Reborn In a Murderer’s Embrace

Colin shook his head, his body trembling. "Don't look..."

He didn't want me to see, as if he didn't want me to remember something.

"Leave," I urged Dexter, my voice firm. "I can't deal with you right now."

Dexter cast his eyes down, speaking in a hushed tone. "When you've read it all, you'll understand. Phoebe, I'll wait for you."

His frosty gaze warned Colin before he turned and strode away.

Dexter's visit today seemed purposed to reveal that Colin was no fool; rather, he was the mastermind behind everything that had befallen the Langley family.

"Did you orchestrate all this?" I asked harshly. "Everything that's happened to the Langley family, including what's happening to me and the baby I'm carrying?"

Online opinion had suddenly swayed in favor of Caleb, dealing a blow to Henry, not to mention Julian's brush with the law. Even though all the accusations fell on Julian, Henry couldn't avoid the backlash.

If Caleb returned to the company now, seized the reins of power, he could fully take control of the Langley Group.

After all, to outsiders, no one would scheme against their own wife and unborn child.

"How could he plot against your child when he sees you as Phoebe? He's been love-struck and dreaming of fatherhood since he was a teenager..." Finn murmured under his breath, pressing an ice pack to his face.

"It's true." But Colin admitted to it.

My eyes welled up with tears, wishing he would argue.

"I played the fool, but I orchestrated it all. The Langley family's downfall, Henry and Brendan's feud, Julian's attack on Samuel, Henry ordering the hit on the old man... I admit I had a hand in it, fanning the flames. I arranged for those reporters," Colin confessed softly, his voice laced with panic and desperation.

Stella was shocked, instinctively covering Robin's ears. "Is this something a cop should hear? Stop listening."

Robin gave a resigned smile. "I'm a traffic cop..."

Stella sighed in relief. "Oh, well, that's okay then. There is no evidence, anyway. It's like that butterfly effect thing, the Langley family's own doing."

Robin nodded helplessly towards a police expert nearby.

Stella glared at Finn. "You can't hear anything because of the ringing in your ears, right?" Content held by NôvelDrama.Org.

Finn opened his mouth to speak, but seeing Stella balling her fists, he conceded with a bowed head. "I didn't hear anything."

Stella nodded, turning back to Robin. "You're right, might makes right."

"You and the baby were unexpected..." Colin's eyes reddened as he continued, his voice filled with anguish. "I didn't plan for you and the baby."

"If you were Foebe Larson... this child would never have existed. I wish... I really wish... it could be born." Colin choked up, his grief over the loss palpable.

He was at a loss for words, not knowing how to express himself or how to articulate his feelings.

He had even held back his primal instincts, all to avoid harming the little one.

He truly desperately wanted this child.

The tears fell, his sobbing heartbreaking and bewildering.

Robin couldn't bear to watch, feeling as if I was bullying the honest man. "Um, that journal Dexter gave you—can we see it?"

I wiped away my tears, still willing to believe him if only he'd explain.

"So why stop pretending now?" I asked, my eyes brimming with tears.

Colin just stared at me, his gaze still intense. "I was wrong. I failed to protect you and the baby. It’s my fault. I want to try a different way..."

He didn't care about his own fate anymore. He finally had something to lose, so there was no longer a need to play the fool to save himself. He wanted to protect Phoebe.

"I'll believe you this once. Don't let me down." I whispered. "If I find out you've lied to me, I won't forgive you."

Just like I could never forgive Dexter.

Truth is, after getting a second chance at life, I didn't want to trust anyone again. But Colin... he was the exception. He always seemed to be the exception.

And Colin cried even harder, not saying a word, just sobbing away.