Anita’s eyes widened at her father’s revelation. “So, they basically deceived you into forging famous artworks for them?” she repeated in a hushed whisper.Vincent nodded, a look of defeat crossing his face. “They did, but that’s not all.” he continued. “One of the buyers of the recently forged paintings happened to be a famous art collector in Wibston named Jonathan Reid. When Jonathan bought the painting, he took it to Nigel Hunter, the renowned herbalist and expert antique/art appraiser to verify its authenticity—something he always did in order to avoid being scammed. Nigel detected the irregularities with the paintings and told Jonathan that it was a fake. Jonathan then confronted the Oasis’s owner who claimed to have nothing to do with it and accused me of the crimes. It seems he had planned to frame me all along, and even forged my signature on the documents which approved the sale of the fake paintings. That’s why I got arrested. We have to find evidence that I was framed befo

Liam had a mocking smile on his face as he approached Adrian. “This event is not for losers like you, so I suggest you save yourself from further embarrassment and leave.” “Liam,” Adrian muttered dryly. “Don’t interfere in this. It’s none of your business.” Liam snickered as a distasteful expression settled on his face. “A loser like you cannot tell me what to do, so I’ll interfere if I want to.” He leaned in closer to Adrian and gritted in a menacing sneer. “Don’t think I’ve forgotten the humiliation you caused my family at Lloyd Davies' birthday party. If I didn’t have something else to handle tonight, then I’d have made you pay for what you did.” After saying this, he drifted his gaze to Bright Peters, who greeted him enthusiastically. “Mr. Muller, it’s a pleasure you’re here. My name is Bright Peters, the curator of this antique gallery. Don’t let this loser” he glared dismissively at Adrian. “…ruin your mood. Please hand me your invitation so we can verify it.” Liam let ou

Nathan's face twisted in rage as he spun around to glare at Adrian. "What do you think you're doing, you piece of shit?!" he hissed, his voice low and venomous. "How dare you try to outbid me?! That jade pipe is mine, so stay out of it!" Adrian blatantly ignored Nathan’s outburst and kept his gaze on the host, who had a high pitch to his voice as he announced. “1 million dollars going once…going twice…” Nathan ground his teeth as he raised his placard and declared before the host could finish counting. “1.1million dollars!” “1.2 million dollars!” Adrian countered almost instantly in a confident voice and Nathan became more agitated. How was it possible that Adrian was bidding on the jade pipe, when he obviously couldn’t afford it…or could he? He shook the thought from his mind and raised his placard again, determined to get the jade pipe at all cost. “1.5 million!” The host’s gaze flickered between Nathan and Adrian, and he could sense the tension rising between the two men. H

Liam’s jaw nearly dropped to the floor at Adrian’s revelation. How had he discovered that he was Mr. M? His eyes flickered towards Thomas Hardy, who mirrored his expression as the guests’ attention became fixated on them. Thomas gave him a signal to do something, and Liam regained his composure, his lips pursing into a thin line as he glared daggers at Adrian. “That’s a lie!” he defended, pointing a finger at Adrian, then at Jonathan Reid. “The both of them, who happen to be close acquaintances with Nigel Hunter, are just making up stories against me and Thomas Hardy, someone I just only met at this event.” A devious grin appeared on his lips as a plan to turn the tables against them formed in his head. “As a matter of fact,” he continued, while still glaring at Adrian. “I’m very sure they are in cahoots with Nigel Hunter, who is the actual fraud here! The artist who had forged this painting in question happens to be the father-in-law of that man over there,” he pointed specifical

The morning after the auction, Adrian had just finished with his morning routine, when he remembered that he hadn’t told Anita the good news about the outcome of the previous night, so he decided to call her. “Hey, Adrian,” Anita’s gentle voice rang out through the receiver. “I was just about to call you. Were you able to succeed at the auction last night?” “Hey Anita,” Adrian replied and was about to tell her the truth, when he had a mischievous idea to pull her legs a little. He instantly feigned a somber tone as he began explaining. “I’m sorry, Anita, I wasn’t able to. Nathan derailed my plans and I couldn’t get the jade pipe. I also wasn’t able to get the evidence regarding your father. I know your hopes must be dashed right now.” Anita sighed audibly from the other end of the line and was about to speak, but someone else interjected in a nagging voice—it was Regina. It turns out that Anita had put the phone on speaker while getting dressed for work and Regina had been by h