Chapter 423

"Enough!" Hannah strained against Vincent, resistance proving useless until she abruptly shifted strategy.Channeling her disciplined power through an exact sequence of shoulder jerks, waist pivots, and knee drives, she wrenched herself free of Vincent's grip.

Vincent faltered in surprise. The embrace he had clamped around her collapsed as her relentless force pried him open. His towering figure stumbled backward, losing stability, creating a cutting span of space between them.

"Weren't you the one who told me to go far out of your sight?" Her tone sliced with frost. "Didn't you tell me never to appear before you again? And now you pursue me to my doorstep, clutching at me-what's your aim? To cage me again? Let me remind you, I'm not the same woman I used to be."

She had secured a judo black belt and never let her training slip. She was no longer a target for domination.

Vincent's chest tightened with a stabbing ache beneath the weight of her glare and cutting words. He hurried to defend himself, though his protest rang fragile and hollow. "I thought it wasn't you back then, so my words were cruel. Forgive me."

"What do you mean, it wasn't me?" Hannah's brow furrowed, bewilderment flickering as she seized upon the critical clue.

"Let's talk inside..." His voice was low, edged with plea. Rain soaked her clothes, and his only thought was for her to change first.

"We'll settle this right here!" Hannah retorted, her stance unbending.

Vincent refrained from arguing on this. He pronounced each syllable with grave precision. "In Dorbarrow,a woman exists with your exact face."

"That's impossible!" Hannah gasped, eyes widening on Vincent with stunned disbelief.

"If it were the result of plastic surgery, then it's entirely possible." Vincent's reply was flat, unwavering. Hannah's pulse plunged. Someone had actually gone under the knife to become her spitting image? Her fingers dug into the umbrella shaft. "Why would she want to look exactly like me? What's she after?"

"Up to now, her purpose appears to be approaching me." Vincent's gaze narrowed, his tone crisp and calculating.

Another woman pretending to be her simply to draw near Vincent? Hannah's thoughts darted toward a single suspect. "Is it Brinley?"

She wondered if Brinley had already been out of prison.

"No." Vincent's interruption was sharp and decisive. "I verified-Brinley still remains in an international prison."

A heavier unease gripped Hannah. If Brinley was excluded, then who could this double be?

Vincent caught the turmoil clouding her stare, paused, and then revealed more. "And Claude... He's acquainted with that woman. Their tie is not ordinary. Be careful."

"Why would Claude be linked to that impostor? That's absurd!" Hannah reeled, struggling to take it in.

"Regardless, stay cautious with Claude!" Vincent warned firmly. These were fragments he had pieced together during the pursuit.

A dense stillness settled between them.

Vincent eventually edged closer, his words shaded with concern. "How have you managed this past year?"

Hannah snapped from her daze, shoving the umbrella against his chest to hold him back. "Don't move another step." Her lips curled with derision. "You're asking because you hope l've suffered, aren't you?"

Vincent parted his lips, only to find himself at a loss for words. "No..." His reply rasped, rough and broken.

Hannah averted her gaze. The avalanche of disclosures left her exhausted. She needed solitude to regain balance and absorb it all.

Pivoting away, she entered and bolted the door. Vincent lingered outside, his voice carrying stubborn gentleness. "When do you leave for work tomorrow?I'll drive you."

Hannah ignored the offer. Her cold dismissal slipped through the barrier. "Go now, or I'Il summon security."

Vincent hesitated briefly before departing. The impostor's real face was still unknown. For now, his only choice was to contain her and block any further disruption.