Chapter 91 The Marriage Deal

Chapter 91 The Marriage Deal

Sophia couldn't wrap her head around why her father would ever be involved in smuggling. But anger was a luxury she could not afford right now. What she needed was the truth. 

She began pinning sticky notes to the wall, one after another, until they formed a sprawling web of names, dates, and connections.

By the time the last note was in place, the first pale light of dawn was creeping in through the window. 

She stared at the wall, remembering what Megan had once told her: "The Black Ice Project is like a curse. Everyone who touches it meets a bad end."

Her phone buzzed. A message from Henry: [Still awake?]

She typed back: [Yes.]

Two minutes later, footsteps sounded on the stairs.

Henry appeared at the second-floor railing in his pajamas, hair tousled.

"I asked Lila to make some porridge," he said.

When she looked up, she caught the faint red in his eyes. For a man who was always immaculate, he looked like he had not slept either.

"If you find the box," she said suddenly, "don't open it yourself."

He raised a brow. "Afraid of a trap?"

Sophia replied, "Afraid of something worse."

Her fingertip tapped on Oscar's name. "If he knows about the Black Ice Project, then he's waiting for us to come looking for proof."

The morning light slid across Henry's profile. 

He gazed down at the figure below, surrounded by a scatter of sticky notes, and suddenly it struck him — perhaps this thirty-year-old conspiracy had been destined to unravel from the moment Sophia first stepped into the Caldwell Mansion.

"Alright," he said. 

Turning away, he walked lightly, as if not to disturb something fragile.

In the living room, Sophia picked up one of the notes, her finger pausing over a date. Megan had said John had suddenly cut off all his dealings that year. It was also the year her father, Quentin, disappeared.

The overlap hit her like a jolt.

When Megan came to find her, night had once again settled over the carved wooden windows of the Caldwell Mansion, just as it had the first time they met. 

Megan wore a perfectly pressed dark green dress, her hair pinned with precision.

"You and Henry are still digging into the Black Ice Project?" she asked from the study doorway. 

Her voice was calm, but the tremor at the end betrayed her.

The blue glow of the computer screen lit Sophia's face, sharpening the brightness in her eyes. She looked up from the keyboard. "Yes."

"Why can't you just let it go? John has been gone for years. Those things should have been buried long ago."

"My father's disappearance is tied to it," Sophia replied, saving her file and closing the laptop. "You know as well as I do—some things don't go away just because you want them to."

Megan twisted a handkerchief between her fingers, then snapped her head up, her eyes sharp enough to pierce. "I can see it. Henry cares about you."

She held her gaze on Sophia. "And you? What do you feel for him?"

Sophia had not expected that. She tapped her finger lightly against the desk. 

"Mr. Caldwell and I are business partners, nothing more."

"Business partners?" Megan let out a short laugh, fine lines gathering at the corners of her eyes. "He stood outside your door for half an hour last night, just to make sure you weren't coughing. Miss Bennett, don't take people for fools."

She stepped closer to the desk. "I know you came here for the Black Ice Project. I know you have skills and connections. So why don't we make a deal? You marry into the Caldwell family. Stay here as Henry's fiancée."

Sophia's brow arched. "You want to buy me with a title?"

"I'm helping you," Megan said, her tone dropping. "Right now you have no official standing. The servants talk. Outsiders talk. As Henry's fiancée, you could access any file, meet anyone you wanted—without question."

She reached into her pocket and took out a small brocade box. Inside was a diamond the size of a dove's egg. "John bought this for me years ago. It's yours now. Say yes, and I'll have Henry announce the engagement immediately."

Sophia's gaze lingered on the diamond, its brilliance almost painful to look at. "And the condition?"

"Help me deal with Terry," Megan said, her voice suddenly cold. "If what he has goes public, I'm finished. And so is the Caldwell family."

"Fine. He's not a problem. But Susan has to move out as well."

Megan hesitated, then nodded. "Alright. But Thomas—"

"I'll handle him," Sophia said, rising to her feet. "But understand this—it's only temporary. There will be no real marriage between me and Mr. Caldwell."

"Real or not doesn't matter," Megan said, pressing the box into her hand. "What matters is that it works. Keep the Caldwell family safe, and I don't care if you're husband and wife in name only."

The diamond felt cold against Sophia's palm. The deal was absurd—and yet it made perfect sense. She looked up at Megan.

Megan's eyes held the desperate gleam of a gambler pushing in her last chips.

"I'll do it," Sophia said.

Megan exhaled in relief, her steps light as she turned away. "I'll tell Henry to arrange the engagement party."

When the study was quiet again, Sophia tossed the ring back into the box. The metallic clink was sharp in the night air. She moved to the window, her gaze drifting to the light still burning in Henry's study, her fingers curling unconsciously.

The next morning, Henry walked into the dining room to find Megan and Sophia talking like old friends. Megan was serving Sophia shrimp, smiling with a warmth Henry had never seen from her.

"Henry," Megan said, looking up. "Sophia and I have decided—your engagement party will be next weekend."

Henry's hand stilled on the fork. He glanced at Sophia. She kept her head down over her porridge, her long lashes hiding her expression. 

She only murmured, "Alright."

"I see," Henry said. He didn't press her. Instead, he placed a roll in her plate. "Eat while it's hot."

He knew she felt nothing for him. The engagement was just cover for the investigation, a way to flush out the traitor. But Megan's smile only deepened.

Breakfast had barely ended when Thomas called, his voice shaking, "Henry, Susan's in the hospital. She's bleeding badly. The doctors say she might lose the baby. I don't know what to do—please, come."

Henry hung up and looked at Sophia. "I'm going to the hospital."

"I'm coming with you," she said, grabbing her coat.

In the hospital corridor, Thomas was crouched outside the ward, his hair a mess. 

When he saw them, he shot to his feet, eyes red. "Henry, the doctors say she's lost too much blood. They're still trying to save her."

"What happened?" Henry asked, his brow furrowed.

"I don't know. They've been working on her all night." Thomas raked his hands through his hair. "It's my fault. If I'd gotten the wedding gift sooner, she wouldn't have fought with her family, and she wouldn't—"Thomas couldn't go on. His throat tightened, the words strangled before they could escape.