The Substitute Bride

Rachel made up her mind to stay and tried her best to help Holley clear her name. She did it mostly for herself.

She was afraid that she would be influenced by Holley and had to live the rest of her life in fear. She clearly knew that she was still deeply in love with Charles. She hoped that one day, she could stand in front of him to confess her love to him openly and with great pride.

Even though she got stuck in the mud, she still anticipated a chance to pull herself out of it and to embrace her beloved Charles with clean hands one day.

With such hopeful ideas running in her head, Rachel wasted no time. She drove to Silver Corporation immediately. She stepped on gas and her car zoomed along the empty streets. She was eager to find out whether any clues were left there.

The lobby was almost empty when she entered the building. She tried her best to hide her arrogance when she approached the reception desk. The receptionist just finished talking to someone on the phone when Rachel inquired her in a polite tone, "Hello, could you tell me if you saw anyone suspicious or noticed anything unusual on the day that Mr. Zhan was murdered? Anything at all that you remember?" Rachel put extra effort to keep a gentle tone.

"Nope. Except you and Miss Ye, no one else met Mr. Zhan on that day," the receptionist replied firmly.

She tried her best to compose herself, but Rachel still seized a flash of dodge in her eyes.

Rachel was sure that she was hiding something, but she failed to get any evidence. It was a really terrible feeling to be stuck in such a helpless situation. The anger blew out in her heart but she tried her best not to show it.

Being stuck in such a difficult and helpless dilemma, she suddenly thought of a wild idea. 'Perhaps, I could ask Charles for help.'

It was precisely an excuse she needed, since her true motivation was to create a chance to meet Charles again.

Although the gap between them, caused by too much misunderstandings and unhappiness, had grown, at this moment she was still willing to lay down her self-esteem and seek Charles' help.

She thought, 'Perhaps he still remembers our past love, right?' Actually, Rachel was uncertain that Charles still did, but she still kept a glimmer of hope in her heart.

In order to encourage herself, Rachel bought several bottles of wine and brought them back home. She was planning on drinking tonight. She used alcohol as a crutch. She opened her first bottle and started to pour half of it into her glass. Taking her first sip, she couldn't help but smile.

It was not clear how long she had been drinking. A lot of the bottles, now empty, lined up on the table in front of her. She held to one of them, which was still half-full. Sitting on the sofa, she felt as if she was on cloud nine—lighthearted and relaxed.

She took another sip from the bottle she was holding. She could feel every drop as it flowed inside her mouth soothing every tensed nerve she had and clearing her all thoughts off her head. Rachel almost fell in love with such kind of feeling—relieved and stress-free. It had been so long since she last felt at ease.

The happy memory of her first kiss with

number, so she never thought about contacting him by phone.

She thought, 'Since I couldn't find Charles today, I will come back tomorrow. I do not believe that he would never go to work again. Once he returns, I will have a chance to talk with him.'

With that thought in mind, Rachel stood up and left after paying the bill.

It was almost dark while she drove around town. She headed to the club just in time.

Rachel got numbed in the bar. She shook her head with the rhythm of the crowd. Loud music blared as she drowned herself with liquor again.

She could hear Charles' harsh words ringing in her ears. She tried her best to forget them but she failed. She felt each word piercing her heart and tearing it into pieces.

Rachel was too intoxicated but she still managed to drag herself to the dance floor. Considering her state of mind, some strangers took advantage of her. However, she did not care about it. She still wore an enchanting smile on her face.

She was completely driven by animal desire, so she would gladly accept whoever flirted with her. At this moment, what she wanted was to forget about Holley's trouble and Charles' heartlessness.

Rachel stumbled to the washroom. Her head was still spinning from the act she tried to pull off earlier. Unexpectedly, she heard a familiar name from the outside. Her heart suddenly tightened.

"How pitiful Lance was! He was murdered inexplicably. I've heard that it was a woman who did it. He was so useless." The voice of a young lady was clearly heard despite the sound of the open faucet.

"You are right. He was really pitiful. According to the news, his wife didn't even show any hints of sadness on the day of his funeral. She got his funeral done the old fashioned way. Then, she rushed to deal with the heritage things. After all, money is more important than the relationship between husband and wife,"

another voice replied mockingly. The running water stopped.

"Hah," the young lady laughed. "Speaking of Lance, I think he was very generous in paying tips when he was clubbing, so it's really such a great pity that he was now gone."