The Year I Stopped Being His novel Chapter 574

Wyatt Young watched the veins bulging one by one at Lawrence Sterling's temples, taking in his slightly twisted, agitated expression. This old man, who had always been unflappable and calculating, had finally torn away all his disguises, exposing the hideous, unwilling, and hysterical soul underneath.

Wyatt slipped his hands into his pockets, a sudden smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth.

"No problem at all."

Sterling's eyes widened in horror, his pupils instantly dilating. "What do you mean?"

Wyatt hefted the handcuffs in his hand and drawled unhurriedly, "I mean—there was absolutely nothing wrong with Vitas-1. All those reports of adverse reactions, patient complaints, and news of families rioting? All fake news, deliberately planted by the police."

Sterling looked as if he'd just been punched in the face. His body jerked violently backward. If not for the two SWAT officers holding him up from behind, he would have collapsed onto the ground.

His lips trembled, and his voice squeezed out from his throat, hoarse and shaking. "What did you say... fake news? But the investigation report—the DSEA's official dossier—"

"Forged."

Wyatt shrugged.

"And the news broadcasts on TV—"

"Pre-recorded."

"But the furious patients' families on the news! The people holding banners and storming into the hospital..."

"Oh, those were actors we hired from the MPD Civilian Auxiliary Corps."

Wyatt stroked his light beard, a hint of mockery in his tone. "They actually gave some great performances that day. Nailed it in one take."

"So, so..."

"So, just as you're starting to realize," Wyatt smiled wickedly, "all of that was a setup. But using the Vitas-1 crisis as a smokescreen to investigate the crimes you've committed within the DSEA over the years? That part is very real."

Every ounce of strength drained from Sterling's body in an instant.