Chapter 59: Hit Him Like A Bullet
What has Lucian done?
It was a question that made Lucian—the very man who never stopped for anything—pause.
With Nolan defending Ashley as if his life depended on it, Lucian could only order Gustav to confirm everything.
According to Nolan, it was his idea to go out. It was Nolan who insisted—not Ashley. Why? Because Primo had finally asked Ashley for sothing, and she had been distressed, knowing she wasn’t allowed to go out.
"It’s why we tried calling you," Nolan added, now standing in Lucian’s office as they waited for confirmation from the n Gustav had sent.
anwhile, Lucian sat behind his desk, his eyes fixed on his phone, staring at the missed calls Nolan had made earlier that day. As for Gustav, who stood beside them, his expression was a mixture of confusion and shock.
It was as if he couldn’t believe any of it.
"Why...?" Gustav finally asked, looking at Nolan. "Nolan, why would you—"
"Because I want to trust the madam! Soone has to," Nolan exclaid, lifting his head with determination. "Gustav, I know the madam has done many things that put Dominion in a bad position. But I also want to believe that she’s finally had a change of heart—that she’s chosen to put her energy into becoming part of Dominion instead of trying to escape it."
Nolan clenched his fists, looking straight at the stubborn and doubtful Gustav before shifting his gaze to Lucian.
"I wanted to take a leap of faith and believe her," he repeated, his voice softening. "Because if I don’t, I’ll spend my life doubting her. And I don’t want to keep doubting soone who has always been clear about her intentions since day one."
For a mont, silence filled the office, letting Nolan’s words settle.
Nolan slowly lowered his head, his voice softening. "I gave her my word that I’d explain everything. That she wouldn’t get in trouble. She trusted , even when I could clearly see she was hesitant. But in the end... I failed her."
And if there was anyone to bla, Nolan would take it all.
"Master, if you don’t believe , I’ll gladly submit my resignation first thing in the morning," Nolan said, drawing a deep breath as he t Lucian’s eyes. "I’ll take full accountability. However... please let the madam off. The garden is the first thing she wanted to rebuild, and seeing how determined she was... please don’t take that away from her."
Another heavy silence fell over the room as Gustav and Lucian stared at the old man, who had spent his entire life following orders without question and executing them flawlessly for Dominion.
A second later, Gustav felt his phone vibrate. He checked it, and upon seeing it was from his n, he imdiately called back.
"Alright," Gustav said with a nod before stepping toward Lucian’s desk. "Master, the team has reported back. They retrieved footage and confird that the person she was talking to was a ga reseller. He has no connection to the Di Carpios or to that man."
He paused, swallowing the tension in his throat. "They’ve sent the footage."
With that, Gustav moved to the laptop and played the retrieved recordings from multiple locations. He fast-forwarded through the clip showing Ashley and Nolan leaving the mansion, followed by road footage of their car arriving at the mall.
Ashley and Nolan stayed together almost the entire ti, except when she briefly went to the restroom—no more than a minute. After that, they queued for hours. The next clip showed Ashley talking to people in her line before paying soone to hold her spot, then approaching Nolan.
Their exchange was brief before she left.
Even then, Ashley was seen simply looking around and approaching strangers, likely asking for directions. Then she approached a young man—the sa youth who later found Nolan and handed him the ga he was still holding.
At one point, the youth stepped away, leaving Ashley waiting on a bench.
Monts later, the CCTV footage showed Ashley being dragged away... and the youth returning with a paper bag.
That was the last footage of Ashley before she was brought back to Dominion.
But the clip continued, following the youth as he searched for Nolan in the queue until he found him and handed over the ga. Then, Nolan rushed away with so of the guards with him.
The file was a compilation of all Ashley’s movents.
Lucian and Gustav were left speechless.
As for Nolan, he quietly pressed his lips into a thin line and glanced at them.
Gustav then played the next footage.
This ti, it showed June arriving at an entirely different location—hundreds of kiloters away from where Ashley and Nolan had been—around the sa ti they were already lining up.
June appeared to be waiting for soone, only to receive a call midway and leave shortly after.
He was later found at a club with friends when Dominion tracked him down.
Gustav swallowed hard, but the tension in his throat remained. He stepped back, his mind muddled with confusion. He had been certain that Ashley had tried to escape; it wouldn’t have been surprising if she had.
But the footage proved otherwise.
Nothing in it suggested she even tried.
If anything... in the last monts before she was dragged away, she had been smiling excitedly.
Yet the mont they heard she had eloped with June, they acted without hesitation.
They didn’t question it.
Because it was sothing she would have done.
Gustav turned to Lucian. "Master—"
"Get out," Lucian said quietly, his eyes fixed on the paused footage.
Gustav opened his mouth but decided against speaking. He lowered his head, stepped back, then glanced at Nolan before leaving.
Nolan stayed behind for a mont longer. Quietly, he placed the paper bag on the desk.
The soft thud drew Lucian’s gaze.
"I’ll leave it here, Master," Nolan said gently before lowering his head and walking out.
Once alone, Lucian stared at the paper bag.
He reached for it and checked its contents.
Inside was a ga disc, the cover showing sothing similar to Primo’s favorite ga—except this one had [II] on it, marking it as a different version.
That alone made his chest tighten.
Slowly, Lucian buried his face in his palm... only for her words to echo in his mind.
"Why... do you never hear
out?"
He froze, his breath catching as those words hit him painfully like a bullet right in his chest.
And in that mont... he realized he didn’t just make a mistake. He ruined everything... like how he always did.
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