The Heiress's Comeback-Chapter 240: [ Volume 1] Chaper - Culprit.

Ray’s face tightened, the teasing flicker in his gaze replaced by seriousness. "You’re saying someone else was supporting her?"

Esme nodded, her expression steady. "Exactly. There’s no way she could have moved the pieces alone. Someone’s hiding in the shadows, pulling strings." She stole a quick glance at Ray, whose face was etched with shock.

He let out a sigh, sinking back into his seat. "I’d hoped I was wrong," he admitted, running a hand through his hair. The air in the car grew tense as Ray stared out the window, the passing scenery blurring, lost in thought.

Esme, sensing his turmoil, asked quietly, "So you already suspected?"

Ray nodded slowly. "Yeah, I had my suspicions. But I couldn’t pin it down to one person." He paused, searching for the right words. "There are so many in the family who resented my mother, but at the same time, they’d never let her go completely. She built so much of what we have now. For someone to betray her... it’s confusing."

Esme’s lips curved into a reassuring smile. "Don’t worry. Whoever they are, they’ll reveal themselves. People like that can’t stay hidden for long. Especially not after today."

Ray chuckled, a bit of the tension slipping away. "If they don’t come after you after that performance, then they’re fools."

Esme glanced at him, her eyes alight with a quiet confidence. "Sometimes, people need a little nudge. And I’m here to provide just that."

Ray gave her a curious look, tilting his head. "I still don’t get it, though. Why put on such a show? You could have been a lot quieter about this."

Esme’s gaze softened, a thoughtful glint in her eyes as she turned to Jay, her tone almost conversational. "You know, Jay, do you ever wonder what a person hates most?"

Jay furrowed his brows, his expression a blend of curiosity and intrigue. "What do you mean? What kind of thing would someone hate the most?"

A small smile touched Esme’s lips, and she leaned in slightly. "Well, from what I’ve seen, there are two things a person despises more than anything else. First, when someone they’re close to gets hurt by someone else. And second..." She paused, letting the words linger, "...when someone tries to take something they hold dear, something that belongs to them."

Jay’s eyes widened, the weight of her words settling in as he considered them. Esme continued, her tone steady but edged with a subtle tension. "See, as far as I can tell, your Second Aunt has never been hurt through all of this. She’s somehow come out unscathed, even after what happened to your mother. Not a single scratch on her, no suspicion, nothing."

Kai, seated behind them, leaned forward, his voice breaking through the silence. "So you think... someone’s been protecting her? Someone who genuinely loves her?"

Esme’s gaze flickered over to Kai, her expression unreadable but sure. "Exactly. Whoever helped her cared enough to make sure she was safe, even if it meant... taking your mother’s life." Her words landed heavy in the air, the realization cutting through the stillness.

Kai frowned, skepticism flashing across his face. "But why are you so certain they actually cared about her? Couldn’t they have just been using her for their own gain? Maybe she was just a pawn in all of this."

Esme shook her head, her tone unwavering. "No, I don’t think so. If she were just a tool, they wouldn’t have stopped with your mother. They’d have come for all of you next—the heirs to everything. If it were just about property, money, or power, it would make no sense to leave you alive. And yet, here you are."

Ray, who had been quietly absorbing the exchange, finally spoke, his voice a low murmur. "So... they’re protecting her, but why?"

Ray and his brothers had learned not to pry into Esme’s cryptic warnings or hints. Her words about protection weren’t new—especially considering their second aunt’s unsettling obsession with their family, a topic they all understood but rarely discussed aloud. There was an unspoken agreement to leave such matters in the shadows, where they couldn’t easily sting.

Esme’s hands gripped the steering wheel a little tighter as silence settled in the car, thick with unsaid words and buried tension. Suddenly, she slammed the brakes, forcing the car to jolt to a halt. The suddenness caught Ray off guard, and he turned to her with a look of mild irritation that quickly faded as he saw the intensity in her eyes.

"Alright," she said, her voice low but unwavering, her gaze fixed on his, piercing through the usual guardedness he carried. "Tell me, Ray—what would you do if someone killed me?" She paused, letting the weight of her question settle before continuing. "If that person stood in front of you afterward, dancing with a smug smile, celebrating the fact they’d taken my life... what would you do?"

Ray blinked, momentarily thrown by the vividness of the scenario she’d painted, yet he quickly collected himself. A faint smirk tugged at his lips as he shrugged, his expression cool and indifferent, betraying no hint of alarm. "Why..." he began, his voice as smooth as ever. "Why would I care enough to do anything about it?"

Esme’s jaw tightened, though a sigh escaped her lips. She leaned back in her seat, a wistful smile playing on her face, her eyes carrying a trace of disappointment. "Oh, Ray..." she murmured, voice laced with mock hurt. "I’m heartbroken," she teased, her tone light, almost playful, though a shadow of seriousness lingered underneath. She let out a small, sardonic laugh that echoed in the confined space of the car. Then, she took a steadying breath, the humor fading from her eyes.

"Fine," she said softly, the playfulness in her voice receding like the tide, leaving a solemnity that seemed to chill the air.

"Let’s make it clearer, simpler... What if someone killed one of your brothers?" Her words were slow, deliberate, every syllable sharp. "Right in front of you. What if they stood there afterward, smiling, dancing in mockery, just as I danced in front of the elders earlier?"