Chapter 233
Chapter 233
Stepping out of the jewelry store, the cold wind brushed Christina’s face, but her head had never felt clearer.
She’d been right.
The “Ethan” in Emerald City was an outright impostor.
The real Ethan had to be out there somewhere, waiting for her.
That afternoon, Christina met with the region’s most reputable private investigator, Max Reno, at an upscale club.
This scruffy Novarian man was a retired intelligence officer from Novaria's Foreign Legion. He had ties in both the underworld and official channels.
“Ms. Reed, you paid serious money to get me here. What do you want me to do?" Max asked casually.
Christina slid a black card across the table.
"I want you to keep tabs on a man for me." Christina slapped Zack's photo and information on the table. "I need to know his every move in Novaria."
Max’s eyes flicked to the black card. His fingers paused for a beat, then he nodded.
Over the next few weeks, Christina leased an apartment in Harmony City and kept her head down.
What kept her going, aside from video calls with Henry, were Max’s updates.
Every time Zack came to Novaria, he traveled with armed mercenary bodyguards. His movements were airtight.
But even the slyest fox couldn’t outrun a good hunter forever.
A month later, Max knocked on Christina's door.
He looked serious, holding a manila envelope.
“Ms. Reed, one of my informants nearly got himself killed tracking him. But he found the hideout.”
Max spread out several grainy photos taken with long-range lenses.
In the photos was a medieval castle at the foot of Silvercrest Peak.
“This is Blackthorn Fortress,” Max said. “On paper, it belongs to a bankrupt Novarian nobleman. In reality, someone anonymous bought it three years ago.”
He pointed to details in the images. “The perimeter’s wired with infrared sensors. Armed security runs patrols inside. It’s locked down like a military compound.”
Christina stared at the photos intently. "What does he go there for?"
“Don’t know,” Max said. “But every trip to Novaria, no matter how packed his schedule, he carves out at least a day to visit — in secret.” He lowered his voice. “We’ve also confirmed that doctors make regular house calls there.”
Christina's voice tightened: "Is he hiding a sick person in the castle?"
"Most likely." Max nodded. “And I just got word: Zack flies back to Celestria tomorrow morning.”
Christina stared at Max: "Max, I need to get inside."
"You're crazy!" Max stood up. “That place is crawling with mercenaries. If they catch you, you’re dead. They’ll dump your body in a ravine for the wolves.”
"Max!" Her eyes were red-rimmed, desperate. “Whoever’s in there means more to me than my own life.”
She pulled out her checkbook, wrote a check for thirty million dollars, and stuffed it into Max's pocket.
“Find me a way in. Even ten minutes. The money’s yours if you do.”
Money talked. And it bought boldness.
The castle kept a private physician on staff: Dr. Pierre.
He was a skilled doctor — and a hopeless gambler buried in debt.
Max paid Pierre’s debts in full and wired him another two million. The price: get a nurse inside.
On a bleak morning, snow fell hard.
An SUV fought its way up the snowbound mountain road and finally stopped at the gates of Blackthorn Fortress.
Inside, Christina was unrecognizable.
She wore a flaxen, slightly wavy wig and gray-blue contact lenses. Professional SFX makeup reshaped her features, and a thick medical mask covered the rest. Even Vivian wouldn’t have known her.
“Listen,” Dr. Pierre whispered, swallowing hard. “When we go in, just push the medical cart and stay behind me. Don’t look around. Don’t speak. You have ten minutes during the exam. That’s it.”
Christina nodded. Her hands were clenched tight inside her sleeves.
The gate opened, and several mercenaries walked over with Dobermans.
One ran a metal detector over her from head to toe.
"Dr. Pierre, new face?" the lead mercenary asked.
“My new assistant,” Pierre said, handing over papers with forced calm. “The last one quit.”
The leader checked the documents and stared at Christina for a few seconds before speaking: "Go in. Don't look around, and don't wander."
The two took the elevator straight to the top floor.
When the doors opened, four guards flanked the corridor. Pierre stepped forward, entered a code, pressed his thumb to a scanner, and the blast-proof door slid open.
“Bring the med kit. Hurry,” Pierre muttered, glancing at Christina.
She lowered her head and pushed the cart into the room.
The room had no windows, and the wall lamps gave off dim light.
A thin mattress lay in the corner. In the center sat a wheelchair — with someone in it.
Pierre unlocked the iron railing and signaled Christina to come forward to change the dressing.
Meanwhile, in Emerald City.
Ethan had just finished a high-level meeting.
Walking from the conference room to the CEO’s office, he carried a cold, oppressive air with him.
Employees he passed pressed themselves to the walls, barely breathing.
Over the past year, everyone at Carter Group had noticed the shift. Their CEO’s leadership style was nothing like before.
Veteran employees who’d been with the Carter family for years were fired or sidelined without explanation.
Even Joshua — once Ethan’s most trusted lieutenant — hadn’t been spared.
Senior staff whispered about it in private.
Now, Ethan surrounded himself with new hires he’d brought in personally.
If the changes had revitalized the company, people might have understood.
But in the last six months, Carter Group’s performance had slid. Stocks kept falling. The company was on shaky ground.
Even the major joint venture that the Darden family had offered as a birthday gesture at Elizabeth’s party was killed by Brice — on the spot — during today’s video conference.
The man's features and build were identical to Ethan's.
He was Ethan's twin brother—Zack.
Zack stormed into the CEO’s office, hostility radiating off him. His trusted special assistant followed, silent, head down.
The assistant closed the door gently and stood to the side, not daring to breathe too loudly.
Zack was still seething over Brice’s remarks.
Brice's words from the video conference still echoed in his ears. “When I agreed to work with the Carter Group, it was because of Ethan’s capabilities. I didn’t expect the current Mr. Carter to be incompetent and unable to handle the responsibility. The Darden Group isn’t a charity. If Mr. Carter can’t deliver, we’re terminating this partnership.”
“Brice!” Zack snarled through gritted teeth. Rage boiled over. He kicked the glass coffee table hard.
It crashed to the floor, shards scattering.
The assistant froze, afraid to move.
Only after Zack slumped onto the sofa and smoked a cigarette did his breathing start to even out.
The assistant clenched his fists and stepped forward carefully.
"Mr. Carter."
The moment he spoke, Zack’s glare cut toward him like a blade.
This boss had never been easy. The assistant had served him for years without a single word of praise.
What kept him going until now was simply the high salary Zack offered.
Still, filled with dread, he braced himself to report something important.