Chapter 263 Red Wine Glass
Blue Bay Apartments, Building 18, Block A, Unit 1503.
Stefan stood at the door and rang the doorbell.
He had already checked with his equipment—no explosives behind the door, no ambush in the hallway. Everything appeared normal.
The door opened quickly.
It was Anna who answered.
She had changed into a silk robe and put on elaborate makeup, clearly trying to flaunt her charm, but the fear and tension in her eyes were impossible to hide.
Seeing that Stefan had really come alone, she visibly relaxed and stepped aside to let him in.
The room was dimly lit, with only a yellowish floor lamp turned on. The air carried a strong scent of aromatherapy mixed with the rich aroma of red wine.
On the living room table sat an open bottle of red wine and two wine glasses.
Stefan’s gaze swept quickly around the room. He found nothing unusual, no signs of anyone hiding.
He gave Anna a cold look. "You can talk now. What exactly is this so-called secret of yours?"
"Don’t be in such a hurry, Stefan." Anna forced a seductive smile.
She walked to the wine cabinet, picked up the bottle, poured wine into both glasses, lifted one, and handed it to Stefan.
"We... haven’t had a drink together in so long. Why don’t we sit down and talk slowly?"
Stefan looked at the glass she offered, his eyes full of mockery.
"You think I’d drink wine you poured?"
Anna’s smile froze.
Her scheme exposed, she explained somewhat frantically, "What? You think... I’m trying to poison you?"
To prove her innocence, she raised the glass she had offered him and took a small sip herself.
Then she picked up the other glass and held it out to Stefan again, saying in a pleading tone, "Stefan, I really mean no harm. I just wanted to talk to you properly before leaving for good."
She began playing on his emotions, trying to stir up Stefan’s memories.
"Do you remember? We first met at my tenth birthday party. You came with Ms. Saunders, wearing a little suit, looking cool and quiet."
"I fell for you right then. I told myself that when I grew up, I would definitely marry you."
"Later, we got engaged, and I thought my dream was about to come true. But... but why did it turn out like this? It’s all because of that, Amelia! She stole you from me! She ruined everything for me!"
She grew more agitated as she spoke, her eyes filling with tears, looking pitiful.
Stefan found her rambling was utterly tiresome.
He had no patience to watch her perform.
"Are you done?" Stefan interrupted coldly. "If this is your so-called 'secret,' then I’m leaving."
With that, he turned to go.
"Don’t go!" Anna panicked and grabbed Stefan’s arm. "I’ll tell you! I’ll tell you now!"
Seeing Stefan stop, she anxiously picked up the glass of wine and urged, "Have a sip first, wet your throat, and we’ll sit down and talk slowly."
Her excessive urgency only made Stefan more suspicious.
His gaze fell on the glass Anna was offering.
Earlier, she had indeed taken a sip of wine, but from the other glass.
The one she was now offering him—she hadn’t touched it at all.
Stefan reached out and took the glass from her hand.
He didn’t drink. Instead, he held the glass up to the light and examined it carefully.
In the yellowish light, he keenly noticed that the bottom of this glass was thicker than normal, and the color seemed off.
He slowly poured the red wine into a nearby potted plant.
When the wine was gone, the secret at the bottom of the glass was finally exposed.
In the groove at the bottom, there was clearly a transparent film stuck there, and beneath it, white powder residue that had dissolved into the wine.
Drugs.
A colorless, odorless, powerful drug, cleverly hidden at the bottom of the glass, designed to dissolve quickly once liquid was poured in.
The glass Anna had drunk from earlier had a completely clean bottom.
What a vicious trap.
Stefan’s expression instantly turned ice-cold.
He looked at Anna, whose face had turned deathly pale, his eyes filled with murderous intent.
"This is your hospitality?"
He violently smashed the glass in his hand onto the floor.
The wine glass shattered with a sharp, piercing sound.
Anna screamed and stumbled backward.
"You’re truly beyond saving," Stefan said with displeasure.
He couldn’t be bothered to waste another word on Anna. He turned and strode toward the door.
He had completely lost his patience.
He decided to immediately have Garth bring people up and take Anna straight to the police station.
Out of the corner of his eye, Stefan noticed a slight bulge in Anna’s robe pocket.
He gave a cold snort, strode over, and before she could react, pulled a key from her pocket.
Anna froze, then lunged to grab it back.
But Stefan had already turned and left. Her hands closed on nothing but air.
He walked right out and locked the door from the outside.
"Stefan! What are you doing! Let me out!" From inside came Anna’s frantic pounding and screaming.
"You can’t lock me in here! Open the door! Please, let me out!"
Stefan ignored her cries completely.
He leaned against the wall outside, took out his phone, and called Garth.
After briefly explaining the situation, Stefan waited patiently at the door.
But before long, the elevator doors in the hallway opened.
Seven or eight uniformed police officers rushed out.
The lead officer saw Stefan and immediately strode forward, asking with a serious expression, "We received a report of attempted murder here! Did you call the police?"
Stefan was stunned.
He hadn’t arranged for Garth to call the police directly.
Seeing the man’s stunned expression, the officers looked at the locked door and the key still in his hand.
The lead officer barked, "What’s going on! Open the door!"
A strong sense of foreboding gripped Stefan. He realized he might have fallen into an even more complex trap.
Without hesitation, he immediately used the key to open the door.
When the door opened, and everyone saw the scene inside, all of them, including Stefan, gasped.
Anna lay on the living room floor, foaming at the mouth, her face blue-purple, her body still twitching slightly.
She clearly showed signs of poisoning, and by the looks of it, she wasn’t going to survive.