Soren''s aggressive posture faltered instantly.


    He pressed his lips together. "That was an ident..."


    Before he could finish, Glenn let out a coldugh. "So how do I know there isn''t a second ''ident'' waiting to happen among your people?"


    Soren paused. "What''s that supposed to mean?" Glenn was talking as if his inner circle was a viper''s nest. That look of deep suspicion made him intensely ufortable.


    After a moment, the implication finally dawned on him. He stared at Glenn in shock. "You think I want to hurt Evangeline?"


    "Don''t you?" Glenn shot back. His gaze was merciless. "Between emotions and business interests, you stand to gain the most from the deaths of Evangeline and Finn."


    Evangeline was Soren''s ex-wife, and her current project was his biggestpetition. Finn was a Lockridge, Soren''s sworn enemy. Leaving aside motive and details, their deaths benefited Soren more than anyone else.


    Soren was incensed. "What kind of bullshit are you spouting? Why would I ever hurt Evangeline?"


    Glenn didn''t back down. "Then exin this: Finn had a hold of her. She was almost safe. But because of the time you wasted, they ended up like this."


    "The rope wasn''t long enough," Soren countered. "The knot on Poppy was a dead knot."


    "Impossible!" Glenn retorted. "If it was a dead knot, then how did Evangeline manage to untie it herself to keep from dragging Finn down with her?"


    The air crackled with tension.


    Soren''s eyes were bloodshot, his fists clenched tight at his sides.


    He had always been articte, but faced with Glenn''s relentless usations, he found himself at a loss for words.


    Melvin had said both knots were slipknots.


    But they had all seen it-the knot on Poppy was clearly a dead knot.


    If they were both supposed to be slipknots, that meant Poppy had lied to him.


    Soren''s throat felt tight. A sudden wave of helplessness washed over him.


    The sound of their argument had attracted attention. Arabe heard themotion and walked over.


    Her expression soured when she saw Soren, but she still spoke. "It wasn''t him."


    Glenn frowned slightly. Soren breathed a sigh of relief and was about to speak when Arabe added, "It was his fiancée, Poppy."


    "Poppy has been trying to hurt Evangeline for years."


    Soren froze.


    Before he could ask, Arabe, as if anticipating his questions, handed him a phone.


    "My people found this. It''s Evangeline''s."


    "Before the ident, she had


    someone investigating Poppy''s past All those times Poppy was supposedly ''hurt''-it was all an act she orchestrated herself."


    "Not only that, but the car crashst time? Poppy arranged that before she even returned to the country."


    "As for the reason, I''m sure a man as smart as Mr. Fawkes can figure that out."


    "Since Evangeline is your ex-wife,


    she has nothing to do with you now. Whether she''s alive or dead is none of your concern. Perhaps Mr. Fawkes should spend his time figuring out how to keep his fiancée out of prison."


    If Glenn had said all this, Soren might have dismissed it as an attempt to defend


    Evangeline. But this wasing from Arabe.


    Arabe''s rtionship with Evangeline was neutral at best. And given her


    personality, she had no reason to tell such a lie just to help her.


    Soren took the phone, a chill spreading through his entire body.


    Seeing his reaction, Arabe said no more. She took Glenn''s arm and walked away.


    Soren turned on the phone.


    The lock screen was a photo of her and Finn. Evangeline was smiling brilliantly, standing beside him as they both made a heart shape with their hands.


    He had never paid attention to small details like lock screens before. But now, staring at that picture, he felt was as if a hand was squeezing his heart making it hard to breathe.


    He had once identally seen that Evangeline''s lock screen was their wedding


    photo.