Chapter 6

Brooklyn and Dimitri went to the drawing room. The former looked around at the spacious room, feeling a little scared.

There was a couch and coffee table in the middle of the room, where a man with glasses sat. He frowned slightly when he saw Dimitri and Brooklyn.

"I've brought Zachary back, Kenneth," Dimitri said. "The wedding can go on as planned."

Kenneth nodded, his gaze moving from Dimitri to Brooklyn. He stiffened for a split second before composing himself, his expression going back to being cold and distant. He cleared his throat before saying, "Zachary."

Brooklyn didn't know whether to answer to that. If Kenneth could already tell that he wasn't Zachary, it wouldn't be appropriate for him to answer, would it?

"Why aren't you answering your father?" Dimitri patted Brooklyn on the shoulder. "Go on over to him."

Brooklyn looked at Kenneth. If he had to be honest, he didn't have the nerve to approach Kenneth. He was afraid of being exposed as soon as he did.

"Why don't you step out for now, Dimitri? I'll speak to Zac in private," Kenneth said.

"Alright." Dimitri released Brooklyn's hand. He saw the latter's uneasy expression and caressed his head. "It'll be fine."

Brooklyn watched Dimitri leave, feeling concerned. He was worried Dimitri would fall, so he hurried after Dimitri and held his arm. "I'll walk you out first."

Dimitri smiled at that. It made Brooklyn blush; he didn't dare look the former in the eye as he silently helped Dimitri out. He only released Dimitri when the maids approached to help Dimitri.

As he turned to head back inside the drawing room, Dimitri said, "Come to the study to look for me when you and your father are done. We can have dinner together."

"Okay," Brooklyn said. He didn't think he would have the chance to go to Dimitri after speaking to Kenneth, though. This was probably their last time seeing each other—Kenneth had already seen through him, so he and Dimitri wouldn't see each other anymore.

"Are you okay?" Dimitri leaned close to Brooklyn when he saw the latter spacing out. He stroked Brooklyn's cheek and said, "You seem distracted. What's wrong?"

Brooklyn stared at Dimitri's handsome face and hesitated for a few seconds before leaning close to peck Dimitri lightly on the lips.

This caught Dimitri by surprise. He stared at Brooklyn briefly before pulling the latter close and kissing him deeply. Brooklyn couldn't breathe through their locked lips; he could only pant.

"You're so bad at kissing," Dimitri said dotingly while looking into Brooklyn's eyes. "Remember to use your nose to breathe in the future, or you'll feel horrible whenever we kiss."

Brooklyn nodded, his face red as he headed back inside the drawing room.

"Mr. Wood." Heather approached with Dimitri's wheelchair. "You can stop staring now—nothing will happen to him."

Dimitri shot her a cold look, making her lower her head. He asked, "How are the arrangements for everything else going?"

"They're done. All we need is for Mr. Brooklyn to give the green light; the wedding will proceed as planned at the beginning of next month."

"What about Victor?"

"We've dealt with things on his end. He'll soon realize his company is nothing but an empty shell."

Dimitri nodded and stared in the direction Brooklyn had left. He smiled, thinking that everything would work out well.

…

Brooklyn looked at Kenneth, not daring to say anything. He picked up his coffee and kept sipping it.

"You're not Zachary," Kenneth said slowly. "Who are you?"

Brooklyn's heart sank. As expected, he didn't need to say anything for his cover to be blown. He said cautiously, "I'm Brooklyn York, and I'm from the underground level. I accidentally ended up here; I didn't mean to pretend to be your son."

"You don't have to explain that; I know this has nothing to do with you." Kenneth had guessed the truth from the beginning. How could someone from the underground level have anything to do with this?

"Does that mean I can go now?" Brooklyn asked. He was reluctant to end his day as Zachary, but he had to leave. If he didn't, Liza would start to worry.

He said tentatively, "My grandmother is waiting for me to head home so I can care for her. Could you have someone take me back to the underground level, please?"

Kenneth looked at him silently for a while. "You can't leave."

"Huh? Why not?" Brooklyn didn't understand what was going on. Why wasn't Kenneth letting him leave if he already knew Brooklyn wasn't Zachary? He wasn't going to murder him to cover things up, was he?

Brooklyn couldn't help feeling scared at that thought. He'd heard about the upper crust frequently sending people they felt were beneath them to distant lands as slaves. He didn't want to become one of those people.

Kenneth looked at him coldly. He couldn't afford to offend the Wood family now that Zachary had fled—it looked like getting Brooklyn to stand in for Zachary was the only option.

"I had someone look into your background." Kenneth looked at his phone. Then, a blue screen appeared before Brooklyn. "You're Brooklyn York, and you stay in Sector C's underground level. You have a 72-year-old grandmother who has serious Alzheimer's."

Brooklyn watched as photos of him and Liza appeared on the screen. Suddenly, he felt scared. He wasn't afraid of anything happening to him—he only worried Liza would be harmed.

He looked at Kenneth and said, "We've never come across each other before today, Mr. Hart. I don't think it's necessary for you to investigate the life of someone who comes from the underground level."

"You need money," Kenneth said coldly, watching as Brooklyn trembled. "I can give you money, and I can make it so your grandmother lives a better life."

Brooklyn looked at him, feeling lost. What did that mean?

"I only need you to help me with something—something that might need you to put your life on the line." Kenneth swiped the screen, showing a photo of a man who wore an expensive suit and had blond hair. Aside from that, he looked just like Brooklyn.

Brooklyn knew that was Zachary, his doppelganger with a completely different fate. He said, "I quite value my life."

Why would he want to do something that would put his life at risk?

"If you don't help me with this, you won't be going anywhere, anyway." Kenneth shot him a look before swiping the screen again. "As you can see, this is my son, Zachary Hart. He's always lived abroad, so he's a bit of a rebel and is quite opinionated. He was supposed to marry Dimitri next month, but he fled."

"Uh-huh." Brooklyn had pretty much guessed what had happened. Why else would he be at the Wood residence?

"I want you to marry Dimitri in Zachary's stead," Kenneth said.