Chapter 309

The child's faith in his father shattered instantly. He stumbled backward, eyes brimming with betrayal. "Why did you do bad things, Dad? You always told me to be good! How could you? You're not my dad anymore! I hate you!"

"Oliver! Don't speak to your father like that!" A woman in a simple dress rushed in, scolding her son before turning tear-filled eyes to her husband. "Daniel, tell them the truth. Do you want our boy to grow up believing his father is a criminal?"

Daniel Carter exhaled sharply at the sight of his unharmed family. Shame burned through him as he dropped his gaze. "I'm just glad you're both safe. That's... that's all that matters."

Eleanor pressed against him, voice breaking. "We're okay now, Daniel. We were rescued! Why didn't you tell me you'd lost your job? All those odd jobs you took... and then they manipulated you into this! Confess everything to the police. They might show leniency!"

A sob tore from Daniel's throat when she didn't recoil from his touch. He scrubbed his face roughly before meeting the officers' stares. "I'll talk. I lied before because they had my family. Someone kidnapped them—forced me to take the blame!"

The station erupted in murmurs. One officer stepped forward, skeptical. "You're retracting your confession? Lying now will only make things worse."

Daniel's jaw set. "I'm done lying. Evelyn Whitmore didn't hire me. Someone else threatened me into attacking Miss Amelia."

Nathaniel Grayson's gaze sharpened. Across the room, Benjamin Rivers leaned forward, hungry for answers.

Amelia kept her face buried against her brother Samuel's shoulder but peeked at Daniel through her fingers. The sudden shift in his story left her stunned.

Gabrielle Winslow's nails dug into her palms. She'd been savoring Evelyn's impending ruin, only for that cunning woman to wriggle free yet again.

Julian Montgomery entered calmly. "Mr. Grayson, as I mentioned earlier, these are my new witnesses—Daniel's wife and son. They were held captive in an abandoned suburban building for days. His confession was coerced."

Nathaniel's icy stare locked onto Daniel. "Names. Now."

Julian placed a hand on Daniel's shoulder. "Your family's safe. It's time to expose who really orchestrated this."