I Was His Wife, Then His Widow, Then No One's But My Own novel Chapter 450

Nora blinked in sheer surprise. "You're actually okay with this?"

Xander's expression was steadfast. "Who am I to dictate your choices? You're a fiercely independent woman, and I have absolutely no right to clip your wings. However, I have every right to do my job and protect my wife."

A profound wave of affection melted Nora's heart. She reached out and slipped her hand securely into his. "Thank you."

"When is the meeting?" Xander asked calmly.

Nora recalled the urgency in the call. "He demanded I head over right now."

Xander gave a curt nod. "Go. I'll tail you."

Nora agreed with a hum. She hailed a cab and directed it toward the teahouse. When she was nearly there, she fired a quick text back to the unknown number. "I will only meet you in the main seating area on the ground floor. If that's a problem, don't bother showing up."

She left absolutely zero room for negotiation, and the other end remained silently compliant.

Upon arriving, she deliberately claimed a table right by the front windows. The ground floor of the teahouse was designed with open-concept seating. Although it wasn't overly crowded at this hour, it was still a highly visible public space with wall-to-wall security cameras.

She picked this exact spot to send Frederick a crystal-clear message: Whatever he had to say could be discussed in broad daylight, and she wasn't going to humor any shadowy espionage games.

"Cut the act and tell me what you want. I don't have any ties to the Fletchers. You were declared dead in a plane crash five years ago. So why the sudden resurrection, and where the hell have you been hiding?"

Frederick chuckled smoothly, casually pouring himself a cup of tea. "You say you don't care, yet you seem awfully eager to demand answers."

Nora's tone remained glacial. "If you went out of your way to track me down, you obviously want something. I assume this is a negotiation, which means you need to bring some actual leverage to the table."

Frederick dropped the playful facade, leaning forward as he cut straight to the chase. "Fair enough, I'll be blunt. I tracked you down because I want an alliance. We both want Finnegan to pay the price for the years of deceit he fed you. You despise him, and so do I. To you, he's the manipulative bastard who gaslit you and used my identity to string you along. To me, his sins run much, much deeper."

He paused, letting the silence stretch for maximum impact. "If you're half as brilliant as they say, you already know exactly why I want him destroyed. It's about the real truth behind that plane crash five years ago... and the truth behind your mother and brother."