CHAPTER 240: WHAT ARE YOU UP TO, ZACHARY?

Liam refused to say anything more. "You don’t need to worry about this. Just concentrate on the shoot," he said, shifting his focus to the file before him. Picking it up, he added calmly, "I’ll review this and get back to you."

Edith could tell he was hiding something. She longed to ask what was troubling him, but didn’t dare press further, fearing it would upset him. With a quiet nod, she turned and left the room.

Once the door closed behind her, Liam opened the drawer and pulled out the stack of photos, studying them once again. Ever since his talk with his father, he had been secretly monitoring Riya and collecting evidence against her. But he hadn’t expected Zachary and Riya to register their marriage so suddenly.

Hadn’t Zachary wanted to keep that relationship hidden? He had even been willing to let Riya marry another man to protect their secret.

Liam’s brows furrowed as confusion clouded his mind. "What are you up to, Zachary?" he murmured under his breath.

News that Riya had been seen at the civil affairs bureau with Zachary soon reached Nathaniel as well.

He was completely taken aback, unable to make sense of her actions.

"Her engagement is just two days away, yet she is still involved with Zachary—and now they have even gotten a marriage certificate? If she truly loves him, why agree to marry Liam?" he wondered aloud. "What is she planning?"

"Don’t jump to the conclusion yet," said Ian cautiously. "Something about this marriage feels off. While the registration process was authentic, the certificate that was issued was fake."

"Fake?" Nathaniel was even more stunned. "You mean they staged the whole marriage?"

"Possibly," Ian replied. "But I need to confirm it. Give me some time—I’ll report back once I’m sure."

Nathaniel fell silent, lost in thought. His mind swirled with questions. What was the need for this fake marriage certificate?

’Is she trying to call off her engagement with Liam?’ he speculated.

"That’s not the only thing worrying me." Ian’s grave tone broke his chain of thought. "Something strange happened today. There was someone lurking around. I tried to catch him, but he disappeared before I could get to him."

His mind raced to the incident this morning. Ian regretted not being able to catch that man. "I don’t know who that person was or what his motive was. But we have to be more cautious. Maybe Zachary has found out we have been investigating him. His actions are fishy. His visit to the civil affairs bureau could be a trap set by him to lure us out and expose our operation."

Ian’s reasoning seemed plausible. It seemed that Zachary had grown suspicious that they were investigating him, and that was why he had staged the fake marriage with Riya, just to bait them and expose their surveillance.

"The waiting is killing me," Nathaniel muttered irritably. The thought of Zachary made his blood boil. "I just want to drag him out and end him right now. No more evidence, no more police — just finish him off once and for all."

"You can’t lose your patience," Ian said in a warning tone. "If it were so easy, we would have done that long ago. But we have been careful for a reason. Zachary is not alone. He is tied to a syndicate far more dangerous than you think. Killing him won’t solve anything. We need to cut his links and dismantle that network piece by piece."

"I don’t know such complicated things," Nathaniel snapped, his anger flaring. "You and Kelvin are the ones chasing this syndicate. I only care about my family. It’s you who wants to destroy it. Zachary is a danger to them, and I want him gone before he can hurt anyone. But all I’ve been doing is waiting, waiting, and waiting. I am not getting any result..."

His voice rose as well as his frustration. "That man has twisted Riya’s mind, turned her completely against us. She even stole confidential data from my laptop without hesitation, following his orders like a puppet. Who knows what else he is making her do? And you..." He glared at Ian, "The only thing you’ve uncovered is his fake marriage with her."

He tossed the file down, the photographs of Riya and Zachary outside the civil affairs bureau scattering all over the floor.

Ian winced but stayed quiet, sensing Nathaniel’s mounting anger.

"I’m paying Kelvin a fortune every month," Nathaniel continued through gritted teeth. "Yet he can’t tell me whether Roberto is alive. He hasn’t produced anything concrete on Zachary. I’m running out of patience."

That pushed Ian over the edge. "Mr. Grant, don’t assume we are wasting your money. You don’t know what Kelvin and I have been through. We want to take Zachary down as much as you do, but this isn’t something that happens overnight. It’s a long fight, and it requires patience. If you are unhappy with our work, stop funding us. Tell me and it’ll end."

He pivoted and stormed out, leaving Nathaniel in stunned silence.

"You..." Nathaniel started, but the door shut before he could finish. It was the first time he had ever seen Ian lose his temper — and it surprised him.

The phone buzzed on the table, demanding his attention. Riya’s name flashed on the screen.

Nathaniel’s mouth twisted as he immediately remembered her fake marriage to Zachary. "Why is she calling now?" he muttered. "Has she figured something out?"

Ian’s warning about someone lurking nearby came back to him. That person could have been one of Zachary’s men, spying on Riya, or perhaps tracking Ian. Anything was possible.

’I’ve to be extra careful,’ he thought before swiping the screen to answer the call.

"Nathaniel, I’m out shopping for a ring for Liam," Riya said brightly as if she were excited about the engagement. "But I can’t decide which one to pick. Can you come and help me choose?"

Nathaniel thought for a while and then said, "Alright. I’ll be there shortly."

"Really? You’ll come?" Her tone lifted, full of delight.

"Of course. My sister is getting engaged. Why wouldn’t I help her pick a ring for her fiancé? Wait for me."

"I am waiting." Riya’s lips stretched even wider as she ended the call.

She hadn’t truly expected him to agree. She had only wanted to test whether he still cared. But his willingness to come showed her that his feelings hadn’t completely faded despite their recent fallout. The realization rekindled her confidence.

"No matter what, you will always choose me," she mumbled with a sly smile on her face. "Even if you are not willing, I’ll make sure you stay by my side."