Dark Revenge Of An Unwanted Wife: The Twins Are Not Yours! - Chapter 521

Capítulo 521: At Herbert’s

The road stretched out before them in a long, dark ribbon, the car cutting through it quietly as Ewan drove with that familiar controlled intensity.

Night clung to the windows, the sky a deep, heavy blue, and Athena watched the blur of streetlights roll past like fleeting thoughts she couldn’t quite catch.

They had been silent for minutes before Ewan finally broke it.

“So what’s your deal with Herbert?” he asked, his voice low. “Before you returned to the state… What happened between the two of you? I’ve always wondered… researched too, but nothing came up.”

Athena pursed her lips.

For a long while, she didn’t answer. She simply watched the reflection of the passing lights skim across the windshield, watched how they caught the sharp lines of Ewan’s jaw, the tension tucked beneath his expression.

A man still raw from truths revealed days ago. A man still holding grief in his chest like a stone.

She exhaled slowly.

“My deal with Herbert,” she repeated softly, “started the moment some of my research went public.”

Ewan flicked his eyes toward her briefly before returning his attention to the road.

Athena tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “When the cure for the Grey Virus became known… even if it was only within the country I was living in then… it drew attention. I didn’t expect it to go viral. I didn’t even expect it to reach government circles.” She shook her head. “But it did. And in a matter of days, I had delegations showing up at my office.”

“Governments?” Ewan asked.

“Governments,” she confirmed quietly. “Officials, ambassadors, physicians… even military representatives. All coming with the same smile, the same sweet words, the same offers.” Her lips thinned. “And Herbert was among the first.”

Ewan stiffened slightly.

Athena continued. “He came with four people that day. Including the Minister of Health—the same one who was arrested last month.”

She paused. Frowned. Then slowly leaned down and reached inside her bag. She pulled out a diary, the one they had recovered from Morgan’s cave-like hideout. The first diary.

A sense of unease prickled her spine.

She opened the diary on her lap and began flipping through pages. She wasn’t sure what she was looking for—not really—but instinct tugged her onward. And then she saw it.

The names.

Her chest tightened. Her eyes widened.

“Athena?” Ewan murmured. “What is it?”

She turned the diary toward him with a hand that trembled just slightly.

“These,” she whispered. “The people who came with Herbert that day. They’re here. In Morgan’s diary. All of them. Their initials rather, or slogans…”

Ewan’s brows shot up. He immediately took the book from her and pulled the car slightly closer to the center stripe as he slowed just enough to skim through the open pages.

He swore under his breath.

“This is… these are officials,” he muttered, brain connecting dots too. “High-ranking ones. Some from other countries. Some from our own. Athena, these aren’t small names.”

“I know,” she whispered.

Ewan flipped another page, then another. His expression grew darker, more grim.

“Athena, this is bigger than we thought.”

“That’s what I’m realizing,” she admitted, her voice dropping. “They weren’t coming to support my research, as they said. They were coming to corrupt it, even end it, seeing as Mary and Matthew had probably found a cure…”

She pressed a hand over her eyes for a moment, overwhelmed by her own dawning realization. “They wanted to buy the research because they wanted to kill it. Stop me from spreading it. Stop the cure from ruining whatever plans they had.”

Ewan closed the book slowly and placed it on his thigh. “We need to submit this to the president. Immediately. If these names are involved, there could be war implications.”

Athena nodded. “I know… I just wished we connected these dots earlier…”

“We couldn’t have… code names are there to make things hard. And seeing as Crayfish was more rampant, we hadn’t really checked out the other names, seeing as they were all tied to this Crayfish.” A pause. “We wanted the bigger fish.”

Ewan shook his head, pushing the topic away. “Continue your story please…”

Athena nodded. “I refused their support… Even then, I was quite sensitive about the research. But then, things started happening after that. Small things at first. Equipment going missing. Files being wiped. Colleagues resigning suddenly—people who had worked with me for years. Then strange accidents. One of my team nearly lost an arm when a containment chamber malfunctioned.”

Ewan’s fingers tightened on the steering wheel.

“I didn’t think much of it initially. But then I started looking deeper, connecting the incidents. And every trail… every name… every subtle threat… led back to those visits from Hebert and his crew.”

His jaw ticked. “So what did you do?”

Athena smiled faintly—a humorless, sharp smile.

“What I had to.”

Ewan looked at her from the corner of his eye.

“I went undercover,” she said. “Used an alias. Bought shares in his company. I worked with some CIA friends and caused a data leak—one big enough to freeze his internal operations for weeks.”

“You what?” Ewan choked.

“Oh, that’s not all,” she said, leaning back in her seat. “He had a billion-dollar contract lined up. I caused it to fall through.”

Ewan laughed. Of course.

She shrugged. “I didn’t even feel bad. I was the head of the company he was trying to buy. He had no idea.”

“And when he found out?”

She smirked a little. “It was too late. He came to me privately. Told me he wouldn’t disturb me or my research again, and in return I should back off from his business and company. I agreed.”

“Just like that?”

“Well…” Athena’s voice softened. “That was after I saw he was infected. after I treated him. Before he asked me to take over his hospital.”

Ewan’s fingers twitched against the wheel. His voice was tight.

“And you trusted him.”

“Yes… the virus was deadly… why would one infect oneself?” she admitted, shaking her head ruefully, realizing that Herbert could really go to the deep ends to get what he wanted..

“He acted kind. Respectful. Supportive.” Her gaze dropped to her hands. “Zane was becoming a friend too. I didn’t think much of it then… there were months gaps too in between all these happenings, and so I didn’t suspect… but now?”

Ewan’s knuckles whitened.

Athena sighed. “Now I wonder if he sent Zane to me on purpose. Maybe to build some connection. Maybe even to get close to me romantically.”

Ewan’s head snapped toward her. His glare was immediate. “Romantically?”

Athena laughed softly and reached over, resting her hand on his thigh. “I said maybe.”

“That’s not helping,” he muttered, tightening his hold on the steering wheel until the leather creaked.

She winked. “Relax. I only ever liked one man.”

“I swear… Athena—” he growled under his breath.

She squeezed his leg gently, and he took a deep, steadying breath—though the tips of his ears were definitely red.

By the time they reached Herbert’s vast estate, the sky had darkened fully. Ewan parked a good distance away to avoid alerting any inside to the unusual nature of their visit.

He reached and slid Morgan’s diary into the box beneath the seat. Athena waited as he double-checked everything twice before they stepped out into the cool night.

She looked around slowly. The Whitman mansion was… enormous.

Tall white pillars framed the front entrance, lit gently by warm yellow lights. The garden stretched out in elegant lines—trimmed hedges, stone walkways, a fountain glistening faintly in the moonlight. The entire place felt regal, wealthy, intimidating in the subtle way only old money could manage.

Athena let out a low whistle.

“Yeah, I know.” Ewan muttered.

Two guards patrolling the premises recognized him immediately and nodded respectfully.

“Mr. Ewan,” one greeted. “Didn’t know you’d be stopping by tonight.”

“Just checking in,” Ewan replied smoothly, steering Athena gently toward the porch of the main house. “Picking up some documents for Zane.”