The Wrong Girl and the Wronged Girl (Stella and Ethan) novel Chapter 874

874 No Way Out

The moment Dale gave the order, both Artemis and Manny went pale.

No food. No water. That meant he wasn’t just punishing them–he was leaving them to die.

If you put it bluntly, he was killing them without even pulling the trigger.

Artemis stared at Dale, her eyes wide with disbelief. She couldn’t process it. Couldn’t believe he would actually go this far. “Dale, you’ve lost your mind! You’re trying to destroy me by killing Manny!”

Dale’s expression didn’t change. “Don’t worry,” he said coldly. “Lina and Lana will be back soon. You should hang on as long as you can–maybe you’ll get to see them one last time.”

He spoke slowly, each word cutting deeper than the last.

Every trace of warmth in his voice was gone.

Artemis had always been good at getting her way with him before. She’d known how to soften him, how to play on his affection.

But none of that worked now.

When a man like Dale turned cold, there was nothing left to appeal to.

And now, there was nothing left in him but hatred.

“No! You can’t do this!” Artemis cried. “Lina and Lana have always been good girls. They’ve always listened to you! How can you be this cruel to them?”

Dale gave a hollow laugh. “Good? You seem to forget how Lana got hurt in the first place.”

He remembered perfectly–how the girls had gone behind his back, plotting to kill Tessa.

That was why they’d ended up like that.

Artemis went silent.

Faced with a man as clear–headed and cold as Dale, she had nothing left to say.

She had no idea what to do. Her chest ached so hard she could barely breathe.

Lenny motioned for the guards. They stepped forward, grabbed Artemis and Manny, and started dragging them away.

Manny tried to fight back, but with a bullet wound in his chest, he could barely move.

Seeing them pull at Manny’s body, Artemis screamed in despair.

“No! Don’t do this! Dale, please–I’ve been with you for so many years. Maybe I didn’t give you children, but I took care of you; I stayed by your side! Doesn’t that mean anything?”

Her voice echoed down the hall, desperate, breaking.

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Her mind screamed the same thing over and over. Don’t let him lock us up. Don’t go to the basement. We have to get out of Black Mountain.

If they could escape, they might still have a chance. But if they were locked away, they were done for.

But Dale wasn’t blind or foolish–not anymore.

Maybe once he’d been infatuated with her, letting her have her way while she quietly built her own network of power. But he hadn’t been blind–he’d just tolerated it. Back then, it hadn’t threatened him.

Now, everything was different.

Now that the truth was out, he knew exactly what she was capable of–and he couldn’t let her leave.

If they escaped, they’d come back stronger–and that was something Dale couldn’t allow.

Artemis’s voice faded as the guards dragged her away. “Don’t do this! Manny needs help–he’ll die, Dale! He’s going to die!”

Her screams grew fainter until they disappeared completely.

The room went silent except for the faint crackle of Dan’s cigarette.

He took another slow drag while Dale glared at him.

Dale picked up the other report and looked it over.

When he saw the result, he finally exhaled, tension easing just slightly.

At least one of them was his.

Dan stubbed out his cigarette in the ashtray, then glanced over at Dale. A smirk tugged at his lips as he clicked his tongue twice.

“So what now?” he said casually. “Are you still planning to test Lina and Lana?”

The question hit Dale like a knife to the chest.

Was there even a point anymore?

Of course not.

Artemis and her three children had always known the truth. He was the only fool who hadn’t.

Lina and Lana’s escape proved everything–they were guilty, and they knew it.

“You little punk…” Dale muttered, glaring at Dan.

Dan chuckled, the sound echoing through the tense room, sharp and mocking.

That laugh made Dale’s blood boil.

He grabbed the lighter off the table and hurled it at Dan’s face.

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“You’re still laughing? Don’t tell me you knew all along!”

The thought made his rage spike.

Dan had been the one pushing for the DNA test, making sure no one could tamper with it.

Of course he’d known.

And those things he’d said earlier, the way he’d taunted Manny–Dale saw it now for what it was.

“You–you son of a bitch!” Dale roared.

His fury surged again, raw and uncontrollable, burning through what little control he had left.

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