Semua Bab RECLAIMING MY LIFE FROM THE UNTOUCHABLE CEO : Bab 121 - Bab 130

(Hazel’s POV)“His name was Nathaniel Bray, and he has been in this city the entire time, Hazel. He never left.”Simone said it flatly, the way people say things they have rehearsed a hundred times alone in the dark, and I felt the floor of my careful new life tilt another few degrees beneath me. I asked her to start from the beginning, and she did, her voice steadying slowly as the story poured out of her, years of silence finally finding a place to land.“I did not plan to come here today,” she admitted. “I have driven past this building three times this month and never had the courage to walk inside. Something about seeing your face on the foundation website finally made it feel possible.”“I am glad you did,” I said. “Take your time. I am not going anywhere.”Nathaniel had worked for Marcus years before Penelope ever hired him to frighten Julian into staying in the country. Simone had been engaged to Marcus’s younger brother once, before she learned what the family business actual

(Hazel’s POV)“There is something about Nathaniel Bray you need to hear from me before Diane finds it herself, and I am so sorry I did not say it sooner.”Mara said it the next morning, standing in our kitchen with her coat still on, her voice trembling in a way that instantly pulled every eye in the room toward her. Julian set down his coffee slowly, and I felt the familiar dread of old secrets rising up again, that particular fear I had learned to recognize in the months since Mara first arrived on our porch in the rain.“You are shaking,” I said gently, pulling out a chair for her. “Sit down first, Mara. Whatever it is, we will hear all of it.”She sat, though her hands stayed folded tightly in her lap, her knuckles pale against the fabric of her coat. “I knew him,” Mara said. “Years ago, before I ever came to work in Marcus’s household. Nathaniel and I crossed paths once, briefly, back when I still believed loyalty to that family meant something worth protecting.”“Mara,” Julian s

(Hazel’s POV)“There is a name buried in these old company files that I do not think either of you were ever meant to see, and I need you both to sit down before I say it.”Diane said it the next afternoon, spreading a folder of documents across our dining table with the careful precision of someone defusing something fragile. Julian sat first, his face already tight with wariness, and I lowered myself beside him, bracing for whatever fresh wound was about to open.“Nathaniel Bray was paid twice,” Diane said. “Once by Penelope, five years ago, for the accident that hurt Hazel. But years before that, he received a separate payment from a company account tied to Desmond Daniel.”The name landed in the room like something physical, and I watched every trace of color drain from Julian’s face. “My uncle,” he said quietly. “Diane, my uncle has been retired from the board for over a decade. Why would his name be connected to any of this?”“Are you certain,” Julian asked again, his voice tigh

(Hazel’s POV) “Everyone needs to stay calm and keep moving toward the exits, please, this is simply a precaution, nothing more.” Diane’s voice carried across the foundation gala floor through a security radio pressed against her ear, her composed tone doing little to slow the sudden ripple of unease spreading through the crowd of donors and academics who had gathered to celebrate the very cause I had built my second life around. Julian gripped my hand tightly as we pushed through the tide of confused guests, his eyes scanning every face for a threat neither of us could clearly picture. “Grace and Theodore are with Mara at home,” I reminded myself aloud, needing to hear it spoken to steady my racing heart. “They are safe, Julian. They are not here.” “I know,” he said, though his own voice betrayed the same fear gripping mine. “Diane, where exactly did your team spot him?” “Backstage, near the speaker’s entrance,” Diane said through the radio, her voice tight with focus. “He wa

(Hazel’s POV)“If Desmond sent his own driver to that gala, then this was never just about Nathaniel settling an old grudge, Julian. This was your uncle protecting himself until the very end.”Diane said it the next morning, standing in our living room with a fresh folder of evidence spread across the coffee table, her expression grave in a way that made the early sunlight streaming through the windows feel strangely out of place against the seriousness of the conversation. Julian sat rigidly beside me, his hands clasped tightly enough that his knuckles had gone white.“We pulled security footage from the loading dock,” Diane continued. “The man matches Desmond’s driver almost exactly, height, build, even the coat matches records from the estate’s staff files. I believe your uncle sent him to monitor the situation, possibly to ensure Nathaniel did not implicate him further if things went wrong.”“He was not there to help us,” Julian said slowly, the realization settling over his face