Chapter 324 This Man Can Permeate Her Life
"You're here?"
"Coming alone would be fine, but why'd you bring someone with you?"
Thalia was puzzled.
Someone else? Where?
Thalia turned around and looked at the empty room.
Where was anyone?
"Don't you see? There's someone behind you." William was still lying on his back in bed, his posture relaxed, as if he'd just woken up to find an old friend standing by his bedside. Just watching him made Thalia break out in a cold sweat.
This...
Could he actually see ghosts?
At that thought, Thalia felt a tingle run up her tailbone, and a chill crept up her back.
William was too scary. She needed to stay away from him.
The moment the thought crossed Thalia's mind, she started to act on it. Just as she turned around, a large hand reached around her waist from behind. In one swift motion, he flipped her over and pinned her beneath him.
Her hands were pressed above her head. She couldn't move.
"Scared now? Got such a small nerve but still dared to play ghost."
"You bastard," Thalia's anger flared up instantly. "You scared me?"
"You can scare me, but I can't scare you?"
"Let me go." Thalia was furious.
William shifted to the side and pulled her up from the bed, glancing at the time on the nightstand—4:30 AM. "What kind of variety show keeps you recording until this hour?"
Thalia sat on the bed, smoothing down her messy hair. "Ended at 11:30, three-hour drive back."
"Hungry? Want something to eat?"
"No need, you keep sleeping. I'm going to shower." As Thalia was about to head into the bathroom, she realized it was getting late. By the time she finished washing up, it would definitely be over an hour later, and by then it would almost be dawn. William would have to get up soon.
William's biological clock was incredibly precise—up at 6:30 sharp, forty minutes of exercise, twenty minutes to wash up, half an hour for breakfast, out the door at 8:00 on the dot.
During meals, he'd browse political news and financial reports. His life was so regimented that it seemed like it was cut from a template.
It made Thalia wonder at times if the man wasn't a bit obsessive.
"Should I use the guest bedroom to shower?"
"No need."
"Won't I disturb you?" After all, she could sleep all day tomorrow, but he might not have that luxury.
"You won't."
When Thalia came out of the shower, she had just laid down on the bed and hadn't even found a comfortable position yet when an arm circled her waist and pulled her against his chest.
She nestled in, found a comfortable position, and drifted off to sleep.
............
"You sure this is the place?"
"This is it. The address is right here, isn't it?"
"But this is Regal City's famous upscale neighborhood. Even though new developments have been popping up like mushrooms these past few years, this community has always been top-tier. The people living here are either rich or powerful."
Finn looked at the community's name and triple-checked. "No mistake."
"Let's go in and take a look."
"We should disguise ourselves. If we go in like this, we'll probably get stopped. High-end communities have very strict management."
Finn thought about it—that made sense.
The two found delivery worker uniforms and snuck in.
The other party seemed prepared—they'd even provided the passcode.
Finn was holding the note, about to enter the code, when James reached out to stop him. "Don't!"
"Could be a trap."
"Let's get out of here."
"Just find out who owns this place. We don't need to go in."
Finn thought about it—that made sense too.
He followed James downstairs.
Not long after they left, the door to the apartment opened. A man dressed all in black, wearing a baseball cap, stood in the doorway observing for a long time before returning inside.
He picked up his phone and made a call.
The next morning, William received a call from the two of them.
"We didn't go in, but we found out who owns the place. This apartment was transferred to a middle-aged man a long time ago, but you'll never guess who the previous owner was."
James took a sip of water. He'd been busy all night and had only just gotten back to the hotel.
William held his phone, waiting for him to continue. "Who?"
"To be exact, it's an apartment Zephyrine bought for her daughter a long time ago."
"You're saying this was Zephyrine's doing?"
"Yes."
"We checked the current owner—he's a manager who works for Zephyrine."
"Got it." William hung up and sat by the hospital bed holding his phone, brow furrowed in thought. He'd assumed this was the Jimenez family's doing, but he never expected it to be Zephyrine.
It seemed he'd been too lenient with Kurt.
Otherwise, how would Zephyrine still have a chance to make a comeback?
Did they really think he was that easy to mess with?
"Whose call was that?" Angelina asked curiously, seeing him silent for so long without speaking.
William's eyelids lifted slightly as he gave a faint smile. "James. Says this was Zephyrine's doing."
Hearing James's name, Angelina paused. Everyone who'd been with William for a while knew that James had always stayed abroad managing things for him. To pull him back from overseas this time was definitely a big move.
"What are you planning to do?"
"Don't worry about it. Just focus on recovering."
Angelina knew William's methods were ruthless, not merciful.
...........
That evening, Kurt finished wrapping up the final matters at the Lowe Group and returned home.
He handed Zephyrine a plane ticket.
"What's this for?" Zephyrine asked.
"Take your daughter out to relax. Don't just stay home overthinking," Kurt said.
"Yeah, Mom, I think Dad's right. Stop staying home dwelling on things. Look, my brother and I are all grown up now. We have our own life directions and goals. You and Dad are getting on in years. If the company's gone, it's gone—just consider it early retirement. This is actually a good opportunity for us all to travel together and clear our heads."
Sophia Lowe followed Kurt's lead, trying to persuade her earnestly, but Zephyrine wasn't having it. "I'm not in the mood. Don't want to go."
"Why not? The weather's so nice now, it's the perfect time to go out and relax."
No matter how much Sophia tried to convince her, Zephyrine wouldn't budge. "How about this—let's just go out shopping?"
With that, Kurt arranged for the family driver to take the two of them out. He was probably too worried about Zephyrine spiraling, so he'd reluctantly called his daughter back from school.
The two went out and entered a mall. By the time they came out, it was nearly 10 PM.
Mother and daughter were carrying bags of their shopping haul, about to get in the car and head home. They'd just reached the car and hadn't even opened the door yet when a speeding vehicle came racing by and knocked Zephyrine to the ground.
Then it sped off.
"Someone help! Quick, someone help!! Mom!" Sophia's sharp, terrified voice rang out through the parking garage.
Not far away, a man in a suit stepped out of a black Bentley. As he walked over with measured steps, he seemed like a god descending, bringing a hint of warmth to the silent parking garage.
Sophia never could have imagined that in the days to come, this man would become woven throughout her life.