Chapter 1004:

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At that moment, Adrian spoke in an unusually calm voice. “Even if I promise to release you now, you wouldn’t believe me.” He paused before continuing. “So here’s my offer. Tell us the truth, and I’ll give you one month.”

Mike froze and stared at him suspiciously.

Adrian continued steadily, “For one month, I won’t touch you no matter where you run or hide. But after those thirty days are over, all bets are off.”

Luca instantly understood what Adrian meant. Though every instinct in him screamed to kill Mike immediately, he forced himself to loosen his grip and let go of his collar.

“Fine,” Luca said coldly. “I give you my word too. I won’t touch you for one month. And if you still don’t trust me, I can issue the order right now. Valerino has never broken a promise. You must know that.”

R𝗲𝗮𝘥 𝗳𝘳𝗈m yо𝗎𝘳 𝗉ho𝗻e о𝗇 gа𝘭𝘯o𝘷𝗲𝗅𝘴.𝖼𝘰m

For the first time, hesitation flickered in Mike’s eyes. His life was already hanging by a thread in their hands. They could crush him whenever they pleased. This was the only bargaining chip he had left. A month wasn’t long, but the world was vast. If he could escape the country and disappear under a new identity, maybe, just maybe, he could survive.

Finally, he lifted his chin slightly. “Fine. What do you want to know?”

“My identity.” Adrian’s eyes locked onto his. “Back then… was my mother never pregnant to begin with?”

Mike’s face darkened instantly. But cornered by both of them and desperate to hold onto his slim chance of survival, he finally admitted it. “Yes,” he replied bitterly. “You guessed correctly.”

Luca felt as if thunder had exploded in his mind. “What do you mean she wasn’t pregnant?” he roared. “What disgusting schemes did your family pull back then? Tell me everything, from beginning to end!”

Mike shut his eyes briefly before finally speaking about the buried past. His voice was strained, as though every word scraped against his throat. “Back then, my father desperately wanted control of the Davis Group’s transportation network. He was set on tying the two families together through marriage. Carole was the Davis family’s only daughter, so in his eyes, whoever married Carole would eventually gain control of the Davis Group.”

A mocking smile tugged at his lips. “But Carole never cared about me. She looked at me like I was nothing. Even though her father supported the marriage, he doted on her too much to force her into it.”

Mike paused before continuing coldly, “So my mother decided to take matters into her own hands. During a banquet hosted by the Davis family, she slipped something into Carole’s juice.”

His fingers slowly curled into fists. “I thought once we’d slept together, the Davis family would have no choice but to agree to the marriage for the sake of their reputation. But I never expected Carole to react so fiercely. When she woke up, she’d rather slash her wrist than marry me.”

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