?Chapter 227:


    “Okay, okay.” Alice sighed, dropping the subject.


    Then, a thought seemed to strike her, and she suddenly inquired, “Right, what about your mother’s keepsake?”


    Her question made my expression darken, and I clenched my fist.


    “I don’t know…”


    The truth was, since the issue with Kristina, I had been mentally preparing for the possibility that the ne might be destroyed. Though I dreaded the thought of losing it, I realized that yielding without question would only encourage her to bully me more.


    Regrettably, I might never get my mother’s ne back.


    At that thought, my expression grew steely. I wouldn’t let Kristina or the Dunn family get away with this!


    Alice gave me a sympathetic look and held my hand, as if to offer me some strength. “Makenna, listen, the news is out. I think it’s time we advance to the next phase of our n…”


    Makenna’s POV:


    “You’re right.” I quickly shook off the cloud of sadness. “We’ve got to keep pushing forward with the n.” The news was already sending ripples through the city, and it was crucial to make sure it reached Leonardo’s ears.


    Alice was on the same wavelength, though her worry showed as she asked, “But how can we let the king know without tipping our hand? We can’t be too obvious. If we’re too tant, Kristina will figure out we’re behind it.”


    After a brief pause, a lightbulb went off in my head. “I have an idea!”


    Alice’s eyes sparkled with curiosity. “You’ve got an idea? What is it?”


    I gave her a knowing grin. “I know exactly who to approach. They’ll escte things.”


    Lɑτ??τ cнαρτ?rs ??n g??l??ov?l??.??o??


    With the token yton had given me, Alice and I slipped out of the pce and headed to Flynn’s house.


    The door was slightly ajar, left unlocked, a sure sign of the recent panic within Flynn’s family—they hadn’t even thought to lock it.


    I nudged the door open and stepped inside, spotting a middle-aged couple—overweight and lifeless—slumped on the couch.


    Startled by the sound, they turned their heads slowly, as if emerging from a daze.


    “Who are you?” the man demanded, suspicion etched on his face.


    I lifted the ck veil that had been shrouding my face and calmly introduced myself, “I am Makenna Dunn.” The moment they registered my name, their eyes zed with unbridled hatred.


    “Makenna Dunn! You’ve got some nerve showing up here!” The woman’s voice was shrill, twisted with fury. “You killed my son! And you dare show your face! I’ll kill you for what you’ve done!”


    With that, they lunged at me like mad.


    But they were slow, their bodies weighed down by anger and weakness. I easily sidestepped them, and they tumbled to the floor in a clumsy heap.


    Yet vengeance clouded their minds, and as they scrambled to their feet, they continued screeching, “You witch! I’ll kill you!”


    “Makenna! Watch out!” Alice quickly pulled me aside, putting distance between us and the couple.


    “Enough! Can you just listen?” she shouted.


    “It’s okay. I’ve got this,” I reassured her, holding her hand and addressing the couple with a calmness that belied the chaos around us. “I’m not the one who killed your son. Your eldest was merely a pawn in the Dunn family’s game, and your second was a victim of Kristina’s plots. And I’m a victim too.”


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