All Chapters of The Thread of Betrayal: Chapter 1 - Chapter 8

8 Chapters

Chapter 1

Panic flashed across Oliver's eyes as he spilled a few drops of his alcohol."Who cares if she's someone we know? He lost, so he has to hand over his phone. Let's see what this little eight-rounder looks like!” Landon Collins reached out to snatch it.Oliver gripped his phone tightly and dodged behind me, laughing. "You really can't look. She's got a terrible temper, and she's impossible to appease. I'm just her puppy. If she finds out I showed you guys those photos, she'll break up with me.""Someone's real protective, huh?""Can't help it. Her identity is a little complicated. She doesn't want to make our relationship public yet."As Oliver spoke, his gaze passed over everyone and landed directly on Madeline Woods standing in the doorway.The thread connecting the two was painfully conspicuous.Over the years, I had seen countless threads intertwining above people's heads, yet I had never imagined that one would appear above the head of the woman who was supposed to become my

Chapter 2

Madeline answered in a soft, almost playful voice. "I missed you badly, so I wanted to come see you.""You've seen me. Now leave. We agreed we were breaking up after last night." Oliver's words were dismissive, but his voice was thick with seduction. "You're getting married tomorrow. I don't want Flynn to notice anything."You know how he is. He's been afraid of betrayal since he was a kid, so he tends to overthink everyone's intentions. He even asked me just now if he knows my girlfriend."Madeline let out a quiet laugh. "So you knew he was afraid of betrayal too."A brief silence followed, then the faint sound of clothing rubbing against the door came from inside."Ollie, I crossed the line last night.""So?""I have to marry Flynn. I failed him."Oliver's breathing became uneven. "Do you love him?""I do." She didn't hesitate. "I chose him back in college. We bought our marital home together. From now on, I'll be a good wife and mother to his children. I'll give him two hea

Chapter 3

That master bedroom was the one I had personally overseen during the renovation, making sure everything was done according to her tastes. Our photographs hung on the walls, and the wedding gift I had bought for her sat on the bedside table.Now, everything I had painstakingly arranged had become nothing more than a backdrop for the two of them to indulge themselves.It felt as though something had lodged itself in my throat. As I teared up, a singular tear fell onto the screen, landing over the two blurred figures tangled together.The screen went dark, leaving me staring at my own reflection in the black glass.I was 28—the same age my mother had been when she'd discovered my father's affair. The difference was that my mother had swallowed her humiliation for the sake of appearances.I didn't intend to.With the evidence on my phone and the surveillance footage stored in the cloud, I stepped on the gas and drove home.The moment I saw my mother, I hesitated, unable to find the

Chapter 4

Madeline reached out to take my hand. "That's enough. I brought your groom's suit. Go and get changed."I pulled my hand away. "Where's Oliver?""He wasn't feeling well.""Too exhausted from last night, eh? Did he wear himself out?"Bianca suddenly shoved me. "Watch your mouth. It's your wedding day. How can you smear your own woman like that?"My lower back slammed into the sharp corner of the gift table, and the pain made me double over.My mother rushed over. "How dare you lay a hand on him?"Madeline's aunt and cousin immediately stepped in front of her, blocking her. "Your son is determined to humiliate our whole family!"Bianca pointed a finger directly at my face. "Either you cooperate and go through with the wedding, or you get down on your knees right now and apologize to every guest from our family."Madeline steadied me. "Mom, don't make things difficult for him.""You're still defending him?" Bianca demanded furiously."He's my husband."I let out a cold laugh a

Chapter 5

"What the hell are you talking about?!" Bianca's face was drained of color.At the head table, Vincent reached up to adjust his glasses. The wine in his glass sloshed over the rim and spilled across the tablecloth.I looked at the red lines connecting the two of them. "Why are you two so nervous? From the looks of it, you slept together a long time ago.""You're making things up! Shut up!" Bianca was trembling with rage.Vincent's wife, however, suddenly rose to her feet. "Mrs. Woods, was what that boy just said true?""Mrs. Killian, don't listen to his nonsense. He's deliberately trying to drive a wedge between us to get revenge!""Whether I'm driving a wedge between you or not, and whether you slept together or not…" I cut in coldly. "Mrs. Killian, I suggest you spend a little money and hire a private investigator to look into their hotel records from last year. Soon enough, you'll have your answers."I had no evidence, but the way cheaters reacted the moment they were accused

Chapter 6

Landon pushed open half the door. Behind him stood several of my closest friends—Aeron, Caelum West, and Kevin Lane. Their expressions varied, but they all stood firmly behind Landon.Then, two uniformed police officers appeared in the doorway.I understood immediately. The message Landon had sent me that morning, saying he'd handle things, meant far more than simply settling the hotel bill.The banquet hall fell silent for three seconds.Madison's aunt instinctively pulled her chair farther beneath the table.I looked at the officers. "My name is Flynn Clarke, the groom in today's wedding. Last night, I formally notified the bride's family that I was canceling the wedding. The reason was that my fiancee had an inappropriate relationship with my best man on the night before the wedding. I have surveillance footage from the living room. The timestamps are complete, and the footage has not been edited."But the bride's family ignored my cancellation notice and went ahead with the w

Chapter 7

I lowered my head and pulled a small velvet box from my suit pocket. When I opened it, the diamond ring I had spent an entire year's salary saving up to buy lay inside.I placed the ring, box and all, into Madeline's palm. "We're over, Madeline."She didn't respond.Three steps away, Oliver's gaze flicked back and forth twice between Madeline and the exit. The toes of his shoes had already angled slightly toward the door.I didn't look at either of them. From this moment on, she wasn't worth even a single glance from me.The police motioned for the relevant parties to come with them.Landon stepped forward and patted me on the shoulder. My mother approached from the other side without a word and took my coat.…The police station's hallway was much quieter than the wedding venue. Bianca sat on a bench but didn't dare slam her hand against the table this time.During the negotiations, the lawyer Landon had hired tore apart the Woods family's lawyer over every clause of the agre

Chapter 8

The second person to come looking for me was a woman in her forties. Instead of asking about her husband, she asked about her daughter's red lines. "I've always thought something was off about her boyfriend, but I can't find any evidence."I took a look. There were three red lines. The shortest one was connected to her daughter. The longest stretched across half the city.The woman paid me twice my usual fee. "The extra is to thank you for saving my daughter ten years of making the wrong choice."I shook my head. "Ma'am, one fee is enough."…By the third week, my WhatsApp number had spread across local forums and short-video platforms.Landon helped me create an account called "Player Inspector" and casually filmed me working. The video stayed up for three days and racked up more than four million views. My DMs never stopped, from morning until night.I filtered out the malicious messages and people who were only there for the spectacle. I accepted just ten clients a day.My p

SCAN CODE TO READ ON APP