Trouble in Paradise



Chapter 0593

I fixed my gaze calmly on Claudia. "Alright. Go ahead. I'm listening."

Nicholas abruptly shot to his feet, as if a dagger were pressed against his back. He stormed toward Claudia, his anger so palpable he looked ready to strangle her with his bare hands.

I quickly pulled him back. "I promise, if anything she says is untrue, I'll give you a chance to explain."

He gritted his teeth, his displeasure at Claudia's audacity evident as he glared at her with a silent, seething warning.

I stepped between them, raising a hand to shield his eyes before pushing him back into his seat.

His lashes trembled lightly against my palm, and with a broken voice, he called out, "Ariana..."

That single word was enough to shatter anyone's heart.

"Let's clear everything up today. Since we're here, let's get it all out in the open. Whatever can be resolved, let's resolve it. I don't know where we'll go from here, but standing still will only make things worse."

From Nicholas' repeated attempts to stop Claudia, I had already guessed that the truth wasn't going to be something I wanted to hear.

But even if the answer was a painful, bloody one, it was still the truth, wasn't it?

I withdrew my hand and looked at him. "Nicholas, we have to face it-face our past."

Claudia stared at Nicholas with an expression of pitiful grievance.

"Nick, if you'd been with me, you wouldn't have suffered like this. Watching you in pain hurts me even more. You just don't realize it-you don't love her as much as you think. And she doesn't love you at all!*

Nicholas froze as if he had been doused in icy water. He didn't move a muscle, not even when Claudia's words cut deeper and deeper.

I turned to her, my voice cold. "Are you going to talk or not?"

"Sure. I'll talk." She gritted her teeth, glaring at me with venom.

"Ariana, stop flattering yourself. Do you really think Nick made me the Hawk family's heiress without giving me any resources because of you?

My expression darkened as I clenched my fists. "Do you think I'm here to play this little Q&A game with you?" 'Fine! I'll continue!"

Claudia smirked, her face twisted with mockery.

"Nick wasn't doing it for you. He was mad at me, that's all. Nick had emotional issues before. I figured the root cause was simple-it was because he was with you. You were the reason for his episodes. So I separated you two.

"I isolated him at a private hospital outside the city, claiming there was a personal doctor to treat him. But in fact, I didn't give him any real treatment other than sedatives.

"When he found out later, he thought I'd crossed a line and betrayed him. That's why he punished me. But what does any of that have to do with you, Ariana?"

She turned back to Nicholas. "You never believed me, did you? But look at the proof! As soon as Ariana went abroad, you got better. Isn't that the truth?'

Nicholas' eyes narrowed dangerously, his voice exploding with fury. "Claudia! You've gone too far'

"Nick, am I wrong? Now that Ariana's back, you want to cover everything up in front of her? Isn't it too late? Once cracks form between two people, they only grow wider.

"No matter how you try to hide it, the truth always comes out. Just like what I did to you-it's all been exposed, hasn't it?

"And that busybody Beth isn't by your side anymore, is she? Her leg is crippled now. Serves her right. It's karma for sticking her nose where it didn't belong!"

"Claudia, why don't you save that sentiment for yourself?" I said softly.Text © owned by NôvelDrama.Org.

"Oh? Ariana, hearing all this doesn't hurt you? That's pitiful. It seems you've already accepted the fact that Nick doesn't love you. Shall I go on and tell you why he never came looking for you abroad?"