Lahat ng Kabanata ng Beneath the Façade: Kabanata 81 - Kabanata 90

BENEATH THE FACADEBehind the façade of wealth and power, a web of secrets awaits.CHAPTER 82Emily’s POV: The gate creaked open.My fingers gripped the steering wheel harder than they needed to, my palms damp, knuckles pale. We were finally home, and yet my heart hadn’t stopped pounding since we left the safe house. Every bump on the road had felt like it might shatter this fragile moment, like something might still go wrong before we reached the front door.But now we were here.I saw her instantly—Nyla. She was pacing just outside the porch, her body tense like a spring wound too tight. The second our car rolled in, her head snapped toward us. Her eyes were wide, frantic, like she couldn’t believe we were real. Her lips parted, and for a second, she just… froze.Josh was fast asleep in Eddy’s arms, nestled into his chest like a soft bundle. His arms were tucked loosely around Eddy’s neck, his curly hair flattened on one side. Completely unaware of the storm waiting outside for him

BENEATH THE FACADEBehind the façade of wealth and power, a web of secrets awaits.Chapter 84Emily’s POV:The hum of the tires against the asphalt was steady, almost hypnotic, but my mind was far from calm. The road stretched out ahead, the late afternoon sun painting everything in a warm golden haze. I sat in the passenger seat, my fingers idly tracing the seam of my jeans, stealing glances at Eddy as he drove.Nyla’s house was already behind us, and with it, the weight of the reunion that had played out just hours ago. Josh’s laughter still echoed in my head—small, pure bursts that had made Nyla’s whole face light up like the sun after weeks of storms.I should have been happy. In a way, I was. But there was something else sitting in my chest. Something that refused to let go.Eddy’s hand was steady on the steering wheel, his profile sharp in the dimming light. I’d known him long enough to recognize that quiet focus, but today there was a softness too. A thoughtfulness.I cleared m

BENEATH THE FACADEBehind the façade of wealth and power, a web of secrets awaits.Chapter 86Emily’s POV: The afternoon light filtered in through the curtains, painting soft gold patterns across my bedroom floor. I sat cross-legged on my bed, a steaming mug of tea balanced in my palms. I had just walked out from the shower. The quiet felt like something rare, something fragile — a gift I didn’t dare disturb. For a while, I just stayed still, letting the silence wrap around me like a blanket.I had spent the morning cleaning — the kind of mindless scrubbing that keeps your hands busy but lets your thoughts roam free. My head was still full of everything that had happened last week — Josh’s kidnapping, my father’s sharp, unforgiving words, the pressure that had settled heavy in my chest ever since. It was like carrying a boulder you can’t set down.But in this moment, I tried to push it all aside. I took a sip of tea, closing my eyes briefly at the warmth that spread through my throat

BENEATH THE FACADEBehind the façade of wealth and power, a web of secrets awaits.Chapter 88Emily’s POV:I lay on my side, staring at the faint cracks on Eddy’s ceiling. The room still carried the heat of what had just happened, but I couldn’t hold on to the warmth. Not with his words still hanging in the air like smoke I couldn’t wave away.“I’m seeing Nyla tomorrow.”They were simple words, not sharp or loud, yet they sank inside me like cold water soaking through fabric. At first, I didn’t react—didn’t want to give myself away—but now the silence between us felt like a weight pressing on my ribs.I rolled onto my back, my hair spreading on his pillow, and turned my head slightly to look at him. He was lying there with one arm thrown over his eyes, his chest rising and falling in a steady rhythm, looking so… unbothered.I didn’t even know why it hurt so much. It wasn’t like Eddy belonged to me. We weren’t anything. Just two people tangled in a moment that shouldn’t have happened b

BENEATH THE FACADEBehind the façade of wealth and power, a web of secrets awaits.Chapter 90Nyla’s POV: The first thing I noticed when he walked in wasn’t the way his tall frame filled the doorway or how the air seemed to pause for a heartbeat before moving again. It was me—myself—how strangely calm I was.For weeks, I had rehearsed this moment in my head. If Eddy ever came again, if I saw him, what would I do? Would I freeze? Would I burst into tears, scream at him, ask him why? Or worse, would the old feelings I had once buried so carefully try to crawl out again? I had imagined my chest burning with resentment, my tongue sharp with words I had stored for years.But none of that came.When I opened the door and saw him standing there, gift bag dangling from one hand, something inside me went still. I greeted him casually, like he was just another visitor stopping by—not the man who had unknowingly left a mark on my life, not the father of my child.I stepped aside and let him in.