Chapter 161 - Set Up
Hunter gripped the steering wheel tightly as he drove down the quiet road, his thoughts swirling in frustration.
His visit to Ivy's place had left him feeling drained and he had parked by the roadside to calm his head.
He had wanted to talk things through with her, but she had barely let him speak. The distance between them felt wider than ever, and he hated it.
Even though he had stopped by the roadside to think and calm his mind, he hadn't felt the least bit calm. Instead, he was feeling more confused and angrier than he was when he first got there.
As he exhaled sharply, his phone vibrated on the passenger seat. At a red light, he picked it up and saw a missed call from his father's number.
His brows knitted together. Dad?
That was odd. His father hadn't called him in weeks, ever since he left there that day. Even before then, they barely spoke and when they did, it always ended in arguments so why had he called him?
Just as he was still processing the missed call, another notification popped up.
His brows pulled together in a more confused frown when he saw that it was 1 New Message from Dad. What was going on? What did he want? Was there some kind of emergency?
Hunter hesitated for a moment, briefly considering ignoring the text or not, before finally deciding to open it.
[Hunter, I need to see you immediately. It's urgent. Come to the house. I can help you get Ivy back if you want to fix things with her.]
He read the message twice, his jaw clenching and his brows knitting together. Help me get Ivy back? What the hell does that even mean? What did his father know that he didn't?
His father had never cared about his relationship with Ivy since all he had been about was him spying on her. What was going on and why was he offering to help now?
A wave of suspicion washed over him.
Why would Dad suddenly want to help me with Ivy? Was it probably his way of trying to get him to relax so he could use him to get the information on what he got during his time working with Ivy?
What was he planning?
Hunter tapped his fingers against the wheel, debating whether to ignore it. A part of him wanted to drive past his father's house, go home, and forget he even saw the message.
But another part of him—one fueled by years of unresolved anger—wanted to go there just to tell his father to stay out of his life and that he didn't need him.
With a frustrated sigh, he made a sharp turn toward his father's house. No matter what, he was still his father. At least, he should hear him out first before concluding.
It wouldn't be too late to ask his father to stay away from him if he noticed the slightest manipulation there. He thought as he drove to his father's mansion.
When Hunter pulled up in front of the house, something felt... off.
The lights inside were on, but the front door was slightly open.
His stomach tightened with unease. His father never left his door open, not even when expecting someone. Besides, even though his father didn't know, the house helps wouldn't have left the door ajar.
Hunter stepped out of his car cautiously, pushing the door fully open as he stepped inside. "Dad?" He called as soon as he got into the house but there was silence, not even a sign of the house help or the butler.
His footsteps echoed in the eerily quiet house. The tension in his chest grew heavier with every step.
His heart skipped a beat and he froze the moment he got to the living room and his eyes Landed on the figure on the floor. It was his father.
His father lay sprawled on the floor, motionless. Blood pooled beneath his head, staining the marble floor.
For a moment, Hunter's breath caught in his throat as he looked, unable to tell if what was happening was a dream or reality.
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He took a step further and that was when he realized it was all reality. What was going on? Why was his father laying still on the ground?
Had he mistakenly slipped and fell? He mused. That had to be it because what other explanation could describe the situation in front of him?
When did he fall? Was he even alive? Where were the maids? He thought and then shook his head.
This wasn't the time to be asking himself those questions. Even though he and his father never saw eye to eye, he was still his father and he wasn't about to leave him this way.
"Dad!" He asked as he rushed forward, dropping to his knees. His hands shook as he reached for his father's face, gently patting his cheek.
"Dad, wake up!" His voice cracked as panic set in. He pressed two fingers against his father's neck, desperately searching for a pulse.
He felt the ground beneath him sway when he felt nothing. This couldn't be happening.
"No, no, no, no, no..." Hunter's breathing grew ragged. His vision blurred with unshed tears. "Somebody help! Call an ambulance!" His voice echoed through the empty house.
He didn't care how he looked right now—desperate, broken. He just wanted his father to wake up.
Deciding not to believe what he already knew, he decided to rush his father to the hospital himself. Save him first before asking the maids what must've happened.
Then, suddenly, the door and the police rushed in.
"Put your hands where we can see them!" They yelled immediately they saw Hunter carrying Mr. Stone's lifeless body.
Hunter barely had time to register the voice before the sound of multiple footsteps filled the room.
He frowned, taking his eyes off his father's lifeless body to look up. His frown grew when he found four uniformed police officers standing at the entrance, guns drawn.
His heart slammed against his ribs. "What?" he asked, confusion kicking in.
What was the police doing there and why were they speaking to him like he had committed a crime?
"Hunter Stone, stand still and slowly drop the body!"
Hunter's mind raced. His eyes darted between the police officers and his father's lifeless form. "Wait—no, this isn't what it looks like!" he said while he tried hard to think what was happening.
The officers moved forward cautiously, their hands steady on their weapons.
"Stand still, and drop the body now!" One of the police officers yelled again.
Hunter swallowed hard and slowly raised his hands, his entire body shaking as he got to his feet. "What? I have to take him to the hospital. Whatever you're thinking, I didn't do it! I just got here! He was already—"
"Turn around and put your hands behind your head!" Another police officer yelled.
His pulse pounded in his ears. "You don't understand! Someone killed him— I got a message from him telling me to come here! It—"
One of the officers took the body from him, grabbed his arm and twisted it behind his back, forcing him against the nearest wall. Cold steel snapped around his wrists and he didn't need anyone to tell him it was handcuffs.
"No, no, no! You've got this wrong!" Hunter struggled, but another officer grabbed his shoulder, keeping him in place. "I didn't kill my father!"
The officer holding him leaned in close. "Tell it to your lawyer."
A sharp chill ran down Hunter's spine.
"Hunter Stone, you are under arrest for the murder of your father, Richard Stone. We received an anonymous call that you were having an argument with your father and threatened to kill him. Unfortunately, you've already made good on your threats before we could arrive—"
Hunter's breath hitched. The words felt like a slap to the face. Murder? "What? No! I never made any threats. Infact, I've only just arrived here. I didn't kill him!"
"Like I said earlier, tell that to your lawyer!" One of the men snapped.
"You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law..."
The officer continued reading his rights, but Hunter barely heard them. His mind was spiraling, wondering how it had happened so fast.
Murder? They think I killed my father? This had to be a nightmare. Any moment now, he would wake up.
He thought but then seeing how they were dragging him out, he realized it wasn't a nightmare and that everything was real.
Hunter's jaw clenched as a sickening realization dawned on him. He had thought that text had been suspicious, never had he imagined to have fallen into such trap.
This was a setup and whoever had set him up had done a good job.
Someone had wanted him here at this exact moment. Someone had called the police before he even arrived.
And now... now they thought he was the murderer.
As the officers led him outside, Hunter's eyes burned with unshed tears.
There was only one question echoing in his mind.
"Who did this?"
And more importantly, "Who hated him enough to frame him for his own father's murder after killing his father? Was this person his enemy or his father's enemy?"
What was Ivy going to think of him now? If only he had known, he probably wouldn't have come here. He thought but just as the thought crossed his mind, a deep sense of emptiness settled within him.
His father was dead and he hadn't been able to reconcile with him.