Chapter 4 Does Your Conscience Hurt
Leopold felt that Caroline wasn't easy to deal with after their brief interaction, so he decided to prepare a backup plan just in case.
Just as he was about to start his car, he spotted Caroline hurrying out the main entrance, standing by the roadside trying to hail a cab—but as luck would have it, there were none available. Leopold wouldn't miss this opportunity to be helpful, especially when he had his sights set on winning her over. He smoothly pulled up in front of Caroline.
The window rolled down as Caroline peered inside, tilting her head.
"Ms. Tudor, where are you headed? Let me give you a ride."
Caroline wanted to refuse, but she knew noon was the only time Atticus would definitely not be home.
Given the urgency, Caroline opened the back door and slid in. "Thank you, could you please take me to Lakeside Retreat?"
Leopold noticed her urgency and joked while driving, "I'm not too familiar with the roads here—you'll have to be my human GPS."
Only then did Caroline remember he'd mentioned being in Seaside City for just a month.
"Turn left at the upcoming intersection."
Leopold merged into the leftmost lane. "Is that where you live?"
After a moment's hesitation, Caroline replied, "Yes."
Following her navigational guidance, the car stopped in front of Lakeside Retreat. Before getting out, Caroline thanked him again.
"Thank you. Sorry for taking up your time—let me transfer you some money for gas."
Leopold raised his hand to interrupt her. "Even if we're keeping our distance, that's going too far. It was on my way—no big deal. Don't worry about it. If you send me gas money, I'd feel insulted. See you."
Caroline realized it would be inappropriate and nodded awkwardly. "Goodbye, Mr. Wipere."
After exiting the car, she walked a few steps before looking back, only to find Leopold's car still parked there. She turned away and quickened her pace.
She had expected Leopold to use this opportunity to bring up the capacity expansion project again, but she was wrong—he hadn't mentioned it once.
Meanwhile, inside the car, Leopold watched her go, a meaningful smile playing on his lips.
The fastest way to break the ice was to create points of connection.
The power company held a meeting for mid-level and senior management that afternoon, leaving Caroline with a headache. When she got home, she was too tired to cook dinner and ordered pasta through a food delivery app.
While waiting for her food, Caroline watered the plants. Her phone on the table chimed twice with message notifications.
After unlocking her screen, she saw two unread WhatsApp messages, with a prominent red "2" on north's profile picture.
north: [Ms. Tudor, hello, this is Leopold.]
north: [When convenient, I'd like to discuss the installation locations with you. Please message back when you see this.]
The tone was polite and courteous. Caroline put down her spray bottle, sat on the couch, and replied: [Good evening. Regarding the location selection, please give me a general overview.]
Leopold began explaining his ideas.
He had marked 13 installation locations on the map. What followed were detailed messages with photos, installation plans, and maintenance procedures for each site. His analysis was thorough and well-reasoned.
Yet Caroline rejected all 13 proposed installation sites.
Leopold glanced at the clock—it was already eleven.
Exhausted, he removed his glasses and pinched the bridge of his nose. No longer wanting to type, he picked up his phone and held down the voice message button: "Ms. Tudor, let's call it a day. Thank you for your time," and added, "I appreciate it."
From the proposals he'd provided, it was clear he had put in considerable effort—many annotations were handwritten. With all 13 sites rejected, Caroline felt somewhat guilty.
She sent Leopold a message.
The chat notification appeared simultaneously on her laptop and phone screens.
Caroline: [Sorry, I couldn't be more helpful.]
Leopold put his glasses back on, sent a smiling emoji, then typed: [Good night.]
Caroline: [Good night.]
Saying goodnight didn't necessarily mean going to sleep.
In different spaces, Caroline poured herself coffee and walked out of the kitchen, while Leopold returned to his seat with his own coffee mug.
She plugged a USB drive into her laptop and began browsing videos, while he opened a web browser and typed "Seaside City, Solstice Mountain landslide accident" into the search bar, hitting enter. The webpage displayed relevant results, and he clicked on the first one.
In the early morning hours, the laptop screen's light reflected on Caroline's pale face as she paused a video showing Atticus pinning a woman beneath him.
The evidence of his infidelity lay before her eyes. After contemplative thought, her expression finally softened slightly. She checked the time in the bottom right corner: 00:46.
She closed her laptop, ready to end this terrible relationship.
Caroline drove straight to Lakeside Retreat. Upon entering, she noticed a pair of women's ankle boots on the doormat. Stepping past them, she saw a black handbag tossed on the sofa, clothes scattered on the floor, and a sexy pair of underwear carelessly thrown on her favorite teddy bear. Caroline's face remained unnaturally calm.
The bedroom door was slightly ajar. She pushed it open a crack, took out her phone to capture photos of the two people in bed, and recorded a video.
She closed the door again and returned to sit on the living room sofa.
The show was about to begin.
Her relationship with Atticus had entered its final countdown.
A phone rang from inside the bedroom, followed by a lazy response from the receiver.
"Who is it?"
The phone line was eerily quiet, then Caroline spoke in a cold tone, "I'm back."
Atticus's brain froze for a few seconds. "Back? Back where?"
Caroline said, "I'm at the highway exit. Come pick me up."
Before Atticus could answer, she hung up.
He immediately got up and pushed his mistress awake. "Wake up, get up quickly. My girlfriend's coming back—you need to leave now."
After several attempts, the person under the covers didn't move. Atticus pulled her up; the mistress, hair disheveled, mumbled drowsily, "What... I'm so tired."
"Stop sleeping," Atticus said frantically, picking up his shirt and pants from the floor and putting them on. "My girlfriend's back. Hurry and get your things."
The mistress opened her eyes and complained, "Is she crazy, coming back this early?"
"Just hurry up. I'll take you home first." Remembering something, he added, "Check everything—don't leave anything behind like last time when you almost forgot your underwear."
The mistress laughed at the mention of this, hugging Atticus from behind. "Were you scared then? Let me feel if your conscience hurts."
"Where are you touching?"
Flirtatious laughter filled the room again.
Atticus checked the time and said, "Stop fooling around. We're running out of time."
"Alright, I'll go to the bathroom."
The mistress flipped her hair, threw on a piece of clothing, and walked out.
As soon as she opened the door, she froze. Upon recognizing the person on the sofa, she quickly retreated into the bedroom, shutting the door behind her. With a panicked expression, she told Atticus, "There's someone in the living room."