Chapter 2301

Silence filled the car, thick enough that even the driver felt uneasy.

Then Nathaniel’s phone rang.

He glanced at the screen, his expression tightening.

“What is it?” he asked quietly, lowering his voice so Cecilia wouldn’t hear.

“Sir, Nicholas wants to speak to you.”

Nathaniel flicked his eyes toward Cecilia.

She had her eyes closed, looking like she’d fallen asleep.

“Put him through.”

“Yes, sir.”

A moment later, the voice on the line changed.

Nicholas came on, his tone weak, followed by a harsh coughing fit. “Cough… cough… Nathaniel… how long are you planning to keep me here?”

Nathaniel let out a faint, humorless laugh.

“You’ve only lasted a year, and you’re already breaking?”

Nicholas said nothing.

Nathaniel continued, his voice flat.

“Since the day I sent you there, I never planned on letting you come back.”

The words hit like a verdict.

Nicholas’s eyes reddened instantly.

“Are you serious? Cough—cough—” He struggled to steady his breathing before forcing the words out. “I’m telling you, I can’t hold on much longer.”

“Then die out there.”

There wasn’t a trace of mercy in Nathaniel’s voice.

He ended the call.

On the other end, Nicholas doubled over, coughing violently.

The guard nearby watched him coldly. “Our boss is a reasonable man. What exactly did you do to offend him this badly?”

Nicholas didn’t answer. He turned and walked back toward his room, step by step.

The past year had been nothing but torture.

Every day, locked inside a cramped space, barely seeing sunlight.

He hadn’t expected Nathaniel to be this ruthless.

Now the regret came—but too late.

He regretted not being content with the life he already had.

Closing his eyes, a face surfaced in his mind.

Jocelyn.

He had no idea how she was doing now. It had been over a year.

Maybe she’d already forgotten him.

Nicholas opened his eyes and looked at the guard.

“Can you check on someone for me? Back in Clusia.”

The guard frowned. “Who?”

“There’s a woman in Tudela named Jocelyn. Her husband is Yannick.”

The guard’s expression shifted slightly.

“I don’t have time for that.”

Without hesitation, Nicholas took off the watch on his wrist and held it out.

“When I bought this, it cost several million. Even now, it’s worth at least one million.”

The guard’s expression changed immediately.

Earlier, when Nicholas had asked him to make the call, he’d offered a brooch just as valuable.

Now even the watch…

The guard couldn’t wrap his head around how the rich lived.

One watch could buy someone else an entire house.

He took it, turning it over in his hands, inspecting it from every angle.

It looked refined, sure—but he couldn’t see what made it worth that kind of money.

“…Fine. I’ll check.”

For someone like him, looking into one person wasn’t difficult.

But Nicholas’s situation was different. Getting information took time—and money.

Before long, the guard returned with a thick stack of documents.

“Here. It’s all in there.”

Nicholas opened it immediately.

The moment he saw the first page, his breath caught.

A photograph.

Jocelyn and Yannick stood side by side.

And between them—a child.

The report stated that their baby had been born last month, just one month old.

Nicholas stared at the image, unmoving for a long time.

“You like her?” the guard asked casually.

Nicholas finally snapped out of it and looked up.

“What kind of question is that?” His voice was flat. “She was just my subordinate.”