Chapter 100
Driving my car, I glanced in the rearview mirror as usual and spotted that vehicle with tinted privacy film again.
This car had been following me for nearly a week now.
The people tailing me were probably the same group who had been tracking me at the hospital.
When I parked at my office building, I didn't go upstairs. Instead, I walked in my heels step by step toward that car with the privacy film and gently tapped on the window.
The window slowly rolled down. I only saw a middle-aged man wearing sunglasses in the driver's seat, looking at me expressionlessly.
I had no time for small talk: "You've been following me for days. What exactly do you want? Doesn't the person behind you plan to come out and meet me?"
The driver pushed up his sunglasses and said nothing, just silently rolled up the window, as if we'd never met.
How enlightening. This kind of blatant stalking was enough for me to call the police.
I rubbed the ring on my finger and gently pressed a protruding button on it. A steel needle appeared from the center of the ring in my palm. I walked to the front of the car, bent down, and viciously inserted the needle into the tire.
Of course, after puncturing one, I moved to another. Only when I heard the faint hissing sound of air leaking did I feel satisfied. I retracted the needle into my ring, dusted off my hands, flashed a provocative smile toward the car, and left with satisfaction.
Sure enough, as soon as I left, the previously composed driver immediately opened the door and got out, walked around the car to inspect it, then quickly got back in and drove off with a press of the gas pedal. He was probably heading to the nearest auto repair shop. I wondered if he'd dare report this to the police.
Actually, I didn't think doing this would make whoever was watching me show themselves, but it felt good to cause them some trouble.
In the afternoon, my phone rang an unknown number. I answered, and an unfamiliar voice came through: "Ms. Wilson, this is Zach Hernandez from Crimson Nightclub. We've met before. I'm not sure if you remember me."
Of course, I remembered: "Zach? I definitely remember you. Last time you sent me two very capable bodyguards. I haven't properly thanked you yet. Of course, some unexpected things happened later that I didn't anticipate, but that's not your fault, right?"
Zach's tone showed no guilt: "I can only blame myself for being a poor judge of character. So to show my apology, Ms. Wilson, if you have time, may I invite you to dinner?"
Since he'd already reached out, I had no reason to refuse: "Sure, you arrange it. I'm available anytime."
Zach laughed heartily: "Great, I like dealing with straightforward people like you. I heard Mr. Lopez was injured and hospitalized a while back. I've been too busy to visit. Could you please pass along my regards?"
This matter hadn't been made public. The fact that he knew about it clearly meant he'd been tracking us all along: "No problem, you're too kind. I'll pass along your regards."
After hanging up, I set my phone aside. The Brown Group's affairs were basically sorted out now. After the integration, I discovered that what I'd taken over was even worse than I'd originally imagined.
But it didn't matter. I had no interest in elevating the Brown Group. Its sole purpose was to gradually become nourishment for SoftGlow Biotech. That name would soon be erased from memory—the ultimate revenge on Charles and Jasper.
From what I knew, they were already in dire straits. After Sophia got out, she could suffer along with them.
Nina suddenly appeared in front of me, casually tossing her bag aside, her tone full of complaint: "Emily, you've been ridiculously busy lately. I can never find you. What have you been up to?"
I looked up at her with a smile. She'd already sat on the armrest of my chair, her arm around my shoulders, looking petulant—completely different from her tough businesswoman image in public.
"I've been dealing with some things lately. If you have something to say, just say it. It won't look good if someone sees us like this." I pretended to push her away, but when she didn't budge, I just let her cling to me.
"Oh, let me tell you something funny. Jasper called me a couple of days ago—he actually asked to borrow money from me." Nina covered her mouth, laughing brightly.
"Did you lend it to him?" I asked curiously.
"How could I?" Nina immediately retorted. "I'd rather throw my money away or burn it than lend it to him, okay? He deserves what's happening to him now. From what he said, the Brown Group is yours now? That's impressive. How did you pull that off?"
Nina bumped my shoulder, looking at me with admiration.
I smiled somewhat helplessly: "They didn't guard it well, no one could have taken it. But if he's asking you for money, he must really be desperate."
Nina nodded: "They're apparently staying in some hotel now. He said their house and cars were all mortgaged and forcibly seized. I just came to see if you were enjoying this. Oh, and I haven't seen Oscar this whole time. I've revised the design plans several times already. Tell him to finalize this last version quickly. I have other things to do and can't keep wasting time on this."
"He's your client now. Shouldn't you be more professional?" I teased with a smile.
Nina wrinkled her nose: "If he wasn't paying so much, would I keep revising it over and over? You're choosing your man over your friend now. Isn't our relationship closer than yours with him? By the way, what's he been so busy with?"
I sighed: "You should be able to see him soon. He's been in the hospital this whole time."
"What happened?" Nina was somewhat surprised. "I thought he was just busy with something else. Was he sick? Was it serious if he had to be hospitalized?"
"Not exactly, just a burn on his back. The area was pretty large, and he had to have surgery, so it took some time. He's been discharged now and is recovering at home." I briefly explained what had happened.
Nina caught the key point: "So he played the hero and saved you? In that case, this guy's actually pretty decent. I used to think no one from the Lopez family was any good. If he's protecting you like this, has he really fallen for you?"
My face flushed slightly, and I didn't answer directly.
Nina immediately noticed my subtle change: "That expression... don't tell me you've fallen for him too?"
I avoided her probing gaze, looking down with a smile: "Actually... it might not be a bad idea to give it a try."
"You really like him?" She sounded incredulous.
I paused, then finally nodded: "I said yes."