Hired a Gigolo, Got a Billionaire

Chapter 483 Marcus' POV We drove to the Kensington estate in Highridge Valley as soon as the sun came up. Christian's private jet carried us swiftly from the chaos of Belmonte to the quiet green hills of Southridge, but no one was admiring the view. Every one of us was lost in our own dark thoughts about what we'd just uncovered. Now, seated in the mansion's expansive living room-Christian, Zoey, Madeline, Gwen, Matthew, Dante, and me, with Nate joining by video call from England-we were finally facing the full scale of the problem ahead of us.

"How did the Kensington name get dragged into all of this?" Matthew asked for the third time, his frustration obvious as he paced back and forth across the room. Gwen sat upright in an armchair, already in the efficient, executive mode that defined her in business. "We need to consider every possibility," she said. "Methanol can contaminate beverages in several ways. During the distillation process, if the first fraction isn't properly discarded-" "Kensington would never make that kind of mistake," Christian cut in firmly. "We have quality controls at every stage.

Samples are tested constantly. Our production team personally oversees every single batch. "Could it be the equipment?" Dante suggested, trying to be helpful. "Methanol used for cleaning that somehow contaminated the bottles?" "We don't use methanol in any cleaning process," I replied, shaking my head. "Precisely to avoid any risk of cross-contamination. We've followed strict protocols for generations." On the laptop screen, Nate frowned. "What about suppliers? Could someone be providing adulterated raw materials?" Christian picked up a thick folder from the coffee table.

"We've already checked that. All of our suppliers go through rigorous screening. The tests we ran on the suspicious batches show the wine itself doesn't contain methanol at dangerous levels. The methanol is being added later, somewhere along the distribution chain." "So someone is opening our bottles, adding methanol, and resealing them?" Zoey asked, disbelief written all over her face. "That would require a massive operation." That was when Madeline finally spoke, her voice calm but carrying a bitter kind of knowledge we all recognized.

is thinking. And yes-this is exactly the kind of thing Dominic would do." 1/3 The silence that followed confirmed she was right. Every one of us had thought it, but

hair, frustration written all over him. "But to pull off large-scale tampering inside Kensington, they'd need to involve a lot of people," he argued. "Someone

was when it clicked. "They may not be doing it inside Kensington," I said slowly, the realization taking shape as I spoke. Zoey murmured, her eyes widening with sudden understanding. "Montgomery." Christian slammed his hand down on the table hard enough

my mind like a gruesome puzzle. Montgomery was geographically close to our facilities. They used many of the same distributors and transport companies. With the right people bribed, it would be relatively easy to swap labels, replace bottles... "They produce wine at Montgomery," I explained, my voice gaining urgency as the theory solidified." Lower quality than

distribution chain through compromised transporters..." "And the Kensington name becomes synonymous with mass poisoning," Gwen finished, horror lacing her voice. On the laptop screen, Nate leaned forward. "But how do we prove it?" he asked. "How do we make sure the investigation doesn't focus only on Kensington, but widens enough to