Drake’s expression shifted subtly.


    Grace had just contacted him, emphatically insisting that he must never let Thalia and Asher discover their Connection.


    Besides, Arno Jones had already been arrested. There wouldn’t be serious consequences even if Thalia learned about his connection to Jones.


    Drake shook his head. “No, it wasn’t her.”


    Thalia red at him, her voice harsh. “Then how did you know? How did you know Malfoy had taken me to Harwich? How did you know about Asher’s n? Did you deliberately call the police hoping we’d never return?”


    “That’s not true!” Drake’s eyes flickered with urgency as he hastened to exin. “That’s not it, Thalia. I didn’t know Asher’s n. I only knew you’d been kidnapped by Malfoy. I called the police to save you! How could I possibly just stand by and <i>do </i>nothing when you were in danger?”


    Thalia’s patience was wearing thin. “I’ll ask you onest time. How did you know I’d been taken to Harwich by Malfoy?”


    “It was… one <i>of </i>his associates who told me…” Drake averted his gaze, visibly ufortable.


    Thalia’s eyes remained locked on Drake as she asked, “Why would Malfoy’s associate tell you anything?”


    Drake exined: “Mypany was facing bankruptcy. I was seeking investment everywhere, but because I’d offended the ckwood family, the Sullivan family, and your Winters family, nopanies dared to help us. Then a man named Arno Jones approached me, offering to invest and save Ashcroft Group, with the condition that they’d be the controlling shareholder.”


    This wasn’t the truth.


    The person who had actually approached him for coboration was Grace.


    But he couldn’t say that.


    “Arno Jones?” Thalia frowned.


    The name was familiar.


    Mark’s former employer had been one of Jones’s subordinates. <i>If </i>she remembered correctly. Jones had considerable influence in London, operating in both legitimate and criminal spheres, ruthless and unscrupulous.


    He controlled dozens ofpanies. Financially, Jones was indeed formidable, and investing in Ashcroft Group


    would have been trivial for him.


    Recently, Jones had been arrested for criminal activities, and Thalia had learned that he was actually Malfoy’s man. All thepanies he controlled in Britain were working for Malfoy,


    Logically, there was no reason for Jones to invest in a nearly bankruptpany like Ashcroft Group.


    His money would yield far greater returns if invested elsewhere.


    Realizing this, Thalia gave Drake a suspicious look.


    She asked coldly: “Why would Jones invest in Ashcroft Group? Yourpany was on the verge of bankruptcy then. What benefit would he gain? I’ve investigated Jones before–he only acts for profit and is extremely ruthless. Investing in Ashcroft Group doesn’t align with his typical behavior.”


    “Because I agreed to work for Malfoy,” Drake lowered his eyes, his tone unreadable. “And also…”


    He paused for a few seconds, then looked directly at Thalia. “He investigated my background and knew I’d dated you. He also knew about my conflict with the ckwood family. He was interested in precisely these points–he wanted to use me against Asher…<b>” </b>


    Thalia’s brow furrowed deeply, the anger in her dark pupils intensifying. “Against Asher? You? As if you could.”


    This clearly struck a nerve with Drake.


    The light in his eyes dimmed, pain shing across them.


    His voice became somewhat hoarse. “ording to Jones, Malfoy’s exact words were: whatever Asher wants most, he wants Asher to lose it. Breaking you and Asher up was the simplest way to hurt him.”


    “I’m sorry, Thalia…” Drake stepped forward, reaching out to touch her, but Thalia pped his hand away.


    Thalia red at him fiercely. “Don’t touch me!”


    Four


    Drake’s eyes darkened with pain. “It’s my fault for not satisfying Malfoy, for not breaking you two up had separated you from Asher then, Malfoy would have achieved his goal and wouldn’t have gone after y father and Lucy…”


    Thalia: “???”


    This man was utterly iprehensible.


    Thaliaughed from sheer anger. “So you’re apologizing for not breaking Asher and me up?”


    “I…” Drake’s eyes flickered. “That’s not what I meant, Thalia…”


    Thalia’s expression grew animated, the corners of her eyes reddening as she shouted: “Drake, my sister was


    99.5%


    kidnapped by Malfoy’s men as a hostage. We could have rescued her, but because you called the police, the officers rushed in and disrupted everything. Now she’s been taken to Russia!”


    Drake’s eyes widened in shock, his face draining of color. “What! Lucy was kidnapped too?”


    “Are you absolutely certain Grace didn’t tell you to call the police?” Thalia was livid. “Do you know what Malfoy told Asher on the phone? If the police were involved, he would kill his hostage immediately!”


    “Grace knew everything. She made you call the police because she wanted Malfoy to kill me. You’ve been used, don’t you understand?” Thalia red at Drake, consumed by fury.


    Drake lookedpletely at a loss. Learning that he had nearly gotten Thalia killed, his face paled, the pain in his eyes deepening.


    “I’m so sorry, Thalia. I had no idea. If I’d known, I would never have called the police…”


    “Enough!” Thalia cut him off sharply. “Drake, tell me the truth. Did your call to the police really have nothing to do


    with Grace?”


    Drake pressed his lips together tightly, his hands hanging at his sides, clenched into fists.


    Faced with Thalia’s questioning, he almost couldn’t resist revealing the truth, but…


    Although Arno Jones had been caught, the nominal controlling shareholder of Ashcroft Group remained unaffected.


    Ashcroft Group was now Malfoy’s ything. Even though Malfoy had returned to Russia, with just one word from him, Ashcroft Group could again face bankruptcy.


    The current Ashcroft Group, while still bearing the name, had effectively be “Malfoy’s” long ago.


    Drake weighed the pros and cons in his mind.


    After all, thepany represented his father’s life’s work. Having it exist was better than not having it at all.


    He couldn’t expose Grace yet.


    “It had nothing to do with her,” Drake finally said, his voice slightly hoarse.


    Thalia simply looked at him silently.


    After a few seconds, she gave a lightugh, said nothing more, and turned to leave.


    Sienna, who had been listening the whole time, approached Drake again. “Drake, are you okay? Let me get you some ice for your face.”


    Drake ignored Sienna, roughly pushing her away, his expression full of impatience. “Get lost!”


    He turned away angrily, took out his phone, and began making a call.


    He needed to find out whether Grace knew about Malfoy’s threat to kill the hostage if the police were called.


    If she knew, then she had used him to indirectly kill the woman he loved most


    If that was true, he would never forgive her.


    (0)