CHAPTER 913: CHAPTER 913 CULPRIT UNCOVERED

"I... I don’t," Hera answered truthfully. And it was true, she didn’t dislike him.

"Then why do you keep pushing me away? Why won’t you let me even try to pursue you? Even Xavier has eased up around me... why can’t you?"

Though Alexandre’s words could have sounded accusatory, his voice carried no bitterness, only the quiet ache of a wounded wolfdog yearning for understanding. He wasn’t trying to guilt-trip her; he was simply trying to make sense of the walls she kept raising.

And Hera, she didn’t know how to respond.

Why was she pushing Alexandre away? Why wouldn’t she give him a chance, not even a sliver of room to prove himself?

Was it because he wasn’t one of the male leads like Xavier and the others? But that couldn’t be it, Leo wasn’t a male lead either, and yet he had become one of her favorites. So what made Alexandre different?

He’d once said it himself: she already had six lovers. Would adding one more really make a difference? If anything, she’d gain more love, more protection, more devotion, and not less. So why did it feel so hard to let him in?

Hera’s thoughts tangled in silence, her heart caught in a tug-of-war between logic, instinct, and fear she couldn’t quite name.

Hera sank deeper into thought, caught in the whirlwind of emotions and questions she couldn’t easily answer. And while she was still trying to make sense of it all, Alexandre quietly continued.

"Is it because we’re from different countries? Different nationalities? Would it really be that impossible if I moved to your country instead?" he asked, his voice soft yet steady.

"My roots may be in Paris, but they don’t chain me here. I’m not afraid to leave. My parents would understand, eventually. Even if we’re separated by oceans, it’s not like I’d never return to visit."

"I could fly back anytime I needed to. And when it comes to business... I can work from anywhere in the world and still run my family’s conglomerate. In fact, if I moved, I could shift focus from the domestic market to the international one. Maybe I could even grow our presence in your country, or work with you. Wouldn’t that be a win for me?"

He paused for a breath, then looked at her with quiet frustration. "So what are you so afraid of, Hera?"

Every word struck her like lightning.

He had unknowingly voiced every excuse she’d been repeating to herself, each reason she had used to justify why she couldn’t accept him. And now, hearing those excuses laid bare and effortlessly dismantled left her speechless.

"I-I..." Hera tried to speak, but the words caught in her throat. She genuinely couldn’t come up with anything to say, and truthfully, she didn’t even fully understand herself why she was so adamant about not giving Alexandre a chance.

Then, as if grasping for solid ground, she remembered something.

"This decision isn’t mine to make alone," she said, her voice quieter now. "Like I told you before, I already have six lovers. Their opinions matter just as much as mine. Even if I wanted to take you in as a lover, if they don’t approve... I’d still choose to follow their judgment. They’ve been with me through everything, through the worst and the best. And while it hasn’t been that long since we met, I’ve already made up my mind about them..."

Before she could finish, Alexandre cut in.

"Then, as long as I can earn their approval, you’ll let me in, right?" His eyes locked onto hers. "Alright. I understand."

Hera was stunned.

Just like that, the decision had slipped out of her hands, and she hadn’t even meant for it to happen. It felt like she’d accidentally shot herself in the foot. And yet... the look of determination on Alexandre’s face made it impossible for her to take it back.

She felt conflicted. Vexed.

There were still so many unknowns ahead, and she knew things were only going to get more dangerous. What happened earlier had already proven that much. And now, with Alexandre trying to step into her tightly woven harem, she couldn’t help but wonder:

How would this affect the delicate balance she and her lovers had built together? Would one more heart in the equation strengthen them, or tear something apart?

Would Alexandre be the missing piece that bound them all together, unshakable until death? Or would his presence disrupt the delicate balance they had fought so hard to maintain, throwing their once-harmonious life into chaos?

Maybe this

was what Hera had feared all along.

Right now, she and her six lovers had found an uneasy yet growing harmony. They had learned to coexist, slowly accepting one another. It hadn’t been easy, especially when Leo entered the picture. The five male leads had struggled, but eventually, Leo won their approval. It took time, effort, and compromise.

But Alexandre?

What would happen if he stepped through that same door? Would they give him a chance? Or would they see him as a threat, an outsider, an invader of their sacred bond?

The thought made Hera restless, her anxiety spiking as if the seat beneath her had caught fire. She couldn’t relax. Couldn’t breathe easily. And yet, in the silence that followed her hesitation, Alexandre seemed to take it as quiet agreement, a silent green light.

He now believed Hera had conceded. That she was ready to let him try.

In his mind, it was time to infiltrate her love nest, whether by earning their favor, blending in, or, if needed, forcing their acknowledgment. Because while Alexandre was charming, warm, and easy to get along with in front of Hera, beneath that affable exterior was a man every bit as dangerous and relentless as the rest.

He was a wolf in sheep’s clothing, and he was no vegetarian.

If the others tried to tear him down, he would bite back.

And so, the battle between these seven predatory men had quietly begun, and its outcome would ultimately determine how they would coexist in the future.

Following their conversation, Hera maintained a composed façade, but beneath it, a subtle nervousness lingered. Time passed, and soon, two days had gone by. Her discharge paperwork was finalized by Dr. Zigheart, and in that same span, the investigation had taken a sharp and decisive turn.

Sasha had successfully uncovered a mountain of evidence, revealing exactly who had hired the assassins. He presented detailed transfer records, transaction dates, and even damning audio and video clips, some from dashcams, CCTV footage, and even satellite feeds. But perhaps the most shocking revelation was tied to the tampering of Hera’s car.

It turned out that the saboteur was a member of the National Race Team, operating under Danny Coleman’s jurisdiction. This discovery left Danny deeply humiliated; he had unknowingly harbored a snake in his own team, someone willing to risk Hera’s life for a mere $1 million.

Unbeknownst to the culprit, Hera had set up a livestream camera inside her car well before the race. While he subtly sabotaged the vehicle during the chaos of pre-race preparations, thinking no one would notice, some eagle-eyed viewers tuning into the early stream did. They noticed his strange behavior and, after reviewing the footage multiple times, sent the clip directly to Danny Coleman’s email.

That one oversight, one hidden camera that wasn’t well hidden, and a few sharp-eyed netizens were all it took to expose him.

As for the culprit, although she had tried to cover her tracks by making multiple transfers and even opening a Swiss bank account, hoping that once the money landed there, it would vanish into obscurity and become nearly impossible to trace, she underestimated her opponent.

Normally, such tactics would work, but Sasha was no ordinary hacker. Having previously breached the Swiss banking system, he was a seasoned hustler with the skills and experience to break through even the most secure firewalls.

Within just a day, Sasha successfully traced the transaction back to Mindy Pinault. To make matters worse for her, this wasn’t the first time she had targeted women who got close to Alexandre. Her Swiss bank account had a suspicious pattern of similar transactions, and her activity on the dark web showed a chilling history. The assassination request she made this time was more than enough to warrant capital punishment.

When this information surfaced, her family panicked. The potential fallout of her actions was catastrophic, not just for her but for the entire Pinault family. Knowing that the scandal could ruin their reputation and bring the whole family down, they scrambled to clean up her mess before it was too late.

But with the Arnault family now backing Hera, the Pinaults could no longer cover up the mess Mindy had created. The hole she tore open was too large to conceal, and like vultures sensing weakness, their rivals began to circle. One by one, Mindy’s past crimes and cruel deeds surfaced online, dragging the entire Pinault family into the center of a storm of controversy.