Chapter 154: Are You Okay?

Tessa and Ryan didn't want to give up, but they had no choice—they'd hit a wall. Without Grace showing her face, their investigation couldn't move forward.

The two had no choice but to head home.

Unexpectedly, early the next morning, Oliver showed up at their door uninvited, arms loaded with gifts.

The gesture was quite formal.

"I brought these back specially from Harmony City. Since industry hasn't developed much there, the biggest advantage is how fresh their local products are. Ms. Garcia, Mr. Williams—you both left in such a hurry last time, I didn't get a chance to prepare anything for you."

A mountain of specialty goods piled up at the entrance, clearly demonstrating Oliver's respect for them.

He'd only been back two days, and here he was already making a house call.

"There are slippers by the door. Help yourself," Tessa said coolly.

Flora didn't bother with pleasantries either, letting Oliver find a pair of guest slippers on his own.

Oliver's greatest talent was shamelessness. No matter how cold the reception, he could still plaster on a smile.

And he smiled broadly, as if genuinely delighted, without a trace of displeasure.

"I'm terribly late. Chloe visited the very first day you returned, Ms. Garcia, Mr. Williams. Coming only now makes me look rather negligent."

The moment Oliver sat down, he launched into self-criticism with an excellent attitude.

But Tessa knew perfectly well—he'd done it on purpose.

His goal was probably to show them just how extensive his network in Majestic City was, proving he'd investigated every detail, right down to Chloe's movements.

"You've certainly been busy while we were away from Majestic City," Tessa said with a soft laugh, her eyes sharp as they fixed on Oliver. "According to you, if I want Chloe to take over the company, I'd need Uncle Aubrey to transfer his shares to her first?"

"This ten percent stake you claim to own—whose name is actually on it, yours or Cecilia's? Why does the Garcia family's Arkbridge Group answer to Cecilia, an outsider?"

Tessa didn't give Oliver time to react, going on the offensive immediately.

Though, thinking about it, if he dared pull something like this, he'd probably already prepared his excuses.

Oliver smiled faintly, his manner still humble and submissive. "Ms. Garcia, you give me too much credit."

"Chloe is shortsighted. She's always trying to undermine me at the company. If she became executive president, it would be a disaster for the business."

"The Arkbridge Group is still the Garcia family's enterprise, of course. Whenever Ms. Garcia wishes, she can rejoin the company at any time."

Tessa couldn't help but think Oliver was ridiculously full of himself.

How could he have the nerve to say Chloe wasn't fit to be executive president?

Did he think he was?

But Tessa kept that thought to herself, maintaining her composure.

She merely said casually, "Chloe's had a hard time these past years. As long as you don't mistreat her, that's fine. After all, she's your sister—looking out for her is only natural."

Years ago, Cordelia had pushed against fierce opposition to get the two Saunders family children into the company. Naturally, Chloe faced the most resistance.

The company's stubborn shareholders all believed girls were less capable than boys, so their rejection of Chloe was taken for granted.

But over the years, Chloe's performance had never disappointed anyone, leaving them without grounds for complaint.

"As long as Chloe doesn't do anything to harm me, I certainly won't move against her. Ms. Garcia, rest assured—I'll treat her well."

Tessa didn't buy it. Oliver was a master of empty promises.

The moment the words left his mouth, he'd forget them. Even if he swore an oath, Tessa wouldn't believe him.

Her expression softened slightly, as if she believed him.

"I heard you went to the Dobbins family's Eden during your trip to Zephyria, Ms. Garcia. Must be a beautiful place?" Oliver's smile was transparently fake as he suddenly shifted the topic to Zephyria.

Ryan immediately thought of Frank's unrealistic suggestion.

"Your business has expanded to Zephyria? You approached Frank to help you break into the market?" Ryan asked coldly.

If Brian agreed to that request and allowed illegal drugs to establish a foothold in their territory, there would be only one outcome.

They'd all be destroyed by it, crushed under the military's anti-drug campaign.

Oliver chuckled, his expression quite smug. "I didn't expect word to travel so fast. Even Mr. Williams already knows."

While they chatted, Flora was cooking in the kitchen. She soon finished and called them to eat.

The unfinished conversation moved to the dining table.

"But that's Ms. Grey's territory now. I'm only responsible for drug production. Where it's sold, who buys it—I have no idea."

"We're all just working for someone else. Ms. Garcia should understand my position, right?"

After hearing that, Tessa wanted to curse him out.

They manufactured this harmful substance and wanted to drag the Arkbridge Group down with them.

Where in the world was there such a good deal?

Silence fell over the table. Tessa and Ryan simply ate quietly.

Oliver was perceptive enough not to say anything more.

Suddenly his hand jerked violently. A piece of meat fell from his utensils, landing on the table with a splat.

Tessa glanced up at Oliver and noticed his face had gone deathly pale, cold sweat beading on his forehead.

"...Ms. Garcia, where's your bathroom?" Each word seemed squeezed through Oliver's clenched teeth, spoken with obvious difficulty.

Flora quickly led him to the bathroom. Tessa looked in that direction.

"Is he having an episode?"

Yesterday, while learning about White Mist from the police, Tessa had also picked up some additional information.

Because it was a chemically refined psychoactive drug that acted directly on the brain, White Mist had higher purity than common illegal drugs, took effect faster, and hit harder.

Correspondingly, the side effects were more severe, the impact on users greater, and the addiction exponentially stronger.

According to what they'd been told, people who got hooked on White Mist quickly reached a point of no return.

After about twenty minutes, Oliver emerged from the bathroom, supporting himself against the wall, barely maintaining his composure.

But Tessa could tell at a glance something was wrong.

"Are you all right?"

Oliver sat down in a daze, saying nothing about it, staring at Tessa with unfocused eyes. It took him a long time to focus.

"Ms. Garcia, you grew up in Eldoria. Do you know anything about the Grey family?"

Tessa found it strange. Oliver had already allied himself with outsiders—how could he not know the Grey family's background?

"They're just ordinary merchants in the trading business. Though because their business is fairly large, they're on par with other families in terms of influence."

In terms of legitimate business profits, the Grey family might even rank slightly below the Garcia family.

However, now that they were involved in illegal drug trafficking, that was a different story altogether.

After getting his answer from Tessa, Oliver hesitated for a long time.