LOGINShare
Chapter 46
Last Updated:
2024-10-15 19:50:59
Related chapters
MARRIAGE PACT Chapter 47
ZARA'S POV"We got Jacob's location."The world seemed to tilt sideways beneath my feet. My heart fell to my stomach. Jacob. What did they want with him? I strained harder to hear more, holding onto the phone so tightly it hurt."Good," Kai's voice came through the recorder in his study. "We need to get rid of him before he causes any damage. He knows too much, and i know he won't keep stil.l""I agree," my father said. His voice was firm and clipped, colder than I'd ever heard it. "Jacob's release was bound to stir trouble. They should have let him rot in prison. Now he might try to expose the truth.""The truth about what?" I wondered as my brain did this frenzied relay, trying to put it all together.The next words out of my Kai's mouth, and everything in my world came crashing down."This is all your fault though,I didn't know how you were so careless to let him witness you killing her.”I let out a gasp, my hand flying up to slap over my mouth, hopelessly trying to stifle the so
Last Updated : 2024-10-18MARRIAGE PACT Chapter 48
ZARA'S P.O.V.The sunlight streaming through the large dining room windows was too warm, too bright. I sat across from Kai, my eyes fixed on the breakfast laid out before us, but unable to eat a single thing. My head still reeled from the conversation I'd overheard the night before, that dark and horrifying truth about the way my mother had been murdered. The man opposite me, my husband, the man I've grown to love, had been a part of her death. And Jacob was next.I took a deep, hard breath and fought hard to go numb, push all my anger, my sadness, my fear inside. Kai didn't know what I'd heard. Not yet. I wasn't ready for that kind of confrontation.“Zara," Kai's voice pulled me back to reality. He was smiling at me, that disarming smile he always seemed to hold up as his defense. My skin crawled now. How could he even look at me like that, as if he hasn't ripped my world in two?"Hm?" I muttered, barely able to lift my gaze to his."You've been going out quite frequently lately," he
Last Updated : 2024-10-18MARRIAGE PACT Chapter 49
ZARA'S POV"Zara," Jacob whispered, his voice low, serious, taking another step closer to me. "I knew it would come to this. I knew your dad along with Kai would do anything to get rid of me." His eyes bored into mine, serious, unblinking. "They covered their tracks for years. And they would do anything to keep it buried.”I blinked, still having a heart overbeating in my chest from the drive-terror of being caught. "I didn't want to believe it at first," I whispered, shaking my head. "But you were right. I overheard them last night… everything." My voice shook because the memory was still too fresh. "I heard them through the bug recorder you gave me."Jacob nodded, his jaws tight. "I thought maybe you might have found out by now. The pieces always fall into place together, sooner or later. You have been living in a cage of lies, Zara. Deceit, betrayal, monsters, all of them."The word monsters swirled in my mind. How was I ever so blinded for so long? I laid my hand on my chest in th
Last Updated : 2024-10-19MARRIAGE PACT Chapter 50
ZARA'S POV I sat on the bed and stared into the report that I just received from the hospital. It was it. Jacob was my biological father. Not that this was news to me anymore, for everything that I had heard over the past two weeks had pointed in that direction. Yet, I had spent the better part of my life in a lie amalgamating with those very people I was supposed to trust. Now, I know the truth.I had recordings, evidence of every whispered conversation, every shady deal between Kai and my so-called father, Mr. Klein, even Mrs. Adler, Kai's mother; they were all involved, deeper than I could have ever imagined. My mother's murder, the illegal operations running beneath Kai's company, it all connected. And I was right in the middle of it.Kai, though. Kai had been sweet. Too sweet. More presents, more cuddles. Each touch of his hand, each kiss only seemed to pull that knot in my stomach tighter. He was trying to make me feel secure, trying to make me to believe nothing was wrong. I
Last Updated : 2024-10-21MARRIAGE PACT Chapter 51
ZARA'S POV.I pulled up to my father's mansion, the mansion that once seemed so much like home, but now was the heart of everything dark and twisted in my life. Stepping from the car, my pulse quickened. I wasn't ready for what was about to go down, but at this point, I had no other choice. The sleek cars lined up against the driveway, soft murmurs of music bleeding from the house, it just felt all so wrong.I grasped the door handle, fighting for my head to clear from these racing thoughts. Why would Lena lie to me? And Liam… why was his voice mixed with hers? But only for a minute, because the questions in my head were drowned by the scene that greeted me upon entering through the front door.A lavish party.It wasn't a "little gathering" as Lena had so innocently put it. No, this was big-grandiose-something of a celebration of sorts. Heavy, expensive perfume wafted through the air, together with laughter and chinking glasses high to toast champagne. I swallowed hard and moved throu
Last Updated : 2024-10-22MARRIAGE PACT Chapter 52
LIAM'S POVI watched Zara disappear into the crowd, stiff-shouldered, her feet hurrying for a pace. The bottom had fallen out of my world and the realization was heavy on me as to what I had done, the betrayal out in the open, and I was standing right in the wreckage."Liam."I jerked at Lena's voice, her nails digging into my arm as she stepped in front of me, hard in her expression. "Don't even think about going after her."I gritted my teeth and yanked my arm out of her grasp. "You don't control me, Lena."She smiled coldly. "Oh, but I do. You agreed to this Liam. You made the choice. Just like I did."Anger flared, my skin prickling, but I didn't have time for games with Lena. Not now. I had to find Zara. "This isn't what I wanted," I growled, shifting around her in a bid to push through the crowd."You think she's going to forgive you?" Lena's voice was razorlike, slicing through the chatter surrounding us. "After everything, after how you've betrayed her?"I froze. My fists clen
Last Updated : 2024-10-22MARRIAGE PACT Chapter 53
KAI'S POVI was not supposed to be in that mansion anymore. The party was just another formality for the sake of making an appearance, after which silently I could leave. I did not want her to know where I was, knowing full well that once she found out about Lena's marriage arrangement with Liam and my involvement in it, she was going to hate me for it. It was already raining heavily. As I finally turned toward my car to make my exit, My eyes caught something and I couldn't move. Zara's car stood in the driveway.My heart hit the floor. What in the world was her car doing here?That was most definitely not supposed to happen. I hadn't told her anything about this party, much less that I would attend it.I was already getting drenched but I didn't care; I ran up to the car and knocked on the driver's window. He rolled down the window immediately "Why are you here?" I insisted, "Where is Zara?"The driver got down from the car looking startled; he was dumbfounded by my sudden appearan
Last Updated : 2024-10-22MARRIAGE PACT Chapter 54
ZARA'S POV. The rain was relentless, it pounded against my skin, soaking my clothes and skin, I barely felt any of it. The only sensation filling my head was that crushing hold of betrayal against my chest. I needed to be away - away from them, away from everyone. Kai, the one person i thought was reliable, and it now turns out he, too, was in on all of this tonight. How could he lie to me? He stood there at a party I wasn't supposed to know anything about, pretending that everything was alright, knowing full well about this marital arrangement between Lena and Liam, and he was involved. My legs seemed to take me of their own volition, walking me along, farther and farther from that mansion. I didn't know where I was going and didn't much care; rain was only coming down in sheets now, making it impossible to see much in front of me, anyway. And I didn't stop. I couldn't. My father, well,my step father didn't even care about how I'll feel about this, he only cared about what his
Last Updated : 2024-10-23
Latest chapter
MARRIAGE PACT Chapter 98
ZARA'S POV I sit beside Liam's bed; the smell of the hospital is sterile. Machines beep steadily, their monotony no longer a reassuring sound. The sallowness of Liam's skin has sucked that vital spark from his face. With every breath, his chest rose and fell weakly. I could never have believed it would turn this way, the ending part with him. First, he came into my life as that confident, charming friend, one who would even make me laugh when I wouldn't want to smile. But here we are; the fact that one moment of his bravery sealed it for all of us changes everything.The creaking door opens, and in comes Michael, quietly, his gaze working its way around the space before finally resting on me. A faint trace of a smile bursts across that worn face, housing so much of the love held for me. He closes in before laying a reassuring hand on my shoulder in silent support."How is he?" Michael said softly, his voice barely audible over a whisper.I shake my head. "He's hanging on, but not fo
MARRIAGE PACT Chapter 97
ZARA'S POV I'm not quite sure how long has passed, even, since I sat here fisting the recording in my hand, every word uttered on that recording was mere evidence to substantiate this dreadful truth I had existed with all these years, couldn't change, prove, or even escape. Everything stands so different now, however-Kai is dead and, with my future at last within reach, so it is time for my father's name to be cleansed of the stains attached.I glance down at the file full of all evidence against him in front of me to bring Mr. Klein into the courtroom. It was finally over: the man who killed my mother and, the man who framed my father for a crime that he did not commit, was finally going to pay for his misdeeds.Behind me, footsteps echo, and turning, I see Michael standing in the doorway. His eyes are fatigued yet full of determination. He had been at each turn with me through my journey and now was down to the final move he and I would make."How are you holding up?" he asks softl
MARRIAGE PACT 96
MICHAEL'S POVMy veins surge with adrenaline as I approach the mansion. It's what I have been planning for weeks-each move, each little thing calculated. Tonight is the night everything changes. Tonight, I take Zara home, which means everything I have sacrificed will pay off.Liam's inside now, on the path we rehearsed. I can hear Liam's voice in my ear, slow and steady, soothing even. He's good.What I need to do now is distract Kai with something.I step onto the property, my footsteps silent yet heavy with intent. I head for the main door at which Kai will already be waiting; timing will play a very big role here. Should anything go wrong, this whole thing goes up in smoke.I push the door open and step inside the dimly lit hall. The slight creak of the door does not send a jitter down my bones. One shot at this, and I am not going to back down now."Kai," I call out, hearing my voice echo in empty corridors.He sits behind his desk, that cold, calculated expression carved into his
MARRIAGE PACT Chapter 95
Zara's POV I peer into the mirror, and the image staring back shows only an empty shell of the girl that once used to be. Michael's dead, and here I am in this mansion, caught by that very man who ruined my life. Every thought about him, Kai, grasps my heart with a fit of anger. But still, he presses on: he wants me to forget Michael, learn to cope with this kind of life-the twisted reality-to be his wife every waking day."Zara," his voice floats into the room deep and insistent. "Come out here. We need to talk."I didn't move. Not an inch. His commands mean absolutely nothing to me. Not anymore.The sound of his footsteps drew closer and I shrink further into the corner, knowing well how pathetic it sounded but quite beyond my control. A man who had taken away everything that mattered from me was master over this house. Well, today was different; at least he wasn't getting that satisfaction. The door creaked open."You can hide in here all you want, but you're never going to escape
MARRIAGE PACT Chapter 94
ZARA'S POVI sat on my bed by the window, and the raindrops falling against the panes coursed down in rivulets without sound-a reflection of the void inside my soul. There lay my son, sleeping still peacefully on the bed, curled up into a small bundle, his steady breathing the only sound in my room. For an instant, at the sight of him, all was well again, but pretty soon my reality confronted me.A knock shattered the fragile silence."Ms Zara," Madam Tess's voice was indistinct from the other side. There was something odd in her tone, like hesitation, even fear.Slowly, I rose, quickening at the pulse. Opening the door, I found her standing there, clutching a folded piece of paper in her shaking hands."What is it?" I asked, a knot already forming in my stomach.It's. It's a message," she breathed over her shoulder, eyes wide in that wild, frantic way. "From jacob."I plucked the paper from her shaking fingers, mine shaking too as I unrolled it. The words were a real kick in the guts
MARRIAGE PACT Chapter 93
ZARA'S POV For the past three years, I'd been telling myself-lying to myself, actually-I would never pass through those doors. Well, here I was at Kai's mansion gate with one heart in the rib, walking like gazelles all full and weighing in this huge over-reined guilt.The smell of polished wood and a touch of cologne wafted in as the heavy door now groaned open, while Madam Tess stood in the hall, her face alight with so much welcome just like always. "Madam Zara, you have returned!" she exclaimed in a voice that shook.I gave her no thought, strode right past her, as if she had never been, never broke my stride, my headset with one thing on my mind and one only, my son.Where is he?" I demanded ice with growing venom while whirling back a few feet to see Kai with dancing dark eyes and relishing the success.“Sleeping," growled gruff and small with curving lips ending into a smirk. "Welcome home, Zara.""It is not my home," I snapped.Kai's smirk grew. "Oh, but it is. Legally, nothi
MARRIAGE PACT Chapter 92
Zara's POVThe shrill buzz of my ringing phone pulled me from my reverie. I had sat in my office, staring rather blankly at the papers on my desk, unable to focus on anything. When I glanced at the screen, the headline flashing across it stole the breath from my lungs: Jacob Donovan Arrested for Attempted Murder of Mr. Klein.I shook my head, hardly able to say the word. "No," I whispered, shaking it now as if that somehow was going to make this vanish. My hands had some kind of tremor when I unfolded the article to read it. And damned if the accusations weren't-wild, depicting Jacob as an avenging business that finally snapped under all those pressures.A wave of nausea rolled over me. It wasn't a Jacob attack; it was personal.I banged my phone down and leaned back in my chair, racing my mind. One didn't have to be a genius to know behind whom this was-Kai. It had his fingerprints all over it. Jacob had been my rock, my ally in this war against him, and sat now behind bars for somet
MARRIAGE PACT Chapter 91
ZARA'S POVI sat at Hartmann's Enterprise, in my office, staring aimlessly at the screen of my computer. The numbers all seemed blurred together, the reports dim and far away. The only thing my mind replayed was the sound of the judge's ruling, the image of Kai walking out of the courtroom-smug-with my son in his arms. With every passing moment, the weight in my chest crushed me from the inside out.A soft rap at the door sliced through my fog. "Ms. White, you have a new message," my assistant Lily said in a faltering voice and laid an envelope on my desk before wheeling around to beat a swift retreat.I frowned at the plain white envelope. There was something about it that was … not quite right. I opened it, shaking, and pulled out a single sheet of paper.*Come home, Zara. You have to be with me and our son. Don't compel me to do something we'll both regret later on. Tell Michael to leave the matter alone- or he may not live any longer.*Those words sent a shiver down my spine. The
MARRIAGE PACT Chapter 90
ZARA'S POVThat was one heavy courtroom; I could feel it, a weight palpable upon the air. Seated beside the plaintiff's table, clutching the photo of my son tightly between my clasped hands, every beat of my heart seemed to feel this invisible vice squeezing tight. Across the room, Kai sat oozing smug confidence: the expensive suit, cool, calm demeanor molding him into every inch of the untouchable mogul he wanted the world to think he was."Ready?" Michael whispered beside me, his hand light on my arm.I nodded, but by now my stomach had started to do its wildest churning ever. "I have to be," I whispered low, "for my son."In strode the judge, and to his presence as one single body rose the courtroom. "All rise," cut through the silence of the voice of the bailiff.We sat in a chair as the trial began and stood up to address the court with that gloss of refinement only money can provide."My client, Mr. Kai Adler, is here for safety and welfare for his son," he began, "He has testif
