No Strings Attached novel (Clara and Ian)
Chapter 375

"We must have had some kind of encounter, but I have no idea in what capacity she interacted with me or why I have absolutely no recollection of her."

Clara mused, "That's not so surprising. Katherine had been through a fire, and her face had gotten burnt. Back in the village, she was always veiled. Nobody even knew what she looked like, not even me. She lost all her memories and didn't even know her own name. She made the most delicious blueberry wine, so everyone in the village called her 'The Winemaker,' and they affectionately referred to Brodie as 'Little Nine.""

At the mention of that name, lan's heart clenched. Brodie used to be called 'Little Nine.' So the guy Clara was calling out to in her dreams was him.

What kind of deep bond did she and Brodie share that she would call out his name in her sleep?

The thought made lan grit his teeth. He wished he could delve into Clara's mind and erase every single memory of Brodie, making sure he was the only man in her heart.

If May hadn't been involved in that incident, lan would have been the one growing up with Clara. He would have always been the one by her side, the one she called 'brother' as she trailed behind him. Brodie would have had no part in it.

lan grew more resentful of the person who had framed May. If not for them, he could have been the one protecting Clara since they were kids.

Seeing lan's troubled expression, Clara quickly asked, "What's wrong? Is there a problem?"

lan forced a half-smile and lied, "No, it's just that their plight seems quite pitiful."

"Yeah, Katherine was mentally unstable, unpredictable. When she lost control, no one could stop her. Brodie often ended up scratched and bruised because of her. Eventually, when some bad folks found them, they had to flee the village secretly and vanished without a trace."

"Who were the people chasing them?"

"I don't know, probably the same ones who wanted to burn Katherine alive."

At this, lan felt a sudden tightness in his chest. Katherine was pregnant when she was injured. The person wanting to kill her must have been after the baby.

She often cried out for Ford in her dreams. Could her burns be from the same fire Ford died in?

Thinking about this, lan found it hard to breathe.

Ford, the fire, the child.

Could it be that Katherine's unborn child was somehow tied to the Hayes family? More specifically, to her father, Teo.

Was Leonora the person who set the fire and wanted to kill them?

If this theory held, it would explain why Brodie looked at him with hostility the first time they met. He must have been suspecting Leonora all along but lacked the evidence.

lan tried to stay calm, considering that there might be other possibilities between him and Brodie. Ian trusted his father's word - if Teo said he hadn't been with another woman, then that was the truth. Before lan knew it, their car rolled into the Bell family's estate. Clara had already fallen asleep against the back of the seat. Ian bent down to carry her into the room and was about to leave when his phone buzzed in his pocket. He saw it was the landline from his family estate and quickly stepped outside with his phone.

After closing the door behind him, he answered the call. As soon as the connection was established, Teo's urgent voice came through, "lan, you need to come back right away. Leonora set herself on fire at Crimson Manor."

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