Chapter 78: Keep Up The Lie

Olivia’s POV

I stood frozen, staring at Owen as my mind struggled to understand what I had just heard.

His lover?

For several seconds, I couldn’t even react. I had been preparing myself for Owen to expose me. I had been certain he was about to tell Lucian my real name, tell him I was Olivia and that the real Princess Annabel was dead. Instead, Owen had just told Lucian that he was his wife’s lover.

Why? Why would he tell such a dangerous lie?

Lucian didn’t shout or attack Owen again. He simply became completely still, and somehow, that was worse. He didn’t even look at Owen first. His eyes moved to me, and the coldness in his expression made my heart pound harder. I couldn’t tell what he was thinking, but I knew Lucian well enough by now to know that his silence wasn’t a good sign.

Then he finally looked at Owen. "How long?" Lucian asked quietly.

Owen swallowed. Water was still dripping from his hair onto the carpet as he lowered his eyes. "We knew each other before she married you, Alpha," he answered.

Lucian’s expression didn’t change. "That wasn’t my question."

Owen swallowed again. "We were together before she came here."

My stomach tightened. He was really doing this.

Lucian glanced at me again before returning his attention to Owen. "And the money?" he asked.

Owen hesitated for only a second. "I’m in debt. Serious debt. I owe some people a lot of money, and they’ve been threatening me. I didn’t know who else to ask, so I contacted her," he explained. His eyes briefly moved toward me before he quickly looked away. "I asked her for thirty thousand dollars. She agreed to help me. That’s why she brought the money tonight."

I stared at him in disbelief. Owen was lying so easily that if I didn’t know the truth myself, I might have believed him.

Lucian’s eyes narrowed. "If all you wanted was money, why did my wife have to sneak out of my house to meet you in an abandoned bookshop?" he asked.

Owen went quiet, and for the first time, I saw uncertainty cross his face.

Lucian took one slow step toward him. "Well?" he demanded.

"Because she didn’t want anyone to know we were still in contact," Owen answered quickly. "She told me she would give me the money on one condition. I had to take it and leave her alone afterward."

My heart sank. Every word coming out of Owen’s mouth was making the situation worse.

"She didn’t want you to know about me," Owen added.

Lucian’s jaw tightened.

I wanted to speak. I wanted to tell him Owen was lying, but what exactly could I say? Owen wasn’t my lover, but if Lucian demanded to know what Owen actually was to me, what would I tell him? That he was blackmailing me? Then Lucian would ask why, and that question would lead directly to the one secret I couldn’t allow him to discover.

So I stood there in silence, and Lucian looked at me. I knew he noticed. My silence probably looked like guilt.

Lucian finally turned toward his guards. "Take him away," he ordered.

Owen’s head shot up. "Alpha Lucian, I already told you everything," he protested.

"I didn’t ask you to speak," Lucian replied coldly.

Owen immediately closed his mouth.

"Take him to the lower holding cells," Lucian ordered the guards. "No one speaks to him until I say otherwise."

The guards grabbed Owen by both arms and pulled him to his feet. As they began dragging him toward the door, Owen looked at me. It lasted only a second, but Lucian saw it. His eyes followed Owen’s gaze directly to me before returning to Owen.

The guards took him out, and the bedroom doors closed behind them. Silence filled the room, and suddenly, I could hear my own heartbeat.

Lucian remained where he was for several seconds before slowly turning toward me. "So," he said quietly. "Your lover."

"Lucian, no," I replied quickly.

His eyes hardened.

"It was in the past," I added.

The second the words left my mouth, I wanted to take them back. I had just confirmed Owen’s lie.

Lucian took a step toward me. "So he was your lover," he said.

I swallowed. I couldn’t deny it now, not without explaining why Owen had lied.

Lucian stopped a few feet away from me. "Have you been seeing him behind my back?" he asked.

"No!" I answered immediately. "No, Lucian. I swear."

"Then explain what I saw tonight," he demanded.

"He needed money," I replied.

Lucian stared at me without saying anything.

"He’s in debt," I continued quickly. "He asked me for money because he was desperate. I only agreed because I wanted to give him what he asked for and make him leave me alone."

"And that’s why you secretly left my house?" Lucian asked.

"I didn’t want you to know," I admitted.

A humorless laugh left him. "Clearly."

"Lucian, please listen to me," I pleaded.

"I’m listening," he replied.

"Tonight was the first time I’ve seen him since I married you," I said, forcing myself to hold his gaze. "I swear. I haven’t been secretly meeting him. I haven’t been seeing him behind your back. I just wanted to give him the money and ask him to leave me alone."

Lucian stared at me for several seconds before his expression changed.

"You’re lying," he said.

My heart skipped. "No, I’m not."

"You’re lying, Annabel," Lucian repeated.

"I’m not!" I insisted.

Lucian took another step toward me. "You told me something last night."

I froze.

"You told me that you had only been with one man before me," Lucian continued.

My stomach dropped.

Oh no.

Lucian’s eyes remained fixed on mine. "You told me that the first time happened when you weren’t completely yourself. You said everything from that night was unclear and there were things you could barely remember."

I couldn’t move. With everything that had happened, I had completely forgotten what I had told him last night.

Lucian moved closer. "So explain something to me," he said quietly. "If Owen was your lover, how does that make any sense?"

My lips parted, but nothing came out.

"Was Owen the man you were talking about?" Lucian asked.

I said nothing.

"Or did you lie to me last night?" he demanded.

"Lucian..." I whispered.

"Which one?" he asked.

I couldn’t answer. If I said Owen wasn’t the man from four years ago, Lucian would want to know how I could have had a lover without ever sleeping with him. If I said Owen was that man, I would be creating another lie, one Owen knew nothing about. Either answer could destroy me.

Lucian watched my face carefully, and the longer I remained silent, the colder his expression became.

"That’s what I thought," he said.

"No, Lucian. It’s not what you think," I replied quickly.

"Then tell me what it is," he demanded.

I opened my mouth, but once again, I had nothing.

A knock suddenly sounded at the bedroom door, and neither of us moved. Another knock followed.

"Enter," Lucian ordered.

The door opened, and Leo stepped inside. His eyes moved between Lucian and me before settling on Lucian.

"Alpha," Leo said carefully. "You sent for me."

Lucian nodded, still looking at me.

Leo remained near the door, clearly waiting to know what Lucian needed. For several seconds, Lucian said nothing. Then his expression hardened.

"Leo," Lucian called.

"Yes, Alpha?" Leo replied immediately.

"Contact the security team," Lucian ordered.

My stomach tightened.

"I want every security camera recording from the last two months checked," he continued.

My eyes widened.

What?

Leo looked slightly surprised. "Every recording?" he asked.

"Every one of them," Lucian replied. "Every entrance, every exit, every hallway, and every section of the grounds. Check every angle. I want to know if that man has set foot in this packhouse before tonight."

Shit.

My heart began pounding again.

Lucian finally looked directly at me.

"And I want to know if the two of them have met before."

My stomach tightened as Lucian’s words settled over the room. Leo gave a small nod, but before he could respond, Lucian spoke again.

"Not just him," Lucian added.

My eyes snapped toward him. Lucian was still looking directly at me as he continued, "Have them use facial recognition on Annabel. I want them to trace her movements around the packhouse for the last two months. Check who she has been talking to, where she has been going, and what she has been doing. Then run that man’s face through the same system and find out if their paths have crossed anywhere before tonight."