chapter1136

Joshua said, "What I'm after is exactly what you once tossed aside like yesterday's news."

The words hit Haynes like a punch to the chest, sharp and unrelenting.

What he'd thrown away so carelessly, long ago, was Stella's unwavering love for him.

He couldn't muster a single word of mockery in response.

Because that, too, was something he'd once held in his hands and now could never get back.

He was the one who'd let it slip away.

Expressionless, Haynes turned to leave, but Joshua's voice sounded behind him

again.

"Haynes, when you were with her, you couldn't give her what she needed. You couldn't protect her. If it weren't for your failures, she'd still be pursuing her passion for the violin, not walking alone into this mess. If you can't be there for her, then let me. As long as I'm around, I'll never let her get hurt or humiliated."

Haynes closed his eyes, just for a moment.

He couldn't deny it-if he hadn't been deceived by Rachel Pearce, he and Stella would never have divorced. Stella would never have needed to go back to her family. She could have picked up her violin whenever her heart desired, instead of now-forced to leave behind what she loved, pushed into a world of business and cold calculations, forced to start over.

He said quietly, "You didn't come all this way just to tell me that, did you?"

Joshua replied, "Mr. O'Brien, you're a smart man. I'm sure you've already guessed. Otherwise, with everything going wrong at the Richards Group, you wouldn't be waiting to make your move."

Haynes fell silent.

He'd already suspected Foreman had feelings for Stella. It didn't surprise him. After all, Stella was remarkable; it was only natural someone would fall for her.

But his real suspicions lay elsewhere.

The circumstances of his coma had always seemed off-like someone close to him had orchestrated it. Once the seed of doubt was planted, he began to see signs everywhere.

He remembered Stella confronting him, accusing him of spreading malicious rumors about Joshua

online and even of trying to haven et

Joshua killed in a staged car

accident. He'd never been able to trace the source of Stella's misunderstanding-he'd always thought Joshua was simply too cunning. s

He'd never once suspected Foreman, his closest friend.

But if Foreman really had been behind it all, then everything suddenly made perfect sense.

Still, suspicion wasn't proof.

What if it was Joshua pulling strings, deliberately turning him and Foreman against each other?

Either way, a rift had grown between him and Foreman now-one that could never be bridged again.

In Leonard's office, Israel sat on the couch, pouring himself a cup of tea.

"Leonard, I'm honestly surprised you called it. The person blackmailing Simone Lexman really was someone close to Stella. It's always the quiet ones huh? Who'd have thought Stella would be ruthless enough to send Foreman to ruin Simone? s

At first, Leonard had only suspected that someone in Stella's circle was behind Simone's troubles, but he hadn't know exactly who. So he'd pretended not to notice Simones actions, letting her continue passing along confidential documents. s

Not long ago, he'd deliberately left a loophole in The Lerman Group's operations a trap, just waiting to be sprung. Whoever exploited that flaw and orchestrated Simone's kidnapping would reveal themselves. The source of th?s content is f?ndnovel.net

Sure enough, Foreman had walked right into the snare Leonard had set.

With that, Simone was able to pinpoint the real culprit and adjust her plans to deal Foreman a crushing blow.

A cold, calculating glint flickered in Leonard's eyes.