Five Years Up I Reveal I'm The Richest He Kneels And Begs novel Chapter 13

Yet even after exhausting every connection and favor he could pull, the news that came back to him only deepened his despair.

The Sloane family had locked down every trace of her–every lead, every possible hideout was sealed tighter than a vault.

He tried reaching out to the senior executives at Sloane Group, but their responses were polite and distant, nothing more than a formulaic, “Ms. Sloane’s whereabouts are not to be disclosed.”

That was when Adrian finally realized–before a true powerhouse family, the so–called influence of the Prescotts was laughably fragile.

He became like a wounded beast with nowhere to go, speeding through the city without direction until he found himself parked outside a bar they used to frequent.

He needed alcohol–anything–to numb the pain clawing at his chest.

Inside the private booth, shot after shot of hard liquor went down, yet the fire in his chest only burned fiercer.

The guilt and despair fed on it, until the ache became unbearable.

A few of his old friends soon showed up. Seeing him so lost and broken, their expressions were tangled with discomfort.

Some of them–those who had mocked Sienna in the past–were now paying the price. Their families had suddenly run into “minor difficulties” courtesy of the Sloane network.

Others, who had stood aside but said nothing at the time, now watched Adrian with a mixture of

sympathy, regret–and unspoken resentment.

“Adrian… let it go,” one of them sighed, pouring him another drink. “The Sloanes… they’re not people we can afford to provoke. If we’d known who she really was—well, it’s too late to say anything now.‘

Another, the one who used to mock Sienna the most, muttered under his breath, “If we’d known

she was the Sloane heiress, we’d have treated her like a queen instead of a pet bird. Guess it’s too

late for regrets now, huh?”

The words stabbed into Adrian’s chest like needles.

With a sharp crack, he smashed the glass on the floor, liquor spraying in every direction.

His bloodshot eyes glared at the man as he roared, “You don’t understand! I loved her–Sienna

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Sloane the person, not her damn title! Not her family name!”

“Loved her as a person?”

Another friend, usually the calmest among them, let out a cold, cutting laugh.

“Then why did you choose Celeste and that child? Why didn’t you fight back when your family forced your hand?”

“Why, every time you had to choose between her and your so–called ‘family duty‘ or ‘bloodline,‘ did you always pick the latter?”

He took a step closer, voice rising with each word.

“Adrian, look me in the eye and tell me this–if she were still that girl with a drunk father, a sick mother, and a run–down home, would you be this obsessed?”

“Would you be losing your mind with jealousy because she moved on?”

“You wouldn’t. You’d call her unreasonable, ungrateful.”

“You never loved the real Sienna—you loved the version who worshipped you, who made

safe, in control.”

you

feel

“What

you can’t accept is that the woman you looked down on for five years is now someone you

have to look up to–and can’t control anymore.”

Every word cut him open like a scalpel, exposing the ugliness he didn’t dare face.

Adrian’s face turned ghost–white, his lips trembled, but not a single sound came out.

Because every word had hit home.

“Get out! All of you, get the hell out!”

He screamed until his voice broke, driving everyone away.

Then he collapsed on the couch, hollow–eyed and motionless, like a shell with its soul torn out.

No one knew how long it had been before the door creaked open.

Celeste stepped inside timidly.

Seeing him like this, she hesitated, fear flickering in her eyes before she forced herself forward.

“Adrian… are you okay? I–I’m scared. She’s a Sloane heiress, and you know how vengeful she can be.”

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“She’ll come after the Prescotts… she’ll come after me! Adrian, you can’t just abandon us–we’re a family, aren’t we?”

“A family?” Adrian’s head snapped up, his eyes red and wild, fury boiling beneath them.

He shoved her hand away so violently that she stumbled backward into the wall.

“If it weren’t for you–if it weren’t for your damn Harrington family, for all those ‘family duties‘ and ‘heir responsibilities,‘ I wouldn’t have lost her! Get out! Get the hell away from me!”

Celeste had never seen him like this.

Terrified, she shook uncontrollably, tears spilling down her cheeks as she choked out one last

desperate plea.

“But… but we’re the parents of your children! Lila and Lucas–they’re your flesh and blood! You can’t just turn your back on us!”

Chapter 14