"Pah! Even if I can't get a wife in this lifetime, I would never end up with this guy," Charlie rejected with disdain, just moments after gazing 'affectionately' at Hudson."What nonsense! It's not like I want to be with you either," Hudson shot back without hesitation.Matthew watched this fiery exchange and could not help but stifle a laugh."Even if we're not going along, Hugh and his wife can accompany you to Charleston," Hudson said, looking at Matthew standing beside him. "By the way, where are they now? Why didn't they come over with you guys? Doesn't Chelsea always stick to Lucy?""They can't come with us either. Hugh said that Chelsea's parents came to visit them and are planning to stay for a while," Matthew shook his head.Hudson sighed with concern, looking at Matthew and Lucy as if he was worried about them."It takes a long time to recover from a serious injury, so just focus on getting better. Don't worry about us going to Charleston," Matthew reassured him.Sudde
Lucy’s eyes widened in fear. “I remember the first night Nora stayed at our house. I woke up in the middle of the night and heard the sound of bottles breaking from her room. Curious, I went to check it out.”She suddenly paused while recalling her memories. Matthew urged, “Go on, what happened next?”“I went in and saw broken porcelain pieces on the floor, scattered with piles of dust. Nora was frantically trying to clean it up with a cloth.“When she saw me, she seemed startled, and her whole body trembled. I asked if she needed a mop to help clean up, but she just kept apologizing.”“Do you remember the color of the dust on the floor?” the doctor asked.“It was late at night, and the light was dim, so I couldn't see clearly,” Lucy thought for a moment. “It seemed to be dark red or brown, like chili powder.”“That’s it. It must be cinnabar containing mercury. She probably mixed it into your food,” the doctor concluded.“I can't believe there's a problem with the person I hired
Matthew gripped Lucy’s hand, feeling deeply unsettled.“Is it someone from Spades? Did they send others to harm our child?” Lucy's emotions suddenly escalated as she stared blankly at Matthew.This statement reminded him that this indeed seemed like something people from Spades would do.Matthew immediately called Koven, wanting him to help investigate this matter.“Hey, I need you to check on someone.”“Who?” Koven answered, his tone sounding drowsy and lazy.“Nora Smith. Check if she’s from Spades.” Matthew gritted his teeth as he said the housekeeper's full name and then hung up. He clenched his fists tightly, vowing to make everyone who wanted to harm Lucy pay a heavy price.“I got the information!”When Lucy and Matthew returned home, Koven called back.“She's 36 years old, living in Archway District, near DS Group. Before working at your house, she had been tracking Lucy’s movements.”As expected, Nora was indeed from Spades.Matthew could hardly contain his anger, wan
Matthew finally turned his gaze toward Lucy, who was curled up on the couch. He realized that his earlier behavior must have scared her. He walked over and gently hugged her. Neither of them spoke.After a while, Lucy's soft voice came from behind the pillow. "Matthew, I want to go home. I don’t want to stay here anymore."Matthew’s hand continuously patted Lucy's back, like soothing a child to sleep. His tone was extraordinarily gentle, a stark contrast to his earlier violent demeanor in front of Nora."Okay, we'll go back tomorrow. I'll accompany you back to your parents' place, alright?""Mm." Lucy nodded. She resembled an injured fawn leaning her head into Matthew's familiar embrace.…The office on the top floor of DS Group was spacious and quiet. The night view of the brightly lit city could be seen through the huge floor-to-ceiling windows."Selena, when they called you for a talk that day, they should have already discovered your true identity, right?" Daniel leaned ba
"There's one more thing I'd like to report to you." Selena called out to the elderly man who was walking toward the door."Go ahead.""Matthew and his group are planning to go to Charleston the day after tomorrow to find Princess Charlotte. I want to go with them to monitor their movements closely."Daniel thought for a moment and then agreed, "Alright, I'll report this to the higher-ups. When you get to Charleston, don't check in with Alice right away. I'll inform you of any tasks as they come up.""Understood!" Selena lowered her head respectfully and watched him leave.After ensuring that Daniel was out of sight, Selena staggered to a blind spot in the surveillance. She let out a sigh as she stared blankly at the dazzling night view outside the window. The earlier conversation had made her break out in a cold sweat, soaking the shirt under her jacket. If she had shown even a hint of nervousness in front of Daniel, her lie would have been exposed.After a long while, she called
"To prevent Charlotte from taking advantage of our arrival in Charleston, we came secretly this time without reporting to the king and queen in advance," Koven and Selena were sitting by Lucy's bed. Koven started speaking when he saw Lucy wake up."Where's Matthew?" Upon waking up, Lucy habitually looked for Matthew.Koven answered, "He went alone to the palace to meet with the king and queen. The reason he didn't take you along is also because he's afraid Charlotte might harm you again."Selena continued from where Koven left off, "Rest assured, I investigated before coming here. Recently, Spades has been heavily occupied with matters in Archway District, and they have fewer people in Charleston. As long as you don't go out alone, everything should be fine."Lucy obediently nodded. Even though she was worried about Matthew, she fell asleep again.…At the main hall of Charleston's royal palace, a commotion could be heard."What?! Are you saying you brought Princess Velda here b
"Are you suggesting that you also suspect our Charlotte to be the mastermind behind the attacks on Velda?" Juliana asked."I don't think Matthew is the type to make things up. He came specifically to expose Charlotte. It's likely that the attacks on Velda are related to her," replied Arthur. Even though he was reluctant to believe Charlotte was the culprit, the repeated incidents of her harming Lucy made him suspicious.Juliana felt a jumble of thoughts in her head. If Charlotte truly had ties to Spades and intended to harm Lucy, she would be extremely ruthless."Sometimes, I wonder if bringing Velda back was a mistake," murmured Juliana, looking at the portrait of Charlotte hanging on the wall alongside the family portrait of Arthur, her, and their three children."How could it be? Velda is our true biological daughter, so sensible and considerate. After all the effort to reunite our family, why would you say such pessimistic words?" Arthur did not quite understand what Juliana
Upon seeing the reply, Charlotte was infuriated and threw her phone to the ground. The annual tax revenue from the county she managed amounted to only over a billion, and she had already paid a deposit of five billion to Spades in order to have Lucy assassinated. That sum represented her entire income accumulated over three years. Now, the other party was audaciously demanding additional payment, which was truly despicable! The phone hit the ground with a loud bang, catching the attention of Arthur and Juliana in the room."Who's there?" Arthur, fearing unknown assassins, protected Juliana, who was equally startled.Charlotte heard them and instinctively ran toward the corridor. The guards stationed outside saw a shadow rushing past and immediately gave chase.Although Charlotte ran as fast as she could, having lived a pampered life for many years, her speed was nowhere near that of professional guards. They soon caught up to her.The guards disregarded everything and used a bl