Yvonne returned to her car. Lloyd popped his head from the backseat, giving her a scare.She was annoyed. "How do you move so silently? When did you come out from the mansion? I didn't notice!"Lloyd chuckled smugly. "If you noticed me, then I would have failed as a scout."He had been waiting outside the wall. When he had heard the gate open, he had climbed over. Thankfully, the room he had been looking at was on the ground floor. It was near the courtyard, which had given him more than enough time to scout around and even draw a rough sketch while Yvonne had been dealing with Chuck.Lloyd passed the sketch to Yvonne. "Ms. Yvonne, if I remember correctly, there should be a space behind the closet. I think it should be the extra space from the floor plan."Being pressed for time, he hadn't been able to find where the switch was. He also hadn't dared to do it alone, so he had snuck out to discuss it with Yvonne."Say, what could one hide in such a space? He …" Lloyd's eyes wid
Lloyd seemed to have noticed Yvonne's hesitation. He volunteered himself. "Ms. Yvonne, wait here. I'll go have a look."Then, Lloyd went toward the cage. The closer he went, the stronger the smell of the blood. Lloyd was anxious. His hand trembled when he grabbed the black cloth. He closed his eyes and pulled the black cloth away in one swift motion.Before he could open his eyes, Yvonne shrieked, "Gwen!"Lloyd saw what was before him and was instantly bewildered.A person was curled up in the corner, covered in blood. Every single part of her body was bruised. Without the black cloth, the stench of blood and rot was even stronger.Lloyd was still stunned, but Yvonne was already by the cage, frantically trying to unlock it.Tears fell, blurring her sight, yet her eyes were still fixed on Gwen. "Gwen, I'm sorry. I'm sorry for being late."Lloyd came to his senses. Seeing the blood on Yvonne's fingers, he immediately took her wrist. "Ms. Yvonne, calm down. I'll get someone to un
Before the ambulance arrived, the screams in the basement had stopped.Chuck was covered in blood. His clothes were torn apart. He had already passed out from the pain."Fetch me a bucket of water. Wake him up."Yvonne was extremely menacing at that moment. She had a whip covered in blood in her hand. She looked like the devil. No one dared to approach her.One of her men fetched a bucket of cold water and splashed it on Chuck's face.Chuck immediately came around. When he saw Yvonne, he couldn't stop trembling. "Y-Yvonne, if you c-continue t-this way, o-our collaboration c-can't continue."Yvonne sneered. "Collaboration? Chuck, do you think we will still be collaborating? Tell me. What did you do to Gwen?"Yvonne used the whip to raise his chin. She glared at him. "You will suffer as she did for the past month today."Chuck looked at her with fear and disbelief. "Y-you can't do this to me. Y-you'll still need me in the future.""By the way," Yvonne said, raising an eyebrow.
Gwen had barely been in the emergency room when Stephen arrived at the hospital. Lloyd hadn't told him much over the phone. He had only told Stephen that Gwen had been found and that Yvonne had taken her to the hospital. He hoped that Stephen would be with Yvonne.When Stephen had received the call, he had been in a meeting. He had immediately canceled the meeting and rushed over.When he arrived at the hospital, he immediately broke out into a run. Julian could hardly catch up with him. Soon, Stephen found Yvonne squatting in the corridor in front of the emergency room. He asked urgently, "What happened?"Yvonne looked up at Stephen. Tears immediately welled up in her eyes. "Why are you here?"Seeing the tears in her eyes, Stephen's heart ached. He bent down and pulled her into his arms. "As long as you need me, I'll always be by your side."Yvonne leaned her head against his chest. Tears fell. "Chuck, that bastard. He locked Gwen up in the basement and tortured her for more
The meeting that had been cut short at Anderson Group had become a hot topic among the staff. Caleb had gone over to Anderson Group that morning and found out that Stephen had run off halfway through a meeting.Stephen was always responsible at work. Seeing how he had rushed off in the middle of the meeting, surely something must have happened to Yvonne.So Caleb had caught hold of Julian and asked him about what had happened.On the way to the hospital, Caleb had done a full background check on Chuck. The truth presented before him shocked him.Even if he was mentally prepared, he still had a scare when he saw Gwen. He went in closer and asked concernedly, "How's her condition?""We don't know when she will come around." Yvonne looked at Caleb and asked, "Why are you here?""Mr. Anderson left in the middle of a meeting with all the higher executives without saying a word. How could I not be curious?"Caleb looked at Stephen before looking at Yvonne. "You didn't even tell me
In the mansion, Jane took a stool and put it right in front of Chuck. She crossed her legs. "I'm going to sit here today! Chuck is one of my grandfather's men! I'll see who would dare touch him!"Lloyd was helpless. Jane looked no older than 20 years old, but she was a sharp girl. She clearly wasn't someone who was easy to deal with."Ms. Ford, this bastard offended Ms. Y. If you insist on protecting him, you're deliberately going up against her."Lloyd continued patiently, "Why don't you call Mr. Ford and consult him about it? It's not worth it to offend Ms. Y because of this bastard."Jane raised an eyebrow. "There's no need. I'm not afraid of anyone!"The lights in the basement suddenly lit up, followed by Yvonne's voice. "What a bold claim, Ms. Ford."Yvonne slowly walked down the stairs, followed by Stephen.Lloyd saw his savior. His eyes sparkled immediately. "Ms. Yvonne, you're finally here! This girl won't listen to a single word."Jane looked at Yvonne. Her gaze chan
At the same time, Yvonne whipped Chuck violently. His flesh instantly split open.Chuck woke up from the pain. He scanned his surroundings in fear. "W-where is Jane? I-isn't she here to take me away?""She left." Yvonne looked sullen. She thought of Gwen coming out of the emergency room the night before, and all the information Caleb found out about Chuck on the dark web. She was so disgusted by him she could puke."I would like to ask you a question, Mr. Jensen. How do you feel right now?""W-what the hell are—"Before he could finish his sentence, Yvonne whipped him once more. He wailed in pain."Answer my question. You have no right to ask me any questions," Yvonne said coldly.Chuck looked at Yvonne. Fear grew in his eyes. He never thought that harming Gwen could make Yvonne go so mad!"Ms. Miller, I-I'm sorry. Have mercy on me. I promise I will never—""Did those women beg like you too?" Yvonne interrupted Chuck. There was zero ounce of warmth in her tone. "Did you ha
Late that night, Gwen slowly came around. She opened her eyes to see Yvonne sleeping by the side of the bed next to her.She thought of getting out of bed, but she realized her limbs were cuffed. While she was struggling, Yvonne's voice rang out."Are you trying to jump out of the window again?"Gwen was stunned. She looked up at Yvonne, whose eyes were wide awake."Y-you're the one who saved me?" Gwen asked in an extremely hoarse voice.Yvonne reached out and held Gwen's arm. She was feeling extremely guilty. "Gwen, I'm sorry. It's all my fault. I found you too late."Gwen shook her head. "You shouldn't have saved me.""Why?" Ever since Yvonne had returned from Chuck's mansion, she had been by Gwen's side. Looking at Gwen, Yvonne couldn't help but imagine what she must have experienced if she had lost all will to live anymore.The more she thought, the more resentful she became toward Chuck.Seeing how down Gwen looked, Yvonne was seething with hatred. "What did that bastar
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