, one of the senior members, said, tapping the polished oak table. “If Edward fathered a child outside the marriage, and she has legal documentation, she’s entitled to a claim.”“To a seat on the board?” Cassie’s

Jeffery’s POVI stood on the steps of the courthouse, with the flashbulbs popping like machine-gun fire.Behind me, the world believed the lie I'd just told."I had no knowledge of Cassie Jones's financial misconduct," I said, my voice sharp, clipped, and hollow. "Our personal relationship ended before this investigation began."The crowd gasped while reporters shouted questions.One asked if I still loved her, and I stared straight into the camera, then looked away.Because I did.And this was the only way to keep her safe - for now.Twenty minutes later, the car door slammed shut as I entered, and the tinted windows sealed me off from the world while Miguel sat beside me, watching quietly."You sold it well," he said. "They bought it."I let out a breath that felt like I'd been holding it for years."She's hiding in a safehouse, but Elise has eyes everywhere. We needed time, and this gives her a head start."Miguel nodded once, then handed me a folder."Edward left breadcrumbs. Not