Chapter 26
Elizabeth's POV
The servants nearby all gasped in shock, and Lisa kept giving me meaningful looks, seemingly not wanting me to anger Alex.
I also sensed the cold aura constantly emanating from him, but I didn't dare give up, because that bracelet was just too important to me.
If I couldn't get it back, my heart would never be at peace.
My chin was suddenly grabbed. Alex seized my chin, forcing me closer to him, his eyes staring at me without blinking.
"Looks like this bracelet really is important to you."
"Of course! So please give it back to me."
I gritted my teeth, determined to get my bracelet back.
However, his gaze moved away from my face, slowly downward, finally settling on my lower abdomen. "What I want is exactly this kind of caring feeling."
His commanding tone left me stunned, and the unease rising in my heart warned me not to dwell on this matter anymore.
But that bracelet...
"I'm just worried the bracelet won't be cherished in your hands. Mr. Windsor, can you guarantee it won't get damaged at all?"
Alex let go of me, stood up, gave a cold snort and left, not answering my question at all.
I frowned, staring at his retreating figure, the frustration in my heart building up more and more.
Lisa came to my side, cautiously whispering, "Ms. Spencer, about that bracelet you mentioned, I think I know what's going on."
"Really?" My eyes immediately lit up.
Lisa nodded. "Mr. Windsor did bring back a bracelet before and told me to put it away carefully. If you're worried about it getting damaged, please rest assured, it absolutely won't."
For a moment, I did have the thought of using Lisa to get the bracelet back, but quickly dismissed the idea.
Lisa would only side with Alex. I was afraid the moment I opened my mouth, she would tell him everything word for word.
In this villa, I had no one I could trust. I had to be extremely careful with everything I did.
I pressed my lips together. "Did Mr. Windsor give any other instructions? Like, did he tell you to take care of me like before?"
"Yes."
Lisa made a welcoming gesture. "So, Ms. Spencer, please have your meal first."
Hot dishes were placed on the dining table. Since Alex had already left, I had no reason to punish my own stomach.
After breakfast, my phone kept ringing nonstop. Some calls were from Aiden, others from Smith Manor.
Annoyed, I just turned it off.
Even if Aiden found out I was being held here, he probably wouldn't come looking for me easily.
Since he dared to have someone take me directly from Smith Manor, he deserved to learn a lesson!
After spending a boring morning at the villa and having lunch, I finally turned my phone back on.
Countless missed calls appeared before my eyes. I ignored them all, only noticing the call Julia made at ten in the morning.
I pressed the callback button, and the call was quickly answered.
Julia's voice was filled with excitement. "Elizabeth! Someone's offering big money for your jewelry design!"
"Who is it?"
The first person that flashed through my mind was actually Aiden. Was he trying to use my design to please Bianca again?
Julia's voice interrupted my speculation, drifting over leisurely. "The client didn't reveal their identity, but they directly paid a deposit of twenty million dollars."
Such generous spending—no wonder Julia called me directly.
"I couldn't reach you this morning, so I haven't replied to them yet. Take a look and see if you want to take this job?"
I looked at the scenery outside the window and spoke softly. "For a client who pays so readily, what are their requirements?"
Drawing design drafts here wouldn't be a problem. Plus, I wanted to keep Aiden waiting a bit longer, and I'd need money to break away from The Smith family in the future. Being able to earn more was always a safeguard for the future.
Julia said, "This client is quite strange. They only sent me pictures of a set of jewelry that looks quite old, saying they want you to recreate it based on this."
I frowned slightly. I'd never heard of such a request.
After all, my designs were famous precisely because of their originality.
And now, this client actually wanted me to redesign old jewelry?
"What's his budget?" I was somewhat hesitant.
Julia heard my reluctance and quietly tried to persuade me. "Fifty million minimum, no upper limit mentioned."
I hesitated. "The price is really tempting, but this requirement..."
Julia said, "Just see if you have time. If you do, just design something casually. From what I heard, the requirements don't seem very high."
"Alright then, I'll take it."
Julia could barely hide the smile in her voice and quickly said, "Great! Then I'll reply to them right away. There's no rush for this, just send me the design draft when you have time."
Money was there for the taking, no point refusing it. In these special circumstances, I did not need to have a problem with money.
However, this client with rather peculiar requirements did catch my attention. After all, innovating based on old jewelry, any designer could do that, right?
Going out of their way to spend big money to find me seemed suspicious, no matter how you looked at it.
But since the money had already been transferred, I might as well take the job.
Julia sent over the design drawings. I had Lisa and Anna leave the room, then focused on drawing the design draft myself.
Time passed minute by minute. When I came back to my senses, it was already evening.
A scream came from downstairs. At first, I thought I'd heard wrong, but the sound grew louder and louder, filled with despair and extremely piercing.
I hesitantly opened the door, coming face to face with Lisa's panic-stricken expression.
"What's happening downstairs?" I craned my neck to look behind her. "Did something happen? Let me go down and see."
"Don't, don't go." Lisa spread her arms to block me, her face full of alarm. "Ms. Spencer, you should just stay in your room. Anna and I will bring dinner up to you."
Another scream rang out, so sharp it sounded like someone was being tortured, making cold sweat run down my back.
"What's going on?" I frowned. Driven by curiosity, I pushed Lisa aside and quickly headed downstairs.
Lisa panicked, wanting to stop me but not daring to be too loud, only able to follow closely behind me.
Walking down the stairs, I immediately saw several people kneeling on the ground.
They had removed their shirts, their backs covered with whip marks, flesh torn open. Just looking at it made one feel the pain.
The sound of a whip striking flesh, followed immediately by an ear-piercing scream from the person being beaten.
I instantly froze, covering my ears as I watched the scene before me, my heart pounding wildly.
The person holding the whip and beating them was Alex.
He gripped the whip tightly, his face showing no emotion, only coldness and cruelty.
His deep eyes were murky, like a gaze cast from hell itself.