My ex-husband's nightmare - Chapter 26: Chapter 26

MASON
I couldn’t breathe. I just stood there in the restroom, staring at the empty space where she had just been. My heart was pounding so hard it drowned out the noise of the event outside.
She was lying. She had to be lying.
But the way she looked at me, the way she said those words, "she’s dead”, sent a chill down my spine. She sounded like Lydia; the height, the face, the eyes and the smile all belonged to Lydia. If she was just a look-alike, then there had to be at least one difference. There was none.
Only her cold gaze and tone. Lydia has only ever spoken to me with love and tenderness while she spoke to me with so much disdain.
I walked out of the restroom with unsteady steps. The voices around me blurred together. The flashing cameras, the murmurs, the music—it was all too much.
I felt the need to escape this crowd.
Julia was still talking to some people, laughing and tossing her hair, completely unaware of what had just happened.
I didn’t bother telling her I was leaving as I didn't want her accompanying me back. I walked past her, past the waiters offering champagne, past the businessmen trying to make conversation.
Straight to my car.
I drove without thinking, my grip tight on the steering wheel. The street lights blurred altogether as I drove at the speed of a madman. To the only place I could go to for a little bit of peace from everyone else. My penthouse.
I slammed the door shut as soon as I got inside, my chest rising and falling.
I needed answers and I need them now before I lose my mind. I pulled out my phone and dialled my private investigator.
“Mr. Woods?” His voice was crisp and rusky.
“I need something,” I said, my voice rough. “An investigation. I want you to go through all the records again. Five years ago. The fire. The death certificates. Anything related to Lydia.”
There was a slight pause. “Sir, we’ve already looked into this before. The report—”
“Do it again.” What followed was silence that dragged on a bit too long. Then, “Yes, sir.”
I ended the call and ran a hand through my hair, pulling at it like it fixed all the problems. I walked to the minibar and poured myself a drink, but I couldn’t bring myself to take a sip.
She had to be her. She had to be Lydia. I pressed my fingers to my temples, squeezing my eyes shut.
Memories came crashing in, uninvited.
The way she used to laugh, the way she would incline her head when she was annoyed. Her scent, the softness of her skin. The fire. The ashes. I didn't exactly bother finding out what they did to the body. Or if there was even a body, as they said, she burnt up pretty bad.
I grabbed the glass and threw it against the wall. It shattered into a thousand pieces. I spent 5 years meticulously doing my best to fixate on my life in a way that everyone was under my control. My emotions, my business, my mental health and now that Lyd- this woman came in everything shatters.
She was alive. Why else would it be that the company that suddenly aroused and became a rival just had to be owned by a woman who looked strikingly alike to her? She was playing a game. Probably punishing me for divorcing her.
My phone buzzed. I snatched it up, expecting my private investigator. Instead, it was my mother. I exhaled sharply before answering.
“What?”
“Mason,” she called, her tone made lines appear on my forehead. “Julia is here.” I pinched the bridge of my nose.
"And..."
“She said you left her at the event without saying anything. She’s upset. Do you know how humiliating that is for her?” I let out a humourless laugh. “Oh, so she’s humiliated? Good to know.”
“Mason, what is wrong with you?”
“Nothing,” I snapped.
“You embarrassed her! She’s been crying since she got here.” I clenched my jaw. “I had things to take care of.”
“Like what?” I didn’t answer. A pause. I pressed my fingers into the counter. “I know what I saw.”
“What did you see?.”
I closed my eyes. “I’ll find out who she really is.”
“She? Who's-... Mason, listen to me—” I ended the call.
My fingers curled into fists. Lydia might have changed her name. She might have fooled everyone else. But not me.
I will get to the bottom of this.
I walked into the office the next morning with a pounding headache. I hadn’t slept all night. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw her face. Lydia. Or whoever she was pretending to be now.
I loosened my tie as I stepped into the boardroom, already regretting coming to work. The meeting had already started, but I barely heard a word. The numbers, the projections, the reports—none of it made any sense to me.
“Mr. Woods?” one of the executives said, looking at me. I blinked. “What?” Everyone turned to look at me.
“We were asking about the merger, sir,” another man said. “Right.” I nodded, rubbing my temple. “Just proceed with what we discussed last week.”
Daniel shot me a look from across the table. He knew something was wrong. I barely lasted through the rest of the meeting. The moment it ended, I walked straight to my office and shut the door behind me. Daniel came in minutes later.
“She refused,” Daniel said immediately.
I frowned. “What?”
“The meeting request. You asked me to schedule a meeting with Miss Brooks,” he explained. “She refused.” I clenched my jaw and unclenched it.
“Not even a reschedule?” I asked, sounding a bit too desperate. “She said there was nothing to discuss with you.”
I let out a bitter laugh. “Of course she did.” After how I had cornered her in the bathroom yesterday, I would expect nothing less.
Daniel folded his arms. “You sure you don’t want to tell me what’s going on?” I ran a hand through my hair. “It’s her.”
Daniel frowned. “Who?”
I stared at him. “Lydia.”
He didn’t speak for a moment. Then he let out a breath. “Mason—”
“I know what you’re going to say,” I cut in. “I know she’s supposed to be dead. But I saw her, Daniel. I spoke to her. She looked me in the eye and told me Lydia was dead but she's Lydia.”
Daniel’s expression darkened. “And you don't believe her?”
“No.” I exhaled. “I don’t know.”
He leaned against his desk. “This woman… she’s not just someone who looks like Lydia?”
“No.” I shook my head. “It’s her.”
Daniel sighed. “I don't think Miss Lydia would've been able to escape that fire especially given her condition at the time. Are you sure?”
“Find out everything,” I said. “Where she’s been. What she’s been doing. Who helped her fake her death.” Before Daniel could respond, the door burst open and Julia rushed in.
Her eyes were red and puffy like she had been crying all night. “You cheated on me,” she hissed, stepping inside.
I stiffened. “What?” Daniel straightened, looking between us.
“You cheated on me, Mason!” Julia's voice was shaking. “I was humiliated last night. You left me there like I was nothing. Then I find out you’re obsessed with some woman? Who is she? Did you leave to go be with her?”
I exhaled sharply, feeling anger bubble up at the way she referred to Lydia. “Julia, lower your voice.”
“No!” She marched up to me, stabbing a finger into my chest. “I was at your mother’s house all night, crying. She told me how much she wanted me to be your wife. She told me we were supposed to be engaged soon!”
Daniel rubbed his forehead and muttered something under his breath. “Julia,” I said, my patience thinning. “I did not cheat on you.”
She let out a humourless laugh. “Oh, really? Then explain why you left me at the event to run after her!” I clenched my jaw.
“She’s... None of your concern,” I said coldly.
Julia scoffed. “Not my concern? Then why are you so obsessed with her? Why are you trying to meet with her?”
“Because I need to know something.”
“And what’s that?” I didn’t answer.
She swallowed hard. “Are you going to throw me away for her? Why the f-- aren't you even telling me who the bitch is?” I kept my silence and her face twisted in anger. “You love her?”
I gritted my teeth. “I never said that.”
“But you didn’t deny it!” Her voice grew even louder. “Mason, I have been with you. Four years. And you’re going to throw all that away for some faceless bitch that just appeared out of nowhere?”
I sighed and looked at Daniel. “Give us a minute.” Daniel gave me a knowing look before walking out. I turned back to Julia. “I’m not throwing anything away.”
Her eyes watered. “Then tell me what’s going on.” I ran a hand down my face. “I don’t know.”
She stared at me. “Do you still want to marry me?” I exhaled. “Julia—”
“Just answer the damned question.” I looked at her, at the way she was shaking, at the pain in her eyes. I couldn’t lie anymore but I couldn't tell her the truth either. How could I? How would I?
Her face crumbled. “I knew it.”
"Did you cheat on me, Mason?”