Ch 242 - Surrender

Lindsey hugged Alex tightly. She hoped she could protect Alex from being killed by Reginald's security team. But even if her intervention wasn't successful, she thought she would at least be able to die in his arms knowing she had done her best.

But suddenly she felt a strong force pushing at her, trying to separate her from him. She opened her eyes and realized it was Alex trying to push her away.

Lindsey felt deeply afraid. She knew that Reginald would order his security team to shoot as soon as she stepped away. She clung to Alex desperately.

But then he looked down at her and glared. "Get away from me. When we spoke on the phone before, you said you were the one marrying David today. But now it's Leona in a wedding dress? You lied to me."

Alex was genuinely angry with Lindsey. If his cousin Nathan hadn't accidentally told him the truth, Leona and David would have gone through with the wedding before Alex could intervene.

But even though his anger, he was moved and impressed by Lindsey's courage. She had thrown herself directly into the line of fire to protect him. He recognized that she was trying to help him, but he didn't want her to get hurt. He knew he had to get her away from him, whatever it took.

"I'm sorry I lied!" she cried out. "Be mad at me later! Punish me later! But right now, I'm trying to keep you alive—"

"Get away!" Alex roared. "I don't want to hear anything else from you!"

He knew he needed to drive Lindsey away. He raised one hand and struck her hard across the face, throwing her to the ground.

As she fell, Debbie's old jade pendant also clattered to the ground. Leona and Lindsey both knew it was meant to be kept hidden and out of sight, but Leona had wanted to have it there at her wedding, even if she couldn't wear it herself. Instead, she had asked Lindsey to wear it that day.

Alex's heart lifted when he saw it. He remembered the day Debbie had received it. When he looked up, he saw Leona glance at it nervously.

"That's yours!" he told her. "Do you remember it? It belongs to you!"

Leona walked over to kneel next to Lindsey. Her hand closed over the jade pendant, hiding it from sight, but she glared at Alex angrily. "My sister is trying to help you, and you treat her like this!"

During this time, David had pulled himself together. Now that even Leona was talking back to Alex bravely, he stepped forward with a sneer. "Alex, you're done here. Dad, do it!"

Reginald lifted his chin. "Like my son said. You're finished." He glanced at his security team. "Prepare to fire!"

A chorus of gunshots rang out. People in the crowd ducked, covering their eyes and ears. They thought that the trouble must be finished now. There was no way Alex could have survived.

But when they looked up, they saw all the members of the security team laying on the ground, clamping their hands over their wounds. Alex was still standing.

A few people began to scream, more out of confusion than fear. They wondered what kind of horrible trick Alex had played now.

But then a new group of people began to rush into the room. They were led by Ken Stokes and Sam Woodsworth, both supporters of Alex and his family. They each held a pistol in hand.

Just behind them came Nelly and the Moon society girls. As soon as they made it into the room in the villa where the wedding was being held, they rushed to Alex's side, checking him for injuries.

Ken had heard that Alex was heading for the wedding and guessed that the situation might escalate. He had immediately called other supports and members of the Ambrose family to come to protect Alex. They had made it just in time. Even a few seconds later, Alex would have been shot dead.

Ken came to Alex's side, looking him over anxiously. "Are you all right?"

When Reginald saw Ken Stokes rush to Alex's side and speak to him with such concern, he was shocked. "Mr. Stokes! How do you know this boy?"

The crowd began to murmur. Ken Stokes was well known, but they did not understand what the connection was between Ken and Alex.

Ken rounded on Reginald with a furious look. "Did you really think you were going to get away with this?"

He raised a hand and slapped Reginald hard across the face. Ken wasn't usually the kind of person to hit others, but at that moment he was livid.

Reginald staggered back, one hand clutched to his face.

The murmuring of the crowd raised in volume and intensity. They began to wonder if Alex was someone very important. It didn't seem likely, though. He looked so poor and insignificant. But then again, his skills had been astonishing.

Reginald shook himself, trying to clear his head. "Mr. Stokes, I don't understand. Who is this boy? What is he to you?"

Ken pressed his lips together. He wanted to shout out that Alex was the heir of the Ambrose family, the eldest son. The Ambrose family outranked the Drakes' by far. If Reginald had any idea who he had just attacked, he would fall over himself apologizing in an instant.

But Ken also knew he couldn't give Alex's identity away.

As he struggled with this, a voice rang out from the entrance.

"Ken Stokes! I'm sure you're not going to say anything silly!"

A well-dressed young man strode in, followed by an older man with thin white hair. The young man's face was slightly swollen from the beating he had received earlier in the day, but he was handsome and confident nonetheless. It was Nathan Ambrose and his bodyguard, Keith.

Ken knew exactly what Nathan was warning him against. Alex was still in trouble with the family and dealing with the consequences. He absolutely could not publicly identify Alex as an Ambrose at this time. there would be severe consequences.

He was furious with Nathan for interfering but knew there was nothing he could do. He clenched his hands tightly by his side.

Nathan walked right up to him and slapped him across the face.

"There's no need to glare at me," he said coolly as Ken massaged the bruise on his cheek. "I brought someone to help."

The whispers amongst the crowd stopped dead. Everyone gazed at Nathan with awe. They couldn't believe this young man had just walked up to Ken Stokes, a famous businessman, and slapped him like a subordinate. They realized that Nathan must be someone very important.

Nathan was not worried about the crowd. After dealing with Ken, he turned to Alex with a sneer. "So, you're still alive! I guess that's a good thing. You always seem to get lucky at the last second."

He looked around, taking in the sight of Lindsey and Leona. He cocked his head to the side and glanced at Alex. "This isn't so lucky, though. Your girlfriend was going to have such a nice wedding! Now you've ruined it. Are you still chasing after her?" He smirked. "Let's see if she'll have you."

Alex glared at Nathan, but he didn't want to argue. He knew he finally had an opportunity to make Leona remember her old life as Debbie, and he didn't want to miss it.

He looked at Leona. "That jade pendant in your hand is really important. Do you remember? It was a gift. Your name is Debbie. And you can't marry David, because he's not the one who really loves you. It's me."

Leona shook her head slightly, as if dazed by his words. Expressions flickered quickly across her face as she tried to sort out her thoughts. At some moments she looked puzzled, at others afraid.

She raised her hand to reach for David, wanting his support and strength. But David was still dealing with his fear. Now that the attention had shifted to Leona, he wanted no part in the confrontation.

Alex walked toward Leona slowly. His mind was full of all their experiences together. The idea of her going away to have a life and new experiences with someone else made him miserable.

He held out his hand to her. "Believe me. I'm the one. Why don't you come with me?"

He hoped that she could feel his sincerity. Whoever she wanted to be, Leona or Debbie, he wanted to be with her.

Leona wavered, her heart beating hard in her chest. She could tell Alex was being sincere. But she couldn't shake the memories of all the times David had helped her. David saves her from the lake, David taking a beating to protect her from attackers. She had so many feelings attached to memories of David. As far as she knew, she and Alex had no such history.

Finally, she shook her head. "I'm sorry, but no. David is the one I love. I've seen today that you are very strong, Alex, but please don't force me. Please don't ruin my wedding."

Alex felt like he had been poisoned. He staggered back, nearly falling to the ground.

It felt so unfair. Debbie had loved him so much.

Tears began to well up in his eyes, and his strength faded. He began to feel exhausted as the events of the day caught up with him. "Do you really mean that?"

The question hurt Leona. She knew something about this whole situation was wrong, but she couldn't figure out what. She didn't understand why her heart hurt so much when she looked at him. All she could say was, "I'm sorry I'm not the person you imagined. Please leave."

Alex's legs went weak, and he fell to the ground. Tears fell freely down his face. He felt as if his heart had drained of all feeling and become empty. All he could think was, She doesn't want me. She doesn't want me.

The girls of the Moon society rushed forward to help him up. Selene looked into his face carefully. "Mr. Alex? Please, say something."

Nelly stood nearby, watching and quietly supporting him.

Although it was a sad sight, Ken Stokes couldn't help but feel a little happy. He knew Alex must be heartbroken by the rejection. But maybe this was what needed to happen for him to finally overcome his feelings so he could apologize to the family.

He stepped toward Alex and said softly, "Well? She has made her feelings very clear. What do you want to do?"

Alex raised his gaze to look at Leona. He smiled softly and said, "Okay. Congratulations."

With a sigh, he turned to Nathan and said, "Our grandfather sent you here to get my answer, right? Now I can say it. I'm giving up on Debbie."