Chapter 240

Chapter 240

Audrey watched Vincent's reluctant expression and couldn't help but laugh.

"What's so funny?" Vincent frowned slightly.

"I'm laughing at how the CEO of the Brown Group can actually get shy."

Audrey reached out and pinched his cheek. "It's just meeting her to ask about her and Declan. It's not like I'm asking you to do anything serious. Why are you so nervous?"

Vincent caught her hand and held it in his palm, his tone earnest. "I'm not interested in other women."

"I know," Audrey said softly. "But this is about Black Raven, and it's about getting to the bottom of Declan's project."

"From what we can see, Arabella might be our only lead. We need to know exactly how she got pulled into this."

"She's just an ordinary person—there's no way she'd randomly come across that level of information."

Vincent fell silent for a moment.

"Besides," Audrey leaned in closer, "your wife is being this generous. Can't you cooperate a little?"

Vincent looked at her helplessly and finally sighed. "Fine. For my wife, I'll take one for the team."

The next afternoon, Vincent had someone send a message to Arabella's studio, asking her to meet him at that café in downtown Imperial City.

The moment Arabella received the message, she almost thought she was seeing things.

She checked the sender's information several times before believing that Vincent had actually initiated this meeting.

The meeting was set for 3 PM.

Arabella arrived half an hour early. She'd deliberately changed into an elegant dress, her makeup light and refined, making her look exceptionally gentle.

Vincent arrived right on time. Arabella was already sitting by the window, waiting for him.

Vincent sat down across from her. Without any small talk, he got straight to the point. "I heard you and Declan have been getting pretty close lately?"

Arabella froze slightly, clearly not expecting his first question to be about anything but their past.

"Mr. Ross has indeed helped me a lot. When I first came back to the country, I wasn't familiar with much. He gave me plenty of advice and even introduced me to several curators."

"How did you two meet?"

Arabella lowered her gaze and began to recall. "One year, when I was organizing an exhibition overseas, I ran into some difficulties. Funding wasn't flowing, and the exhibition organizers had some last-minute issues, too. At the time, I was alone abroad, completely out of my depth. I almost gave up."

"Later, someone told me that there was a businessman who was very interested in my work and willing to sponsor the exhibition."

"That person was Declan?"

"Yes." Arabella nodded. "He looked at my work, said it was very vivid, sponsored the entire exhibition, and even helped me connect with several European galleries. We stayed in touch after that, and he introduced me to a lot of people in the industry."

Vincent's expression remained neutral, but his mind was rapidly processing this information.

Arabella's story sounded seamless enough, but the process she described had an oddly coincidental feel to it.

A stranger, a businessman, just happened to appear when she was at her most desperate, just happened to be interested in her work, and was willing to provide enough resources and capability to help her through her crisis.

All these coincidences stacked together made it seem deliberate instead.

"Did he ever mention why he wanted to help you?"

Arabella paused. "He said... he appreciated my work."

"That simple?"

"That's what he said."

Vincent didn't press the topic further.

"The project you're working on with Declan—did he mention any special requirements? Like regarding security?"

Arabella was stunned for a moment. "He mentioned it once. He said the project involved data infrastructure construction, and the security system had to meet military-grade standards."

"He also said he'd heard that Black Raven's security network was the strongest in the industry. If he could bring Black Raven in, the project would be even more secure."

"So that's why you went to Audrey," Vincent said.

"Yes, to repay Mr. Ross."

"I see," Vincent said thoughtfully.

"So you came to see me today just to ask about this?" Arabella asked, somewhat disappointed.

"You're right. I have a wife, so there's no way I can reminisce about old times with you."

After returning to the Brown Mansion, Vincent recounted the entire conversation to Audrey word for word.

Audrey sat on the sofa listening. After a long silence, she finally spoke. "Maybe Declan's been planning this for a while."

"You mean he's had his eye on Arabella from the start?"

"Not just Arabella. It's very possible that from the beginning, his target was the Brown Group, or even Black Raven. Arabella was just a pawn he used to get close to all of this."

Vincent's brow furrowed. "Why would he do that?"

Audrey didn't answer the question. She began to think, and soon, something occurred to her.

"I'm wondering if Declan's understanding of Black Raven might be deeper than we imagined."

Audrey's tone grew somber. "He might not just know Black Raven's name. He might actually be connected to Black Raven himself. Maybe someone in his family was involved in Black Raven's founding or operations."

Vincent's gaze sharpened slightly.

"You're saying his family members might also be Black Raven, people."

"Just speculation." Audrey turned around. "But it's worth looking into."

She picked up her phone, quickly typed out a message, and sent it to the Black Raven contact responsible for archival organization.

A few days later, an encrypted file was sent to Audrey's private email.

Audrey sat in the study, carefully reviewing it. The records dated back very early, almost to Black Raven's founding period.

Audrey discovered that it mentioned a security expert with the surname Ross.