Love's Cunning Ruse novel Chapter 316

The private room fell into an eerie silence. Julie sat across from Kyle, her voice muted by his previous outburst. Kieran clasped her hand, entwining their fingers tightly as if to soothe her frayed nerves.

Julie had never managed Kieran's level of composure, and now she remained speechless, stunned by the revelation Kyle had just bellowed.

After what seemed an eternity, when both Kyle and Julie's emotions had settled, Kieran finally spoke up, asking Kyle, "And then what?"

"Fitzgerald," Kyle said, his voice heavy with reluctance. "The family that even the high and mighty avoid, the Fitzgeralds."

It was a simple statement, but it seemed to take all of Kyle's strength to get it out.

"You're a Fitzgerald?" Julie's eyes widened in shock, piecing together the past altercation between him and Sansa. The Fitzgeralds had numerous branches, and she couldn't fathom what Kyle's claim to the name truly meant.

"My mother is Grace," Kyle revealed.

"Grace..." Kieran echoed the name, a hint of recognition in his voice.

Grace was a world-renowned supermodel, topping the highest-earning charts, yet her notoriety wasn't just for her value but rather her relationship with Joseph. Grace had been scandal-free until her thirties, when she was publicly linked to Joseph, Simon's father. There had been no word of Joseph and Grace having a son, yet Kyle's implication was clear: he was their son.

That would make Simon, younger by age, Kyle's brother, but also the primary heir due to his mother, Margaret, being Joseph's lawful wife.

Kieran's eyes betrayed his confusion, prompting Kyle to explain, "Technically, Simon, or you can call him as Rowan is my brother. But when it comes to power and status, age becomes insignificant, doesn't it?"

Kyle didn't seem keen on discussing Rowan further, shifting the focus back to Rankin. "You came to me today not for Rowan's sake, did you?"

"Indeed," Julie responded. "We're here about Rankin. The villa he once stayed in is registered in your name."

"Rankin was part of the family," Kyle admitted, offering no further details, but clearing up the mystery for Julie and Kieran.

"And Rankin's grave?"

" Rowan bought the whole cemetery . He was closer to Rankin than I ever was," Kyle stated.

After mentally sorting through the tangled web of relationships, Julie found her voice and asked Kyle, "You said you loved Sansa, but why abduct Emily? Why did you make Dr. Fred give up on treating Sansa?"

Kyle seemed prepared for her questions, having never intended to hide the truth. He took a deep breath and began, "After your sister broke up with me, my mother and Jessica took me back to Britain. Being locked away in Britain wasn't my choice, and I endured a long imprisonment. Jessica, I suppose I don't need to introduce her—you must have heard from Dylan that she was my official—ex-girlfriend."

Julie and Kieran nodded, remembering the stories of Jessica, who was rumored to have committed suicide due to depression.

"You mentioned you'd sent emails to an old email I used," Kyle continued. "After returning to Britain, I never logged in again, so..."

"So, you had no idea about Sansa's car accident, even though it wasn't exactly a secret among our circles," Kieran finished for him.

Kyle didn't argue; it was true. His mother had ensnared him beside her, denying him the right to inquire about Sansa's life. The worst he had imagined was that Sansa had moved on and forgotten about him—not that she would be living a fate worse than death, hooked up to machines.

"If I'd known Sansa was in a vegetative state, I wouldn't have waited this long to return, nor would I have bought that ring for her. My people said they couldn't find her, so I arranged for the ring to be sent to you. I heard from Sansa that your aunt treasured it, and I'd seen her wear it, I never expected such a precious item to end up at auction. Without time to investigate, I just knew it was being auctioned off, so I had it bought and planned to give it to Sansa," Kyle said.

But Julie was puzzled. "Did you return to find Sansa only after Jessica's suicide, with your mother's consent?"

"Who committed suicide?" Kyle looked at her, genuinely surprised.

From Kyle's tone, whether feigned or not, it was clear that he truly cared for Sansa. So what kind of twist could make Kyle give up on getting Sansa treated?

Finally, he dropped a name, "Rowan ."

Kieran and Julie waited for Kyle to continue.

When mentioning Rowan , Kyle's expression turned somber, "After I pressured Dr. Fred to return, do you remember that day on Main Street, when Joyce was horsing around with you and nearly took a tumble?"

Julie nodded, "Of course, it was quite the coincidence to run into you that day. So... it wasn't a coincidence?"

"I had set up a meeting with Fred. You didn't know he was back in the country yet. On my way there, I got a call from Curtis in Britain. He said that for years, Rowan had been monitoring Sansa's condition, seemingly waiting for her to wake up, but he couldn't find out why. Because Rowan... has far greater reach than I do."

Kieran could guess the rest. Kyle, unsure of the truth and whether Rowan would harm Sansa, chose to keep Sansa in her current state and prevent Dr. Fred from treating her, buying time to investigate Rowan. And indeed, Kieran's guess was on the nose.

Kyle admitted, "But I still placed Dr. Fred close to Sansa, mostly because I wanted him to assess her condition for any sign of recovery."

Kieran nodded and asked, "Later on, when Julien went to rescue Emily, the clues were too clear, and it was easy to track her to your apartment. As a member of the Fitzgerald family, you wouldn't be so careless. Why?"

From the moment Kyle laid eyes on Kieran years ago, he knew that given time, Kieran would be a force to reckon with.

Kyle confessed, "I left those clues on purpose, to lead you to Emily's whereabouts."

"And the reason?" Julie asked, puzzled, her brow furrowed as she looked at Kyle. "If you didn't want Sansa to wake up, then you should've known that once we found Emily, Dr. Fred wouldn't be under threat anymore. If he wasn't threatened, we would undoubtedly do everything to have him treat Sansa. Wouldn't that contradict your original intention? So, what's the reason?"