He Pretended to Forget Me, So I Erased Him for Real Chapter 05

He Pretended to Forget Me, So I Erased Him for Real Chapter 05

Gideon merely knitted his brows, his voice laced with deep-seated skepticism.

“How could a grown woman just vanish? Especially when her mother is still-”

He broke off mid-sentence, a jagged memory resurfacing. Last night… Elara’s mother was supposedly

threatening a highly publicized leap from the rooftop.

“Miss Vane’s mother jumped last night, sir. The surgeons worked on her through the night. She’s stable, but

she’s slipped into a permanent coma…”

Gideon’s heart seemed to skip a beat, and his hand jerked, sending his crystal water glass crashing onto the mahogany desk. He never actually thought she would jump. He had convinced himself it was just a melodramatic stunt used by the terminally ill to extort attention. He believed that the second people like her

stood on that ledge, their survival instinct would kick in.

He truly hadn’t expected her to follow through with the suicide.

“Where is Elara?” Gideon’s voice was a strained rasp.

Was she okay? Was she unraveled? Were her eyes swollen from crying again?

“When the nurses did their rounds this morning, both Miss Vane and her mother were gone. We’ve scoured every private clinic in the radius. Her apartment and her usual hangouts are empty. There isn’t a single trace

of them…”

The spilled water began to soak into Gideon’s bespoke shirt sleeve. He felt a sudden, involuntary chill.

“Keep looking. Check every palliative care facility. A patient in that condition requires constant monitoring.

She can’t have gone far.”

As he hung up, his hands wouldn’t stop shaking. His phone slipped from his numb fingers and thudded into

the plush carpet.

Vivienne stepped toward him, clasping his icy hand. She had intercepted every word.

“Uncle Gideon, maybe Elara has finally decided to walk away… I heard she didn’t even accept your proposal

last night anyway.”

“If she wants to disappear, let her. I don’t want you to keep faking an interest in her just for my sake…”

Vivienne had been waiting to end this charade for a long time. She was sick of Elara occupying the title of

Gideon’s girlfriend, and she was done watching their performative displays of affection.

More importantly, she noticed something Gideon hadn’t: the way his gaze grew increasingly intense

whenever it landed on Elara. As a bystander, she saw the truth with lethal clarity.

She couldn’t let Gideon realize it. That night in the VIP lounge, she had only kept the game going to prevent

Gideon’s fleeting pity from ruining the fun.

She held the controller. She would be the one to hit Game Over.

Gideon fell silent after hearing Vivienne’s words. It made sense. To him, Elara Vane had been nothing but a vessel for retribution-a plaything in a high-stakes game. If the toy had decided to abscond, it was merely a minor irritation.

There was no need to waste more capital tracking her down.

Or so he told himself. Yet, a persistent, indescribable weight remained lodged in his chest.

He recalled his security detail and resumed his routine. He took Vivienne to the equestrian club and accompanied her on shopping sprees at Bergdorf’s. Occasionally, he stayed the night in her suite when she played the victim.

Vivienne was the daughter of his late mentor. When she was eight, her parents were killed in a wreck while

on their way to meet him. When he found her, she was hysterical. They had left while she was asleep, and

from that day on, she was terrified of being alone in the dark.

Gideon had been her anchor until she reached adulthood. He found it impossible to deny her manipulative

pleas for company.

A month later, on a quiet night, Vivienne tried to push the boundaries again. As their eyes met, she leaned in,

her intent to kiss him obvious.

Gideon jerked away, aversion written across his face. He wasn’t blind to her feelings, but he had chosen to

play the fool and enjoy her idolatry. Now, however, he was suddenly exhausted by it.

He looked at Vivienne, his voice cold. “I’ve only ever seen you as my child.”

Ignoring the tears welling in her eyes, he turned and walked away without a shred of remorse.

When he finally came to his senses, he was standing at the door of the archive wing.

This was where all of Elara’s belongings were kept. Every time he staged a “memory reset,” he had the

housekeeping staff pack away anything that belonged to her.

For some reason, the moment his hand touched the brass handle, his heart grew leaden. It felt as though it required an extraordinary effort just to turn the knob.

He pushed the door open.