When Love Finds Its Way Back (Cassienne and Dreston) novel Chapter 290

Chapter Two Hundred And Ninety: Everything Was Gone

The penthouse remained deathly silent long after Dreston Tremont had left and after the message. It was the kind of silence that pressed down on the soul, making every painful thought echo louder and sharper in the emptiness. The air felt thick, heavy with the ghosts of everything that had just shattered.

Tina Ackley still sat crumpled on the cold marble floor where she had collapsed, her back against the couch, legs sprawled awkwardly beneath her. Her breathing came in uneven, ragged gasps as fresh tears continued slipping silently down her flushed cheeks. Her entire body felt numb, disconnected, as though she were watching herself from outside her own skin.

“You were someone I pitied.”

Dreston’s final words replayed endlessly inside her head like a broken record, cutting deeper with every loop. Again and again.

Every single thing she had fought for, every sacrifice she had made, every lie she had told herself had just shattered irreparably in front of her. And the worst part wasn’t even the broken engagement or the public humiliation. It was the brutal, undeniable truth.

He had never loved her. Not even once.

Tina pressed both palms tightly against her ears as though she could physically block the thoughts from flooding her mind. But it didn’t help. The memories only grew clearer.

The way Dreston had always looked at Cassienne with that quiet intensity. The way he had instinctively protected her at the gala. The way his voice had softened around her, even when he tried to remain. distant. Even during their own engagement announcement, his eyes had still searched for his wife

across the room.

Tina let out a broken, bitter laugh that quickly dissolved into another raw sob. “How pathetic,” she whispered to herself, voice hoarse and trembling. “How fucking pathetic.”

Then suddenly, her phone vibrated again on the floor beside her.

Tina froze. The unknown number was still displayed on the screen, glowing ominously in the dim light.

Slowly, with trembling fingers, she lifted the phone back to her ear. For several long seconds, neither side spoke. Then the voice returned–cold, calm, and completely emotionless.

“I warned you not to touch Cassienne.”

Tina’s breathing stopped for a brief moment.

“But you used the little opportunity I gave you to hurt her.” The voice paused deliberately. “And now look at what you caused.”

Tina wiped her tear–streaked face angrily with the back of her hand. “You used me,” she snapped, her voice cracking with fury and pain.

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Chapter Two Hundred And Ninety Everything Was Crones

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A soft chuckle came through the line. It wasn’t amused. It was disappointed, almost pitying.

“No,” the caller replied calmly. “You ruined yourself.”

Tina clenched the phone so hard her knuckles turned white. “You told me Dreston and Cassienne were already falling apart.”

“And they were,” the caller answered smoothly. “But your emotions made you careless. Sloppy. Predictable.”

Tina pushed herself up shakily from the floor, legs unsteady beneath her. “Who are you?” she demanded, anger bleeding into her voice. “What do you actually want from the Tremonts?”

Silence stretched for a few beats.

Then the voice answered with chilling indifference, “You were never important enough to know that.”

The words struck Tina harder than she expected. Her chest tightened painfully again, fresh tears burning her eyes.

All this time, she had truly believed she was part of something bigger. That she mattered. That someone finally understood and shared her deep hatred for Cassienne. But now the illusion had been ripped away.

She had only been useful. Nothing more. A disposable tool.

“You’re fired from this job,” the caller continued coldly. “Do not contact me again. Do not interfere anymore.” A brief, heavy pause followed. Then came the line that sent ice sliding down Tina’s spine.

“I will handle things myself.”

The call disconnected immediately afterward with a soft click.

Tina slowly lowered the phone from her ear, her hand shaking violently. Her breathing became shallow

and rapid once more.

Something about that final sentence frightened her on a visceral level.

For the first time, she realized there was something far more dangerous lurking behind all of this. Something bigger than simple jealousy. Bigger than personal revenge. And somehow, Cassienne remained at the very center of it.

Tina turned slowly toward the large floor–to–ceiling glass windows overlooking the glittering city skyline. The lights outside blurred through the curtain of her tears.

Her mind raced, replaying every conversation she had ever had with the mysterious caller. Every message. Every instruction. Every subtle manipulation. And suddenly, real fear crashed over her like a

wave.

What if they decided to silence her next?

The thought alone made her stomach twist violently with nausea.

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Chapter Two Hundred And Ninety. Everything Was Gone

+25 Bonus

She moved quickly toward the nearby table and snatched her laptop, hands shaking badly as she opened several encrypted folders and old message threads connected to the anonymous communications. But the moment she clicked into them, her expression changed completely.

They were empty.

Everything was gone.

The folders. The voice recordings. The hidden documents. Every single trace of their communication had been wiped clean.

“No…” Tina whispered, her voice barely audible.

She checked another folder. Nothing. Another. Still nothing.

Panic surged through her chest like wildfire. “No, no, no…”

Her fingers flew frantically across the keyboard now, searching deeper, more desperately. But the further she looked, the worse it became. Someone had erased every digital footprint with surgical precision.

And suddenly, Tina understood something truly terrifying. Whoever that person was… they had access to her system the entire time. They had been watching. Waiting. Controlling.

Her breathing turned unstable again as she looked slowly around the luxurious penthouse. Since this nightmare had begun, Tina felt deeply unsafe inside her own home.

Very unsafe.

Meanwhile, across the city, the atmosphere inside Dreston Tremont mansion felt like an entirely different world. Quiet, warm, and alive with quiet intimacy.

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