When His Perfect Mask Shattered I Awoke (Anneliese and Zacharias) novel Chapter 641

Zacharias yelled in pain and let go of Jonathan, reaching toward Anneliese.

Before he could touch her, Jonathan pulled her back and held her close. His arm wrapped around her protectively.

Then, his leg came up fast.

His foot drove hard into Zacharias' stomach, forcing him backward a few steps.

Zacharias clutched his bleeding forehead, his eyes blazing red with rage. "You hit me for him?"

There had been no hesitation in her movements. Her blows had been fast and sharp.

If she'd had anything heavier in her hand, Zacharias knew he'd be on the ground by now. His skull would've cracked.

Anneliese didn't even glance his way. Her attention was locked on Jonathan, her eyes full of worry and fear.

Zacharias saw it. The sight burned through him like acid. The taste of blood filled his mouth again.

"Why didn't you move? Are you hurt?"

"I'm fine."

Jonathan gave her hand a squeeze and finally turned his gaze to Zacharias, his voice low and cold. "Mr. Shaw, what's this? Trying to follow your mother's example and get yourself arrested too?"

Rage flared in Zacharias' eyes as he turned toward the frozen Nishay. "Nishay, you've always been against Anne and Jonathan being together. To keep you from blaming him for Nakala's death, he bribed Roretha to frame my mother!"

Anneliese's anger boiled over. She glared at him, furious at the lies he was trying to feed Nishay.

"Shut your mouth! Twisting the truth? If Roretha had lied about Melody, do you really think she'd have gone so far as to hire someone to kill? Your mother is a murderer—she's killed more than once! The police already have her in custody. You can't just flip the truth because it suits you!"

Nishay's face went pale. Her voice trembled as she looked between them.

"Anne, who did Melody kill? And what does he mean by blaming your mother's death on her? What is this?"

Anneliese saw her wavering and rushed to steady her. "Please don't listen to him—"

Zacharias gave a short, sharp laugh. "Don't listen? Jonathan knows d*mn well what I mean. If this wasn't a setup, why didn't Roretha ever stand up for my mom?

"My mother didn't hire anyone to kill her. She only wanted to save Roretha from Jonathan's control. He bought her off and planned to use her as a fake witness in court. My mom just wanted to help her wake up and come to her senses!"

…

When Zacharias got back to Clauderias Tech, the board was in chaos. The media was tearing him apart, and there was no silencing it.

He picked up a glass of warm water, opened the nightstand drawer, and took out a bottle of pills.

"Have Nishay take two," he said quietly.

Anneliese took them and nodded before hurrying to prepare them. "Grandma, take these first."

Nishay did as she was told, swallowing the pills and holding the glass between her hands. Her eyes lingered on Jonathan, her expression shifting slightly.

He hadn't spent much time in her room, yet he knew exactly where her medication was kept.

He must have asked about her condition before.

Nishay tried not to think about it, but it was always the smallest details that hit the hardest—and refused to be ignored.

After she took the pills, her face began to regain some color. Only then did Jonathan start speaking.

"Melody went to the Claudes' place back then and told your daughter about her husband's death, Nishay. When your daughter fell down the stairs, Melody was there.

"She ran from the scene, and Roretha saw her. Roretha agreed to testify in court. Terrified of being exposed, Melody sold her jewelry and hired someone to silence her. The police caught her in the act."