After the Secret Wedding Rise of My Queen
Secret Wedding 222

Chapter 222 They've Been Discovered

Before the sneeze escaped, a large hand suddenly reached over and covered Isabel's mouth.

Her eyes widened in shock, and she froze, straining her ears to listen intently.

"Don't move "Xander raised a hand, and all the bodyguards instantly halted, holding their positions.

Silence.

The room was so quiet that the ticking of the antique clock on the wall was deafening. Tick, tick, tick!

Isabel held her breath, not daring to make a single sound.

Richie, too, remained still, as his hand firmly covered her mouth.

A full minute passed. Xander stood up, his sharp eyes scanning the living room before focusing on the sofa.

"Is there something under the sofa?" Leo couldn't help but ask.

Xander kept staring at the base of the sofa. At his signal, Leo called two men over.

"Move the sofa."

Isabel nervously pressed a hand to her chest as if trying to calm her racing heart. Richie, although tense, was much calmer than Isabel. He knew that even if they moved the sofa, it wouldn't matter. Creak! The sofa was moved aside and it revealed nothing.

Isabel breathed a sigh of relief. She thought to herself that the hidden compartment design was ingenious. Only pressing the button on the sofa would activate it; simply moving the furniture wouldn't trigger the mechanism. "Boss, what was it just now?" Leo asked curiously.

"Nothing, maybe I misheard something," Xander replied, withdrawing his gaze from the floor.

"So, what now? We've searched every corner of the entire villa and found no one. They might have escaped through the window earlier," Leo speculated.

"Let's go. Keep men stationed here," Xander ordered before striding out with his long legs.

"Yes. You guys, stay here and keep watch," Leo instructed before following Xander out.

The living room was plunged into darkness once more after the lights were turned off and the door shut.

Slowly, the sofa moved back to its original position. Isabel and Richie emerged one after the other from beneath it.

"Who exactly are you?" Richie stared directly at Isabel, his eyes sharp with suspicion.

"This isn't the place to talk. Let's get out of here first," Isabel said firmly.

Richie considered her words. She had a point-if Xander came back unexpectedly, they'd be caught red-handed.

He moved to the window and nimbly climbed out. Isabel followed but hesitated, pressing a hand to her abdomen. She had to be careful.

Richie watched her with confusion. She had fought fiercely earlier, yet now she climbed like an old man in his seventies.

Before Richie could say anything, Isabel suddenly slipped from the window. Instinctively, he reached out and caught her, holding her securely.

Isabel's heart pounded in terror.

That was close-too close.

"Uh, my leg went numb," she mumbled awkwardly.

Richie set her down as his gaze fell on the emerald guardian angel pendant peeking out from her collar.

"Where did you get this?" he asked sharply.

Isabel glanced down at the pendant, then stared at Richie's face for a few moments.

"I can tell you, but you have to show me your face first."

She had a hunch that he was the person she knew as both had "Rich" in their names.

Richie's eyes narrowed as he scrutinized her. "Fine, but only if I can see yours too."

"No way," Isabel refused outright. "You want to know where I got this thing, and I want to see your face. That's called fair trade. If you make another demand, it won't be fair-unless I get to add another condition." "What condition?" Richie asked calmly. He was curious to hear what she wanted, to gauge whether she was an ally or an enemy.

"Tell me who you are," Isabel demanded as her sharp inquisitive gaze locked onto the man whose face was hidden.

"Or let me guess... Are you Richard?"

The atmosphere between them instantly became thick with tension.

The silence was so grave that you could hear a pin drop.

Suddenly, hurried footsteps approached.

Both of them turned their eyes in the same direction.

D*mn it! We had been tricked!

Xander had deliberately feigned retreat, luring them out of hiding.

Isabel couldn't afford to be caught by Xander!

But now, she could already see him and the bodyguards following behind him.

There wasn't enough time to escape.

Just as Isabel was racking her brain for a solution, Richie's voice came close to her ear.

"You go first! I'll hold them off!"

Richie didn't know why he blurted that out. Perhaps it was because of the emerald guardian angel pendant she wore.

Everything he did now was in honor of that pendant, in honor of Leslie.

Of course, his instincts told him she was most likely not an enemy.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have volunteered to stay behind and let her go first.

"Thanks," Isabel said quickly before darting away.

"Catch her!" Xander ordered sharply.

"Yes, sir!" Two bodyguards broke away to give chase.

Isabel gritted her teeth. She was confident she could take on the two guards about to close in on her.

However, if she fought back, she'd be delayed, and the others would surround her.

As she grew increasingly anxious, Richie suddenly reappeared, blocking the guards' path and standing in front of her.

"Go!"

"Got it!" Isabel nodded and swiftly disappeared into the pitch-black forest.

Richie stopped moving as he calmly surveyed the scene. Xander's

l.ne

bodyguards were closing in, forming an impenetrable circle.

Seeing this, Richie abandoned any thought of escape and turned to face Xander, who was approaching him.

Xander stopped a step away as he scrutinized Richie from head to toe.

"Who are you?"

Richie sighed and slowly removed his disguise.

"It's you," Xander said, his dark eyes narrowing slightly.

Isabel had mentioned saving this man, and Xander had even seen the two chatting away in front of a convenience store.

"It's me. It's been a long time," Richie said, standing tall and looking Xander directly in the eye.

The weight behind those words wasn't as simple as a casual reunion from just a few days ago.

After a brief pause, Xander spoke, "Richard?"

"I am." At this point, denying it was meaningless.

Xander had suspected as much, but hearing it confirmed still left him momentarily stunned.

"When did you come back?"

"Not long ago."

"I reviewed the surveillance footage from the hospital back then. Who was chasing you at the time?" Xander asked directly.

"I don't know," Richie replied honestly.

"I've spent all these years

investigating, trying to avenge the

Nelson's and... Leslie!" Richie's face

grimmer with every word and

his eyes blazed with hatred.

Hearing Richie's words and seeing the raw pain and hatred in his eyes, Xander suddenly remembered bow deeply Richie had cared for Leslie when they were young.