Alle Kapitel von The Wife You Shouldn't Have Lost : Kapitel 31 – Kapitel 40

It had been a long night for the Harthwore family. Both couples couldn’t bring themselves to sleep after what they had witnessed the previous day. When they got home, Layla hadn’t said a word about it, and they hadn’t asked if she knew Ashley was married to her ex-husband.To make matters worse, she appeared strong on the outside, and she wasn’t even showing signs of pretending, which bothered them even more. A past she had already let go of and moved on from shouldn’t be something they kept bringing up.Natasha returned from the kitchen, placing a cup of coffee on the stool for her husband before sitting beside him, her head resting in her hands.Their silence carried so many unspoken words that even a child could sense it. They weren’t saying anything, yet they were communicating through it.“My eyes are getting heavy, and it’s already dawn,” Harthwore said, breaking the silence as he reached for his coffee cup. He took a sip, the cup lingering in his hands as he stared into space.

Harthwore took matters into his hands. What they had initially concluded to be a wire spark that caused the fire now seemed to be something more. He sent his wife and daughter home to freshen up while he stayed back with Ethan, waiting for the employees to arrive.They showed up a few minutes after Layla left. They were questioned about the sunglasses, but no one recognized them. Some staff wore medicated glasses, while others claimed they had never worn glasses to the gallery before.The atmosphere in the company grew tense, and Ethan eventually urged everyone to return to work. He knew most of them well—not that he had seen them with glasses before, but he was certain none of them would have come at dawn just to drop a pair of sunglasses. What for? Thesame company they work.The gallery had CCTV cameras installed throughout the building, which became their last option since no one admitted ownership. Harthwore had warned everyone before they proceeded to review the footage. If any

“We can find him within twenty-four hours. It shouldn’t take longer than that,” Joshua said to his father as he watched the clip he had been given. His tone was firm, filled with anger and determination to get his hands on the man.“Go ahead. I want him found. He needs to tell us who he’s working for.”Joshua nodded and placed a call, issuing instructions from where he stood.Harthwore’s mind wasn’t at ease. He wasn’t convinced by what they had seen—the sunglasses alone proved there was more to it.If the glasses didn’t belong to any of the employees, then the man in the footage had to be the owner.He might not have been wearing them, but they were connected to him. Perhaps he had taken them out and forgotten to put them back.After a few minutes, Joshua finished giving detailed instructions and ended the call, turning back to his father.“I’ll forward the clip to them. By dawn, we should have something on him.”His father nodded as Joshua proceeded to send the footage to his team. T

It hadn’t been more than twenty-four hours, and they had already found him. Joshua was good with things like this, which was why he didn’t hesitate to leave it to him. They left Adrian’s house and urged the others to go home, informing them that there was something they needed to attend to. Ethan was the one who drove them home, while his brother, Joshua, took their father to the location where they were holding the suspect. As they arrived, they could hear cries and the sound of whips cutting through the air. He was already being punished, which Joshua didn’t remember authorizing. “He’s being punished?” Harthwore asked. “Yes. But I didn’t instruct them to do it.” “Maybe he’s refusing to admit it. That should be the only reason they’re whipping him.” Joshua said nothing further and led him through the building until they reached the room. The men halted their flogging immediately, stepping aside to make way for Harthwore. “You’re sure he’s the one?” That was the first question

“You’re welcome, Miss Layla. I’ve been waiting for you,” the waitress said, grinning from ear to ear. Layla wasn’t surprised that she had been expected. Seeing that Sophia had already assigned someone to wait for her, it only showed how desperate she was for this meeting. But for what exactly? She returned the smile without a word and turned on her heels. The waitress led her to a room and stopped. “She’s inside, waiting for you.” Layla nodded and reached for the doorknob, pushing it open. There she was—seated, casually eating. She didn’t even bother to look up, continuing as if Layla hadn’t entered. Layla knew better than to wait for an invitation. She stepped in without hesitation, unbothered and unafraid of whatever this meeting might bring. It was time that Sophia was put in her place. Part of her believed that if Sophia had never been in the picture, things might have been different; she might have had a better relationship with her son. But because of her, nothing had gone