Once they returned home, Ella immediately called the private investigator. "How is the investigation going along?""Ms. Ferguson, we…"Ella frowned when she heard the other party hesitate. "Don't tell me you found nothing.""We know where the woman's staying, but the place is under Mr. Carrington's name."The private investigator sounded troubled. "The woman has gone missing. Our lead has gone cold.""Missing?""Yes, two days ago, we asked one of the cleaning ladies. That woman left a long time ago. She won't be returning."The private investigator sighed. "It will be like searching a needle in a haystack if we were to try to look for her."Ella was silent for a long time. "Continue to keep an eye on Otto. I'm guessing that the woman will appear once more. Let me know immediately when that happens."This time, she would do it quietly without raising any alarm. …Over at the border, Yvonne had no idea that Ella was onto her.She hadn't been in touch with Otto after she had
The young girl was Charlotte Sinclair, the daughter of one of Howard's men.She had been living with her blind grandmother ever since her father had passed away. Charlotte's grandmother, Betty Sadler, had been on the brink of death once, but Yvonne had rescued her. Yvonne had also tried to treat Betty's eyes, but it hadn't helped much.Looking into the old lady's eyes, Yvonne could see that they had gotten worse. She collected her thoughts and sized up Charlotte's stall."Your stall wasn't here before, right?"Charlotte was surprised. "How did you know?""I used to frequent this market a lot.""Is that so?" Charlotte didn't fully believe Yvonne. "Why do I have no recollection of you?"Yvonne smiled. "There are so many people in the market every day. How could you possibly remember them all?""You're right.""We have an esteemed guest," Betty said with a smile. She got up with her walking cane, trembling, and headed to Yvonne."Miss, what would you like to buy?" Betty reache
"Howard's old lap dog. He's called Wilbur O'Malley."At the thought of Wilbur, Betty became furious. "He's despicable! When Howard was around, he promised he would care for us. Once Howard passed away, he got men to chase us away!""What a terrible person!" Yvonne gritted her teeth. "He will get what he deserves for doing such evil things!"Betty sighed heavily. "It's usually the good ones who leave this world early. The evil ones live for a long time. Howard was such a good person, yet he left us so early."At the mention of Howard, Betty felt heartbroken. "If Howard had been around, those bastards wouldn't have made a mess of the market.""Yo! Charlotte, good business today!" A lecherous voice rang out.Yvonne's gaze darkened. Speak of the devil.Charlotte looked behind Yvonne with a stern face. "Mr. O'Malley, what else do you want? We paid our protection fees a long time ago!""What kind of monster do you think I am?" Wilbur led a few men to the stall. He picked up a gemston
Calbert shrugged and said innocently, "I didn't do anything. Maybe he saw something he shouldn't have."Yvonne furrowed her brows. "Then, explain yourself. Why are you here?""I was just… concerned for you.""So, you stalked me?""This is a way of showing I care." Calbert said seriously, "Who knows if you would be like before—"Seeing Charlotte coming over, Yvonne pinched Calbert. She hinted at him to stop talking."Thank you." Charlotte was grateful. "You're the first person who stood up for me."Yvonne smiled. "You don't have to thank me. Any normal person with a conscience wouldn't let Wilbur O'Malley bully you.""No." Charlotte shook her head. "No one in this market dares to stand up to him. After you guys leave, he will surely come and cause us trouble again…"Halfway through, Charlotte immediately corrected herself. "I don't mean anything by it. It's really great that you have helped us. I just wanted to say that Wilbur—""You don't have to explain," Yvonne gently inter
"She's an old friend. I haven't seen her for a long time, so I was just curious."Charlotte believed Yvonne. "I see. Then, what else would you like to know? I'll tell you everything I know.""Do you know how Jane ended up with Cory?""Yes, I would like to know about that too." Calbert went in closer. "Sloan loved another woman before this. How did he end up with Jane?""Uh…" Charlotte looked a little troubled. "I'm not sure about this, but I heard other people say that it was because Ms. Ford looks a lot like Cory's dead wife. "Cory only arrived at the border this year. He doesn't show himself much. No one knows much about him. We only know he isn't to be messed with."Calbert furrowed his brows. "Jane looks like Ashley Webb?""You know his dead wife?" Yvonne asked."I only met her once." Calbert was perplexed. "Just when she was dying. How could I remember what she looks like?"Yvonne was speechless. Calbert was only good at fighting. He was terrible at everything else."
"Of course, we'll fight!" One of Wilbur's men yelled out.Wilbur turned around and punched him in the head. He rebuked, "Fight? Do you think your fist can win against their guns?"His subordinate panicked immediately. "They have guns?""Yes!" Wilbur had seen it the other day. Calbert had a handgun right on his waist!People who carried huns with them at the border were most likely in the firearms business. Wilbur was just a businessman. How could he go up against such people? However, he was in front of his subordinates, so he couldn't beg for mercy so quickly.He braced himself and looked over. "I'm guessing there must be some misunderstanding. I have always been managing this market. How could this have anything to do with your friend?""Even if Howard has passed away, this shouldn't be yours." Calbert's eyes sharpened. "I hate unappreciative bastards like you the most."Then, he completely lost his patience. He raised his hand. "At first, I thought of giving you a choice, b
After chasing off Wilbur and his men, Calbert entered the market. He pointed at the stall in the best spot. "This spot will be for my sister."The vendor there was furious but didn't dare to say anything. They were forced to accept it. Charlotte was surprised. "Is that alright?""Why wouldn't it be alright?" Calbert looked at Charlotte. "From today onward, I call the shots in this market. When I'm not around, you call the shots.""But…" Charlotte hesitated. "I'm just a girl. How could I manage—""Don't worry, I'll arrange for people to assist you."Then, Calbert scanned around coldly. He was so terrifying that the vendors were scared half to death. "If anyone has any opinions about you or dares to bully you, my men won't let them go."Calbert was extremely scary. Now that he had warned them, who would dare say anything?Thus, everyone raised their hand and promised. "We'll take good care of Charlotte! We won't bully her!"Calbert slowly retracted his gaze. "That's more like i
Right at this moment, Benji went up to Cory and said softly, "Boss, that market doesn't belong to Wilbur."Cory gave him a side-eye. He could clearly no longer suppress his anger.Benji braced himself and continued, "The market originally belonged to Howard from Emerald Group. Wilbur used to work under Howard.""What are you trying to say?" Wilbur chimed in curtly. "When Howard was around, I helped him manage the market. Now that he has passed away, the market belongs to me. Is there a problem?""Shut up," Cory rebuked. Wilbur timidly shut up.Benji added, "Now Calbert is working with Emerald Group. Knowing him, he surely wouldn't go and make a scene at the market without any reason. I'm guessing someone told him to take over the market."At that thought, Cory calmed down. "What you're saying is… Stephen is taking back the market?"Benji nodded. "Yes. You'd just met him recently. He's at the border. "Wouldn't it make sense for him to get Calbert to take back the market? Y
A light breeze blew by in the courtyard. Agatha slowly recounted the past.Back then, Daniel and his wife, Katherine, had just had Mark. The entire Carrington family had been celebrating.They had doted on Mark and taken him wherever they went.That day, they had headed out. Before they'd known it, Mark had been taken away.Just when Daniel and Katherine had been on the brink of losing it, they had received a call from the kidnapper to bring the ransom to a specific spot.They had gotten the money and driven there without any hesitation. No one had thought that they would ever return after that. Even Mark had disappeared.When Agatha finished recounting this, her cup of tea had already cooled.She wiped her tears away. She said through a catch in her throat, "Katherine was hugging the bag of money tightly until the moment she passed away, as though she were hugging you."Mark furrowed his brows. Now that he'd heard the truth about Daniel and Katherine, he should have felt pain
As Yvonne left the room, she could tell that Stephen's mood was much better.She looked at him. "Are you thinking of something nice?""No." Stephen looked at Yvonne with a rare twinkle in his eyes."Let me take you to breakfast." Before Yvonne could respond, he took her hand and led her to the elevator.Thinking about how he'd stood outside her room the entire night, Yvonne decided to let him hold her hand.Then, her thoughts drifted to Otto. Somehow, she had a bad feeling.…At the same time, Mark was in the courtyard of Carrington Mansion. He sat next to Agatha and poured some tea for her.He handed her a cup of hot tea. "Great-Grandma, try this."When he noticed that Agatha had no reaction, he called out to her once more. "Great-Grandma?""Huh?" Agatha came to her senses. She looked at Mark in confusion. "What is it?""You've been distracted since yesterday. Are you thinking of something?" Mark asked.Agatha shook her head. "Nothing." Then, she picked up her teacup and
Yvonne stood by the door of the bedroom and looked at Otto, who was looking out of the window in a daze on the bed.The sun shone on his face. He looked quite hungover and had a sickly pale face.Yvonne hesitated for a while before saying gently, "Mrs. Jenner called me last night. She's worried about you."Otto didn't respond.Yvonne went in closer and added, "She said that you called her and asked about your father. She found it strange."Mr. Carrington, why did you suddenly think about your father? Did Mrs. Carrington Senior bring him up yesterday?"All Yvonne got was silence.Luckily, she was patient. She sat on the couch and followed Otto's line of sight. Tiny dust particles were floating among the sunbeams. Yvonne also fell into a daze as she watched them float about.Suddenly, Otto asked, "Have you ever felt like your world was falling apart?""Hmm?" Yvonne was confused. "For example?""I mean, like the person that you trust turns out to be different from what you'd t
The next morning, Yvonne opened her door to see Stephen standing outside. She was caught off guard."What is wrong with you this morning? Why didn't you knock…"While talking, Yvonne noticed that Stephen was still wearing the same clothes as the night before. She furrowed her brows and asked, "Don't tell me you didn't leave last night? Have you been standing outside this door all this while?""Hmm." Stephen looked at Yvonne intently. "I thought you would've figured it out quickly."Yvonne was speechless, but she thought to herself that she'd slept like a baby the night before.She smiled at him. "Figure what out?" She noticed Stephen frowning as though he were on the brink of losing his temper.She quickly added, "I-I mean, you have to give me a hint, right? I've thought about it the entire night, but I still don't understand. My brain isn't functioning well."Stephen asked suspiciously, "You've been thinking about it the entire night?""Yes, which is why I didn't look for yo
"If I hadn't come to find you tonight, you probably wouldn't tell me anything about what happened tonight, would you?" Stephen asked in retort.It wasn't a big deal, as long as they returned safely. Yvonne wondered why she needed to report this to him.But she still smiled. "It's late. How could I disrupt your rest? It would've been the same if I told you about it tomorrow morning, right?"Stephen sniggered. "Yvonne, you still don't know where you've gone wrong."He suddenly went in closer to her. Yvonne instinctively retreated until her back was up against the wall. She glared at him."What on earth is wrong with you? I've already said that I would've told you tomorrow morning—"A punch went past Yvonne and landed brutally on the wall.Yvonne was a little stunned. She looked into Stephen's eyes and furrowed her brows. "Stephen, I don't want to quarrel with you for no reason. "Mrs. Carrington Senior went to look for Otto today. Calbert couldn't reach him the entire day, so he
Jane returned to the private room, distracted.She sat down next to Cory. She looked at him as he reached his hand out to her in confusion.Cory furrowed his brows and asked unhappily, "Where's the wine?""Wine… Yes! Wine!" Jane came to her senses. She was just about to get up when Cory pulled her back.He grabbed her by her chin and forced her to look at him. "What happened when you went out?""N-Nothing."Cory tightened his grip. Jane furrowed her brows in pain. "I-I… I saw Yvonne. She told me that she and Stephen got remarried.""What?" Cory relaxed his grip a little. "They got remarried?""Hmm.""So, what?" He had no intention of letting her go, and he looked at her sharply. "Does it bother you so much that Stephen got remarried?"Jane looked at Cory frantically. "Cory, what do you mean by that?""What do I mean? You know what I mean."Cory went in closer. His tone turned icy. "You used to pursue Stephen. Now that you know he's gotten married, you're in this shitty mood
Yvonne turned around to see Jane smiling at her ambiguously. She furrowed her brows. How were they always bumping into each other?Jane crossed her hands in front of her chest and leaned against the wall. She swept her gaze at Calbert and Otto. "Two guys and one woman. You sure know how to have fun!"Calbert instantly snapped, "What the hell are you talking about?""Why are you being so fierce? Did I hit the nail on the head?" Jane snickered. "Two guys and a woman came out of a private room in the middle of the night. Anyone would come to the same conclusion. We're all adults. There's no need to pretend to be innocent.""You—" Calbert was about to go up to Jane, but Yvonne stopped him."Since Ms. Ford is here, I'm guessing so is Cory?" Yvonne smiled, yet her smile didn't reach her eyes. "If you cause a scene here and this bar gets raided, guess who'll be the ones walking out here alive?"Jane's expression turned ugly. "Are you threatening me?""It's just a kind reminder." Yvon
Calbert and Yvonne managed to track Otto's car to a bar, thanks to the information they'd gotten from his staff. Otto's car was right outside the bar.Calbert looked at the neon sign and furrowed his brows. "Why is Otto here? Did what Mrs. Carrington Senior said really hit him so badly that he has to drown himself in alcohol?"Yvonne said nothing and headed directly inside the bar."Wait up for me!" Calbert went after her. He subconsciously protected her from all the drunk patrons.The lighting in the bar was dim. Many of the patrons were drunk and having fun.Yvonne and Calbert walked around the booth area, but Otto was nowhere to be found. They pulled a server over to ask if there was a patron by the name of Otto Carrington who had reserved a private room.Coincidentally, the server had just taken two bottles of wine to Otto's room. So, he led them to the private room.Calbert tipped the server before opening the door and entering. The entire room reeked of alcohol.He looked
After Agatha left, Otto stood in the same spot without moving.A long time later, Zac entered the office. He looked at Otto's back and asked quietly, "Mr. Carrington, will you still see the client?""No." Otto sounded heartbroken.Zac didn't dare ask further questions. He gently closed the door and reminded the secretary that no one was to disturb Otto.In the office, Otto was alone. He slowly walked over to the couch and slumped into it. His mind was in a mess."Alexander was the one who planned the kidnapping back then."Agatha's words rang in his mind for a long time.Alexander's young face appeared in Otto's mind, smiling at him affectionately."Otto! Amazing! Yes! Just like that!""You're amazing at badminton! You're going to make the country proud! I'm going to be so proud of you!""Otto, my son!"Memories of his interactions with Alexander flashed across his mind at that moment.Otto couldn't imagine that such a loving father would do such an absurd thing. Alexander