Chapter 369 Reaching an Agreement

Chapter 369 Reaching an Agreement

In the early hours of the morning, a black SUV stopped on a hillside. Alexander opened the door and stepped out with his long legs.

The blinding high beams stayed on, illuminating the distance ahead.

On the other side of the slope, another car was parked. A man in a black coat stood there with a cigarette in his mouth, its red glow flickering in the darkness.

Alexander's boots crunched continuously in the snow, the other person walked toward him as well.

When they were about ten meters apart, they both stopped at the same time.

Alexander's coat flapped loudly in the wind. He looked calmly at the figure across from him. "I'm here. We can talk however you want, but let Philip go first."

In the darkness, he couldn't make out what the man looked like. From his build, he could tell it was a man who was probably middle-aged or older, because his posture wasn't quite straight.

Stephen threw his cigarette butt on the ground and crushed it with his shoe a few times, smiling. "I thought you'd ask who I am first."

"Even if I asked, you wouldn't tell me." Alexander said without hesitation. "I don't need to ask who you are. Just knowing you're the person behind Anthony is enough. To pull Anthony and Rachel out from under my tight net, you're more capable than I imagined."

Stephen laughed out loud. "Who would've thought that after all these years, the first person to acknowledge my abilities would be you. What a joke. Before that old man died, I questioned him over and over, but I never heard words like that from him. Fate is cruel."

"Old man?" Alexander's body tensed up suddenly. He stared hard at the other person, his tone instantly sharp. "Who?"

An ominous feeling had already flashed through his mind.

Stephen smiled. "Haven't you already guessed?"

He pulled out a cigarette and cupped his lighter to light it. In the brief moment the lighter flared up, it revealed his face, but before Alexander could get a good look, the flame went out.

"Alexander, no need to waste time on things that don't matter. Let's talk. Philip's life in exchange for Anthony's freedom to return home, do you agree or not?"

Alexander said coldly, "Even if I agree, do you really think you can get him back successfully? He's an international criminal now. He'll be arrested the moment he enters customs."

"That's not for you to worry about," Stephen chuckled. "As long as you don't make a move, I'll give him a new identity and let him start over. I have plenty of ways to make that happen."

Alexander pressed his lips together and said nothing.

He wanted to ask more about who this 'old man' was, because his instinct told him this 'old man' might be connected to his grandfather's death.

But the other person clearly didn't want to say more, so he could only set this matter aside for now.

But he could finally confirm that his grandfather's death was indeed related to Anthony's side.

As for what kind of connection it was, he could only investigate slowly.

Alexander looked at Stephen and said coldly, "You should know that if anything happens to Philip, I will definitely take action. I'll do whatever it takes to make sure Anthony dies without a burial place."

"Yes, I'm very sure of that," Stephen said quietly. "But that takes time. If Philip dies, it'll take you time to find Anthony. We'll still be in the shadows. We won't have lost anything from start to finish, but you'll have lost a life for nothing."

Alexander clenched his fists. After a long pause, he said in a low voice, "If I agree to your demand, do you have any other conditions?"

Stephen smiled helplessly. "Alexander, though I hate to admit it, I'm the one at a disadvantage in this negotiation, right? You want me to release someone, and I'll release him. But whether you'll let Anthony go is just a matter of what you say. If you go back on your word, there's nothing I can do about it."

Of course, he wouldn't let himself remain at this disadvantage. He would use another bargaining chip to threaten Alexander and ensure Anthony's safety.

But there was no need to explain this to Alexander, just because he didn't say it didn't mean Alexander hadn't thought of it.

At that moment, he was very glad he had strengthened protection for the people around him. Even if the other side wanted to capture someone else to threaten him, they probably wouldn't be able to.

It might even give him a chance to catch the other side's weakness.

Neither of them spoke for a while. On the hillside, the two figures faced off in silence.

Finally, Stephen couldn't hold out any longer and urged, "Are you going to agree or not? Give me an answer."

"You've already pushed me this far. Do I have a choice?" Alexander laughed coldly. "Release Philip, and I promise you I won't go after Anthony anymore."

Stephen paused his smoking, then took the cigarette out and tapped off the ash, looking at him somewhat suspiciously. "You really agree?"

"You're not satisfied when I don't agree, and you don't believe me when I do," Alexander sneered. "What exactly do you want from me?"

Stephen squinted at him. "You'd better keep your word. Tomorrow, Anthony and Rachel will return home. I've already prepared their identities. Once they successfully pass through customs, I'll send Philip to Finland. When they've shaken off all surveillance and safely settled somewhere, I'll return Philip unharmed. How about that?"

Alexander nodded. "Fine."

Stephen looked warily at him.

He had investigated so much about Alexander, so instinctively, he didn't believe Alexander would agree to let Anthony go.

He felt that Alexander should want to completely destroy Anthony, that would be Alexander's true nature.

But now, Alexander had agreed so readily that he didn't quite dare to believe it.

"You don't need to worry about me going back on my word," Alexander said, as if seeing through his thoughts, smiling slightly. "You've planted quite a few people around my family. We're keeping each other in check. I want this farce to end more than anyone."

Stephen paused, then nodded after a moment. "Then it's settled."

And from his reaction, Alexander confirmed his guess.

This person had indeed planted people around Arabella and Becky, or around him.

His careful arrangement a few days ago to have people protect Arabella and Becky thoroughly wasn't wasted effort.

Perhaps the other side was still planning to use Arabella and Becky to continue controlling him, to keep him from going after Anthony in the future.

In an instant, many thoughts flashed through Alexander's mind, but he still wore a pleasant smile. "Alright, it's settled."

He only promised he wouldn't make a move himself; he didn't promise others wouldn't go after Anthony.

Once Anthony returned home, the initiative would be back in his hands.

The prerequisite was that he had to protect Arabella and Becky well, to keep his side from falling into a passive position.