Chapter 6
At first, I didn't know Susan had been stealing from my bag.
I only found out about this after I was reborn.
But I wasn't sure when Susan started doing it. After all, she'd been to my house plenty of times, and the older surveillance footage was long gone.
Seeing me stay silent, Susan panicked even more and kept apologizing to me, promising she'd pay me back.
Listening to her words, I didn't believe her at all, but I didn't want to have a falling out with Susan just yet.
I sighed, put on a concerned look, and held her hand. "Susan, if you were in trouble, you should have told me earlier. Let's forget about what happened before. After all, we're best friends. Just don't do this again."
Susan didn't expect me to forgive her so quickly. Her face showed both surprise and delight. "Nancy, I just lost my head for a moment. I won't do this kind of thing again. We're still best friends."
As she said this, Susan kept sizing me up, and I could see some relief in her expression too.
Looking at her face, I could pretty much guess she was calling me an idiot in her head right now.
"Susan, I'm tired today and really don't have any energy left. If there's nothing else, you should head home. I'm going to my room to rest." Not wanting to waste any more time with her, I made an excuse and got up to head to my room.
The butler nearby, seeing my attitude, very tactfully showed Susan out.
After returning to my room and seeing the familiar layout, I finally felt relaxed.
The next day, the morning sun streamed through the window into the room.
I was woken up by the sunlight.
Looking at the scene before me, I finally accepted the fact that I'd been reborn.
My death in my previous life was too deeply etched in my memory, and that avalanche left an especially strong impression.
I was so afraid that everything happening was just a fantasy before my death, but fortunately, at this moment I was certain it was real.
After becoming fully awake, I got up and left the room.
My family had already started gradually letting me take over the company. It wasn't too late - I still had time to make myself stronger.
By the time I arrived at the company, it was already 9 AM.
I'd just sat down when my secretary came in with a cup of coffee. "Ms. Smith, your coffee."
When working, I always liked to have a cup of coffee first. It had become an unchanging habit of mine.
"Thanks, just put it there." I didn't even look up, just responded casually.
The secretary placed the coffee by my hand, but didn't rush to leave.
I didn't think much of it, assuming she had something to report.
"What's up?"
Hearing my sudden question, the secretary seemed unnatural for a moment, but quickly recovered.
"Nothing, Ms. Smith. I just noticed you usually drink your coffee before working."
Her explanation was airtight. I didn't think much of it, just assumed she was waiting for me to finish drinking so she could take the cup away.
I reached for the coffee and had just brought it to my lips without drinking when I felt a strange gaze fixed on me.
The secretary's eyes gave me the feeling of someone with a guilty conscience.
I put down the coffee cup and slowly shifted my gaze to her, deliberately testing. "Is there something on my face? Why do you keep staring at me?"
Perhaps not expecting me to suddenly say this, the secretary seemed a bit guilty and explained haltingly, "No, Ms. Smith."
Even though the secretary denied it, I sensed something suspicious.
"You've been with me for a while now. You know my habits. What's going on? Did you put something in my coffee today and that's why you keep staring at me?" I said casually, my half-joking tone carrying a hint of interrogation.
Seeing me like this, the secretary became even more guilty. After all, she was just a young girl who couldn't hide anything on her face. "No, Ms. Smith. You're just joking."
Hearing her denial, I pushed the coffee cup toward her and said deliberately, "Since you didn't put anything in it, then you drink this coffee."
The secretary's eyes darted around. She reached out but didn't pick it up.
Because of her behavior, I was certain there was definitely something fishy going on.
Seeing this, my face immediately darkened and I threatened, "I trust you, but your reaction makes me suspicious. If you don't tell me, I'll send this coffee for testing. If there's nothing wrong, I'll apologize to you and give you appropriate compensation. But if there is something wrong, then sorry, you can talk to my lawyer."
"I'm sorry, Ms. Smith. I had no choice. Someone made me do this." The secretary apologized to me in tears and told me the truth.
Yesterday someone had given her money to put a large amount of sleeping pills in my food.
And as long as she did this, she could get another payment after it was done.
The secretary thought it was just some sleeping pills, nothing serious, so she took the risk and agreed.
However, she didn't know who was behind it.
But the person told her that once it worked, she just needed to help me into the rest room in my office.
After hearing all this, I guessed who was behind it. After all, there were only a few people who wanted to harm me and knew my office had a rest room.
"I can choose not to hold you responsible, but you have to cooperate with me." I poured the coffee into the trash can and spoke calmly.
"Ms. Smith, whatever you need me to do, I'll agree." The secretary, trying to protect herself, agreed readily.
I thought for a few seconds and said directly, "Now send that person a message saying everything's OK."
Following my instructions, the secretary did as told.
And now what I needed to do was wait for the prey to take the bait.
After the other party responded, I gave another instruction. "Now I need you to cooperate with me in putting on a show. In a bit, go into the rest room and close the curtains and turn off the lights."
The secretary's expression became troubled.
After all, no one could be sure what would happen next.
I understood what she was thinking and assured her, "I'll be hiding nearby to ensure your safety. Whether you want to make up for your mistake is up to you."
After saying this, I leaned back in my chair, waiting for the secretary's decision.
The secretary seemed to make up her mind and nodded firmly. "Ms. Smith, I understand."
Following my instructions, the secretary went into the rest room.
After closing the lights and curtains, it was pitch black inside, making it hard to tell what was going on.
I hid in the meeting room across from my office.
Before long, John appeared sneakily at my office door.
I watched him look around before entering my office.
After waiting a minute, I followed him in.
As soon as I pushed open the door, I heard John's voice coming from the rest room. "Nancy, since you won't be with me willingly, I can only have you this way."