Chapter 249 Various Points of Suspicion
Chapter 249 Various Points of Suspicion
At that moment, Julien was sure that Lyra was not Maple Leaf.
'If she is Maple Leaf, why would she burn the letters that tied them together instead of treasuring them well and taking them out occasionally to reminisce?
'It's because she's afraid. She's afraid that she'll be exposed one day if I keep those letters.'
Seeing Julien trembling as if he was suppressing his rage, Velma gulped in fear and asked, "W- What's wrong, Julien?"
Julien did not respond. Instead, he took out his phone and dialed a number.
Zach yawned and said in a sleepy voice, "What's wrong, President Flint?"
"Come to Flint Mansion. I have something to ask you." Right after that, Julien hung up the call.
On the other end of the call, Zach sat on the bed with a dumbfounded expression.
If I heard correctly, President Flint wants me to go to Flint Mansion, right?'
He took the phone from his ear and looked at the screen in front of him. When he saw that it was almost 12 a.m., his expression sank.
'It's in the middle of the night, and he wants me to go to Flint Mansion? Is he crazy?
'If he has a question, why can't he ask me over the phone? Why does it have to be in person?'
Although he resented Julien for it, Zach still had to get out of bed bitterly and pack up before leaving.
At about 1 a m., he stood in Julien's study.
"President Flint, what exactly did you want to ask me? " Zach asked with a smile on his face, but his heart complained about Julien time and time again.
As if Julien could sense his resentment, Julien glanced at Zach while tapping his finger on the cold desk. "Do you think Lyra is Maple Leaf?"
"Huh?" Zach was stunned. Then, his expression turned solemn. "President Flint, do you suspect that Ms. Madden isn't your pen pal?"
Julien nodded silently.
Zach stared at him for a while. When he confirmed that Julien was not joking, he hesitated for a moment before saying, "President Flint, to be honest, it really doesn't seem like she is. I've been with you for so many years and have seen you correspond with Maple Leaf, so I have some understanding of her. She's kind, bright, lively, and cheerful. However, Ms. Madden has none of those qualities."
After saying that, Zach took a peek at Julien, afraid that he would get angry.
Unexpectedly, he did not get angry but was deep in thought instead.
Zach sighed in relief.
'Luckily, President Flint isn't angry at me for belittling Ms. Madden.
'However, why is he suddenly suspecting that Ms. Madden isn't Maple Leaf?'
Zach scratched his hair as he could not figure it out.
After a while, Julien finally spoke in a cold voice, "Yes, she doesn't have any of those qualities. How can she deserve to be Maple Leaf?"
At those words, Zach finally realized something and adjusted his glasses. "President Flint, do you know something? Is that why you suspect that Ms. Madden isn't Maple Leaf?"
'No wonder President Flint's attitude toward Ms.
Madden took a sharp turn these past few days.
'Well, President Flint only treated Ms. Madden well because she was Maple Leaf. However, if she's not, President Flint will naturally withdraw his feelings for her. After all, the person he really loves is Ms.
Raines.'
"You'd be the one to receive Maple Leaf's letters when I was busy back then, so you should know her address, right?" Julien narrowed his eyes and asked instead of answering.
Zach nodded repeatedly. "I remember. President Flint, do you want me to visit that place and find out if she's really Ms. Madden?"
"Yes." Julien hummed. Contentt bel0ngs to N0ve/lDrâ/ma.O(r)g!
Zach responded, "Alright. I'll go to Twinriver District to... Wait!"
Before he could finish his sentence, he suddenly realized something was wrong and widened his eyes.
Julien frowned. "What's wrong?"
"President Flint, it's strange. Maple Leaf lives in Twinriver District, while the Madden family villa is in Eastview Haven. One is in the east, and the other is in the west. They're more than 40 miles apart.
Moreover, the Madden family has been in Eastview Haven for 20 years and has never moved. In that case, it's clear that Lyra Madden really isn't Maple Leaf!" 1
After listening to Zach's remarks, Julien's eyes widened, and his body tensed up.
Yes. If Maple Leaf was Lyra, her address should be in Eastview Haven, not Twinriver District.
While he was thinking, Zach spoke up from across the desk. "President Flint, I remember you mentioning that Maple Leaf had a dog, right?"
Julien lifted his chin. "Ditto."
"Yes. However, the Madden family has never had a dog before. Also, you mentioned that Maple Leaf has a stepmother and sister, but Mrs. Madden is the first and only wife. Besides this, there's also Ms. Madden's handwriting. Although she seldom writes after she has been discharged from the hospital, she has written some words when she was bored in your office last month. I found that her handwriting is completely different from Maple Leaf's," Zach said seriously.
Although he had not seen Maple Leaf's handwriting in Julien's letters, her address was handwritten on the envelope. Maple Leaf's handwriting was graceful, elegant, and very pleasant to look at. However, Lyra's handwriting was very common, and there was nothing special about it.
A person who had been in a coma for six years might have bad handwriting right after they woke up. However, as the body recovers, their handwriting would gradually go back to its original because of muscle memory. It did not make sense that their handwriting would become completely different after waking up from a coma.
At that thought, Zach felt his scalp tingle. "President Flint, the more I think about it, the stranger it gets. These are all suspicious points, and Ms. Madden's performance is sometimes full of holes, but
why haven't we noticed anything wrong with it? Only now that I think back to it do I realize how big the problem is."
Julien lowered his eyes and kept quiet.
What Zach said earlier made him feel like a veil that had been covering his sight was finally lifted, and a sense of clarity was restored to his whole world.
Yes, Lyra's stories were full of holes, but he had never noticed it. Even Zach did not realize it, which meant something was obviously very wrong about that.
However, he knew the reason why none of them had realized anything. It was because of the mysterious power.
He just did not expect Zach to be affected by that mysterious power too.
"President Flint, why are you looking at me like that?" Zach asked, feeling puzzled.
Julien pursed his lips and said in a hoarse voice," Nothing. Go to Twinrivers District tomorrow and find the real Maple Leaf."
That was the person he loved!
"Yes!" Zach nodded. Then, he thought of something and hesitated for two seconds. "Then, Lyra..."
A dangerous glint shot out from Julien's eyes. "I'll deal with it. I'll show her that there's a price for impersonating Maple Leaf."
Zach shivered when he heard the chill in Julien's tone. He understood that Lyra was doomed.
'Serves her right. How dare she impersonate Maple Leaf and deceive President Flint's feelings for six
years?'
Zach adjusted his glasses with a gloating smile and turned around to go out.
After he left, Julien stood up and went to the floor-to-ceiling window of the study. His brows furrowed tightly as he looked at the nightscape outside.
He wondered, 'What exactly is that mysterious power? Why is it manipulating me to love Lyra? What other secrets is Lyra hiding?'
All of that made Julien feel as though his view of the world had been refreshed. He had always thought he was normal, but unexpectedly, he had been tricked at some point and controlled by a mysterious force.
At that thought, Julien's head began to hurt again.
Images flashed in his mind like strobe lights, and it hurt so much that he could not help but hammer his head with his hands. 2