Chapter 545 Ryan Gets Caught
Ryan's face turned beet red as he stared at the guy, feeling all kinds of guilty. "Rhodes, just because Dad's gone doesn't mean you can start spouting nonsense."
Yep, the guy who just showed up was none other than the long-lost Rhodes.
Back in the day, Rhodes had a major falling out with Dylan over his relationship with Elodie and bailed on the Getty Group's business. But it wasn't like Dylan kicked him out. Actually, Dylan saw Rhodes' potential and wanted him to help out Francis.
Rhodes, though, was a guy who wore his heart on his sleeve. He was head over heels for Elodie and even helped her escape from Southvale. Dylan thought Rhodes was planning to run off with her and tried to stop him. By the time Rhodes got there, it was too late.
That delay meant Rhodes and Elodie missed their chance, and when they finally met again, everything had changed. Rhodes had left, heartbroken, and started his own thing far away. Because of all this, Rhodes held a grudge against Dylan and kept his distance, never getting involved with the Getty family again.
Dylan had his reasons. Elodie's background was messy; her parents were gone, and she was drop-dead gorgeous. Rhodes was just eighteen back then and couldn't protect her. By the time he could stand on his own, their story was over, and they missed their shot.
Over the years, Dylan never brought up Rhodes, but deep down, he regretted it. He thought that if he hadn't tried to stop him and had supported him instead, things might've turned out differently.
But Dylan never guessed that Elodie was actually Harper's real mom. The woman Francis liked and the woman Rhodes liked were mother and daughter. That explained why Rhodes was so good to Harper. Through her, he saw Elodie, the woman who once stole his heart.
Rhodes looked at Ryan's greedy face and couldn't help but sneer, "You think hanging around the Getty family makes you one of them?"
Before Ryan could clap back, Rhodes called out his old name. "Nolan Musk."
The crowd went wild. They weren't sure whether to believe Francis or Ryan before, but now it was clear. Both Getty family members called Ryan "Nolan," so it had to be true.
If that was the case, then what Ryan did was seriously messed up. Not only did he forget Dylan's kindness in raising him, but he also tried to push out Dylan's only grandson, Francis, to hog the fortune. That was just plain heartless!
Keith was totally lost at this point, having no clue about any of this. Last time, to calm Keith down, Ryan had only told him that Francis wasn't his real son and to wait for the right moment.
Keith was over the moon back then. The idea that Francis wasn't a real son but an adopted kid made him super happy. Didn't that mean Francis was never better than him, maybe even worse? But now, all of Keith's joy vanished, like he'd been hit with a bucket of ice-cold water.
He knew Rhodes wouldn't make such claims without solid proof. He never thought his real background would turn out to be even more shameful. And now, he was also being accused of plotting with his ungrateful father.
Keith turned to Ryan, demanding, "Is it true?"
Ryan looked away, too guilty to meet Keith's eyes. Keith wasn't having it, pressing, "Tell me, is what they said true or not!"
Ryan's face felt like it was on fire, as if he'd been slapped. He couldn't answer and instead pointed at Rhodes, snapping, "Stop slandering me. I am a member of the Getty family!"
Ryan tried to shift the blame to Rhodes, angrily saying, "I think you just want the Getty family fortune, so you're attacking me. Don't think we can't see through your little schemes."
Ryan was smart and pretty good at arguing.
In wealthy families, there were always some open and hidden battles. Especially when it came to inheritance, these seemingly polite people would all tear off their masks and do whatever it took to get what they wanted.
Ryan, banking on the fact that Rhodes had no evidence, refused to admit anything. Plus, he had burned all the documents about his background. As long as he was careful and didn't undergo any tests, no one could prove he wasn't a member of the Getty family.
Thinking of this, Ryan tightly grasped Keith's hand, trembling, "Keith, believe me, I can make you the heir of the Getty family. You are a member of the Getty family, my son!"
Keith clenched his fists tightly! Why, why was he deceived again? Once more, he was dragged back into the mess.
He turned and stormed out of the venue, completely ignoring Ryan's desperate calls. He had completely given up on this useless man.
It seemed he could only rely on himself, but now was clearly not the time.
No matter how many times Ryan called, Keith ignored him. Ryan turned his anger towards Francis on the stage. "You bastard, it's all your fault my son won't speak to me. Now you want to strip me of my identity!"
Seeing Ryan lose it and rush forward, Rhodes quickly reached out to stop him. But before Ryan could get close, he tripped on the steps and fell to his knees in front of Francis and Rhodes, looking utterly pathetic.
Rhodes looked at the ridiculous Ryan with disgust in his eyes. Greed had made him lose everything.
Rhodes remembered when he was young, the adult Ryan had a simple look in his eyes and acted like a big brother. Moreover, after Hayden's car accident, Ryan had voluntarily undergone a vasectomy, kneeling before Dylan and promising to treat Francis as his own child.
Dylan wasn't foolish; he investigated Ryan's vasectomy. It turned out to be true, and it was irreversible. To gain Dylan's complete trust, Ryan had also deprived Abigail of the right to have her own child, showing just how ruthless he was.
At that time, everyone was fooled by Ryan's simple facade, and Dylan ultimately decided to entrust Hayden's only son, Francis, to Ryan's care.
However, Ryan had secretly preserved his sperm before the vasectomy, which led to Keith's birth. He kept this under wraps and never let Keith come into the spotlight. This secrecy directly contributed to Keith's extreme personality.
Later, when Keith ended up in a vegetative state due to the car accident, Ryan sent him abroad for the best treatment.
Ryan harbored deep hatred for Francis. If it weren't for Francis, Keith wouldn't have been on the brink of death! But Ryan never considered that without Francis, he wouldn't have gained Dylan's complete trust and achieved his current success. Ultimately, Ryan was consumed by greed, which made him appear utterly despicable.
Rhodes' expression was sharp as he asked Ryan, "Do you think I can't prove your identity?"
He clapped his hands, and an assistant brought up a box.
Ryan was stunned!
"This, this..." Ryan couldn't even speak. How could this be happening?
The box that Rhodes had brought up was identical to the one Dylan had hidden in the safe! But hadn't Ryan already destroyed that box? How could it be here?
"Does it look familiar?" Rhodes explained Ryan's confusion, "That's because the one in the safe was a fake. This one is real!"
As soon as he said this, Ryan instantly understood.
Before his death, Dylan had set a trap, swapping out the evidence about Ryan's background in the safe. He gave the real one to Rhodes and put a fake one in the safe.
Ryan never expected things to turn out this way. He suddenly burst into laughter, "Dylan, when you were alive, I treated you with respect and caution, but you still didn't trust me and pulled this trick on me."
Ryan looked up at the sky, roaring, "You never trusted me, did you!"
Rhodes sneered, "Do you know what Dad said when he gave this to me?"
Ryan stared intently at Rhodes, wanting to know what Dylan had said.
"Only take it out as a last resort," Rhodes said. "Dad gave you plenty of chances. It was you who blinded yourself, stubbornly refusing to admit your mistakes, and you still have the nerve to blame others."
After hearing this, Ryan lowered his head but still couldn't understand Dylan's intentions. He then looked up and said, "He still didn't trust me. I served him for half my life and ended up with nothing. I would rather he had never adopted me!"
"Truly incorrigible!" Francis sneered coldly. Ryan still showed no remorse, proving he was thoroughly rotten.
Francis had only learned about this matter recently from Rhodes. But he wasn't surprised at all. Looking back over the years, Ryan's behavior made it clear that he never truly saw Francis as his son. All those false displays of concern were just for Dylan to see.
As Dylan's health deteriorated, Francis didn't want to worry him and never brought it up. At that time, Francis didn't know Ryan wasn't his biological father, and Abigail's genuine care for him made him feel like a real son, so he never doubted it. Now, years of suspicion were finally confirmed.
Francis felt an indescribable sense of relief. Knowing the true nature of their relationship, he no longer had to bear the burden of being his son and could properly punish the wicked Ryan.
Ryan, still unrepentant, got up from the ground and said, "As long as I'm your father for a day, I'll be your father for life. If it weren't for me, you'd be an unwanted orphan."
Before he could finish speaking, there was a thud. Ryan let out a strange cry of pain as Francis nearly shattered his knee with a kick!
"You..." Before he could finish, Francis shoved a photo in his face. It was a picture of Ryan by the river, throwing a sack into the water.
Ryan shuddered and asked, "Where did you get this?"
Francis replied coldly, "Ryan, I've gathered all the evidence of your involvement in hiring someone to kill Joseph and handed it over to the police."
The police were already present at the scene. They stepped forward, showed their badges, and then handcuffed Ryan, preparing to take him away. Realizing what was happening, Ryan lost control and struggled, shouting, "You bastard, you set me up!"
Francis stepped forward and delivered the final blow. "The evidence is solid. Spend the rest of your life in prison as atonement for Joseph."
Ryan struggled desperately, "No, this can't be happening. No one can bring me down. Who do you think you are?"
Francis sneered and suddenly lowered his voice, "After you die, remember to atone to my grandpa. Oh, and to my unborn child."
"Child..." Ryan's eyes widened, "What do you know?"
Francis's voice was icy, "The incident where Amelia kidnapped Harper, causing my child to be lost—you and Audrey were both involved, weren't you?"
Ryan stumbled, feeling a chill run down his spine. How did Francis know about such a secret, long-buried event?
Francis said nonchalantly, "I found the assistant who helped you back then."
Seeing Ryan's puzzled expression, Francis explained, "Yes, the assistant who supposedly died in a car accident. He didn't die; he faked his death to escape, fearing you'd come after him."
Ryan's face turned pale!
Back then, Ryan had noticed Audrey's unusual behavior and secretly contacted her. She proposed this win-win scheme. They would use Chloe and Amelia to get rid of Harper, disrupting Francis's life.
Although their motives differed, their goals aligned. Audrey wanted Francis to fall for her after his downfall, while Ryan wanted to seize power in the meantime. So Ryan followed Audrey's advice, having his assistant assist Chloe and Amelia from behind the scenes, and it worked well.
After Harper's child was lost and Amelia was charged with murder, Ryan felt the job was done. At that time, he did intend to get rid of the assistant, but the assistant soon died in a car accident! Ryan had thought even God was helping him, but it turned out the assistant had staged his own death to escape!
Given that the assistant had the foresight to fake his death, such a clever person must have held evidence that could destroy Ryan.
Ryan gritted his teeth in hatred; it was all over.
The police didn't allow them to continue their conversation and were about to take Ryan away. Ryan suddenly seemed to think of something and exclaimed, "If you knew Audrey was involved, why did you marry her? What was your intention?"
Francis coldly smiled, "What do you think?"
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