HIS REGRET (Ex-Husband wants Me Back) novel Chapter 396

**Shadows of the Past – By Emma Clarke**
**Chapter 396**

As the door to the meeting room clicked shut behind them, the sound reverberated softly, yet it had a profound effect, slicing through the lingering tension that saturated the air within. Daven strode purposefully down the corridor, his steps deliberate and steady, his shoulders squared as if the meeting had merely been another mundane task in his busy schedule.

Upon entering his temporary office, he felt an urge to shed the weight of his formal attire. With a swift motion, he loosened his tie, tossing it onto the plush sofa with an air of dismissal. The blazer followed suit, draping itself carelessly over the back of a nearby chair. Taking a moment, he inhaled deeply, letting the breath fill his lungs before exhaling slowly, as if trying to release the remnants of the meeting along with the stale air.

Arsen lingered a few paces behind, a look of contemplation etched on his face, still grappling with the events that had just transpired. “Honestly, sir,” he finally ventured, breaking the silence, “I didn’t see that coming.”

Daven turned his head slightly, raising an eyebrow in curiosity. “You mean regarding Bret?”

“Or that man, Oscar,” Arsen continued, his voice laced with disbelief. “I initially thought he was just another hired hand, a mere errand boy. But to find out he works directly for one of the commissioners… that really took me by surprise.”

Daven moved toward the window, peering out at the rain that continued to fall gently over JiangShe. The droplets cascaded down the glass, creating thin, shimmering trails. “Precisely,” he replied, his tone calm and measured. “Bret wouldn’t employ a pawn that could easily be traced back to him.”

Arsen nodded slowly, the weight of the situation sinking in. “Oscar confessed he was receiving direct orders. All the unrest with the locals, the demands for compensation—even the timing of his arrival—it was all meticulously planned.”

“If I hadn’t pressed him harder, I have no doubt he would have remained silent until the very end,” Daven stated flatly, a hint of frustration creeping into his voice. “Have you arranged for him to be handed over to Cale?”

“Yes, Mr. Daven. I’ve also assigned several men to keep watch over him. Just in case his sudden disappearance raises eyebrows and becomes an issue for us.”

“Good,” Daven replied, rubbing his temples with a sigh, exhaling deeply as if trying to dispel the tension that clung to him. “But what he did at the end of the interrogation was… unsettling.”

Arsen’s jaw tightened, his hands instinctively curling into fists. “He bit his own tongue, sir. Without a moment’s hesitation. It was as if… he had already made up his mind that this was his escape route from the very beginning.”

A faint smile flickered across Daven’s lips, a mixture of admiration and frustration. He pulled a chair closer and sank into it heavily, as if finally releasing a burden that had been weighing him down. “Which means Bret isn’t acting alone.”

Arsen scrutinized his boss closely, sensing the gravity of the situation. “So you’re convinced there’s someone else pulling the strings?”

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