Chapter 4

The next day, Zane masked the subtle excitement in his eyes and handed over a glass of milk again. "Drink up, Liz. I've got something to tell you after." I went along and drank from the glass in his hand, playing it cool as I slid the phone that was recording under my pillow. "Sure." Since he had gone through all the trouble for me, it was only fair that I return the favor with a little surprise of my own. A few minutes went by before I suddenly clutched my chest, my face contorting like I was in serious pain from palpitations. "What was in that drink, Zane? Why do I feel like I can't breathe?" I grabbed his sleeve, but he pried my fingers off one by one. His voice was soft but firm, and he stood tall like a knight guarding his princess. All that anxiety from yesterday was long gone. "Don't be scared, Liz. This will all pass in a moment." "What do you mean? Did you slip something into my milk? Why?" I cried out to him in desperation, "How could you do this to me, Zane?" Zane just gazed down at me from above, his triumphant look showing a touch of sympathy. "Since you're dying to know, I'll be generous and tell you everything. "Honestly, I never had feelings for you. Back in school, I just thought having a pretty girlfriend would make me look good. But I never expected you to be that easy to win over. "Later, when I started my business, I had no money or connections. When I couldn't get a foothold in the city, I was stuck with instant noodles and living in a basement. Times were tough, but you still stuck by. Why would I turn you down?" Shaking uncontrollably, I was in utter shock. Even though I had seen this coming, hearing those words from him still left me with a pang of sadness. I snapped, "Was everything between us for the past five years just a lie? Did you ever truly care about me?" He mocked, "Love doesn't put food on the table. You're almost 30, Eliza. How are you still so naive? I can get any woman I want now. Why would I stick with you?" I pressed him, "Then, why were you so good to me? Why did you even propose—" He impatiently cut me off, smirking as he waved the documents. "It's all an act, you idiot. I orchestrated the marriage proposal and the kidnapping. The goal is to lower your guard and make you sign the papers." "Aren't you afraid that I'll do what Mrs. Vaughn did and drag you down with me?" My words came out dry and cracked, but he just doubled over, laughing. "You want to drag me down with you? How are you going to pull that off? I hired a professional team, and every move was meticulously planned. "I've been putting something in your milk every day. At this point, there is enough in your system to kill you without a trace. After that, I'll cash in the insurance, play the grieving husband persona, and ride that straight to money and fame." The reality of the situation finally dawned on me, and my expression twisted with pain and despair. "We've spent five years together. How did I never see how evil you really are?" "Everyone is out for themselves, Liz. Don't hold this against me. You're just too poor and too dumb. Don't come looking for me unless you're born luckier next time." With that, he spun on his heels and left the room without sparing me a glance. When the door closed, I stopped trembling and calmly reached for my phone before sitting up in bed. I was actually worried about how to fake my death convincingly, but who knew Zane was this reckless and overconfident? He didn't bother to check whether I was really dead and took off to chase his next target after getting rid of me. Little did he know that the Gibson family's heiress he had been chasing online was also me. I had hidden my identity and dated him for five years, and he hadn't even bothered to meet my dad. Besides that, I had recently used my identity as the Gibson heiress to reel him in and see his true colors. The very next day, when we made our online relationship official, he suddenly couldn't wait to meet my dad, the head of the Gibson family and Cailor's wealthiest man. Right after he made that post, I had a gut feeling that this little test of mine was coming to an end. That was why I made plans with him—as the Gibson heiress—to meet at Lume. Just then, my other social media account buzzed with a message from him. "I've taken care of things on my end, sweetheart. I'm heading your way now. It's our first offline date since we started dating online, so I'm going to make it special and surprise you." I snickered at the word "surprise" and replied, "Sure. Didn't you want to meet my dad? He'll be joining us and evaluating you in person. If he approves, we could be engaged next month." He was over the moon and flooded me with messages, promising he would prove himself. Then again, his net worth barely hit tens of millions of dollars. Meanwhile, the Gibsons had been the richest family in Cailor since my great-grandfather's day. Now that he had a shot at marrying into Cailor's most powerful family, he wasn't going to let the opportunity slip away. Getting out of bed, I called Alistair Wren, my butler, who was waiting in the next room for my orders. "Come in, Alistair. He's gone." Then, I switched back to the Gibson heiress' profile and texted Zane with a meaningful look, "I've also got a surprise waiting for you. I can't wait to see your reaction when you see it."