Chapter 567:
Kellan’s gaze shifted to the misted window, his reflection mingling with the blurred lights outside.
A long time ago, on a night filled with mystery and fear, he showed up at the Lloyd family’s place, all beaten up and bruised.
“Over ten years ago, I was taken by traffickers. The family didn’t find me until much later — when I somehow made it back to the Lloyd mansion, hurt and half-alive.” He spoke with calm. “When I finally came to, I’d forgotten everything, wiped clean like a slate. Since that day, the dark has never really been just… the dark.”
Allison fell silent. She, too, knew something of that darkness; as a child, she had once endured a similar ordeal. She knew all too well what such a memory could entail. But for him, the pain was still fresh, a scar that had yet to fully heal.
“I’m sorry to hear that,” she said softly.
She met Kellan’s gaze, her voice a bit hoarse. “Oddly enough, I went through something similar ten years ago. I was taken too.”
“So, Ms. Clarke, how exactly did you manage to escape?” Kellan’s brows furrowed, genuine surprise flickering across his face.
From his past investigations, all he knew was that after Allison left the orphanage, she ended up stranded on an isolated island. Partially hidden in the shadows, he asked the question almost as if he was trying to find an answer for himself. After all, no one had ever figured out how he’d managed to break free from the traffickers back then.
Allison’s lips curved into a faint smile. “Mr. Lloyd, the game isn’t over yet. If you win, I’ll share my story.”noveldrama
He nodded, a sly grin touching his lips. “A promise is a promise.”
The second round of their game began without delay. Whether by luck or fate, Kellan emerged victorious in their game of rock-paper-scissors this time.
“Thanks for not making it too hard for me, Ms. Clarke,” he said, leaning back with an ease that wasn’t there before, his eyes locking with hers. The moonlight painted his shoulders in a gentle, silvery light.
“I choose truth again. I want to know how you escaped.”
A rare sigh escaped Allison as she cast her eyes downward. “It’s a little embarrassing, actually.” She thought back to that time. “I was blind back then. A boy who called himself Colton carried me to safety.”
The boy’s face had become a blur over the years, but the memory of being carried on his back and the feeling of every step he took as they fled were as vivid as if it had happened yesterday.
Her gaze shifted toward the window, lost in thought. “To pay him back, I married into the Stevens family. But he no longer remembered any of it.”
Not only that, but the Colton she knew now felt worlds apart from the boy who once saved her. It was time for her to let go of her obsession.
“Those three years I spent as part of the Stevens family were my way of repaying that debt. Now, we’re even.” Her tone carried a hint of self-mockery.
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