Chapter 68: Jonas's Dark Humor
After I accepted Jonas's invitation, I was a bit worried that Lucas would get angry.
Everyone thought so. After what happened last time, Lucas seemed like a bomb ready to explode at any moment. Adrian and Cole stayed on high alert, afraid he'd do something shocking again, like kidnapping me.
However, Lucas's reaction was very calm. He didn't fly into a rage or lose his temper. He said to me, "Sunflowers suit you."
He also said, "It's gotten colder outside, put on a thicker coat."
Though his tone was cold, he was genuinely showing concern for me.
Then he went into the examination room, seemingly not too bothered about me personally cooking dinner for Jonas.
After Jonas and I got in the car together, I still found it hard to believe.
Jonas rubbed his chin, muttering constantly, "Strange, something's off, this isn't like Lucas at all."
I glanced at him sideways, "What do you think Lucas should do to be himself?"
"Make you throw away the flowers, forbid you from accepting flowers from any man except him; question me about how I could pursue you, force me into the arena to duel with him." Jonas shrugged, "I was mentally prepared for him to punch me!"
"If you understand him so well, why deliberately provoke him?" I asked, confused.
"Because it's fun to see him angry. Usually high and mighty Lucas, turning into a stupid dog chasing his own tail." Jonas laughed wickedly, "Don't you find it interesting?"
I couldn't understand Jonas's twisted sense of humor, but I was a bit curious, "How did you and Lucas become friends?"
Jonas looked at me resentfully, "Are we going to keep talking about Lucas?"
I blinked, planning to change the subject, but Jonas said, "Fine, since you want to know, I'll tell you."
"About six years ago, Lucas's power was pathetically weak. He came to me to borrow money and weapons. He wanted to challenge a mercenary organization several times stronger than him. Nobody believed in him, except me."
Jonas proudly pointed at his own eyes, "An excellent merchant like me must have excellent ability to spot treasures."
"I lent Lucas fifty million dollars and weapons of equal value; that's a hundred million total. He had to pay me back three times that within a year, or work for me."
I silently cursed him - what a crook!
Jonas continued, "Even an idiot could see this contract only benefited me, but Lucas agreed anyway. His guts were shockingly big! But even with my help, the power gap between him and them was still huge."
I reasonably suspected Jonas deliberately wanted Lucas to lose, maybe even teamed up with that mercenary organization to scam Lucas.
Jonas looked wistful, "Who would have thought? Lucas won against the odds, wiped out that mercenary organization in less than six months, and paid me back a month early."
He suddenly looked at me and smiled, "After Lucas, the second person to amaze me is you. Honestly, I really hope you and Lucas don't get back together."
"The chances of Lucas and me getting back together are very slim; you can rest easy," I said.
Jonas was about to speak when his phone rang. After answering and saying a few words, his expression changed.
After hanging up, he said apologetically, "Dinner's off."
I quickly asked what happened. Jonas said, "There's a problem with a shipment that arrived in Starstream City at dawn. I need to deal with it. Damn it, Lucas must be behind this! He's the buyer for that shipment. To stop our date, he's really willing to pay the price!"
Jonas gritted his teeth, as if biting Lucas's flesh from afar, "I thought he really didn't care, turns out he wanted to use this kind of underhanded trick!"
I didn't respond to that, but not having to dine alone with Jonas, I quietly breathed a sigh of relief.
After parting with Jonas, Adrian asked where I wanted to go next.
"To Starlight Quay," I said.
Starstream City has multiple docks. Starlight Quay is just a small dock where, apart from fishermen, no cargo or passenger ships come.
It's a half-abandoned old dock, but there are many residents nearby, forming a natural dock market. I found my way to a small shop doing pawn business.
The owner was a man around fifty, short and thin, unkempt. Because of his big head, his nickname was "Walrus Noggin."
When I entered, he was lying in a rocking chair behind the counter, drinking and watching TV.
"Pawning only, no redemption. Keep the valuable stuff, this shop doesn't take junk." Walrus Noggin spoke lazily and burped.
"It's me."
Walrus Noggin immediately put down his bottle and stood up, his drunken eyes instantly clearing, "Good day, Ms. Sorelli."
He closed the shop door and invited me to the warehouse in the back, "Everything collected recently is here."
Walrus Noggin used to be an appraiser at a major auction house. He was framed by colleagues and offended an important client, nearly losing everything. I happened to save his family, and they work for me in return.
I want to recover the property lost after my family's downfall. Although most was taken by the Gambino family, quite a bit ended up on the black market.
Walrus Noggin's two sons are both in Dawnharbor, searching for traces of my parents' belongings.
Not long ago, Amelia secretly sold a diamond tiara because she needed money. She still needs money badly now, but doesn't dare work with auction houses anymore, so black market pawn shops became her best choice.
Walrus Noggin said, "Amelia has sold quite a few things recently. She seems to need money badly. I asked around - she has several creditors who've been pressuring her to repay lately, using rather aggressive methods."
I nodded, "I know, I sent those creditors."
"I see." Walrus Noggin looked at me admiringly.
I carefully examined the items before me. These things couldn't compare to the diamond tiara's value at all. Though they had some worth, most were far from being collectibles or luxury goods.
But these things all belonged to Amelia personally, which meant that when Michelle divided the spoils, she only used these "cheap goods" to pay her off. It seems Michelle's maternal feelings for Amelia were also quite thin.
Of course, I'm not saying these things are useless.
In fact, the miscellaneous items before me - including toys, decorations, and old books - each one could trigger my memories.
Among them was a zoo model set made of colored glass, 2 feet high and 2 feet wide. The scenery and animals inside were all made of glass, very delicate. It was a toy Brian loved as a child.
I had someone send the other things home, and took this zoo model set to the law firm to find Brian, planning to give him a surprise.
Evening lights were coming on.
Located in the bustling city center, Silverpeak Legal Group occupied a four-story office building with a modern design and simple style. The law firm was brightly lit but not busy - most staff had left work. Brian's secretary recognized me and greeted me respectfully. I waved my hand, indicating he didn't need to attend to me.
I walked toward Brian's office, knocked on the door, and turned the handle.
"Are you really going to do this?" Brian was on the phone and didn't notice me come in. His expression looked conflicted, "Marcus, if you really kill Lucas, Bella will be very angry."
Anxiety rose in my heart, "Brian!"
Brian quickly turned to look at me, instinctively standing up straighter than standing at attention.
This was his guilty expression.
"What is Marcus planning to do?" I walked quickly closer.
"He wants to—" Brian raised his phone, and Marcus on the other end immediately hung up.