Claim Me Captain! I'm Addicted to You!-Chapter 406: Pandora’s Box

Georgia’s POV

I was smiling, laughing, and crying all at once as Ella kept smacking Liam’s arm like she was disciplining a toddler who’d stolen candy. It was honestly the most chaotic romantic comedy marriage proposal I’d ever witnessed.

Then I felt familiar arms slide around my waist, Nick’s chin settling on my shoulder like it belonged there.

"Congratulations, love," he murmured.

I frowned, not the annoyed kind, the ’wait...why me?’ kind. I wasn’t the one who just got engaged.

"What do you mean, congratulations? Shouldn’t you be telling that to Ella and Liam?"

"To you, too," Nick replied, like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "You and Ella are basically going to be sisters now—legally. Then, when they have kids, our kids and theirs will be blood-related, so technically, you’ll be family by blood. Kind of. In a...roundabout way."

I stared at him over my shoulder with the blankest face I could muster.

He pulled back slightly. "What? Why are you looking at me like that?"

I couldn’t hold it anymore, I burst into laughter. The way he overexplained the whole ’you and Ella are really family now’ thing was so cute it actually hurt.

"Oh, so you’re laughing at me now?" Nick muttered, but he hugged me tighter like he loved it.

"It was just adorable how you said it," I said between giggles. "But I get what you mean. I’m so happy too. I’m going to have two sisters. My family just keeps getting bigger... it feels like a dream coming true."

Nick kissed me softly before stepping back. Then he clapped his hands loudly to get everyone’s attention.

"Alright, everyone! How about we celebrate Ella and Liam’s engagement with a ten-year-old champagne?"

The crowd lit up instantly.

"That’s a great idea. I know exactly where it is," Benjamin announced and practically sprinted to the house like he’d been waiting his whole life for this excuse to drink.

I went to Ella, who was still ugly-crying into Liam’s chest. "Hey, miss cry-baby! Hug me!" I opened my arms, and she dove straight in.

"Congratulations. I’m so, so happy for you."

Liam wiped his fiancée’s face with his sleeve. "I need to talk to Darla and her team—to pay them and let them go. I’ll be right back."

He walked toward Darla with the urgency of a man paying ransom.

Evelyn and Vicky swooped in to hug Ella next. Wendy and Prudence soon joined them, forming a small circle around her, so I stepped aside before we all suffocate.

My gaze drifted to Nick.

He wasn’t smiling anymore.

He was standing with Oliver and Steven, their bodies slightly turned away from the group. Their expressions were tight—focused. Oliver held his phone in his hand, angled just enough that I noticed the screen lit up.

They were talking quietly. Almost discreetly.

I tried to read their lips, but I couldn’t catch a single word.

Whatever it was—it wasn’t good. Not even close.

The joy in my chest dimmed, replaced by a sharp, creeping unease. 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

Something was wrong. My gut feeling said so.

Vicky suddenly clapped her hands. "Ella! Come on, let’s fix your face before the photographer that Dad hired arrives. We should all look good in that picture so we can urge Nick and Georgia to hang it on the wall, a remembrance of their moving day."

She didn’t even wait for Ella to answer. She just grabbed her by the wrist and dragged her toward the house like an overexcited stylist.

The rest of the ladies followed—Evelyn, Wendy, Prudence, and even Nora. Their laughter trailed behind them like a ribbon of warmth.

I lingered outside.

Nick, Oliver, and Steven were still huddled together. Their posture alone made my stomach twist—the way they stood a bit too close... too still... like men bracing for a blow.

I walked toward them, wiping my hands on my dress for no reason except nerves buzzing through my fingers.

"Hey," I said softly, eyes darting from one grim face to another. "Is... something wrong?"

Nick looked at me first. His jaw tightened for half a second before he spoke.

"Irene has been found."

I gasped, a small breath of relief slipping past my lips. "That’s good. That’s—"

But my smile died the moment I saw Oliver’s expression. Steven’s, too.

No one was relieved. No one was celebrating.

"There’s more to it... Isn’t it?" I whispered.

Oliver inhaled sharply. "My team secured Irene in a safe house."

He paused, eyes dropping briefly to the ground. "But Frank... Frank is dead."

My hand flew to my mouth, muffling a shocked cry. The world tipped for a moment, my mind trying to catch up to the words my ears refused to believe.

Frank. Dead.

Nick stepped closer, his voice low and urgent. "Please keep this between us for now. Liam and Ella just got engaged. Let them enjoy this moment."

He looked at each of us, making sure the weight of his words settled properly.

"We tell everyone on Monday," he continued. "Let this weekend be happy, a weekend of celebration."

Steven nodded. Oliver did, too. And even though my heart felt like it had just dropped through the floor, I nodded along with them.

For Ella. For Liam. For all of us who so desperately needed one peaceful night.

But inside me... a storm was already brewing.

"I don’t have the complete report yet," Oliver continued, rubbing the back of his neck like the words themselves were heavy. "My team let Irene rest first. They’ll start questioning her tomorrow. But it looks like Raymond was involved in their first disappearance."

A cold ripple ran down my spine.

"I’m not sure yet if he ordered Frank’s death," he added. "But his sentence will definitely get prolonged. We’re preparing to submit additional evidence to the court as soon as possible."

Raymond. Again. His name alone made my stomach twist with an old, familiar hatred.

Nick exhaled, long and frustrated. "Hopefully Irene has all the answers. I just... pity her. She’s pregnant, and her husband is dead."

He shook his head. "How did they get themselves into this mess?"

I swallowed hard, my chest tightening around the sharp ache in Nick’s voice. He wasn’t just saying it out of sympathy—he meant it. He genuinely felt for her. For the baby. For the family broken before they could even breathe again.

"Irene must be terrified," I murmured. "Losing your husband while carrying his child? And not knowing who to trust? That’s..."

My voice thinned out, emotion clawing its way up my throat.

"That’s a nightmare."

Oliver nodded grimly. "That’s why we’re keeping everything quiet for now. We don’t want the media catching wind of this before we even understand what happened."

Steven crossed his arms. "Or before Raymond tries something again."

Nick placed a hand on my lower back, grounding me. "But for now..." he said softly, eyes searching mine, "we focus on Ella and Liam. Tonight is theirs."

"Yeah," I whispered. "Tonight is our family and friends."

But deep inside, a chill settled in my bones.

Because something told me that we could be opening Pandora’s box.

******

Thank you for the Golden Tickets!

Iyb

Tonn

KATHLEEN_COLL

Noni_Byz

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