Chapter 8 The Truth?
1186 Words
The truth? Adelyn was confused. What truth?
If Randal was referring to her true identity as a member of the Eaton family, she had already distanced herself from her family just to marry him, which could hardly be considered deception!
As for secretly winning three major construction projects for him, she did it without her family knowing and also to prevent her status from causing him unnecessary trouble.
Everything she did was for his own good, yet in his eyes, it was all deception.
A sneer played on Adelyn's lips. It was unsure if she was ridiculing the man in front of her or her past self.
"Mr. Barnett, what makes you think you get to ask me this? Don't forget we're divorced!"
Randal was rendered speechless, but he didn't want to let Adelyn go. For five years, he had always felt that Adelyn could only be his! He couldn't possibly lose her!
Randal didn't let go. Instead, he pinned Adelyn against the wall hard!
"Randal, let me go!" Adelyn's eyes flashed with rage.
"Adelyn, you did all this just to get my attention, right?"
He believed Adelyn still loved him!
Adelyn scoffed, finding it utterly ridiculous. "Mr. Barnett, it's okay to be confident, but don't get cocky!"
"Adelyn, I'm giving you a chance to come back to me!" He always felt as if she was drifting further away from him.
A chance?
Did he still think she was the same fool who would risk anything for his love?
"Randal, we are over!"
Her icy words made his heart skip a beat.
Adelyn frowned, struggling with all her might to break free. But in her intense effort, she inadvertently slapped him across the jaw.
The slap with a loud smack turned Randal's head to the side!
Taking advantage of the moment, Adelyn pushed him away and retreated a few steps, maintaining her distance from him!
Frowning, he stared at her frigidly, his tongue pressing against his cheek.
"You're the first to ever hit me, Adelyn."
"What an honor. I was just returning the favor." After all, he was the one who had pinned her against the wall first.
As the two stood in silence, suddenly, a clear and deep voice came from not far away...
"Randal, there's a construction meeting about the Art Institute of Chicago at four PM. Don't be late."
Randal glanced at Adelyn and said, "I'll talk to you later. Wait for me."
She glanced over and saw Trent. She nodded in acknowledgment, but Randal stepped in, blocking her view as if that could keep them apart.
Smile faded from Adelyn's face. She didn't want to look at Randal any longer. Turning away, she walked off without another word.
After leaving the meeting hall, Adelyn drove to St. John's Church.
The security guard at the entrance was about to stop her but paused when he saw her pull out a set of keys and a certificate.
Adelyn smiled and explained, "I'm the head of A&C Studio. These are the keys and a pass Mr. Lynn gave me. I'm here to take some photos."
"Sure, please go ahead," the security said politely.
"Thank you." Adelyn beamed a smile and nodded as she entered the building.
The main hall was damaged by a fire years ago. Although emergency protective measures had been taken, the damage was still severe, so she could only proceed from the east side upward.
Holding her camera, Adelyn walked around while taking photos inside the building.
Later, she stepped outside to take some shots of the exterior but unexpectedly discovered that from this spot, she could clearly see the Barnett family's old mansion.
And more strikingly, there was a security camera pointed directly at the hall of the house!
Adelyn's gaze flickered as she immediately found the surveillance room.
The monitors displayed the hall of the Barnett family's old mansion, including the stairs!
Adelyn was puzzled. Why would St. John's Church have surveillance footage of the Barnett family's house?
Heavy with suspicion, Adelyn was unable to discern the connection immediately.
If St. John's Church truly had ties with the Barnett family, then the renovation wouldn't have been assigned to A&C Studio.
Setting her doubts aside for the moment, Adelyn quickly started typing at the keyboard to search for footage from six days ago.
Sure enough, the high-definition surveillance clearly recorded Brooke falling down the stairs on purpose!.
And most importantly, the angle did not capture Adelyn's figure.
She couldn't believe how lucky she was! With a chuckle, Adelyn pulled out a USB drive from her bag and meticulously copied the footage.
She wanted to force Brooke into a desperate corner, so keeping this surveillance was crucial.
Didn't Randal trust his beloved mistress with his soul? Adelyn was eager to see whether the Barnett and the Farrant families would still act as if nothing had happened once they saw the video!
*****
Adelyn returned to Heron Bay Villa, where her friend Carlee had thrown her a lavish party.
The celebration lasted until the early hours of the morning, with only a handful of young guests lingering, drinks in hand, engaged in lively conversations.
Carl, taking a moment from the festivities, pulled an elegantly designed invitation from his briefcase.
The card bore the distinctive logo of the UT-Austin Department of Architecture.
"The principal has specifically instructed me to give this invitation to you personally."
He handed it to Adelyn along with a schedule for the next day.
"This is the program for tomorrow's graduation ceremony. Take a look so you know what to expect."
Adelyn set aside the invitation and flipped through the list of invited guests and outstanding graduates.
"I don't have time for such boring..."
However, her words were cut short when she saw a familiar name—Brooke Farrant!
Adelyn smirked, revealing a smile. "Tell the principal that I will definitely be there!"
*****
The following day, nursing a hangover, Adelyn phoned George Timbers, the assistant manager of her studio.
"Do you know anything about the Art Institute of Chicago project?"
"Yeah, the Art Institute of Chicago placed this order on the app," George informed her.
"The app?" Adelyn was puzzled.
"It's a new collaboration platform. Only the top ten companies on this app can bid for big projects like the Art Institute's renovations. So, rankings on this app are crucial in the architecture industry," George explained.
Intrigued, Adelyn asked, "What's the app called?"
"TopArchitect."
After hanging up, Adelyn immediately downloaded TopArchitect on her phone and started browsing the rankings.
The top ten firms were all industry giants, with Barnett Construction leading the pack due to their recent ascendancy.
Despite Barnett Construction's formidable reputation and resources, the competition remained fierce, and the other companies on the rankings were also well-known in the industry.
Adelyn kept scrolling the screen and searched for the ranking of A&C Studio.
However, she found nothing, so she typed the studio's name in the search box.
And there it was, second to last in the rankings!
She tightened her grip on her phone, determination burning within.
"I'll take A&C Studio to the top, beyond Barnett Construction!"
- Writer
