Love at First Sight? Mr. Harrison Has Been Scheming All Along-Chapter 111: "Do You Think You Can Deceive Her Forever?
Sean Harrison’s hands remained on the steering wheel as he glanced at Rory Linden.
The car was quiet for a few seconds before he said, "Something’s come up. You should head back first."
It was the first time he hadn’t even offered an explanation.
Rory Linden clutched the seatbelt with both hands, turning her head to look at Sean Harrison.
The car’s interior light had come on, but his pupils were as dark as ink, perfectly concealing all his emotions.
’I can never guess what he’s thinking.’
After a few seconds of silence in the car, Rory Linden slowly nodded. "Okay."
She had known for a while that there were many things about Sean Harrison she didn’t know.
She had always believed that if she just asked, he would tell her.
But at this very moment, she realized with stark clarity that there were things he was unwilling to tell her.
Rory Linden got out of the car.
She had just closed the door and taken no more than a few steps when the car behind her pulled out of the parking space, accelerating toward the garage exit.
Rory Linden glanced back in the direction the car had gone, then took out her phone and called Sherry Walsh.
After briefly explaining what had just happened, she said dejectedly, "I’m realizing that not only do I not understand Sean Harrison, but he’s also refusing to let me understand him..."
Once doubt was cast on one thing.
A flood of other suspicions would inevitably follow.
’Could it be that there are many other things I don’t understand about him at all?’
Sherry Walsh immediately countered, "I think you should try to look on the bright side. At least he didn’t lie to you, right?"
"I heard from my dad that even though Sean Harrison has the Harrington Family behind him, and his mother’s family has some money too, his real success story is pretty much one of a self-made man."
Sherry expressed her opinion, "A guy as capable as him could lie to you in a heartbeat if he wanted to. He chose not to tell you instead of lying to you, didn’t he?"
"I know. After all, it’s not like I have anything worth being lied to about." Rory Linden paused. "But the content of that video was so strange. I suspect he might be hiding a lot from me."
"Like what?"
"Like... you said he built his company from the ground up to what it is today. He couldn’t be involved in some kind of shady business, could he?"
That was the only thing Rory Linden could think of for now.
During her year at Elysian Hospital, she had seen a member’s profile get deleted from the internal system one day.
When she asked about it, she learned they were suspected of being involved in illegal businesses and had been sentenced directly to death...
By the time she heard people talking about it, the execution by firing squad had already been carried out.
"That... I don’t think my dad ever mentioned anything like that, so I’m not sure. I’ll ask him for you in a couple of days." As a lawyer, Sherry Walsh was also very cautious. "If he really is involved in some illicit business, you should break up with him immediately."
"Thanks."
Rory Linden couldn’t think about breaking up right now.
Deep down, she felt that Sean Harrison wouldn’t do something like that.
So the thing he was hiding from her...
"Oh! I just had a thought. Didn’t you say the video was really blurry?" Sherry Walsh suddenly had an idea. "Could it be a video of him being bullied when he was a student? Old phone cameras had bad resolution, so they’d be blurry."
"..."
Rory Linden suddenly felt that was a real possibility.
Sherry Walsh had mentioned this a long time ago.
Plus, Sean Harrison had said before that when he went to Summerwind Estate at fifteen, his original intention was to commit suicide.
That was probably related to being bullied in school too.
"I’d say there’s an eighty percent chance that’s what it is. No one in this world is perfect. Any outstanding person wouldn’t just easily reveal their unpleasant past."
Sherry Walsh’s tone was full of conviction.
"Then... who sent me this video?"
Rory Linden immediately realized another problem.
"Well... Sean Harrison probably went to investigate exactly that."
"Hmm..."
"Alright, stop letting your imagination run wild." Sherry Walsh let out a big yawn. "Sean Harrison is definitely a great guy in every respect. Just focus on your relationship with him. I’m going to sleep."
After the call ended, Rory Linden couldn’t resist checking her email again.
The email from before had been permanently deleted by her, leaving no trace.
’If that video really was about Sean Harrison being bullied...’
The lighting in the video was dim, making it impossible to see the surroundings or tell if it was day or night.
But you could clearly hear the sound of chains, and someone groaning in pain.
’Was the person chained up in there Sean Harrison?’
Realizing this possibility, Rory Linden couldn’t help but feel a pang of heartache as she recalled the video’s contents.
She didn’t dare to think too deeply about what Sean Harrison must have gone through in his youth.
-
Meanwhile, Sean Harrison drove his car to a standalone protected building, located just two kilometers from the residential complex.
The entire exterior of the building was covered in scaffolding, clearly still under renovation.
It was already midnight, but all the lights inside the building were on. Through a display window to the right of the main entrance, you could see the pure white bust of a woman.
The sculpture had a slender neck and its right hand was raised high. An exquisite set of jewelry adorned its neck and wrist.
The display lighting was focused on the jewelry, making the multi-carat diamonds on the pieces particularly eye-catching.
Sean Harrison stared straight ahead and walked directly to the entrance.
A wind chime made of strung-together gemstones hung by the door.
The moment the door opened, it struck the wind chime, creating a crisp sound.
Only one lamp was lit in the foyer. Further in, the lights of a spiral staircase leading to the second floor were on.
On the second floor, the lights stretched all the way down the corridor.
All the way to the door of the rearmost room.
Sean Harrison followed the light, striding forward.
He opened the door.
The room was clearly a studio. A large worktable was piled high with all sorts of sketches.
Nadia Willow sat at the worktable, wearing a simple dress, her long black hair tied into a ponytail, with clean makeup.
From where he stood, he could only see her in profile.
Sitting there, her profile looked remarkably like Rory Linden’s.
Nadia Willow heard the noise and looked over. A smile blossomed on her face as she ran to the door with a sketch in her hand. "Sean, you..."
"What are you trying to do?"
Sean Harrison cut her off, his face devoid of expression.
In the darkness, his ink-black eyes were like a deep sea with churning undercurrents.
Nadia Willow wasn’t the least bit intimidated by his appearance. She smiled sweetly. "Helping you. Letting your girlfriend get to know you better."
"I don’t need it."
Sean Harrison’s face was cold.
Nadia Willow turned and walked back toward the worktable.
She placed the design sketch on the table, her fingers caressing the unfinished design on the paper. "Do you think you can fool her forever?"
"This is between her and me," Sean Harrison said coldly. "It has nothing to do with you."
"Sean, do you think... Rory Linden loves you?" Nadia Willow slowly turned to face the man at the door. "Does she love you, or does she love the perfect persona you’ve fabricated?"
"..."
"What if she found out you’ve been watching her every move like a stalker all these years? Found out you raised all those piranhas abroad, and how long you hung the people who bullied you over them..."
"Nadia Willow."
When he said her name, his voice was low and carried a clear warning.
"Vindictive, paranoid, gloomy, cruel, and ruthless—that’s the real you. That’s the personality that made you who you are today." Nadia leaned against the table. "No matter how you disguise it, you can’t keep up the act forever."
"Since you know me so well, then you should take what you know to your grave. I can guarantee the rest of your life will be very comfortable if you do."
Sean Harrison stood rooted to the spot, not moving an inch.
In the dead of night, the old building was quiet and eerie.
The man’s voice echoed throughout the space.
Nadia Willow walked toward him, step by step, stopping only when she was right in front of him. "And if I don’t? Are you going to kill me?"
