Femme Fatale: The King's Deadly Temptress

Chapter 656: Death Is Too Easy

"No." Damien's voice was stern yet calm. Katherine drew her brows together, opening her mouth to protest, but before she could utter another sound, he shook his head. Framing her face with his hands, he looked intently into her eyes so that she could see the sincerity in them. And in a low voice so that only the two of them could hear, he added, "I'm not stopping you because I pity him. I am with you on this. But I'm stopping you before you can't come back from this."

"I have to do this."

"Just breathe for me." He swiped his thumb on her cheek, catching a stray tear that rolled out of her eyes. She sucked in a breath once, twice. His eyes darkened when he told her, "After everything you've been through, if you kill them now Death will be mercy for them."

Katherine's stare bounced between Damien's eyes as she absorbed his words. Then she glanced at Higgins and then Deborah, her rage-filled glare making her eyes ache. 

She felt like she was going to combust. Madness consumed every fiber of her being, and revenge flowed through her veins. This was what she had been waiting for all her life. To find the person responsible. For a long time, she thought it was one of Young Corporation's rivals. And when she regained her memories and got to know Deborah, she started questioning her too.

Deborah's involvement in the incident couldn't be denied now. She and Higgins had a motive. And whether or not she was brainwashed by this sick butler, she had a hand in killing Katherine's parents. She still couldn't look at Deborah without thinking about her parents. No wonder she couldn't find the one who ordered the killing. They were right under her nose.

She couldn't believe that she was blind all this time. Being one of Shadow's assassins, she knew that there were enemies within the family members. People whom you think were the closest to you could betray you in a heartbeatespecially when it comes to money. Katherine just didn't want to believe that it could happen to her too. Because how cruel could life be to her?

But Damien was right. If she killed them now, it would all be over. Deborah and Gerard would just stop living. They won't suffer. And they should suffer for all the things they did.

When Damien saw that Katherine was slowly calming down, he took a deep breath and spoke out loud while still keeping his eyes on his woman. "If there's nothing else, Mrs. Nieves, I'll have my men escort you back to your room." He needed the senior housekeeper to leave for what they would have to do next.

The church was quiet for a few beats and when Damien thought Mrs. Nieves was done, he opened his mouth to give his men an order. But Mrs. Nieves spoke first.

"Actually, if I could just add one more thing." Mrs. Nieves got on her feet and everyone's heads turned to her. "It's been so many years that I forgot about plenty of things, but I'm remembering some things now after listening to Gerard. And I'm quite certain I recall the same night that he was talking about. If I'm not mistaken, I was in the library that night"

"Oh, stop it, Teresa," Gerard cut her off. "Why would you be in the library that night? Servants shouldn't be lingering around. And there's nothing else that you could say that would change what happened. I know what I heard that night."

Mrs. Nieves knitted her brows so tight that it looked painful. Her scowl was directed at Higgins. "I was there because I was watching over the late Young Master Mason. We were reading his favorite book when Theodore's fatherthe Seniorcame inside. I was going to excuse myself but the Senior stopped me. He didn't want Mason to stop reading. So I remained quiet." 

She huffed in annoyance before continuing, "We servants are taught how to keep confidentiality. Whatever we hear is to remain within ourselves. I respect the Youngs and I take pride in my work." She took a deep breath. "I am not going to say that what you heard was not true. But that's not everything that was said that nightand the other days I heard the father and son talking."

"Tell us," Katherine said in almost a whisper.

Mrs. Nieves nodded. "Theodore's father had said that while George was skilled, he was too stubborn. The Senior told his son to cut George off as his partner in Young Wyatt Constructions, telling him that one day, George will become a problem. There couldn't be two bosses in one company, and George was too hungry to listen to Theodore. The Senior believed George would one day put their company at risk. 

"Theodore didn't listen to his father. Instead, he thought that George's eagerness was a good thing; that it would only bring their company to greater heights because he was ambitious. George was his friend, and he believed in his friend. However, that construction accident happened because George didn't heed Theodore's warning about the risks. Against Theodore's wishes, George did what he wasn't supposed to do while Theodore was away.

"It was not the first time that the Senior offered to acquire Young Wyatt Constructions after the accident. Theodore didn't want to give up on their company even if he faced many problems after that. But he had no choice. The acquisition was the only way to save it from crumbling." She shifted her stare to Katherine and her eyes softened. "Your grandfather did what he could to save the company and its hundreds of employees."

Deborah had long been quiet in her chair, her head lowered to the ground. Higgins's eyes were wide as he took in all of that. There was a mixture of disbelief and something that was hard to read in them. His mouth hung open and his skin was even paler.

Katherine lifted her chin as she rose to a stand with Damien next to her. She was right. Her grandfather would never do anything to intentionally hurt innocent people. And Gerard Higgins refused to see the truth. His grief drove him to the idea that he needed retaliation.

Her fisted hands shook and that's only when she realized that Damien had taken her knives and had given them to Amelia. If Katherine still had them in her hands, she would've already rushed forward and slit Higgins' throat. The desire to see him suffer and see him die warred inside her head.

She took a step forward. And another. And then another. Damien didn't stop her until she reached Higgins who seemed to be lost in his own head. Clenching her jaw tight, she grabbed Higgins's hair with her left hand, pulled back her other fist, and socked him in the face. Once, twice, thrice. Higgins broke out a shriek and tried to scramble away from her, but Felix held him in place. Katherine might not kill Higgins now, but she sure would give him every blow he deserved.

No one stopped her.

From a distance, a police siren blared. It barely registered to Katherine as she delivered more hits to Higgins' body. Only when the door to the church opened was she pulled out of her violent trance.

They whipped their heads in the direction of their new company. A breathless Caroline stood there surveying the big room with a shocked expression. Noah arrived a few seconds after her, panting as he said, "I tried to stop her. She called the cops."