CHAPTER 2: The Trap
1212 Words
CHARLES'S POV
“She passed out in the interrogation room.”
The words from Detective Harris echoed through my phone as I stepped out of the elevator.
A slow smile pulled at my lips.
“Did she say anything before?” I asked calmly.
“She kept asking for her mother,” the detective replied. “Then she started crying when we mentioned prison.”
I loosened the buttons of my suit slowly as I walked deeper into the penthouse. “Good.”
“Mr. Manson, are you sure you want us to keep pushing her tonight?” detective Harris asked.
I stopped walking. The city lights reflected faintly against the glass beside me.
“Yes,” I said firmly. “Push harder.”
The detective hesitated. “She looks terrified.”
“She should be,” I added.
I ended the call before he could say anything else.The silence inside the entire building felt heavy. Exactly the way I liked it.
I walked toward the bar and poured myself a drink, the sound of whiskey filling the glass quietly.
Then I looked up and saw my father, Richard Manson already watching me.
Richard Manson sat comfortably in the living room, one leg crossed over the other, looking completely relaxed despite the storm outside.
“You look pleased,” he said with a faint smile.
I took a slow sip from my drink. “I finally found her. You should have seen her expression when the police mentioned fraud,” I said calmly. “She looked completely lost.”
“She should be,” my father replied coldly. “People like the Laurents deserve worse.”
The family responsible for ruining mine.
At least, that was what I had believed my entire life.
My mother died because of them.
That was the story I grew up hearing.
That was the hatred planted inside me for years.
And now,
Elena Laurent was standing right in front of me under a fake name, pretending to be innocent “Lisa Corris”.
I almost laughed thinking about it.
Even thinking about the fake name irritated me.
“Elena Laurent,” he muttered. “After all these years, so she claims to be Lisa Corris now,” my dad teased.
The woman at the gala looked nothing like the daughter of a dangerous family. She looked scared and lost.
And somehow that annoyed me even more.
“She really had no idea tonight,” I admitted.
My father scoffed softly. “That girl has been hiding for years. Of course she learned how to act innocent.”
But there was something about the way Lisa, whatever her real name was, looked at me tonight that stayed in my head.
Like she was silently begging for help without saying the words out loud.
“She looks exactly like her mother,” my father continued. “I almost thought I was looking at a ghost when I saw her picture, where is she now?” he asked.
“Detention center, exactly where she belongs,” I replied.
For years, the Laurents disappeared without consequences. And now, they want to hide under a fake identity. They think I'm a fool?
Now they were finally paying for what they did.
“They won’t escape this time,” my father added.
This was revenge. The kind that waited patiently for years.
And tonight, it finally began.
My phone vibrated again and it was detective Harris. A small smile touched my lips before I answered.
“Yes? Talk to me,” I answered immediately.
“We found something else we can use against her,” he said quickly.
I walked toward the windows slowly. “What?”
“There was a missing diamond necklace from the hotel charity event last month. The case was never solved,” he said.
A small smile appeared on my face.
“Blame her,” I commanded.
The detective fell silent for a second.
“Sir!!! that necklace belonged to a senator’s wife,” he stated.
“Even better,” I said.
“This could become a major criminal case,” he said.
I stared down at the streets below.
The detective sounded uneasy now. “Mr. Manson, if the media gets involved?” he asked.
“Let them get involved, I want to deal with these people,” I declared.
Right now, Lisa needed to feel trapped from every direction. She has no money, her mum is trapped and there's no room for escape. It's just me.
“That’s serious, Mr. Manson,” the detective said nervously. “The necklace was worth almost two million dollars.”
“Exactly.”
“And if she denies it?”
“She will.”
I took a slow sip from my drink.
“But fear changes people.”
The detective lowered his voice. “You really think she’ll crack?”
“She already is.”
I could see it clearly.
Lisa was barely holding herself together at the gala.
One more push and she would break completely.
And once she broke—
she would accept anything I offered her.
Including marriage.
“I’ll handle it,” the detective finally said.
“Good.”
I ended the call.
The room became quiet again.
Even my father looked impressed now.
Then my father smiled slowly. “You’ve become even colder than I expected.”
I ignored the comment.
“This needs to end properly,” I said.
“It will,” he replied confidently. “Once the girl signs the marriage contract, everything will finally fall into place.”
Contract? Even hearing the word sounded strange. Marriage was the last thing I ever imagined for myself.
But this was not about love. It was a revenge and marriage has to be the best option.
And Lisa was the perfect target.
“She’ll hate you,” my father said suddenly.
I looked at him blankly. “I don’t care.”
Because emotions had never mattered to me in anyway, not in business or anything.
And definitely not in this marriage.
Still…Something about Lisa unsettled me.
Maybe it was because she looked too innocent.
Or maybe it was because when the police grabbed her arm tonight, she looked at me like she expected me to save her.
The memory annoyed me immediately.
I poured another drink aggressively.
“She’s just scared,” my father said dismissively. “Once she realizes there’s no escape, she’ll obey.”
Because that was the plan, she must obey.
That was the plan.
A knock suddenly sounded at the penthouse door.
My brows pulled together slightly.
At this hour?
One of the guards stepped inside a second later. “Sir, there’s someone downstairs insisting on seeing you.”
“I’m not expecting anyone,” I said.
“I know, sir,” the guard replied carefully. “But he says it’s urgent.”
Something in his tone immediately caught my attention.
“Who is it?”
The guard hesitated, then he finally spoke.
“It’s Davis Voss, your best friend.”
I paused for seconds.
Davis never showed up unannounced.
Especially not this late.
Which could only mean one thing.
Something had gone wrong.
And judging from the look on my guard’s face.
whatever it was? Was bad.
- Writer
