"She is staying as a guest of your grandfather at Five Seasons. Her name isn't on the official guest list. It really was a trap." Max said as he threw the guest list of the hotel Five Seasons on the table.
Adam's frown deepened as the realization settled in. He had already suspected that Saira's appearance that night had been nothing more than a carefully laid snare, but what he couldn't quite grasp was the reasoning behind it.
From the moment he had begun to truly understand the way Robert Collins operated, he had learned to recognize the old man's machinations. Every move had a purpose, every decision a calculated step in a much larger scheme. Whether it had been orchestrating Spencer and Melanie's marriage or ensuring Adam was too crippled to appear for the reading of the will, Robert had always been methodical, always deliberate.
But now... something didn't add up.
He had kept Saira hidden for five long years, shielding her from his searching. And yet, suddenly, he was choosing to bring her back into the light. That, too, Adam had expected. If Robert wanted Adam to sever his ties with Melanie once and for all, then there was no better person to do it than Saira. She was his Achilles' heel, the one weakness he had yet to overcome. If Saira came back, then he and Melanie would not be together, regardless of the will.
But why dangle her in front of him like bait in some elaborate game? It was unnecessary. If Robert wanted to shatter the fragile balance Adam had built, all he needed to do was send Saira directly to him. That alone would be enough to send everything spiraling into chaos. Adam knew it. Robert knew it. And Spencer knew it.
Yet instead of the direct approach, they were playing this strange, drawn-out game of hide and seek. Keeping her just out of reach. And he did not understand why.
"What are you thinking now?" Max asked with a frown. He just didn't understand what was going on in any of the Collins' family's heads. It made his own head ache, trying to think what would happen next.
"Did you find out anything else? If there is anyone around Saira?"
Max shook his head. "Only guards. And even that, I only figured out after hacking into the hotel's security feed." He leaned back, crossing his arms. "She didn't even check in herself. The guards handled everything—booked the room, signed her in, escorted her straight up without any interaction with the front desk."
Adam's jaw tightened. That was not unusual.
Max continued, "She came out just once, to go to the restaurant where you saw her. After that, she went to the café, sat there waiting for Spencer, then ran the moment things got messy. The same night, after you left, she checked out and went straight to the airport."
He paused, then added with a frown, "No luggage. No second trip. Just straight from the hotel to the car, then the airport. Almost like she was never really supposed to be there at all."
But Adam shook his head and corrected Max," Almost like a prisoner who had no say in her choices."
Max looked at Adam and realized that it was indeed true. The woman had indeed been like a prisoner.
Adam, on the other hand had already reached a conclusion for this strange encounter. It could be that Robert Collins was checking his stance. If he would still be able to use Saira and he had probably already received his answer with the way Adam had chased her.
While Adam was still thinking this, Max pushed forward another report. Adam raised an eyebrow at that," What is this?"
She was waiting there for Spencer, so I thought to look for Spencer," Max said, tapping the file on the table with a knowing smirk. "Guess where I found him?"
Adam raised an eyebrow. "Where?"
Max leaned forward slightly, as if savoring the moment before delivering the blow. "Where you were supposed to be."
Adam's frown deepened as he flipped open the file in a hurry, after coming to the realization. And then Max watched with a grin when Adam skimmed over the contents, then froze on a set of photos. There, in crisp, time-stamped images, was Melanie—seated across from Spencer in the same restaurant where he had left her with Spencer in his place.
Adam's grip on the file tightened as he studied the pictures. He could already judge from her expressions that she was not happy but Spencer seemed to have stayed there with her for another fifteen minutes, according to the time stamps.
"She stayed after I left and then Spencer approached her. So, she talked to him and then left?"
Max grinned. "Oh, she didn't just wait, my friend. She let Spencer talk, got rid of him, leisurely finished her meal, took her time, and then—" he flipped to another image, one of Melanie stepping into a car "—returned to your shared home."
Adam stiffened. It seemed what Melanie had told him was indeed correct. She really could not be bothered by his actions.
Max, ever the observer, tilted his head. "Now, I'm not saying you did anything wrong, but..." He gestured vaguely at the photos.
Adam shut the file with more force than necessary and glared at his 'friend.'
Max raised his hands in mock surrender. "Hey, I'm just the messenger." He leaned back, watching Adam carefully. "But you have to admit, it's interesting. You chase after Saira like a man possessed, and Melanie? She stays behind and is approached by Spencer..."
So the motive was not just to check if Siara could be used. It was probably to attack both him and her from both sides with their weaknesses.
Robert Collins and Spencer had finally decided to turn their attention to him. Well, that was good enough... he had been waiting a long time... Just then, he received a message that had him straightening in his chair...