Chapter 841
“Because of Sharon, I’ve crossed paths with Thomas a few times. You could say we know each other, but we’re hardly close,” Kelly replied evenly.
Victoria held Kelly’s gaze. “You know very well that’s not what I mean.”
Feigning confusion, Kelly replied, “I really don’t understand what you’re implying.”
Victoria glanced at Johanna. Johanna nodded, her lips curving into a half-smile as she looked Kelly straight in the eye.
“Kelly, are you pretending to be Thomas’s benefactor?”
Kelly’s pupils contracted violently; she nearly lost control of her expression. Still, she forced composure. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
But Johanna began calmly recounting, word for word, everything Thomas had told her.
At first, Kelly managed to keep her face composed. But the more Johanna revealed, the paler she grew. Her fingers clenched tightly in her lap, trembling.
He had told Johanna the exact same story he’d once told her.
Victoria caught every flicker of emotion across Kelly’s face, and her suspicions solidified.
So, Kelly and Thomas did know each other. And what he had told Johanna… might very well be the truth.
When Johanna finished, she reached into her bag and drew out a pair of earrings.
“These should look familiar, shouldn’t they?”
Kelly’s eyes widened in shock. “How… how do you have those earrings too?”
Her head whipped toward Victoria. “Did she give them to you?”
Johanna’s smile was unhurried. “Of course not. Victoria and I had them custom-made together. We each own a
pair. I only stopped wearing mine because I lost one by accident.”
“You’re lying!” Kelly snapped. “I remember Victoria said those earrings were a gift from her father!”
Unruffled, Johanna replied, “That’s true. He gave them to Victoria. But surely you know-he had two pairs
1/2
made at the time?”
Indeed, Richard had ordered two sets. That much was verifiable fact. But back then, Sharon’s identity hadn’t yet been revealed, and no one knew who had received the second pair.
Kelly’s expression shifted wildly, realization dawning like ice water.
No wonder. No wonder Thomas had been ignoring her lately. He must have found the real person who had
played “First Love.”
Her teeth ground together so hard her jaw ached. Hatred burned hot in her eyes as she glared at Johanna with
murderous intent.
Johanna felt a flicker of unease under the venom of that stare. Still, she quickly regained her composure.
“That was years ago. Honestly, I can’t even remember the details anymore. We came today to ask if Thomas
told you anything else-something beyond what we already know.”
Kelly wasn’t stupid. In an instant, she picked up the hidden meaning behind Johanna’s words. Her breathing
steadied, her expression cooling into guarded calm.
“Oh, he hasn’t told you everything?”
Johanna tucked her hair neatly behind one ear, her demeanor poised and unhurried.
“To be honest, I’m not entirely certain whether I’m truly the person Thomas is searching for. Perhaps I’m not.
If he’s mistaken and I’m not the one, then isn’t he wasting his chance of finding his real benefactor?”
Kelly’s eyes flickered as calculation returned to them.
“Here I am, trapped in prison-abandoned by Carter, exposed before Thomas. The days ahead hardly promise
anything good. I’ve got nothing left to lose. So tell me, why should I share anything with you?”
Johanna and Victoria exchanged a look. They weren’t afraid of Kelly setting conditions; they feared she might
not set any at all.
Johanna said, “Name your price.”
Kelly forced down the storm inside her. “Get me out of here. Bail me out.”
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Chapter 13446
