abcnovels
Chapter 837
Chapter 837
Chapter 837
Chapter 837
Brittany was immersed in her design drafts, working tirelessly with hardly a moment to spare. The office
door swung open with a bang.
“Bri.” Derek stormed in, a sheen of sweat on his brow as he leaned heavily against her desk. “Tell me,
did you meet Zac years ago, way before all this mess started?”
“Ms. Dustin, I apologize; Mr. Bishop insisted on coming in,” the assistant explained tentatively.
“It’s fine; you can leave,” Brittany dismissed the assistant and turned her attention to Derek. “What
have you found out?”
“Zac’s been digging into Joie’s past, and it hit me-you had a similar photo once.”
Brittany set her pencil down.
Yes.
After she was kidnapped, the captors had photographed each of their victims.
She and Joie were close in age and bore a resemblance. Over time, with exhaustion taking its toll, they
became nearly unrecognizable to anyone but their closest kin.
But Derek was her cousin, her flesh and blood, and he had pieced some things toget
“Yes.”
A realization seemed to dawn on Derek. “Was it you who saved Zac back then?”
Oh my goodness! Does that mean Joie took all the credit for what Brittany did?
“Cuz,” Brittany rarely used the term of endearment. “Let’s keep this between us, okay?”
“Why?” Derek looked at her, a chill in his gaze, as if he’d stumbled upon a deeper truth. “You knew all
along that Joie took your place, didn’t you?”
“I knew.”
Brittany had been aware for a long time.
At first, she kept silent because Isaac had broken her heart, and she wanted to see his reaction when
he learned the truth. But then the right moment never came, and eventually,
it didn’t seem to matter.
Derek was incredulous. “So, Joie…”
“She’s no threat to me now.
Brittany never cared much about Jole, her focus was on uncovering the truth about the poison. The
investigation suggested she had been poisoned much earlier than previously thought.
The time when she was sold off was also under scrutiny.
“Alright then.”
Derek left the studio to pick up Hannah.
“What’s up?” Hannah could tell something was off, thinking it was business trouble.
“Problems at work?”
Derek shook his head. “Not that.”
He summarized the situation for her, and it was clear Hannah had been in the know. “Bri’s investigating
the poisoning. Joie’s just a side issue.”
“She’s still not letting go of the poisoning?”
Derek thought Brittany had given up, given the lack of leads after so much time.
“After all these years, poisoned without a clue, she won’t give up easily.”
Hannah had known Brittany for years and understood her well.
Remembering his own debt to Brittany, Derek resolved to help. His connections were just as solid as
Brittany’s.
Brittany and Isaac were on better terms now.
At five in the afternoon, they left work early and headed to the airport.
Daniel had just landed. He emerged from the gate, backpack bouncing, and dashed straight to Brittany.
“Mommy!”
Brittany had missed Daniel terribly over the past few months. She squatted down and pulled him into a
tight embrace. “My little treasure, did you miss me?”
Tears welled in Daniel’s eyes.
Miss her every single day!
Brittany cradled his face and showered him with kisses. Daniel basked in the affection, then planted a
big, slobbery kiss on Brittany’s cheek.
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