Chapter 15 Chapter 15
Iris stared at him, confusion replacing anger for a moment. "How would your parents know about a DNA test I ordered this morning? And why would they or the Lawsons care?"
Tony realised his mistake immediately. In his haste to warn her, he'd revealed too much, implied knowledge he shouldn't have had.
"That's... complicated," he said, searching for a way to explain without admitting he'd been investigating her himself.
But Iris was already connecting the dots, her quick mind assembling the pieces of a puzzle she hadn't known existed until now.
"You've been looking into my background," she said, the words not a question but a statement of fact. Her voice was eerily calm, which somehow made it worse. "That's why you asked about my birthday. Why were you so interested in where I was found?"
In the Kennedy penthouse, Julius received the photos from their investigator, raising an eyebrow. "Well, this is an unexpected development.”
“Actually, no, I’ve wanted to kiss you since our first business meeting, but not the point, and that was before the birthday comments. As for my parents, they saw me smiling at my phone after the family dinner in the car. I told them about you, that’s all, and my mother needs to know everything about everyone, so does my father. However, I’ve been told by the staff that Mr Lawson has been conducting background checks as part of the competition, and that he had called my father. It looks like they might believe you really could be Roxanne Lawson, the missing heiress.”
Iris stared at Tony, her mind reeling from his words. The missing heiress? Her? It was absurd, yet the intensity in Tony's eyes suggested he wasn't joking.
"That's ridiculous," she finally said, her voice barely above a whisper. "The Lawsons lost their daughter in New York. I was found near the Canadian border."
"A private jet registered to Lawson Industries left New Jersey the night of the kidnapping," Tony explained, his words coming faster now. "It could have taken you anywhere in the country within hours."
Iris felt her legs weaken beneath her, and she leaned against the wall for support. "This is crazy. You're telling me two powerful families are suddenly interested in me because of some wild theory that I might be a missing heiress?"
"It's more than a theory," Tony said, his voice gentle but urgent. "The timing, your birthday, where you were found, it all fits too perfectly to be a coincidence."
Outside in the hallway, the investigator sent another message to Julius Kennedy: "Subject appears distressed. Kennedy's son is revealing information."
Julius frowned at the message and forwarded it to Helga with a note: "Tony may be compromising our position. We need to accelerate."
Helga replied immediately: "Bring her in. Today."
Back in the study room, Iris clutched her portfolio tighter, as if it could shield her from Tony's revelations. "Even if this absurd theory were true, why would your parents care? What's their interest in this?"
Tony hesitated, knowing the full truth would only alienate her further. "My parents... they see opportunities everywhere. Information like this would be valuable to them."
"Valuable how?" Iris pressed, her analytical mind cutting through her shock to focus on practical implications.
Before Tony could answer, his phone buzzed with a text from Eleanor: "Your mother just called me looking for you. She sounds CONCERNED. Whatever you're doing, be careful."
Tony glanced at the message and felt a chill run down his spine. His mother never contacted Eleanor unless she was trying to track him down for something important.
"Iris, I think we need to leave campus," he said suddenly. "Now."
"What? I have class in fifteen minutes," she protested, though her voice lacked conviction. Something in Tony's expression warned her that this situation was more serious than she'd initially believed.
"Please," Tony said, reaching for her hand but stopping short of touching her. "I'll explain everything, but not here."
Across campus, Richard Lawson sat in his parked car, reviewing the security reports for the upcoming design competition. The event had taken on new significance since the Kennedy family had shown interest in one of the contestants. Richard had known Julius Kennedy long enough to recognise when the man was circling potential leverage.
"Sir," his driver said, interrupting his thoughts. "Mrs Kennedy's security team has been spotted near the design building."
Richard's eyes narrowed. “Well, it's a good thing we’ve got my three sons already in place. I don’t want to scare her, but if her people are in place, we need to get to her now.”
Three black SUVs pulled into the university parking lot simultaneously, converging from different directions. In the first vehicle, Richard Lawson's three sons: Theodore, Victor, and Bryce, adjusted their earpieces and scanned the campus map.
"Design building is here," Theodore, the eldest, pointed to the screen. "Father says to proceed with extreme caution. We don't want to frighten her."
In the study room, Tony felt his phone buzz again. He glanced down to see a message from his father: "Where are you? Your mother is concerned."
The tightness in Tony's chest intensified. His parents never reached out like this unless they were mobilising resources.
"Iris, I know you have no reason to trust me right now, but we need to go. My parents aren't the only ones looking for you," Tony said, his voice low and urgent.
Iris stared at him, her mind working furiously to process everything. The rational part of her brain insisted this was all absurd, a dramatic overreaction to coincidences and speculation. Yet the intensity in Tony's eyes made it impossible to dismiss his concerns entirely.
"Fine," she said finally, gathering her portfolio. "But you're going to explain everything. And if I don't like what I hear, I'm walking away."
Tony nodded, relief washing over his face. "There's a service exit at the end of the hall. My car is in the east lot."
As they slipped out of the study room, neither noticed the Kennedy investigator speaking quietly into his phone, nor the three well-dressed men who had just entered the building's main entrance, their movements casual yet purposeful.
Richard Lawson checked his watch impatiently. Twenty years of searching, of following false leads and disappointing DNA tests, had taught him patience. But now, with the Kennedy family showing interest in this girl, that patience was wearing thin.
"Any word?" he asked his assistant.