Chapter 316

Chapter 316:

Her words tumbled out in a frantic stream. “If you can stop this car, I’ll tell you everything. I swear!”

Aiden’s cold gaze didn’t waver. “Then start talking. Who’s behind this?”

Tess froze. The confession lodged in her throat for a moment before she gritted her teeth and spat it out. “It’s Bart—your brother.”

There was no shock on Aiden’s face. If anything, her words confirmed what he had already suspected.

“Now can you help us? We’re seconds away from merging onto the main road! If we don’t stop, we’re dead!” Tess asked frantically.

Aiden remained silent, sharply analyzing her every move.

“I’m begging you! I don’t want to die!” Tess sobbed, her grip on the steering wheel tightening until her knuckles turned white. She could already see the crowded intersection looming ahead, a deadly tapestry of cars waiting to collide with her.

“You seem to be forgetting something.” Aiden sighed before delivering his response with biting sarcasm. “I’m a cripple. How exactly do you expect me to save you?”

Tess’s mind went blank. Right. How could she have forgotten Aiden’s situation? He couldn’t take control of the car even if he wanted to.

Despair crushed her like a tidal wave. This was it. There was no escape.

“It wasn’t supposed to be like this. I didn’t even do anything wrong. Why am I the one being punished?”

“Because you’re an idiot!” Aiden replied coldly, cutting through her breakdown. “You were stupid enough to trust Bart. He only sees you as a disposable pawn.”

Tess’s breath hitched as the puzzle pieces fell into place. Of course. That was why Bart had insisted on such an isolated location.

It was the perfect stage for a “clean” accident. With faulty brakes, all it would take was a nudge—a convenient mishap wrapped up in plausible deniability. Here, in the middle of nowhere, the truth could vanish into the shadows of conjecture.

“There’s something I need to ask. Were you really the one who saved me back then?” Aiden asked.

Feel the thrill on gαℓησν𝒆𝓁s․cøm

Tess froze, then let out a bitter laugh. “So you never believed me.”

“I didn’t. Never,” Aiden admitted. “I played along because I needed Bart to take the bait. Now that he has, this little game is almost over.”

Tess’s stomach dropped. Being a pawn in Bart’s schemes had been humiliating enough. But this? Realizing Aiden had seen through her charade all along? That was a new kind of devastation.

She had thought she had leverage. But no. He had been the one pulling the strings, letting her think she was part of the game while orchestrating the final act to trap Bart.

A laugh bubbled out of her, jagged and wild. “You’re all the same! You rich people treat the rest of us like playthings—something to use and toss aside. Do you even see us as human beings?”

“Tess Newman, face the truth. If it weren’t for the desire in your heart, would Bart have been able to manipulate you so easily?” Aiden’s voice cut through the air, sharp and unforgiving, piercing Tess’ fragile defenses. Her facade crumbled. In Aiden’s gaze, she was completely unmasked—every secret, every weakness laid bare.

Then, she laughed—a wild, defiant laugh that echoed in the confined space. “So what? We’re both dying. Do you think your judgment matters now? If anything, dying beside someone like you is an honor.”

The junction loomed five hundred meters ahead.

Tess’ eyes burned with reckless determination as she gripped the wheel tighter. She pressed the accelerator harder, the engine roaring in response.

If this was the end, she would meet it on her terms—with Aiden by her side.

But then, Aiden’s cool, steady hand wrapped over hers, stopping her descent into oblivion.

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