"Drive," Jared ordered."Of course," Max replied and sent the engine running, whereupon they made their way to the Riddle family manor.Upon arrival, Nicole and Jared entered the manor. Their eyes narrowed a little when they saw the people present in the living room."Grandpa." Nicole greeted calmly as she walked over to the living area where the couches were.There, Mr. Riddle Sr. shot Nicole and Jared a glance and said, "Please, have a seat."Once they were seated, Nicole centered her gaze at Dillion and Karen, who were disheveled and unrecognizable. In fact, Nicole could barely recognize them, and it was evident that they had been in the trenches as of late."Dad, now that things have been cleared up, and it wasn't me who did it, can you at least take care of us?" Dillion looked at Nicole then back at his father.He was feeling a little ashamed, but he had to speak up anyhow.He had truly suffered enough being homeless, and if things continued this way, he might actually die
In short, the Riddle family would provide them with food and shelter, but nothing more.Hearing that, Dillion and Karen expressed their gratitude at once, promising, "Thank you, Dad. We will stay at home and take care of you.""Say what you mean and mean what you say. If you can't do that, don't ever come back," Mr. Riddle Sr. warned sternly."Dad, rest assured, we won't break our promise," Dillion firmly assured.They were genuinely afraid and did not want to return to a life of homelessness and scavenging for food.Mr. Riddle Sr. then turned to the butler and said, "Have someone take them downstairs to freshen up and prepare a room for them.""Yes," the butler replied."Thank you, Dad." Dillion and Karen said, after which they followed the butler downstairs."Nicole, don't you have anything to say?" Mr. Riddle Sr. hesitated for a moment before asking.With a gentle smile, Nicole replied, "They have suffered enough, and the past is the past. Besides, they didn't commit the cr
Jared gently placed his hand on Nicole's shoulder before he drew her in for a light embrace. "The butler will keep an eye on them."Although Mr. Riddle Sr. had taken them in and Nicole had warned them, an observation period was still necessary.Nicole then looked up at Jared and nodded with a slight smile. "Yeah."She was not overly concerned, as she believed her grandfather would not throw his rationality to the wind over this matter. She would also keep an eye on them to see if they were truly trustworthy or not.After a while, the two returned to the Riddle residence, where the family had just eaten their dinner.Surprised to see them back so soon, they asked, "Weren't you at the family manor?"'Why are they back at this hour? Did they not have dinner there?'"We stayed for a while and then came back," Nicole replied, noticing that the housekeepers were already clearing the table. "Please prepare dinner for both of us.""Please wait a moment, Miss," the housekeeper replied a
Relieved, Samuel remarked, "That's good.""It's getting late. Let's all head upstairs and get some sleep," Daniel advised everyone.Gloria then looked at Nicole and said, "Nolan and Lana have already gone to their rooms. Why don't you go check on them?""Alright," Nicole agreed, after which she and Jared headed upstairs.In Nolan's room, the two kids were in the middle of a discussion, but the instant they saw Nicole and Jared entering, they immediately fell silent and rushed toward them, exclaiming, "Mommy, Daddy, you're back!"Holding Lana, Jared's gaze softened as he asked, "What were you two up to just now?"Lana could not come up with a lie as she met her father's eyes, so she pouted and said, "Daddy, it's a secret. Can you not ask?"She could not tell Jared, but she did not want to lie to him either. Therefore, the best option, at least for her, was to request her father to not ask her about it.Jared could not help but smile when he saw her being caught in such a dilemma
Nicole raised an eyebrow at Jared as she attempted to understand what he had meant.A warm, fuzzy feeling arose within her as she said, "I'll have a glance at it first. I'll contact them if I need to."Jared stayed with Nicole as she browsed the Hunters. And a while later, Nicole logged off the computer and the couple went to bed thereafter.The next day, the sun shone high and hot as Nicole arrived at the headquarters of Riddle Corporation. She was about to give Preston a call before she realized that he had already arrived before she did."Thanks!' Preston said as he came over and stood before Nicole.Nicole turned to look at Preston. "You ought to thank Grandpa yourself. He was the one who made the decision.""I still have to thank you for that," Preston insisted.Preston knew that had it not been for Nicole, her grandfather would not have rendered aid to his parents, nor would he have asked her to pay him a visit last night."So, from now onwards, whatever happens next will
Then, Preston speculated. "How about this? There could've been a possibility that whoever had saved you back then had stolen it?"'If it wasn't on her, is it possible that someone could've intercepted it along the way? As she woke up with amnesia and did not remember anyone, that perpetrator might've taken it and hid it elsewhere.' Preston thought to himself.However, Nicole felt that it was unlikely that someone could have stolen it from her, as she was the only person who knew how to activate the Fire Crest."Perhaps they took it and sold it off without knowing the value of it," Preston muttered.In a flip, the look on Preston's face changed, and he exclaimed, "What if they took it and sold it off!"Nicole chuckled. "I don't think they would do something like that. The people there? They all live very honest lives."Nicole was certain that the bunch of people who had saved her would not commit such petty crimes. After all, the device housing the Fire Crest itself was rather ins
"I think I need to locate my watch," Nicole said as she immediately posted a message onto the system."Yes, ma'am," the system replied as it began processing its command.Nicole turned the system off shortly after while issuing a heavy sigh.Right now, she was overwhelmed with mixed emotions.'I could never have thought that Lawrence would lie to me. Why did he do so? Moreover, the Fire Crest would've recognized me as its sole owner anyway. It won't change until I die, but if I had helped him crack it earlier on the way before I regained my memories, I can't imagine what kind of things he would've done to me,' Nicole pondered.She had a hard time telling what was true from what was false among the people on Crescent Island too. 'Was everything one big, practical joke from the start? Was everyone in on it too? Those people I had been friends with, were waiting for me to help them crack the code too?'Preston looked at Nicole with worry written all over his face, "So, ever since yo
Jared and Nicole got into the car, and right away, he noticed that something was off.That was when he quickly brought her into a comforting hug. "Consider this a good ending."Nicole having to find the Fire Crest the way she did indicated that her 'friendship' with Lawrence was nothing but a sham and that they were not really 'friends' to begin with.'I guess discovering the problem now is better than finding out about it later, when it has mushroomed into something bigger,' Nicole thought to herself, somewhat trying to make herself feel better about the situation.In response to Jared, she nodded. "I know."Nicole had always been one who needed time to process all that was going on around her, and this time, it was the deception and betrayal of her 'good friend'.Jared took Nicole into his arms and gently held her. "Let's just go with the flow."Nicole bit her lips, contemplating for a while before asking, "Did you find anything?""Hanwick was under Lawrence's payroll just as