The Real Heiress Is Coming Back (Hannah Carter) novel Chapter 262

Chapter 262 Played For A Fool

Chapter 262 Played For A Fool

Hannah’s mind was in chaos. She never expected that after bending over backwards this morning to keep her plans secret from Barnaby just to meet someone, she’d end up discovering tonight that the person she’d been searching for was none other than her own boyfriend!

“Did you already recognize me back at last year’s auction, when we were fighting over the Obsidian Pearl?” Hannah asked. She recalled how Barnaby had once said he figured out she was the Nameless Healer just by the bracelet she wore.

‘Thinking about it now, it all adds up, Hannah mused. ‘He was the Master of the Scepter House. The only people I got close to that day, besides Candy, were him and… that’s it.’

“Yes,” Barnaby said. He’d always prided himself on being able to handle anything that came his way, but for once, he found himself stumped. Hannah’s expression actually made him nervous.

“Barnaby, you really are something else!” Hannah shoved him away and hopped off the desk.

He figured out who she was and kept it to himself, then had her drop 290 million to buy the Obsidian Pearl just so he could use it.

‘He scored both the cash and the loot. Talk about hitting the jackpot!’ Hannah thought, half amused, half exasperated.

And that wasn’t even the end of it. He got her to promise him three things, added her on WhatsApp, had her running around snapping pics for him and making deals, he was playing her like a fiddle.

And somehow, through all of that, Hannah found herself falling for Barnaby…

Thinking back on everything she’d gone through with the Master of the Scepter House, Hannah couldn’t help but feel like a total fool, he’d played her for a sucker from start to finish.

Barnaby stumbled back when Hannah shoved him. He’d always figured Hannah would be pissed if she ever found out he’d been playing her.

He’d thought about telling her the truth lately, but the rules at the Scepter House kept his mouth shut for now.

He wanted to change those rules first and then come clean to Hannah, but he never saw it coming, one careless moment and his secret identity got exposed just like that.

“Baby, I’m sorry. Please, just let me explain. There were reasons couldn’t tell you who I was. At the time, I only knew you were the Nameless Healer, I had no clue you were Raven,” Barnaby said, trying to make her understand.

He continued, “I only figured out you were Raven recently. It was the deleted transaction records in the Scepter House’s financial system that tipped me off.”

Hannah was still pissed, but then it hit her, she’d been keeping her own secrets from him too. Guilt started creeping in, and her thoughts were all over the place.

She looked at Barnaby; they locked eyes, neither saying a word, ust caught in the awkward silence.

Both of them had known they were hiding their true selves from each other, but seriously, who would have thought things would unfold this way? It felt like a cruel twist of fate.

Hannah noticed there were two computers on the desk, a desktop and a laptop. The hidden door had already slid shut behind them, leaving just the two of them in the office. No one was likely to find them here anytime soon.

She had no idea how Barnaby even knew about the secret office hidden inside the CEO’s suite, but honestly, with him being the Master of the Scepter House, was there anything he couldn’ pull off?

“How about a little showdown?” Hannah said, grabbing the laptop. She wanted to see for herself just who he really was.

Barnaby was totally up for it too.

They’d had a few hacking duels before, but every time, Hannah was the one launching the attack, and she’d always pull out before things got interesting. They never really got to enjoy the ght.

from her.

it’d be a better fit for this showdown.

“Alright, you take the desktop,” Barnaby said, grabbing the lapto The desktop was a bit more convenient to use than the laptop, Hannah plopped down at the desk, while Barnaby made himsel comfortable on the couch, the two of them sitting at an angle to each other.

They both booted up their computers and pluged by that the

Successfully unlocked!

Barnaby glanced up, and from his angle, all he condous profile. Her lips were pursed in

displeasure, she was clearly not in a good mood.

‘Of course I’m not happy, Hannah grumbled to herself.

She felt like a total clown remembering that C programming book she’d just finished annotating, all ready to hand over to

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Chapter 262 Played For A Fool

Barnaby to help him out.

The guy was literally the world’s number one hacker, Vulcan, right up there with her own mentor, Shadow!

Her little gesture was like a small fry trying to impress a big sho

Hannah took a deep breath. “Let the battle begin.”

Barnaby felt a rush of excitement. ‘Is Hannah really going to go Head-to-head with me? Maybe this means she’s finally cool with who I am, he thought, hope flickering in his chest.

Thinking back to how Hannah always kicked things off in their past hacking duels, he grinned and said, “Your move.”

Hannah didn’t hold back. Her pale, slender fingers flew over the keyboard as she started typing away.

The only thing one could hear in that spacious office was the furious tapping of keys.

Hannah’s eyes flicked between the rapidly shifting windows and lines of code on her screen, feeling a little dazed by it all. She couldn’t help but remember how, not long ago, the two of them were huddled together over a basic programming book, and now, suddenly, they were squaring off in a real hacker duel.

But what really had her reeling was this: the guy who always acted pitiful in front of her was actually the secret Master behind the Scepter House.

He had claimed to struggle in the Thole family, yet here he was, the very person even the four big families were afraid to mess with!

Hannah spaced out for just a moment, and a glitch crept into her code. But Barnaby pretended not to notice, skillfully sidestepping it like it was no big deal.

Hannah frowned, shooting him a warning look. “Don’t go easy on me, give it your all!”

Barnaby glanced up at her, a smirk playing at his lips. ‘She’s even better than I thought, he mused, genuinely impressed.

Even the tiniest bit of holding back didn’t escape her notice.

“If you’re not giving it your all, what’s the point in winning?” Barnaby challenged, a confident glint in his eye.

Hannah’s brow furrowed. She never expected this guy could be so damn aggravating. ‘Turns out he’d been putting on a show for me all along!’ she thought, exasperated.

She started to wonder, maybe she never really knew who he was at all.

“Oh, is that so? Just make sure you don’t embarrass yourself when you lose,” Hannah shot back, her tone full of sass.

With that, she pushed all the messy thoughts aside and focused up.

Other than Shadow, Barnaby hadn’t faced such a strong opponent in ages. He had to admit, Hannah’s ability to learn and adapt was seriously impressive.

The last time they’d battled, those glaring holes in her code were gone. She’d picked up a bunch of his moves and even came up with fresh tactics to counter the viruses he created.

Hannah always managed to surprise him, and the more she did, the more he found himself falling for her.

Hannah focused intensely, throwing caution to the wind and diving headfirst into the showdown.

Two hours later.

Hannah stared at the green check shining in the middle of all that code. She finally let herself breathe easy, slumping back

in the office chair. When she glanced over at Barnaby on the couch, her heart was racing out of control

Barnaby pulled his hands away from the keyboard at last, gave s neck a good rub, and looked up at Hannah.

They locked eyes for a moment, and then Barnaby curved his lips into a smile. “You win

But Hannah didn’t feel any thrill from winning at all. Instead, she felt a wave of anger rising up inside her. She shot up from her chair, stormed over to the couch, and reached for the laptop her frustration written all over her face.

Barnaby quickly pulled the laptop away, flashing her a playful stle ‘Okay, you got me, I lost Have mercy on me, baby”

“Ha, go ahead and keep playing innocent. Don’t think I can’t tell you’ve been holding back on me this whole time!” Hannah snapped, her voice dripping with sarcasm

She lunged at him, snatching the laptop right out of his hands

Barnaby had been extra cautious, but Hannah still caught him i handed Worried she might trip while snatching the laptop, he stopped fighting for it and, in one smooth move, wrapped his arms around her and settled her onto his lap

The screen was still covered in all the code Barnaby had written and Hannah instantly zeroed in on the bits where he’d obviously pulled his punches for her

Glaring at those lines, Hannah’s frustration boiled over. “Barnaby am I really that much of a pushover to you?”

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