?Chapter 1248:


    Meanwhile, Beal, lurking just outside, caught the sound of footsteps approaching and instinctively melted into the shadows.


    Eyes narrowed, he tracked Malcolm’s exit, suspicion etched into every line of his face.


    Clearly, the old fox was up to his neck in this scheme. And as for Salex, the boy seemed to be the linchpin of the entire operation. Humphrey needed to know about this, and fast.


    Steeling himself to slip away unnoticed, Beal was caught off guard when a sharp, icy voice sliced through the silence. “Who are you?”


    Instantly, Beal’s muscles locked, and a jolt of fear shot through him. He whipped around, searching for the source.


    There stood Hailey, her appearance unexpected and unnerving. Just how long she’d been standing there was impossible to tell.


    A flimsy nightgown clung to her, ghostly pale against her skin, but her gaze was razor-sharp and unflinching.


    A quick nce told Beal no one else was in sight—he was alone with her.


    Wasn’t she supposed to be locked away by Alex?


    Questions raced through his mind. How had she slipped free? And, more importantly, how much of that conversation had she caught? Allowing her topromise Humphrey’s ns was unthinkable.


    In an instant, Beal’s eyes hardened, all traces of mercy vanishing.


    He moved in a sh, seizing Hailey by the throat before she could react.


    Her resistance meant nothing as he dragged her roughly, forcing her toward the shadowy garden.


    Hailey’s voice wasced with ice. “Whatever you witnessed or overheard, you’ll seal it away and never let it surface. If not, you might want to start counting your days.”


    Hailey’s throat pulsed in agony, and a paralyzing dread swept over her. Her porcin features turned scarlet, each breath scraping like sandpaper in her lungs. She wheezed, struggling to inhale.


    With desperation in her eyes, Hailey shook her head fiercely, panic gleaming in her stare.


    Beal’s expression hardened at her reaction, and without warning, he let go.


    L??e$? ??ΔT??R? 1π ???lnovels.c??m


    Without anything to hold her up, Hailey stumbled and hit the frosty ground, limbs awkward. Grasping at her throat, she hacked uncontrobly, the suffocating pressure leaving her rattled.


    Beal tossed a final indifferent look her way, then spun on his heel and exited the garden swiftly.


    Hailey tracked his vanishing silhouette, her hands balling tightly, fingernails piercing her skin.


    That man—wasn’t he just the new assistant Alex had hired? And yet he dared to handle her like trash?


    Silently, she cursed him with venom.


    .


    .


    .