Hope Crawls Through Ruins by Kain Rwan Vale 162

Chapter 162 

With a loud crash, Shepard hurled the ashtray to the floor. 

The sudden noise made Vivian’s legs go weak. She stood there, mouth slightly open, completely stunned. 

Shepard’s face was twisted with rage. “Do you really think you could get away with everything you’ve done? That you’d never get caught?” 

Vivian didn’t dare say a word. 

At this point, anything she said would only make things worse. 

All she could do was take it. 

What did Shepard find out?’ Vivian wondered. ‘Or did he find out everything? No matter what, I’m totally screwed. Any one of those things is enough to ruin me for good. 

“But how did Shepard find out? And why did he end up suspecting me? Briana. That’s it. It must be Briana stirring up trouble behind the scenes!‘ 

“The last time I asked you, I was giving you a chance, but you wouldn’t own up to it,” Shepard said, his eyes fixed on her. “Now, even if you admit it, it doesn’t matter anymore. Nothing’s going to change.” 

Vivian’s knees gave out, and she slid off the couch, landing hard on the carpet. 

She stared at Shepard’s pant leg. It was perfectly straight, not a wrinkle in sight, giving off a cold, high–class vibe. 

She slowly lifted her hand, wanting to reach out and touch his pant leg. 

But Shepard kicked her away without a second thought. 

Vivian collapsed to the floor, her nails digging into the carpet. She realized she was totally screwed. 

“Tell me.” Shepard’s voice was low and dangerous. “Why did you do it? Why?” 

There was no point in asking. Shepard already knew. But he wanted her to admit it herself. 

Vivian met his deep, shadowy gaze. For a moment, it was like a knife twisting in her chest, but weirdly enough, she felt almost relieved. 

All those years spent on edge, and now, the worst had finally come true. 

She could already guess what secret Shepard had uncovered. It was that fire. 

If Shepard had found out she was pregnant with Eric’s kid, then Eric would be here with her, facing the full force of Shepard’s rage. 

But Eric was safe and sound, and she was the one left to take all the blame. 

“Because…” Vivian choked out, barely able to speak. “Shep, I love you.” 

All she got back was Shepard’s mocking, his scorn, and that icy indifference. 

“Even now, Vivian? You’re still making excuses?” Shepard snapped. 

“I really do love you,” Vivian said, her voice steady. “I wanted you. I wanted to stand by your side, to be someone in your life, not just a nobody. 

JUDE Wed, Jan 

Chapter 162 

5$ 

“But Shep, you’re the perfect rich guy with a fiancée. Your life is all set. How could you ever notice me? How would you ever care about someone like me? 

“The only way I could ever get close to you was by using tricks, by scheming in the dark, Shep. I love you so much. I can’t live without you, and I can’t stand seeing you with Briana” 

You have no right to even say her name,” Shepard cut her off, his voice low and dangerous. “Don’t let her name cross your lips!” 

Vivian looked up at him, and after a couple of seconds, she suddenly laughed. 

“But I bet you’ve said the same thing about me in front of her, haven’t you?” Vivian asked. “You thought she wasn’t even worthy to speak my name, that she wasn’t even on my level.” 

Shepard’s eyes grew dark and dangerous because Vivian had hit the nail on the head. 

“Since you’ve known it, I guess I have no choice but to own up,” Vivian said, pushing herself up from the carpet and looking up at Shepard. “How did you figure it out?” 

Shepard didn’t bother answering her. He just shouted into the 

Slowly, Sam finally stepped into the light, coming into Viviance, “Get your ass over here.” 

1. ew. 

Seeing him, Vivian instantly got it. Sam had spilled everything and sold her out. 

Vivian gritted her teeth. “You moron! You finally got out of prison, living free. How did you manage to get yourself caught again?” 

“He’s got my whole family under his thumb. I had no choice but to show up,” Sam snapped back. “Vivian, you screwed me over so badly. Everything I am now is all because of you!” 

Vivian couldn’t be bothered to argue with him. Her focus had to stay on Shepard. 

She wasn’t about to just give up and accept her fate. She wanted to fight for herself, no matter what. 

“Shep,” Vivian said, crawling to his feet. “All these years, I’ve thought about telling you the truth so many times. Whenever you were good to me, when you cared about me, when you showed me affection, I wanted to come clean. 

“But I just couldn’t find the words. I was scared you’d just walk away from me, I craved everything about you. I couldn’t bear the thought of losing you. 

“Yeah, I know what I did was unforgivable. I was the one who instigated Sam to start that fire. But Shep, have you ever thought about it? 

“Maybe the reason for the fire was all a lie, but that blaze was real, and it was out of control. I risked everything and ran into the flames to pull you out. 

“The fire didn’t care about anyone’s life. I could’ve died in there with you, but I didn’t think twice. I just went in because I couldn’t let anything happen to you. I couldn’t let you die! 

“Shep, listen to my voice. It’s still rough, still damaged from all that smoke I breathed in, and it’s This isn’t some act. I’m not faking it. It’s real.” 

ever 

going to get better. 

As Vivian spoke, tears streamed down her face. “How can you only care about why the fire started, and not about what I went through in there?” 

Shepard’s gaze toward Vivian was colder and more disgusted than ever. 

Even now, Vivian was still treating him like he was some kind of fool. 

10:52 Wed, Jan 7 

Chapter 162 

She was still trying to pull the wool over his eyes, still feeding him nothing but lies. 

Shepard didn’t even blink before kicking her hard. 

Vivian went tumbling to the fl 

15$ 

“You asked Sam to start that fire, and then pretended to be the hero and dragged me out. Now you expect me to believe you actually cared? 

“Vivian, you’re something else.” Shepard’s fury was off the charts. “I should’ve tossed you into the flames and watched you burn alive!” 

If it hadn’t been for Vivian, there wouldn’t have been a fire at all. 

If that fire hadn’t happened, he and Briana would never have split up, and the engagement would still be on. 

Vivian kept trying to explain, her voice shaking, “I never thought the fire would get so out of hand! I just wanted to start a little blaze, stir things up a bit. 

“But when I saw the flames raging, I freaked out. I rushed in to save you. I was scared to death someone would actually get killed! 

“I swear, saving you was real. I couldn’t just stand there and watch you die. Shep, think about it. 

“If all I cared about was your wealth and privilege, not you as a person, would I really have risked my life running into that inferno? I-” 

Before Vivian could finish, Shepard cut her off with another brutal kick. She landed right in front of Sam. 

Sam immediately backed away. 

To him, Vivian was a ticking time bomb. Touch her, and he would h 

dead. He thought it better keep his distance. 

Vivian had always lived an easy life, spoiled and protected. There’s no way she could handle a kick like that. 

田