Chapter 554
After a round of emergency treatment, Kelly was no longer in any danger.
Carter, Theo, and Nate stayed by her side through the night, never leaving the hospital.
The next day, their care continued-gentle words, attentive gestures, concern at every turn.
Kelly noticed that Carter and Theo, who had gradually begun to grow distant, were now treating her just as they used to.
She was pleased.
She hadn’t managed to kill Sharon, true. But regaining the hearts of both father and son-well, that was still a win in her book. That day, Nate had gone out to buy food. Kelly sat alone on the hospital bed, idly scrolling through her phone, bored out of her mind. Her injuries looked severe, but in truth, they weren’t serious-just superficial wounds. Nothing that would interfere with her upcoming concert.
A soft knock sounded on the hospital room door.
She assumed it was Nate.
“Nate, did Carter say anything about when he’s coming…”
She froze mid-sentence.
“Thomas… What are you doing here?”
Thomas placed a bouquet of flowers beside her and smiled.
“You’ve been badly hurt. Isn’t it only natural for me to come check on you? What’s wrong? Am I not welcome?”
Kelly forced a thin smile. “Of course not. It’s just… if Nate or Carter walk in and see you here, they might start asking questions.”
She had no idea Thomas had already made contact with Sharon.
Thomas’s tone was casual. “Don’t worry. My people are keeping Nate occupied. He won’t be back for a while. As for Carter, he’s at a contract signing right now. He won’t be showing up anytime soon. No one’s going to find out.”
Kelly stiffened slightly. Her palms grew damp with cold sweat.
Neither of them spoke. Silence settled over the room like a thin layer of dust.
After a while, Kelly broke it.
“Thomas… is Dillon your guy?”
Thomas gave a faint smile. “I manage the black market. Every transaction, every contract goes through me in one way or another. Nothing escapes my eyes.”
Her lips parted slightly, and the panic on her face slowly drained away, replaced by something darker, colder.
“Then tell me, why didn’t you kill Sharon?”
“I told you my reasons last time,” Thomas replied calmly. “But what about you, Kelly? You planned something this big, and you didn’t come to me at all?”
He gave her a half-smile. “Or do you not trust me?”
Kelly took a deep breath.
1/2
“It’s not that I didn’t want to tell you I was afraid that if things went wrong, it would drag you down too. I figured… if I was Ening to do it, I might as well go all the way. That’s why I went through the black market.”
Thomas said, “Kelly, your plan was full of holes. If I hadn’t stepped in to clean things up, you wouldn’t have lasted long enough for Sharon to even show up for the exchange. Carter and Julliard would’ve had you cornered in no time.”
Kelly knew he was right. When it came to strategy, she wasn’t even in the same league. Ten of her couldn’t outmaneuver one
Thomas
But Sharon had stirred something in her-a gnawing sense of threat, of urgency. Sharon had become a thorn under Kelly’s skin, impossible to ignore. No matter the cost, Kelly had to get rid of her. 1
Kelly looked straight at Thomas. “So it was you. You turned my plan to kill Sharon into a pity play?”
Thomas didn’t deny it. “Dillon was someone I reassigned for you. He’s sharp, skilled, and a perfect shot. Even in a crisis, he knows how to keep things under control Far more reliable than those anonymous mercenaries you scraped together from the black market.”
Kelly pressed her lips together, saying nothing
Black market dealings were always anonymous. In truth, she had no idea who she had actually hired.
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