Betrayed and Dumped She Rose Stronger Than Ever novel Chapter 527

Stephen stared at the floor, his voice dropping low.

“Back then, I overheard Joan arguing with someone about money on the phone. Now I realize it was probably Colton. I started to get suspicious, but honestly, I just couldn’t believe it. Part of me felt like—no, she would never do something like that. I tried tracking down who she was talking to, but it was like the person vanished. I never found anything.”

He took a shaky breath.

“Now I get it. Not long after the kidnapping, Colton got reported to the police. He was charged with a bunch of crimes and got eight years in prison. He only got out a year ago. And the one who tipped off the police was Joan.”

“I couldn’t find any more clues, so I convinced myself maybe I was just being paranoid. I let it go.”

Everyone turned to look at Joan. The shock from before was gone, replaced by something colder, something that crawled under their skin. She had been so young back then, not even twenty, but she’s already capable of this? The thought made people shiver.

Brett just froze, his mind spinning. In a split second, all he could see was his father’s burned body, the memory of his mother sobbing in his arms until she passed out. If Joan really was behind it all, then what did all those years mean? He had fallen for her, done everything for her, tried to bring her back from the darkness, tried to keep her for himself. Was he really cherishing the person who killed his own father? Was he loving the villain?

He couldn’t make sense of it. None of it made sense.

Brett finally turned to her. His eyes were still as soft and gentle as ever, but his voice was barely a whisper.

“Joan, none of this is true, right? Say it isn’t. Tell me it wasn’t you. Please, just tell me, and I’ll believe you. I promise I will.”

Joan stayed on the floor, staring back at him. In all these years, the people she truly owed an apology were Ben and Brett. Without Brett, her time overseas would have been miserable. Life would have crushed her. If Colton’s secret hadn’t blown up, she might have kept lying to Brett forever.

But now, what was the point? Lying didn’t matter anymore. Just this once, she didn’t want to lie to him.

She closed her eyes and spoke in a trembling voice.

“I’m sorry. I let you down.”

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