327: BEYOND THE SURFACE LUKE’S POV The gatekeeper informed me that I had a visitor. I wondered who that could be. Staring at Marcus’s face, he seemed pretty upset. But why should he be? He was wrong, after all. He walked into my room without asking for permission. It wasn’t as if I was exaggerating my feelings. However, he should have had a little respect. What if Ariel and I were, you know, doing the thing? I’m just spitting out facts around here. “Who has come to see me?” I asked Marcus, who had his eyes looking down the whole time. “It’s a young girl, sir. She said she wants to speak with you and has something important to tell you.” “I see,” I said with a nod before He nodded and walked away. turning to Marcus. “Let her in.” I glanced at Ariel. “I’ll be right back, okay?” “Okay.” She nodded. I walked out of the room, wondering who this young girl was and what information she had to tell me. I stood outside the mansion while Marcus opened the visitor’s gate. I watched as she walked toward me. She was a blonde, with the/appearance of a teenager or someone in a rage. And on top of that, she was beautiful. She took leaden steps, looking around like she had walked into a terrorist’s den. She seemed so afraid. She finally got close to me, and the both of us were staring at each other. I was giving her the serious face, which might have frightened her slightly. “Who are you?” I asked her, crossing my arms together. “I’m Hailey, Hailey Stones,” she introduced herself, and her voice was shaking. “I come from the New Haven Police Department.” I raised my brows, hearing that. “Oh wow, that’s nice. So have you come here to arrest me?” I joked, but I pulled my lips together not to make it look like I was joking. “No,” she responded, shaking her head and looking at me strangely. I haven’t come here to arrest you unless you’re a criminal.” “Tell me then. Why have you come to my mansion? Because, if I can clearly remember, I don’t have a relationship with the police.” “Well, I don’t know about that,” she told me. Her voice was calm, and she was so polite. I have to say, I like her. Hailey continued, “They sent me to deliver a message to you.” “A message for me?” I asked, and she nodded. Then I proceeded with the second question: “From who?” “From Lucas Grayson.” “And what is that?” My curiosity took the best of me. Hailey let out a deep sigh. I was still staring at her, waiting for her response. I walked inside my room, and Ariel was standing there, looking at herself in the mirror. I stood and did nothing but watch her. She didn’t even feel my presence until she turned around. “Oh, Luke. You’re back.” “Yes, I am,” I said, walking closer. “So, who was it?” Ariel queried. She glanced back at the mirror, painting her brows or whatever she was doing. “It was a young lady from the police.” Ariel stopped what she was doing. “The police?” 327 BEYOND THE SURFACE “Yes, the police. And she came to give me some shocking news. “Trust me, I literally had no idea why she came to tell me that.” “What did she tell you?” Ariel gave me a curious look. I took a deep breath before I finally revealed the information. “Apparently, Mason is dead.” “Mason is dead.” Ariel looked shocked. “Yes, that was what she told me.” “But how? Who killed him?” “That, we do not know. However, we discovered his lifeless body beneath a cliff. Now the investigation is being carried out.” “Are you really sure about this?” “Don’t ask me,” I replied with a shrug. “Someone from the police department told me. “I don’t think they’ll be lying.” Ariel processed my words for a moment before she rushed towards the bathroom. “I need to go take a shower.” “Are you heading somewhere?” “Yes. I will be going to Andre’s house to check them out. If Mason is dead, then he must be really broken.” “You’re sure about that? Cause I’m not broken.” Ariel faked a smile as she whispered, “You’re his enemy. They’re his family. I think it’s quite clear.” She disappeared into the bathroom after that. “Will you be having breakfast?” I asked loudly, hearing her turn on the shower. “I don’t think that will be necessary,” she answered from the bathroom. I went to sit on the bed, thinking about what that girl told me. It was quite fascinating to learn that the scumbag had died. But who killed him? One thing was for sure: he 327 BEYOND THE SIBBAS did not give way to suicide. ARIEL’S POV I arrived at Andre’s Mansion, parked my car, and gazed at the building through the window. If Mason had passed away, then my prayers would have found their answer. But I would need to console his family. They loved me, but I never did. However, for relationship reasons, I had to be there for them. I stepped out of my car, took a deep breath, and finally traipsed to the mansion. When I had gotten close to the door, I halted. I exhaled deeply once again before I knocked. After nearly a minute of standing up, someone opened the door. Lisa was the one who opened it. We looked fixedly at each other for quite a while, but I eventually spoke softly, “Hey, I Lisa. “Hey,” she responded, taking her eyes off me. Her red eyes and unsatisfactory tone revealed her broken state. a She opened the door widely, allowing me to come in. In a slow manner, I walked inside the mansion, gazing at everything and everyone. ‘here, The whole family was in the living room, except for André. Hannah Manuel was there, Elizabeth was there, and there was a new face I had never seen before. The young man was dark–skinned and had an Afro. But I drew my attention from him. and set my eyes on Elizabeth, who was weeping. It pained me to see her like that. However, the absence of the monster proved to be a blessing. These individuals would not comprehend this, as they had never witnessed Mason’s darker side. How lucky were they? I couldn’t keep standing. So, I walked to Elizabeth and sat next to her. She continued to shed tears, and I couldn’t bear to see her like that. But Mason was her son anyway. She had every right to cry. BEYOND THE SURFACE “I’m sorry for your loss,” I said softly, gently squeezing her hand. “I can’t believe it. I can’t believe my son is no longer with me. After all these years, these wonderful years of seeing his face. He left me.” Elizabeth continued to weep, and so did the others. I sat close to her for minutes, soothing her, until I finally got up and went to meet the others. The door opened, and Andre was the first to arrive. He scanned the faces of everyone, and then his eyes were firm on me. “Ariel, I need to speak with you.” 320 VEL OF SUSPICION