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Chapter 18: Shattered Truths
Last Updated:
2024-12-10 23:28:13
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The Club Star Ex-Wife He Wants Back Chapter 19: A Step Toward Healing
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Mandy’s POVI sat on the edge of my bed, staring at the phone in my hand. The screen was lit up, but I didn’t touch it. I hadn’t called Emily in what felt like weeks. I missed her voice—her laughter, her little jokes, the way she’d say “I love you” before hanging up, like it was the most natural thing in the world. I knew I should call her, but something inside me held me back. There were too many things I was hiding from her. Too many things I didn’t want her to worry about. But today, I couldn’t ignore it any longer. I needed to hear her. I needed to feel that connection, that bond I’d built with her over the years. So, I finally tapped my phone screen and selected Wendy's name from my contacts, waiting for the call to connect. I didn’t know what I’d say once Emily answered, but the thought of hearing her voice was enough to push past the hesitation.When Wendy picked up, it was as if a weight I hadn’t realized I’d been carrying lifted off my chest."Hi Wendy, sorry for disturb
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Mandy’s POVI sat at the kitchen table, my fingers running over the edges of the letter, the words blurring together in front of me. It was a letter from the club’s manager, something about my canceled performances and some backdoor deal that had been made to cover my financial losses. The numbers were high, too high for someone who had been in my shoes for the past few months. It was generous, but it felt wrong.I hadn’t asked for this. I hadn’t wanted it. It felt like someone had swept in and fixed things for me without asking if I needed them fixed at all.The realization hit me like a cold wave, one that I couldn’t ignore Lucas. He had done this. He had found a way to fix my mess, just like he always tried to do—whether I wanted him to or not. Part of me wanted to be grateful. Hell, it was hard not to be, considering how close I’d been to losing everything. But the other part of me felt suffocated by his actions, trapped in this constant cycle where I was always the one needin
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The Club Star Ex-Wife He Wants Back Chapter 84 : The Enemy Within
Mandy’s POVThe room felt like it was closing in on me. I couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think straight. Lucas’s father had been involved with Horizon Enterprises, the very same Horizon that had been hunting us down for months. My mind raced, trying to piece together the fragments of this new reality. The betrayal was overwhelming—Lucas’s own flesh and blood, the man who had always been the picture of integrity, had been part of the enemy all along. I could barely look at Lucas as the weight of the revelation hit me. His father. The man who had always been the foundation of his strength, the man Lucas had trusted above all others, had been secretly working with the very people who wanted to destroy us. It didn’t make sense. It couldn’t be true. But Ma'am Elizabeth's words echoed in my mind, and the look on her face had been one of utter fear. She wasn’t lying. “Lucas…” I whispered, my voice trembling. “Your father… he was working with them. He was part of Horizon.” He didn’t resp
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Lucas’s POV The man stepped out of the shadows, his face partially illuminated by the dim streetlight. I froze, my hand instinctively tightening around Mandy’s arm. “Elliot,” I said, my voice cold. Elliot was a name I hadn’t spoken in years—a former business partner who had disappeared after a falling out that nearly cost me my company. Now, here he was, standing in front of me, looking far too comfortable in the chaos. “We need to talk,” he said, his tone calm but edged with urgency. I didn’t move. “Talk about what?” He glanced at Mandy, his gaze lingering for a moment before shifting back to me. “Not here. It’s not safe.” Mandy stiffened beside me, and I could feel the tension radiating off her. “Why should we trust you?” she asked, her voice sharp. Elliot’s lips curved into a faint smile, though there was no humor in it. “You don’t have to trust me. But if you want to survive, you’ll listen.” With that, I exchanged a look with Mandy, her unease mirroring my own. A
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Mandy’s POV The headlights tailing us didn’t feel like a coincidence. My stomach churned as Lucas glanced at the rearview mirror for the third time in under a minute, his jaw clenched. “Someone’s following us,” he muttered, his voice low but tense. Peter, slouched in the backseat, groaned. “They don’t give up, do they?” “Stay down,” Lucas ordered, his grip tightening on the steering wheel. “Mandy, call Ethan. Tell him to prep the security team.” I fumbled for my phone, my fingers shaking as I dialed Ethan’s number. The car behind us stayed close, the headlights glaring through the rear windshield like a predator stalking its prey. “Ethan,” I said as soon as he answered. “We’re being followed. Get the team ready.” “On it,” Ethan replied, his tone sharp. “Are you okay?” “For now,” I said, my voice trembling despite my best efforts to stay calm. “Just be ready.” I hung up and looked at Lucas. “What do we do?” “We lose them,” he said simply, his voice steady even as he
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Lucas’s POV However, the morning after the mysterious phone call, Mandy was quiet but focused as she’d barely slept, and I could see the weight of everything pressing down on her. I didn’t push her to talk. Instead, I focused on what needed to be done. Though we were meeting someone who could give us answers—a man who had once worked alongside her father at Horizon Enterprises but had managed to distance himself from the mess. It wasn’t easy tracking him down, but I had my resources. “Are you sure about this?” Mandy asked as we pulled into a secluded parking lot behind a rundown diner. I glanced at her, taking in the tension etched across her face. “No. But we don’t have many options.” She nodded, her lips pressed into a thin line. “Let’s get this over with.” The diner was almost empty, save for a few regulars nursing their coffee. In the far corner sat our contact, a wiry man in his late fifties with sharp eyes that seemed to miss nothing. He looked up as we approached,
