Chapter 85
Richard's eyes turned suddenly cold and sharp. Jennifer again. Before he could even confront her, she'd already eagerly extended her reach here.
"Keep an eye on her," Richard said, then hung up.
He had never felt so powerless before. His phone vibrated—an encrypted email from his assistant. Richard opened it to find a single photo.
The background showed a flower shop. Fiona's assistant held a large bouquet of white lilies—Margaret's favorites.
In the inconspicuous bottom right corner of the photo, a small delivery slip was attached to the flower shop's glass door.
Due to the angle and distance, the writing on the slip was blurry. But his assistant had used technical means to enlarge and sharpen it to the maximum.
Though incomplete, the delivery address showed several key letters and numbers—a street code pointing to an upscale residential area near Lakehaven University Medical Center.
Richard stared intently at the address, as if trying to burn it into his memory.
"Go to this place," he said hoarsely. "As fast as possible."
He had to go, even if this was another trap, even if there was only a one-in-million chance.
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The security system at the Lakeshore District apartment building was rigorous, exuding understated luxury throughout.
Richard solved the entry problem in the most forceful way possible.
Following his memory, Richard found the apartment number, took a deep breath, and pressed the card against the reader. The door opened immediately.
The apartment was dark, no lights on. But in the corridor light, he could see a pair of women's slippers by the entrance—simple and elegant, just Margaret's style.
The air seemed to hold a faint trace of her distinctive, delicate scent.
Richard's heart skipped a beat. He felt along the wall and pressed the switch.
The room flooded with light. In the center of the living room, where a coffee table should have been, stood only a transparent glass vase. In the vase was a full bunch of white lilies.
Nothing else. No human presence, no signs of life, not even a speck of dust.
Richard stood motionless as the blood in his veins gradually turned cold. He'd been played again.
His phone vibrated—his assistant calling. Richard answered but said nothing.
"Mr. Neville," his assistant's voice remained steady, "we just received news. Our people monitoring the hospice center at Mount Aurelion had a nearly successful tracking attempt this afternoon at a supply station in the nearby town."
Richard's brow furrowed.
"The target was alert and shook off our people. But during the pursuit, our team captured a blurry profile from the dashcam footage," the assistant paused. "After technical comparison, there's a seventy percent probability it's Matthew Kennedy."
Matthew. The name hit Richard's tense nerves like a bullet.
Wasn't Margaret's beloved Matthew supposed to be back home? Why would Matthew appear near the area where Fiona was hiding Margaret?
Richard's mind exploded with realizations.
Why would Fiona hide Margaret? Why refuse his help? Why go to such lengths to play this cat-and-mouse game with him?
Unless Margaret already had someone else by her side. Someone she trusted more, someone she preferred to rely on. So she didn't need Richard's bone marrow or the Neville family's resources.
Fiona had created this labyrinth of confusion to buy time. They were all playing him—all of them working together to fool him!
A surge of rage rushed to his head, making Richard's vision blur.
"Mr. Neville?" The assistant detected the change.
"The pressure on Matthew that I told you to pause," Richard's voice was raspy, each word forced through clenched teeth, "resume it all, doubled."
"Understood."
"Also, find out when he left the country, what identity he used, and who helped him!"
He thought pausing the pressure was sparing Matthew, a form of mercy. Little did he know it had become the perfect opportunity for their secret maneuvers!
Richard hung up, his chest heaving violently. He couldn't bear to imagine that scene—Margaret lying in a hospital bed, pale-faced, with Matthew by her side, holding her hand, attending to her every need.
That position should have been his!
She claimed she wanted to draw boundaries, then ran off abroad with her old flame?
Even going so far as to fake an illness to deceive him, treating him like a fool running circles around Lakehaven while they bought time?
Humiliation, fury, and the sharp pain of betrayal threatened to tear him apart. He rushed out of the apartment, back to his car, and slammed his fist against the steering wheel.
Then he remembered something. Camila was in Lakehaven. Jennifer had encouraged her to come.
Richard's expression turned ominous as he took out his phone and dialed that all-too-familiar number.
The call rang for a long time before being answered.
Camila's voice came through, angry and tearful, "So you remember to call me? Richard, has that bitch put a spell on you? I—"
"Mom," Richard interrupted, his voice devoid of warmth, "go back home right now."
"What?" Camila was stunned. "I just arrived! I haven't even confronted that bitch yet, I—"
"I said, take the earliest flight back home." Richard's tone brooked no argument. "You'll only get in the way here."
His mind was in chaos, but one thing was clear—he couldn't let anyone else disrupt his plans, especially Camila, who was being manipulated by Jennifer.
"Richard! You're talking to me like this because of that bitch?"
"I won't say it twice." Richard hung up and sent a message to his assistant.
[Have someone "escort" my mother to the airport. Make sure she boards the earliest flight home.]
With that done, he tossed his phone onto the passenger seat and started the car. This time, his destination wasn't the hotel, but the Neville Group's headquarters in Lakehaven.
It was time to change tactics. If Fiona and Matthew wanted to play, he'd play to the end. If business pressure wasn't enough, he'd try something else.
He would make all of Europe inhospitable for them. He would teach Matthew the price of stealing what belonged to him.
As for Margaret... Richard's eyes darkened like an abyss.
He would bring her back. Whether her illness was real or fake, whether she was willing or not, he would keep her by his side and make her watch as Matthew lost everything because of her.