Chapter 218 He Lied to Me Again
The conversation with Heather cleared up doubts that had been weighing on my mind for years, but I didn't feel relieved.
On the way home, the car was completely silent. Adrian and Cole saw my bad mood and didn't dare chat with me casually like they usually did.
I propped my head up with one hand, my index finger pressing against my throbbing temple. "Adrian, go to Silver Eagle Auctions, the underground trading market, and the world's top five assassin organizations—offer high rewards everywhere."
I lowered my hand, opened my eyes, cold fury spilling from them, and slowly sat up straight. "I want to play cat and mouse, close in step by step, and capture Michelle alive."
Adrian responded, "Yes!"
I couldn't wait any longer. I wanted to see Michelle pay the price she deserved!
A day later, I received a bloodstained piece of cloth and a video of Michelle fleeing injured.
Another day passed. In the morning, I received a clump of unevenly cut hair, and in the afternoon, two fingers. The blood at the cuts was very fresh. The DNA was verified—they definitely belonged to Michelle herself.
I generously doubled the original reward, and the assassins became even more aggressive. But someone was protecting Michelle from behind the scenes. After losing two fingers, her whereabouts suddenly became a mystery again.
That day, Karen dragged me out of the office. "Are you a workaholic? Michelle isn't dead yet, so don't work yourself to death first! Come on, come with me to check out wedding venues."
Suburbs, lemon tree orchard.
The air was fresh, with a faint scent of grass and trees drifting in the wind.
"What do you think of this place?" Karen spun around in a circle, her eyes full of unconcealed joy.
"Very nice, beautiful scenery." I took slow, deep breaths, feeling the pressure that had built up recently melting away.
The owner of the orchard explained enthusiastically, "This orchard has over eighty years of history. It started as a barren wasteland. Because the biggest orchard across the sea had many discarded fruit trees, they just planted them here randomly. Unexpectedly, year after year, these trees grew thicker and more lush. Every year when they bloom, they smell especially fragrant. Unfortunately, the fruit quality is just average. Cutting the trees down would really be a waste.”
I nodded in agreement.
"So, I want to sell this place. If you like it..." The orchard owner looked at Karen and me with anticipation.
"We've only seen less than half of it. Let's talk after we've seen everything." I smiled in response.
The orchard owner rubbed his round belly and tried to get friendly with me. "By the way, I think I saw Mr. Valeri today." He pointed toward the east. "There's a flower field over there that cultivates rare varieties. When I passed by, I heard the field owner say that some rich guy ordered a huge batch of fresh flowers, saying he wanted to create a surprise for someone important! I'm guessing, could it be Mr. Valeri preparing a surprise for Ms. Sorelli?"
Karen couldn't help but complain, "Now that you've told us, what kind of surprise is it?"
"Sorry." The orchard owner awkwardly took off his hat and fanned himself.
I smiled unconcernedly. "Are you sure the person you saw was really Lucas? He's not in the country right now."
The orchard owner paused. "That man was tall and handsome, very commanding, and the person next to him looked a lot like Alfred. Maybe I got the wrong person!"
When we reached the center of the orchard, soft music suddenly started playing, and more than a dozen carts filled with roses and lily of the valley flowers came toward us from all directions.
Karen curiously stood on her tiptoes to look, nudging me with her elbow, excitedly guessing, "Could it really be Lucas preparing a surprise for you? Did he come back early from Serendia?"
I had already spotted the man hiding behind the staff. I couldn't help but smile, patting Karen's head. "Silly."
Karen looked at me confused. I pulled her along, and when Jonathan stood behind Karen, I reminded her, "Turn around."
Karen turned around in a daze. Jonathan's face was as red as a ripe tomato. He held a bouquet of handmade glass flowers and shouted, "Happy birthday!"
Karen belatedly threw herself at Jonathan. "Oh right, today is my birthday! No wonder you were acting so mysterious this morning!"
She excitedly kissed Jonathan hard, and Jonathan showed a happy, silly grin.
"Jonathan prepared for three months for Karen's birthday surprise. Karen was so moved she cried."
That evening, I lay in bed talking to Lucas on the phone, sharing what happened that day.
Lucas chuckled softly, his magnetic, sexy voice like a feather falling into my ear. "Are you reminding me that your birthday is coming up?"
I rubbed my ticklish ear. "I'm not. And after my birthday, it's less than a month until yours."
Lucas suddenly said, "I'm sorry."
"What?" I rolled over, hugging a large soft stuffed toy.
"Those three years we were married, you carefully prepared birthday gifts for me every year, but I..." Lucas's voice became hoarse. "I never remembered your birthday."
Why bring up such painful things!
I buried my face in the toy's belly, forcing back the tears that were threatening to come. "If you don't remember, forget it. It's nothing. We're divorced anyway."
"Yes."
I pressed my ear tightly against the phone. "Lucas? Are you crying?"
Lucas denied it. "No."
I quickly mocked myself internally. I'm not even crying, how could Lucas be crying? I must have heard wrong!
After that, we chatted a bit more. Before hanging up, I asked him, "When are you coming back?"
Lucas said, "A few more days. Do you miss me?"
"When you come back, I'll tell you then." I answered cleverly.
After reluctantly hanging up, I remembered what the orchard owner had said, but that was just a misunderstanding. I yawned and forgot about it right away.
The next day at noon, I was eating lunch when my phone suddenly pushed an explosive entertainment news story: "Popular Sexy Actress Returns to Hotel with Kingpin of the North!"
I stared at the headline for a few seconds, wondering if there was any other man in the world besides Starstream City who had the title "Kingpin of the North."
Then I clicked on the article. The man in the photo was Lucas!
His figure, profile, and posture were incredibly familiar. Alfred was also half in the frame. And the hotel mentioned in the news was near that orchard from yesterday!
What was going on?
Hadn't Lucas said last night he was still in Serendia?
Could it be he lied to me again?
I snapped back to my senses and dialed Lucas’s number, my fingers trembling slightly.
The ringtone sounded twice before the call was cut off. "The user you have dialed is busy and temporarily unavailable."
I called Alfred's number with a stern face.
"Mrs. Valeri, what can I do for you?"
"What is Lucas doing?" I asked calmly.
"Mr. Valeri is in a meeting."
I knew Alfred—he was lying!
"You came back from Serendia a long time ago. You're in Starstream City, aren't you?" I accurately named that hotel.
"Mrs. Valeri, how do you know?" Alfred asked back in surprise, his tone panicked.
I clenched my fists so tightly my knuckles turned white,, mmy eyes reddening. "It's not just me who knows—everyone in Starstream City knows! Entertainment news headline—see for yourselves!"