48 Lying Tongue, Truthful Eyes.
~Tamia~
I could feel Sylvester''s uneasiness about my trip to the western vige. I did not know how to tell
him I could never leave him.
After our discussion, he insisted that we visit Larry.
He wanted to get to the bottom of the matter, and I needed to figure out how to stop him from
wasting his time.
I was feeling nauseous, so I went to the bathroom to throw up my stomach''s content.
Sylvester rushed to the bathroom, a bit worried. He carried me to the shower and turned on the
water while he took off my clothes.
"I noticed you were slightly warmst night but didn''t think much of it. Now you are burning up. What
is happening?" he asked me calmly, and I could see he was fighting every fibre of his being from
acting out.
"It started after we had tea and biscuits yesterday afternoon. I threw it all up and felt better, but the
nausea is back," I managed. The water was soothing, and I wanted to stay under it.
"Who served the snacks?" He asked, and I knew what he wanted to imply, so I shook my head.
"I doubt they did anything to the food, darling. I made the person that served it taste it," I said,
withholding the person''s name, and he was silent. Once I was calm, he carried me to the bed.
"You can''t go to Brighton tomorrow in this condition," he said, and I smiled because I was already
feeling better.
"Nice try, Alpha," I said and touched his nose. He did not smile.
" Let me call the doctor?" he said, and I knew how important going to Brighton was, so I shook my
head and sat up, pretending to be strong.
"I feel better. You will be wasting your time. I believe the stress caused it, and something might have
irritated my stomach from breakfast. Come on. Let us visit Larry." I said, and he frowned at me for a
bit before finally epting.
We got dressed and left the room. The moment we walked past Stephanie''s room, I became
nervous.
"Where do you think your mother went to?" I asked, and Sylvester shook his head.
"I do not know, and honestly, I can''t be bothered. No matter who she brings to plead with me to let
Dominic go, I won''t listen. Sadly, she does not understand the gravity of Dominic''s offence," he said,
and I touched his hands.
"I do not think your brother did it, Sylvester. I believe him. He is too proud to beg like that. Someone
wants him to take the fall. We need to question Bryce, not Larry, and you must ensure the council
does not get their hands on Dominic. If they do, he would be found guilty. I doubt they would go
through the stress of finding the truth. See how they handled the matter that concerned you. They
did not do any investigation to figure out what was going on. They tried to me you for the crime.
They are either a bunch ofzy idiots or against the Volkov family and want you to step down by all
means. Which is why you can''t let themy their hands on him." I said, and he pulled me close as
we walked.
"If my mother only knew you meant well," he said and stopped to kiss the top of my head. Then he
looked into my eyes and caressed my chin.
"Do not get your hopes up, green eyes. Dominic might disappoint you," he said, and I smiled at him.
We left the mansion, and a Jeep was waiting at the entrance.
We drove to Lund silently, and Stephanie''s trip did not sit well with me. I doubted she was going
to get help. Whatever she nned on doing was extreme, and I knew it had to do with me.
I could not understand why the woman would me me for this. I might have overstepped when I
went to ask her to keep her son at home, and I might have said some things that scared her, but I
have done nothing wrong.
I was troubled, and so was Kaira. Stephanie wasn''t a good enemy to have.
Even though Sylvester had sided with me against her, and I knew she couldn''t make him change his
mind about me, I did not want their rtionship to be damaged.
I remembered all the good times we had had with Stephanie and wondered if she had been
pretending all along. I doubted it, though, because she seemed genuine. She loses her mind
whenever it has to do with Dominic, and I needed to know why.
We arrived at the Northern prisons, and to my surprise, Sylvester asked to see Bryce instead of
Larry.
"You changed your mind?" I asked him, and he shook his head.
"I want us to see Bryce first, and then we can check on Larry," he said, smiling, and I smiled back.
I could see he was stressed and worried, but he hid it well.
It wasn''t easy knowing that faceless and nameless people were plotting against him.
I just hope he handles the pressure well.
We were led to an interrogation room.
The smell of the disinfectant they used to clean the ce filled my nose, and I felt sick but held it. I
knew if I showed any sign of sickness, Sylvester won''t allow me to go to Brighton.
"May I have a ss of cold water?" I linked Sylvester, and he frowned at me. I smiled at him, so he
won''t think anything was wrong.
"Thirsty", I whispered, and he nodded.
Four chairs were in the room, and one was welded to a desk. I figured that was for the prisoner. I
sat on one of the free chairs while Sylvester paced.
The water came, and it was freezing. Drinking it made me feel better. Bryce was ushered in a few
minutester and kept his eyes bowed.
"Look up," I ordered him to look into his eyes.
He refused until Sylvester ordered him to.
"You do whatever she tells you," he warned the man, and he apologised to me.
"Exin how Dominic sent you the order." Sylvester said, and Bryce looked down.
"Look up!" I ordered the man I went to stand beside Sylvester.
I doubted the man would tell the truth, but I needed to see his eyes.
"He called me toe to the estate. Then he handed the document to me and told me that his
eminence wanted me to carry out the task quickly. That the east is supposed to pay development
tax, and if they refuse, I should use force." he said, and Sylvester looked at him.
"Was he the one that asked you to request development tax from Brighton too?" Sylvester asked,
but I doubted that was the right question because the council-owned up to it.
"That order came from the council", he said, and I now understood what Sylvester was doing. He
wanted to gauge his reaction. He wanted to understand how he behaved when he told the truth and
compare it to his mannerisms when he spoke of his dealings with Dominic. Sylvester was a master.
"Tell me how Dominic called you. When he called, and the time and day you went to the estate?"
Sylvester asked, and the man swallowed.
"He called me in the evening, and I went there an hour after his call. This happened five days ago,"
he said, and Sylvester was satisfied, but I wasn''t.
"You were right, Tamia; he is lying," Sylvester linked me.
This wasn''t Sylvester''s duty. His office ces him higher than this. They would normally send
Kappa William or kappa Wilson to do this. Sylvester must care for his brother to do it himself.
Although Sylvester had figured out the man was lying, Sylvester''s conviction was not enough to free
Dominic. The council will still ask for him and will likely sentence him. It wasn''t enough. We did not
only have to know Bryce was lying. We had to prove it.
"So you went to the estate in the evening five days ago to receive the order from Dominic Volkov," I
said, summarising his exnation, and Bryce nodded.
I was mad at the bastard but needed to back him into a corner without threatening him.
If I threatened him, his confession might be seen as something made under coercion, which might
make it inadmissible.
"I can see you have an excellent memory, Enforcer Golubev," I said, and he looked down, avoiding
eye contact. I did not need to see his eyes anymore.
"I am sure you didn''t sneak into the estate. You would have had no reason to sneak in because you
were officially summoned. You must have gone through the gates. Will the people stationed at the
gate be able to testify that you passed through that gate in the evening five days ago? Will the
people stationed at the entrance into the building be able to testify that you were in that building?" I
said, and he nodded.
I realised they had that part covered, so I decided to go the extra mile and lie to catch him.
"Will the newly stationed guards in the hallway testify that they saw you and Dominic that day? And
since Dominic doesn''t have an office in the estate, can they testify that they saw him give you a
document in the hallway or admit you into his bedroom or any room for a private conversation that
thedies in the harem weren''t privy to?" I said, and the man looked at me. Of course, there were
no guards in the hallway, but he could not know that because the person that sent him did not have
that information.
"I can''t remember the time of day," He said, and I nodded.
"That is great, but as long as it happened five days ago, we do not need time. I want to know if
anyone would testify to those things," I said, and he was silent.
"I do not want to hurt you, Bryce, but I want you to tell us what happened. If you tell us the truth,
then Lord Volkov would tamper justice with mercy.
We know you went to the estate but had no dealings with Dominic. Which means Dominic Volkov
had no interaction with you. What we want to know now is who put you up to it and why you agreed
to do it," I asked him and his eyes welled up in tears.
"My wife is seven months pregnant. I got a note stating they would hurt her if I did notply. I did
not meet anyone. The order was sent to me via mail, and I was asked to state that Lord Dominic put
me up to it. They took my Maria during that time, and I did all they asked to get her back," he said,
and I smiled, knowing my guess was correct.
They wanted the n to go belly up and Dominic to take the fall. I also believed this was to make
Dominic the fall guy for what happened in Brighton.
Knowing Dominic and Sylvester do not see eye to eye, they thought Sylvester wouldn''t bother to dig
and help his brother, and that would have been the case if I had not insisted.
"So where is Maria now?" I asked him, and he told us where his mate was.
Sylvester ced a call to Marcel to have the woman taken to safety.
"You will be transported to a cell on the estate for your safety."
Sylvester said, and the man thanked him.
I asked Sylvester if he would release Larry, but he refused. Larry had misguided Dominic, Sylvester
wanted him to suffer a bit, and I agreed.
We returned to the estate in high spirits and returned to our room.
The moment we entered, I went to lie on the couch because I was tired and did not want Sylvester
to know.
"You have to stall the hearing. Do not let the council know what we know. Keep your brother in the
cell. That way, whoever tried to set him up would believe he had seeded. It will buy me the time I
need to investigate in Brighton. Once I am back, we can have Bryce speak his truth," I said, and
Sylvester came to sit on the chair where I was lying. I could see he wasn''tfortable with me
going to Brighton but did not want to say no because he had already said yes.
"Who do you think is doing this?" Sylvester said, and I honestly did not know. I was more worried
about what Stephanie was up to than who was trying to set Dominic up.
"You should just be cautious and don''t give too much away. Once you do not raise the rm that
someone is out to get you, the person would still think they are winning, but I suspect this is bigger
than it seems. You upy the most powerful seat in our world; it is meant to be hot," I said, and he
looked at me and smiled.
Then he stood up and carried me off the couch to the bed.
N?velDrama.Org content.
"We will be having dinner in the room. I will spend the night proving to you why you should return
quickly," He said, peeling off my clothes. "Throughout your journey, you will be wet and eager to
come home when you recollect what I will do to you tonight," He said and sucked my neck. My skin
was extra sensitive, and I knew it was on. Kaira purred in my head, eager to receive Sylvester''s
love.