Chapter 31 Two Names, One Shadow
The next morning, sunlight filtered through the gaps in the curtains, washing over Adrian’s face as he slept. His breathing was steady, so peaceful and in stark contrast to the storm that had been raging in Aveline’s chest since last night.
Meanwhile, Aveline was already in the kitchen. She had just finished preparing toast and coffee, then sat at the dining table. Her pensive look betrayed a mix of anxiety and determination.
The message from Artemisblue last night still echoed in her mind.
“If my suspicion is correct, you are already too close to the murderer.”
The sentence didn’t mention a name, but that was precisely what made it feel like a snare.
Two names had been spinning in her head since last night: Adrian and Ezra. Two men close to her, but also connected to Selina and her mysterious death.
Even more terrifyingly, one of them might be the reason that the woman was dead.
Aveline closed her eyes for a moment, then forced her face back into a calm expression as Adrian stepped out of the bedroom. He gave her a warm smile.
“You’re already up?” Adrian’s voice was still husky from sleep.
Aveline smiled back. It was a smile she had practiced in her mind since the night before.
“Not long ago. Are you working this morning?”
Adrian nodded as he sat down. He rubbed his face and took a sip of the coffee Aveline had made. His movements were awkward, as if he still felt guilty about his confession from the previous night.
“I might be home a bit late. There’s an extra meeting at the office.”
Aveline nodded. “It’s okay. Don’t push yourself too hard.”
The words came out so naturally that she almost believed them herself, masking the suspicion and confusion that churned beneath her calm exterior.
Adrian leaned in, reaching for her hand. “Thank you… for giving me another chance.”
Aveline looked at his face. The face she had loved for years. The face that now felt like a mask.
Adrian kissed the back of Aveline’s hand briefly, then headed to the bathroom. leaving Aveline, who was busy with her own thoughts again.
Nearly half an hour later, Adrian returned to the dining room looking fresh and neat in his work clothes. He continued his breakfast with an appetite, as if nothing had happened before.
Aveline remained mostly silent, her fake smile never wavering. However, when Adrian finally said his goodbyes and left, everything changed instantly. The moment the door closed, Aveline’s smile collapsed. Her face turned flat and alert. She stood in the living room in the silence, then slowly clenched her fists.
Adrian… Ezra… Selina…
One of those two men had destroyed Selina’s life. And the other… might destroy hers too if she took a wrong step.
Aveline walked to the window, making sure Adrian’s car was truly gone, then grabbed her bag and her phone. She couldn’t just wait around like this.
Across town, Martha’s apartment felt quieter than usual. Ezra sat at the dining table with a cup of coffee that had already gone cold. He had barely slept, his mind still trapped in the one sentence that had changed his life:
“Your biological father is Adrian.”
Martha stood near the sink with her back to him, as if she couldn’t bear to look Ezra in the eye after that confession.
“You have to be careful,” Martha’s voice finally broke the silence. “We both know. Adrian is not a good man.”
Ezra lifted his head. “You hid who my father was all this time. You knew he was dangerous, yet you let him live freely.”
Martha turned around, her face pale. “I did it to protect you.”
“No,” Ezra shook his head. “You did it because you were afraid.”
Martha was silent for a moment before speaking again. “We have no proof. The police said Selina committed suicide, so there was nothing we could do.”
Ezra stood up and grabbed his jacket. “We can if we want to. Precisely because he is dangerous, I can’t let him go on like this.”
“What are you going to do?” Martha asked in a panic.
“Stop him,” Ezra replied quietly but firmly. “Before he hurts someone else the way he hurt Mother.”
The mention of her name made Martha sob quietly.
Ezra opened the door, then paused for a moment. “You weren’t wrong to protect me, Auntie. But now… I’m an adult, and I have to protect someone else.”
After saying that, he left.
Aveline arrived at the campus when the sun was high in the sky. The old buildings stood like sentinels of the past, harboring secrets darker than they appeared.
She sat on one of the benches in the courtyard, pretending to read her lecture notes, while her mind was busy piecing together the fragments.
She re-read the email from Artemisblue. There was no explanation. No clues. Just a brief warning.
If she was too close to the murderer… it meant the murderer was around her. Perhaps even very close.
Aveline bit her lip. Adrian knew Selina when they were in college and was now her husband. That man had even slept beside her last night. But… lately, she had also been close to Ezra. The young man, who was also rumored to have been close to Selina and was directly linked to her death.
Two sides of the same coin. Both held the same possibility.
She looked up when she heard footsteps approaching.
Ezra. The young man stood a few meters away from her with a serious expression, his dark eyes carrying a burden just as heavy as Aveline’s.
“Aveline,” he called softly.
Aveline’s heart beat faster. “Ezra.”
They stared at each other amidst the campus crowd, which was oblivious to the fact that these two people were standing on the brink of a dangerous truth.
“We need to talk,” Ezra said.
Aveline nodded. “I was thinking the same thing.”