Chapter 260

Chapter 260
Three days later, Augustus received a call from his overseas operatives.

"Sir, the target has been successfully captured and is en route back to the country."

Augustus gripped his phone tightly, his voice low and controlled. "Did she resist?"

"No, surprisingly cooperative. When we found her, she seemed to have been waiting for us," the agent's voice came through the encrypted communication. "She says she has a lot to tell you."

"Good. Ensure safe passage—I need her alive."

After ending the call, Augustus immediately contacted Sophia. An hour later, Sophia and Benjamin arrived at the Rivera estate's basement, which had been temporarily converted into a secure interrogation room.

At midnight, Freya was escorted to the estate.

When she was brought into the interrogation room, Sophia studied her carefully. Freya looked haggard, her eyes reflecting deep exhaustion and despair—the look of someone who had finally reached the end of her rope.

"Freya." Augustus spoke her name coldly. "You've known all along that Gerald forged his identity as a Rivera heir."

Freya raised her head with a bitter smile. "Yes, I admit it."

Her frankness surprised everyone present. They had expected denials, pleading, or at least some attempt at deception.

"Tell us about your plan," Augustus said, sitting across from her with knife-sharp eyes.

Freya took a deep breath, as if summoning the courage to finally unburden herself of years of secrets. "Back then, Gerald and I—he wasn't using that name yet—we were both street orphans. When we learned the Rivera family was searching for their lost grandchildren, we saw an opportunity."

"What was your original plan?" Sophia asked coldly, her analytical mind already piecing together the conspiracy.

"Initially, we planned for me to impersonate your identity while Gerald took Robert's," Freya said, glancing at Sophia with complex emotions flickering in her eyes—regret, envy, and perhaps a twisted form of admiration.

Augustus's fists clenched, his knuckles white with barely contained rage. "And then?"

"Later, as you know, I failed." Freya's voice trembled with the memory of that humiliation. "I couldn't pass the scrutiny. My acting wasn't convincing enough."

Sophia frowned, sensing there was more to the story. "Then why were you sent overseas?"

Freya's expression turned pained, years of suppressed anguish finally surfacing. "Because my identity was exposed. Gerald worried I'd become his weakness and feared I knew too many secrets. So he had me sent abroad—told me it was for my own protection."

"What promises did he make you?" Augustus pressed, his voice deadly quiet.

"He said once he gained complete control of the family, he'd bring me back and we could enjoy wealth and luxury together." Freya laughed bitterly, the sound hollow and broken. "I believed him like a fool. I spent years overseas, living in exile, telling myself it was temporary."

Sophia and Augustus exchanged glances, both recognizing the pattern of Gerald's manipulation.

"Then why are you willing to confess now?"

A flash of pure hatred crossed Freya's eyes, transforming her haggard features into something fierce and dangerous. "Because after going abroad, I discovered someone was trying to kill me. Professional assassins, well-funded and persistent. After investigating, I confirmed it was Gerald who sent them."

"Why would he want you dead?" Sophia asked, though she already suspected the answer.

"Because he no longer needed me—instead, I'd become his liability." Despair and fury warred in Freya's voice. "During my time overseas, I kept thinking he'd come back for me, that our partnership meant something. Until the assassins appeared, I finally understood that in his eyes, I was just a burden who knew too many secrets."

The realization had shattered whatever loyalty she'd felt, replacing it with a burning desire for revenge.

Augustus said coldly, "What evidence do you have to prove Gerald's true identity?"

"I have copies of some documents from when we forged the identity, plus communication records between us." Freya pulled out a small package from her coat, her movements careful and deliberate. "I've carried these with me all these years, initially as keepsakes, but later as insurance."

Benjamin took the package and carefully examined its contents, his expression growing grimmer with each document.

"Also, I know Gerald has a birthmark on his left shoulder, shaped like a crescent moon," Freya added, her voice taking on a vindictive edge. "That's a detail only someone intimate would know."

Sophia nodded, her mind already calculating how to use this information. "I need you to record everything you know as evidence."

"I'm willing to cooperate," Freya agreed, a strange relief washing over her features. "I've been deceived by him for so many years—it's time he paid the price."

Over the next several hours, Freya meticulously detailed her and Gerald's original scheme and the specific process of Gerald's identity forgery. Her testimony was completely recorded, each revelation more damning than the last.

At dawn, the interrogation concluded. Freya was taken to a secure location for protective custody, finally free from the fear that had haunted her for years.

"With her testimony plus Ethan's confession, our evidence chain is now complete," Sophia told Augustus, satisfaction evident in her voice.

Augustus nodded, a cold glint flashing in his eyes. "Excellent. Now we wait to see Gerald's reaction."

Meanwhile, in the top-floor office of Rivera Corporation, Gerald paced like a caged animal, his usual composed facade cracking under mounting pressure.

His phone rang—an encrypted call from overseas.

"How did it go? Is the job done?" Gerald asked urgently, his voice tight with anxiety.

A trembling voice came through the line. "Boss, there's been a problem... the target is gone. When we reached the location, she'd already vanished. It looks like someone got to her first."

Gerald's face turned ashen instantly, his worst nightmare materializing before his eyes. "What? Are you incompetent fools? You can't even handle one woman!"

"Sorry, boss. We suspect a professional team intervened. The scene was clean, no traces left, and local police are hunting us too."

Gerald hung up and collapsed into his chair, his carefully constructed world crumbling around him.

Freya was missing, and he knew exactly what that meant. If she'd fallen into the Rivera family's hands, all his secrets would be exposed. Every lie, every manipulation, every crime—all of it would come to light.

Even worse, Freya knew all his weaknesses and secrets, including every detail of their original plan. She was a walking confession waiting to happen.

With shaking hands, he called Amanda. "Freya's gone. Our plan may be exposed."

"What?" Amanda's voice turned shrill with panic. "What do we do now?"

Gerald closed his eyes, his expression turning vicious as desperation drove him to the edge. "We have no retreat. We must strike first before they act."

"What are you planning?"

"Kill Augustus." Gerald's voice was cold as death's whisper, all pretense of humanity stripped away. "Once he's dead, Rivera Corporation will be mine. Even if the truth comes out later, I'll have enough resources and time to handle it."

Silence fell on the other end, then Amanda's equally maniacal laughter echoed through. "Fine, let's do it together. We've come this far—might as well go all in."

Gerald hung up, bloodthirsty light flashing in his eyes. The mask had finally come off completely.

Since all his disguises might be exposed, he had no choice but the most extreme measures.

He opened his drawer and retrieved a small vial containing colorless, odorless poison—his final contingency plan, prepared long ago for exactly this scenario.

It was time to use it.