Sneaking into this place wasn’t easy, even for soone as experienced as Slater. However, his past life’s expertise, combined with his current training as a Holand Security agent, gave him a significant advantage.
As he subtly blended in, he overheard several conversations. This was how he discovered that everything seed to be a setup, and Nathalie had everything under control.
Slater didn’t dwell on this, though he kept the information in mind. After leaving the mansion’s back entrance, he quickly pulled out a small device and sent a ssage, asking for directions to the cellar.
Thankfully, the person Penny had entrusted her device to was alert and provided clear instructions. Following them, Slater concealed the phone and quietly moved down the hallway, careful not to draw suspicion. He brushed past a few n, but neither they nor he stopped.
As he continued, Slater heard voices. His brow arched, and he glanced in the direction of the sound. Curious, he cautiously approached until he reached the end of the hallway, pressing his side against the wall.
"How did you like your little fantasy, boy?" a woman’s voice, tinged with amusent, could be heard, followed by sounds of grunts.
When Slater peeked, he saw the mansion’s grandiose lobby filled with ard individuals. From his vantage point, he couldn’t count them all, but he did spot a woman’s figure seated in a single-seater chair. Due to the person standing beside the sofa, he could only see her fair hand resting on the armrest.
Slater then shifted his gaze to the man kneeling several paces from her. There, a man was held down by two others, pinning his shoulders. His mouth was gagged, and the side of his head was bleeding, trickling down his face. There were more signs of injury, but despite that, Slater recognized him.
Jonathan Pierson.
’What in the...?’ Slater furrowed his brows, his eyes scanning Jonathan and then the people around the lobby.
"Was it fun?" the woman’s voice echoed again, chuckling as Jonathan’s eyes burned. "I must say I was very amused, watching you plan everything and actually think it was going to work. Haha. Oh, Nathaniel—or should I call you Jonathan? After all, neither were your nas, nor nas you truly owned."
"Mhmm!" Jonathan grunted, his muffled voice clearly conveying curses.
His eyes blazed, but what infuriated him most was the person standing beside the woman. He moved his gaze to the man, and the veins in his forehead protruded. This was the sa man who had picked him up from the hospital and with whom he had ridden to this mansion.
But as it turned out, the man had already switched sides.
How familiar.
Just like in his previous life, he was also betrayed by soone he had trusted. That woman—Dean’s current assistant—betrayed him in his previous life. And though she was no longer a part of this, soone else had stepped into that role.
The man stared coldly at Jonathan; his silence was more infuriating than any words he could have uttered.
’I’m going to kill you!’ Jonathan ntally scread. ’You ungrateful bastard... I took you out of that place, and this is how you repay ?!’
The woman, Nathalie, smirked as she studied the burning look in Jonathan’s eyes. She then glanced up at the man beside her.
"He hates you now," she said, peeling her eyes from him back to Jonathan. "Jonathan, don’t hate him so much. He’s only done this for everyone else’s sake."
Jonathan clenched his teeth, only to hear the other man’s explanation.
"It’s useless, Nathan," said the man. "I’m only doing this for our brothers and sisters, so they’ll be spared."
’What about ?!’ Jonathan ntally scread. ’You all want to be spared, but not !? Did you all forget I’m doing this for all of you?! If you didn’t betray , she’d be the one praying to be spared!’
But no matter how much he ntally scread and cursed, all that was heard were his muffled grunts.
Nathalie’s smirk stretched, relishing the sight of Jonathan.
"Nathaniel, I truly admire your resilience and planning," she said, rubbing her palms on the armrest before pushing herself up. She sauntered toward him while speaking, "Had you not planned to take down, I would love to promote you and give you a rank you deserve—perhaps, a commander’s rank."
When she reached him, Jonathan struggled. But alas, with both n holding him down and the injuries he’d sustained—including his stab wound—he could only struggle, powerless.
Nathalie crouched down in front of him, eyeing him with slightly raised brows.
"It really is a sha, Nathan," she whispered, reaching out to him, though her fingertips didn’t quite touch him. "You really are so good, and together, we could’ve been unstoppable. Sadly, your heart is full of vengeance, and you’re consud by it, letting it dictate your life."
She cocked her head to the side. "It breaks my heart that I have to end soone like you, who is full of potential and talent."
Nathalie let out a shallow breath while Jonathan grunted and struggled even more. When her dark eyes t his again, she moved her face closer and lingered.
"What a waste..." she breathed out, her voice barely audible to him. So, she moved her face closer until her lips were an inch from his ear. "... of a second life, Nathaniel."
The second those words left her tongue, Jonathan froze on the spot. Nathalie drew her head back, stopping when her face was a palm’s length away from his. Unlike his pale and horrified expression, the corners of Nathalie’s mouth curled up until her eyes were squinting.
"Surprise, surprise," she humd playfully. "You’re not the only one, Nathaniel, and I’ve known you are just like since you showed up in front of earlier than the first ti."
Hearing those words, Jonathan’s heart sank to the pit of his stomach. This ti, he didn’t struggle anymore. All he could do was stare at her blankly, knowing that everything—every little thing he did—was pointless.
She had known from the start and had played him.
And he had lost this fight even before it began.
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