No Strings Attached novel (Clara and Ian)

Chapter 61

It seemed that lan had always known that it was his mother who had nearly been the end of Clara's father, and ho

hadn't said a word to her about it. He'd played along with her act in front of her dad, not out of sympathy for her, but to lighten his mother's burden of guilt. After all, if her father had died, Leonora would have been on the hook for some serious legal trouble.

Clara felt a chill that started at her crown and crept all the way down to her toes. The smidge of fondness she'd been harboring for lan over the past few days evaporated with those revelations. She let out a bitter, self-deprecating chuckle, grabbed the documents, and headed back to her office.

No sooner had she walked in than Nicole's voice, dripping with sarcasm, hit her ears, "Clinging to Mr. Hayes' coattails now, are we? Still care about the chump change I owe you?

Clara quickly snapped out of her previous mindset. With a cold laugh, she shot back, "You could always pay up, or we can settle this in court."

"Clara, you're ruthless. Just send me your card details, and I'll transfer the money." Nicole grudgingly wired the money to Clara and spat out venomously, "Clara, the court date's coming up on the third. If you get convicted, you can kiss your job goodbye. The company has a clear policy break the law and you're out on your ear, no second chances."

Clara paid no mind to Nicole's threats. Her eyes were fixed on her phone, confirming the incoming transaction with a sly grin curling her lips.

She stepped out onto the balcony and dialed Anders.

"Anders, can you check the recent income records of Nicole and her boyfriend? I suspect someone's been sweetening their pot."

Anders responded, "Funny you should mention it. Nicole's boyfriend, Kaleb, raked in a cool two million during his game stream yesterday from someone who's never been seen in that chatroom before, a brand new account. It reeks of a payoff."

"That's what I was thinking. He gets to keep half of that two million tip. Nicole transferred the money to me today. If we can trace this mystery benefactor, we've got our lead."

After a brief silence, Anders added, "During the stream, Kaleb let slip that he had something valuable, something that could fetch a pretty penny. I doubt he deleted that footage. He probably edited it out and kept it on the side. We might be able to leverage that, especially since I hear he's desperate for cash after a bad bet on the game last night."

and reach out.

Clara quickly created a new account and made contact with Kaleb. Just as she predicted, Kaleb was ready to sell out for money after a short conversation.

They agreed on a time and place for the transaction. At nine that evening, Clara and Anders drove to an abandoned factory on the outskirts of town. Kaleb wanted to make the exchange there: cash for the goods.

But when they arrived, money in hand, they found Kaleb on the ground, bloodied and still.

Clara was petrified. Anders immediately covered her eyes and whispered reassurances, "Don't be scared, just close your eyes. I'll check it out."

"Anders," Clara clutched at him, fear edging her voice, "the evidence might be gone."

"It might still be there. Let me go check it."

When Anders returned, he was holding a badge, his face somber as he looked at Clara, "You were right. Someone beat us here and took the video. But I found this next to Kaleb." He handed her the badge. As Clara's eyes focused on the insignia, a sharp pain shot through her chest. It was lan's personal bodyguard's badge, so lan had sent someone to snatch the only evidence she had.

Clara clutched the badge tightly in her hand, the pin digging into her flesh.