The Ex Who Became His Obsession novel Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Leonard returned to Rosewood Manor and stared at the still–empty room.

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His expression was cold as ice. With a sharp swish, he yanked open the closet. The fancy dresses she loved were still lined up perfectly, snowy white and untouched–not a single piece missing.

Leonard turned his head and said to Joseph, “You have 12 hours. Get Alyssia back here.”

Leonard thought, ‘Alyssia ran away from home and didn’t even bother pretending. She didn’t take a single outfit she likes. Does she really think I’m that stupid?

“This time when I saw her, she was wearing clothes of different colors. She must have done that to throw off other people’s assumptions, to avoid Joseph’s tracking, and to make it easier for her to stalk me.’

Joseph quickly nodded in fear, then reported, “Mr. Rivera, Vanguard Media got back to us. They said they have more solid evidence. If you don’t want to lose completely in court, it’s best to withdraw the cease–and–desist before things escalate even further.”

That was exactly how Vanguard Media worded it. Their tone was downright arrogant, like they were itching to go to war with Leonard.

Joseph added, “And it looks like they’re pretty protective of the journalist who wrote the article. The audio was released by him too. We still don’t know his background.”

“His background?” Leonard let out a soft scoff, but the chill in his eyes only deepened. “What other kind of background could it be?”

He thought, ‘In this world, the only one bold enough to come at me like this in the open is Charlie, the heir to Vanguard Media. That journalist is either his right–hand man or his own alias.’

Leonard sat down and tilted his head back. He then tugged at his collar and crossed his legs. “What’s the journalist’s name?”

Joseph answered, “Nova Deriver. Nova like supernovas, and Deriver is your last name with a ‘de‘ at the front and the ‘a‘ taken off the end.”

“Nova Deriver?” Leonard flexed his fingers. “Perfect. Keep tabs on him. Sue him.”

Joseph cautiously asked, “How far do we take it?” The legal team needed to know how hard to hit.

Leonard leaned his head back a little. “Until he’s finished.”

He thought, ‘Leave him penniless. Destroy his future. Leave him on the street, despised by everyone. The more miserable, the better. When it comes to Charlie, I won’t hold back again.’

Joseph walked downstairs, shaking his head despite himself.

He thought, ‘Mr. Rivera went soft back then. Ms. Clairmont got down on her knees to plead for Charlie, and Mr. Rivera let him off. If Mr. Rivera had been a little tougher, Charlie wouldn’t still be causing trouble now.

‘Charlie knows full well that Ms. Clairmont is the one the Rivera family has chosen as the future Mrs. Rivera, and yet he still allowed his reporters to publish stories about Mr. Rivera and Ms. Johnson’s relationship.

‘Charlie’s clearly trying to stir things up. What a cold–blooded, backstabbing bastard‘

Joseph took out his phone and informed the lead attorney, saying, “Mr. Rivera said to pay special attention to that reporter

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Chapter 11

from Vanguard Media named Nova Deriver. His exact words were ‘until he’s finished‘. Got it?”

Once that was done, Joseph made another call. “Find Ms. Clairmont within three hours. Yeah, even if you have to kidnap

her.”

Joseph thought, ‘Ms. Clairmont really pushed Mr. Rivera too far this time. She actually handed over a selectively edited recording of her phone call with Ms. Johnson to Vanguard Media.

The Rivera family has treated Ms. Clairmont well all these years. No matter what, she shouldn’t have done something like this. To put it nicely, she’s just siding with outsiders. To put it bluntly, she’s biting the hand that feeds her.

‘Her parents are gone, and just because her family did the Rivera family a favor, she’s been showered with love and attention for thirteen years. She should never have turned into such an ungrateful brat.

The housekeeper Luna quietly walked over. “Joseph, I heard Mr. Rivera is looking for Ms. Clairmont.”

Luna had been with the Rivera family for years. Ever since Leonard moved into Rosewood Manor seven years ago, she’d been in charge of the household.

Joseph rubbed his tense temples and gave a helpless smile. “Yeah. Luna, you probably know Ms. Clairmont pretty well. Where do you think she would be?”

Truth be told, he wasn’t confident they could find Alyssia within half a day. He had a sinking feeling that this time, her leaving Rosewood Manor wasn’t just her throwing a tantrum.

Two days ago, Joseph had pulled every string he had and still couldn’t find a single clue about Alyssia’s whereabouts. So even though Leonard gave him half a day, Joseph had no choice but to cut that down to three hours for the team.

Now, asking Luna for ideas was just a shot in the dark. But to Joseph’s surprise, Luna’s eyes shifted slightly as she answered, “I do know a way to find Ms. Clairmont. If you trust me, Joseph, you can leave it to me.”

***

Alyssia was in a meeting. Lauren was leaning against the corner of the conference table, pointing a long slender stick at the projected screen, saying, “Top priority interview this month–Archer Harvey.”

Alyssia’s phone screen lit up. She glanced at it quickly, then stood up. “Sorry, Lauren.”

Lauren waved her off, not really bothered. Then Alyssia stepped out of the conference room and walked to a quiet spot. She answered the call and asked, “Ms. Johnson, what is it?”

But on the other end came a familiar, childish voice. “Alyssia? Is that you, Alyssia?”

Alyssia instantly got nervous. “Rosalie.” She thought, ‘Why would Rosalie be calling me with Milena’s phone?‘

Rosalie’s voice was soft and weak, but filled with delight. “Alyssia, this nice lady said she’s your friend, and she’ll get the best doctor to treat me. She asked me to call you and say hi.”

Alyssia’s tone turned gentle as she coaxed her innocent little cousin, “Rosalie, can you give the phone to that nice lady? I want to thank her for you.”

Milena’s voice came on quickly, laced with a vicious sort of pleasure. “Ms. Clairmont, Rosalie really is such a sweet, thoughtful girl.”

“Ms. Johnson, whatever you want, take it out on me. Leave the kid out of it.” Alyssia lowered her voice, her teeth clenched.

“What are you saying? I came all the way here just to visit Rosalie,” Milena said in mock surprise. “Oh, she’s such an adorable

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kid, but she got such a serious illness. I heard the best doctor for her is out of the country now.

“If I were you, Ms. Clairmont, I’d stay by her side every second. I wouldn’t want anything to happen to this little sweetheart.” Alyssia’s palms were damp with sweat. She understood Milena’s threat. “What do you want me to do?” Alyssia questioned.

Milena let out a sharp laugh. “Ms. Clairmont, why are you so nervous? Don’t make it sound like I was forcing you to jump off a building or something.”

At the mention of jumping off a building, Alyssia felt a throb of pain pound at her temples.

A blurry image seemed to flash before her eyes. Under a gloomy sky, a young woman stood on a rooftop. Suddenly, she jumped, falling like a leaf.

Young Alyssia, panicked and desperate, screamed as she ran toward the falling figure, “Mom, I’m back. I’m okay. Don’t die.”

Soaked in cold sweat, Alyssia jolted out of the nightmare from her past.

Milena’s voice came through the phone. “Ms. Clairmont, I’m at the hospital waiting for you. Let’s talk about Rosalie’s treatment. I’ll only wait for you for an hour.”

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