Chapter 12 Ulterior Motives

• The owner of that dark figure saw Christopher and was surprised as well. “Mr. Lawson?”
• The person who had fled nervously was none other than Samantha Zimmerman, who Christopher had met earlier that day.
• Christopher narrowed his eyes and scrutinized Samantha. “Why did you run, Ms. Zimmerman?”
• Samantha seemed anxious. She looked behind Christopher and made sure that no one was behind him before replying, “I didn't know you were the one chasing me. If I had known it was you, I wouldn't have run.”
• Christopher smirked. “One wouldn't run the way you did unless they feel guilty or have something to hide.”
• Samantha knew what Christopher was insinuating and was overcome with mixed feelings.
• After some time, she mustered her courage and said, “Mr. Lawson, I understand that you suspect I am the culprit. You think I poisoned Ulric, don't you?”
• Christopher crossed his arms. “What do you think?”
• Samantha decided to go all out then and there. She confessed, “Mr. Lawson, I'm really not the one who poisoned Ulric; I was only there to protect Helena!”
• “To protect Helena? Hah, now that is interesting. You can't even keep yourself safe, so what makes you think you can protect anyone else?”
• Samantha answered with her head held high, “Ulric Tanner is a horrible man, and no woman he had his eyes on had a good end! He's been bothering Helena, and you showed up out of nowhere, so I got worried. That's why I came over.”
• “Oh, really?”
• “You know what? I don't care if you believe me. That is the truth.”
• Samantha wanted to leave after saying that, but Christopher reached out and stopped her.
• “You can't leave yet.”
• “Why not?”
• “Because you failed to convince me.”
• “You...”
• Samantha glared at Christopher, but there was nothing much she could do.
• She knew just how powerful the man standing in front of her was. Otherwise, he wouldn't have helped her and Helena that morning.
• Christopher took two steps forward and threatened, “You better tell me the truth. My patience is running out.”
• “D-Don't hurt me,” Samantha uttered, seized by terror.
• “I won't hurt you. It's obvious that you are a weak woman, so someone else has to be the mastermind. Tell me who is pulling your strings, and I promise you will be fine.”
• “I told you! I simply wanted to protect Helena.”
• Christopher chuckled. He was about to make his move when Helena rushed over.
• With her eyes on Christopher, she shielded Samantha behind her.
• “Christopher, what do you think you're doing?”
• “That woman is my top suspect for this poisoning incident. I was about to help you get your revenge.”
• Helena was stunned.
• It was obvious that she didn't buy a word he said.
• “I-I'm innocent, Helena. I only followed you to protect you,” Samantha choked out. “I heard about how you agreed to go out with Ulric and was worried that he'd hurt you.”
• Christopher sniggered. “That is obviously a lie. You can't even keep yourself safe, so how are you going to protect anyone else? Stop messing around and be honest!”
• “Stop it, Christopher.” Helena, however, didn't think that Christopher's deductions were right. “You saw how she was this morning. Samantha doesn't even have the strength to hurt a fly. How could she ever manage to poison anyone?”
• Anger started bubbling up in Christopher's heart when his wife disregarded every word he said.
• “You don't trust me?”
• Helena's gaze remained icy.
• “I trust her more than I trust you. I haven't known you for long, but I have known Samantha for some time. Who do you think I should trust?”
• Christopher didn't expect things to turn out that way.
• He was infuriated.
• “Fine! I have always thought that you are a pretty reasonable woman even though we got married in a flash. But from the looks of it now, I see that you'd rather trust an outsider than me. There is no point in saying anything else anymore. Three months? I'm afraid I won't be able to wait much longer!”
• He then turned around and left.
• The way Helena had dealt with things and her choice of words had truly hurt his feelings.
• Helena watched as he walked away, and guilt swelled up in her heart.
• At that moment, Samantha suddenly shouted, “Helena, I recalled something! I definitely recalled something.”
• Helena turned around and looked at her strangely.
• “What did you recall? Is it...”
• Samantha gripped the edge of Helena's clothes and trembled violently.
• “Helena, didn't you say you want to know who else the two victims came in contact with on the day they died? Aside from Ulric, they also met up with one other person. His back looked exactly like Mr. Lawson's and the way they walk is identical! I was on the road at that time, so I didn't see his face, but I remember seeing his shadow!”
• Helena was surprised to hear that.
• She had been in Tayhaven for almost two months, yet she couldn't find any clues to point her to the murderer.
• Fortunately, she got lucky one time and had heard Samantha talking about the mysterious person.
• The bad news was that Samantha was naturally weak and the two murder cases were too scary, so her subconsciousness had blocked her memories and she simply couldn't recall what the mysterious person looked like.
• But now, Samantha had actually recognized the mysterious person's back.
• I can't believe it's Christopher.
• Helena stood rooted to the spot. A plethora of emotions welled up in her heart.
• Matchmaking Park, the sudden marriage, him being surprisingly resourceful, and the way he insists on following me around...
• Thoughts flooded Helena's mind. She slowly linked them together and came to a terrifying deduction.
• Was it all planned? Did he approach me on purpose?
• Is it his objective to hinder my investigation and prevent me from finding the truth?
• Or is he connected to the case somehow? Worse still, is he the murderer?
• Helena's heart sank.
• “Go home, Samantha. Now. Grab a cab right away and don't stop by anywhere else.”
• Feeling not as afraid as before, Samantha nodded obediently.
• After sending Samantha off, Helena immediately rushed home.
• Upon arrival, she saw that Christopher was sitting on the couch, looking sullen.
• Good, he's still here.
• Helena was about to say something when Christopher started, “I don't think there is a point in staying married if there isn't the slightest trust between a couple.”
• At this moment, Helena was not in the mood to talk about their so-called marriage.
• Her eyes were focused on the man, and she was ready to fight.
• Christopher saw through her. He got up slowly and spoke in a hostile tone. “What? We've only been married for two days and you're already thinking about killing your husband? Why is that? Are you doing all of this for that Zimmerman woman? Or is your PTSD acting up again?”
• Helena couldn't be bothered to talk nonsense with him. She cut to the chase and demanded, “Tell me the truth, Christopher. Did you approach me for some other ulterior motives?”
• Christopher burst into laughter upon hearing that.
• “How ridiculous! You were the one who made the first move and approached me. How am I suddenly the one who approached you with an ulterior motive? It seems that you're not in your right mind.”