Chapter 195: This Man Loves Her
Vianne Kane’s expression froze for a moment. She set down her handbag, crossed her long, slender legs, and turned slightly, resting her arm on the sofa’s armrest. She struck a seductive pose for Alaric Blackwood.
"That’s what I’ve always called you. You never told me to stop before, Alaric."
She had a habit of speaking in a strained, cutesy voice. Seeing that Alaric said nothing, she curved her red lips. "Alaric, what did you want to see me about?"
"Let’s talk about Conor Sullivan."
Vianne Kane’s heart sank. She immediately grabbed her bag and stood up to leave.
Alaric Blackwood remained on the sofa, steady as a rock. "Even if you and Sophie Shaw aren’t related by blood, you lived together for ten years. Regardless of whether you got along, Sophie was trying very hard to help you."
Vianne Kane faltered and turned back.
The man turned his head to look at her, their eyes meeting. His expression was grave. "It’s a fact that Damian Morgan is cheating. His relationship with Yara Valentine isn’t simple. Also, whatever is between you and Conor Sullivan has nothing to do with Sophie Shaw. The one stirring up trouble behind the scenes is Damian."
"Damian wouldn’t lie to me."
"Willfully blind."
"He promised he wouldn’t lie to me! And that woman, Yara Valentine, she and Damian aren’t close. They were just supervisor and subordinate..."
"Vianne Kane, you really are an idiot."
Alaric Blackwood cut her off, his patience gone. "A hopeless idiot."
The woman puffed out her cheeks and pouted. "You... How could you say that?"
"Calling you an idiot is getting off easy. If you weren’t a woman, I would’ve already hit you."
"..."
"Conor Sullivan’s return is clearly for revenge. You know full well what your Kane Family did to the Sullivan Family back then. My grandfather was the judge who presided over the Sullivan case. He upheld the law impartially and did nothing wrong."
Alaric Blackwood stood up and walked over to Vianne Kane. Looming over the fuming woman, he said with a cold expression, "The feud between your Kane Family and the Sullivan Family has now dragged my family into it. The least you can do is tell me what you know about Conor Sullivan. Otherwise, you won’t even know what hit you when you end up dead one day."
The man’s tone was flat, his gaze icy. It made Vianne Kane shudder.
She recalled Conor Sullivan’s brutal actions and his warning, and a chill of fear shot through her.
"Alaric..."
Her defiant attitude suddenly vanished, and her eyes reddened. "You seem to be very concerned about me."
Though she wasn’t entirely sure, Alaric Blackwood had said he’d sent her grandfather evidence of Damian’s infidelity. Today, he was asking her about Conor Sullivan. Everything he said, between the lines, seemed to show concern for her safety, as if he was afraid she’d get herself killed one day.
’This man... Could it be that he’s been in love with me all along?’
"Don’t flatter yourself."
Alaric Blackwood turned his back, sat down on the sofa again, and lit a cigarette with a frown.
The more indifferent he acted, the more it seemed to Vianne that he truly cared.
She covered her mouth, shocked that she had finally seen through to this man’s feelings for her.
’He really does love me. He’s worried about me.’
’He’s just being stubborn, refusing to admit it.’
Watching the man exhale clouds of smoke, she couldn’t control the stirrings of infatuation. She decided not to leave and sat back down across from him.
"Alaric, what do you want to know? Just ask."
Alaric Blackwood looked up, his sharp eyes piercing through the swirling smoke to fix on her. He got straight to the point. "At the charity gala that night, what happened after Sophie Shaw took you to the restroom?"
"I was drunk and not feeling well. I remember Sophie slapping me in the restroom. Then she left me there all alone. As soon as she was gone, two waitresses came in and half-dragged me to the stairwell. There was a man waiting there. He carried me into a room."
Alaric Blackwood seized on the detail. "A man? Did you know him?"
"I don’t think so."
She was barely conscious at the time and didn’t get a good look at him. His voice sounded unfamiliar.
"So, you were in a room at the gala hotel the whole night?"
"Yes, but I don’t know which floor or which room."
"Then Conor Sullivan showed up. He tortured me all night. The next morning, he whipped me with a belt until I passed out. When I woke up, I had already been sent back to the Kane residence."
"Before I completely lost consciousness, Conor Sullivan told me he’d be back for me."
At this thought, she burst into tears.
"Alaric, what am I going to do?"
"Conor Sullivan has a video of me from that night... He also said it was Sophie who sent me to his bed..."
Alaric Blackwood frowned. "It wasn’t Sophie. It definitely wasn’t her. It was Damian."
"But how would Damian know Conor Sullivan?"
"That, I don’t know. I only know they’re working together."
Vianne Kane was startled. "Are you sure, Alaric?"
"I’m sure."
The man thought for a moment before suggesting, "You should divorce Damian Morgan as soon as possible."
Divorces weren’t as easy to get as they used to be. The mandatory cooling-off period was a full month, and there was no telling what kind of trouble might pop up during that time.
"You want me to get a divorce?"
"Leave Damian if you don’t want to die."
Alaric Blackwood pulled a USB drive from his pants pocket and tossed it onto the coffee table in front of Vianne Kane. "This is proof of Damian’s affair with Yara Valentine. Take it home and enjoy it at your leisure."
"With proof of his infidelity, you can also make sure he leaves the marriage with nothing."
With that said, Alaric Blackwood extinguished his cigarette, shoved his hands in his pockets, and stood up to go upstairs.
Gazing at his tall, imposing back, Vianne Kane’s heart suddenly began to race.
’This man was pressured by his family into marriage, so he chose a contract marriage with Sophie. It was probably just a last resort while he waited for me to get divorced.’
She picked up the USB drive from the coffee table, clutching it tightly in her palm, and muttered to herself, "Grandpa, you were right. I should have listened to you back then and married Alaric Blackwood."
’I probably inherited Bianca Kane’s terrible taste in men to have actually fallen for Damian Morgan.’
’If anyone’s to blame, it’s Damian for having the face of a refined, gentle-looking man who seemed as harmless as a prince...’
「Back at the Kane residence.」
Vianne Kane went upstairs with her handbag and went straight to her room.
She sat cross-legged on her bed, placed her laptop on her lap, and plugged in the USB drive Alaric Blackwood had given her.
There was only one video file on it. When she opened it, she saw footage of Damian Morgan and Yara Valentine being intimate in a lounge at Heart of the Ocean, followed by a conversation they had afterward.
"How is that Sophie Shaw back at work? And parachuted directly into the design department?"
"She studied design originally."
"Then why was her previous position an assistant?"
"She volunteered to help me."
"She likes you?"
Damian hummed in affirmation.
"Sophie likes you, but do you like her?"
"No."
"What about your fiancée, Vianne Kane?"
"You guess."
"You’re so annoying. Why can’t you just give me a straight answer? Making me guess like this."
Damian chuckled.
"Sophie came back to work, and of all places, she chose the design department. Could she be after the Heart of the Ocean?"
"She’s a shareholder. I can’t stop her if she wants to come back. Besides, the company officially starts the acquisition process next week. It’s too late for her to do anything. She’ll just have to accept her fate."
"I asked her today if you two used to date. She said you were together for three years. Is that true?"
"Of course not. She was just my assistant, delusional enough to think she could be with me."
"So it was all one-sided?"
"What else?"
"Are you going home tonight?"
"I have to. That old geezer from the Kane family is watching me like a hawk. I can’t stay out, just in case."
"Then you should head home. I’ll take care of the security footage."
"Delete it completely."
"I know. Don’t you trust me?"
"I do."
...
What had been exposed on the trending topics before was just a series of GIFs, without this conversation.
After watching the original footage and hearing their private conversation, Vianne Kane felt her blood run cold.