Chapter 97 A leopard can't change its spots
Dawnlight City had been gloomy for days, but instead of the expected heavy snow, the weather cleared up.
At ten-thirty in the morning, Rachel had just finished a meeting and walked out of the conference room when her phone suddenly rang with a pleasant ringtone.
The caller ID showed "Nancy."
She paused mid-step, the light in her eyes slowly dimming.
Ever since the acrylic board incident during the exhibition setup, an invisible barrier had formed between her and Nancy. They rarely chatted on WhatsApp anymore.
Most of the time, she just couldn't be bothered to waste energy pretending even through a phone screen. It was too exhausting.
So phone calls were even more out of the question.
The ringtone was almost over when Rachel finally answered, her voice as gentle as always. "Nancy, what's up?"
"Rachel, are you busy?"
Nancy's voice on the other end was even softer than hers, light and airy. Just hearing it, you could imagine that pitiful, delicate manner of hers.
Rachel said with a smile, "Just came out of a meeting."
"I was worried you wouldn't be at Stargaze Gallery," Nancy said, sounding relieved. "Rachel, could you do me a favor and look for a keychain in the right drawer of my desk? It's really important to me. Things happened so suddenly last time, I forgot to take it when I left."
A keychain?
"You're already at Stargaze Gallery? Why not just come up and get it yourself?"
"It's not convenient for me." Nancy hesitated. "Please, Rachel, just grab it for me."
"Okay, I'll get it for you." Rachel paused, then asked, "Anything else you need?"
"Not for now. I'll wait for you in the parking lot."
"Alright, give me a minute."
After Nancy left, no one had touched anything at her desk, and no one had taken over her workstation.
Rachel walked over and opened the drawer Nancy mentioned. She immediately spotted the keychain with a dark blue dolphin charm attached to the ring.
Something very important to Nancy.
Was it this charm she bought when she went out on a date with Steven?
She let out a cold laugh, her eyes filled with indifference and coldness, and carelessly tossed the keychain onto the desk. "Emma."
Emma was the person Rachel had promoted from Team B to Team A leader after Nancy was removed from the position.
Hearing Rachel call her, Emma immediately responded and walked to her side. "Ms. Davis."
"Didn't HR say they're planning to hire people? Your Team A is short-staffed. When they hire someone, prioritize filling your team. Go to admin and request two desks and computers so when people arrive, they'll have a place to work."
Rachel glanced at Nancy's workstation and said coolly, "And clear out this desk while you're at it. Throw away what needs to be thrown away."
Emma was quite surprised and asked uncertainly, "The personal items too?"
"Throw them all away. No need to keep them."
"Yes."
Emma watched her walk away, then looked at the keychain on the desk, momentarily dazed.
They said it was suspension with pay, but apparently Rachel never intended to let Nancy come back.
Rachel walked to the parking lot entrance and spotted Nancy's thin, frail figure.
As if any random gust of wind could knock her over.
She took a deep breath and had just composed her expression when Nancy, wearing a mask, suddenly turned to look at her, her eyes crinkling. "Rachel."
"Sorry, Nancy, but your keychain seems to be missing. After you left, since there was no handover, a lot of people had to use the computer at your desk to look things up. So we can't figure out who took the keychain or how it got lost."
"Missing?" Nancy looked at her in surprise. "How could that be?"
Rachel spoke in a soft, soothing voice. "Don't worry, I've already asked Carol to check the surveillance footage from the past few days. We'll definitely find your keychain."
Nancy opened her mouth, her throat feeling dry.
She really liked that dolphin charm on the keychain. Learning it was missing, she couldn't help feeling disappointed and annoyed.
Someone at Stargaze Gallery had actually taken her things!
She bit her lip, forcibly suppressing the emotions welling up inside. The keychain was just an excuse anyway. That wasn't why she came today.
"I guess that's all we can do then." Nancy's eyes were filled with worry, but she still smiled. "Thank you, Rachel."
"Why are you thanking me? We're friends." Her voice paused, and her eyes showed just the right amount of shock and concern. "Nancy, is the injury on your face worse? Haven't you been to the hospital?"
Hearing this, Nancy's eyes immediately reddened. She hesitantly removed her mask, revealing a swollen face where you could even faintly see the outline of a handprint.
You could imagine how hard Kira had slapped her yesterday.
Yesterday, standing outside the railing at a distance, Rachel hadn't seen it very clearly.
Now, seeing Nancy's face covered in injuries, the small disappointment Rachel had felt yesterday after being interrupted by the police was instantly smoothed over.
But her face still showed concern and urgency that no one could find fault with. "What happened? Who hit you?"
Nancy observed her carefully for a few seconds but didn't detect anything suspicious. She pouted and said with a sob, "It's complicated, Rachel."
"Come to my office."
"No, I don't want people at Stargaze Gallery to see me and give them something to laugh about."
"Then let's go to the coffee shop across the street." Rachel thought for a couple of seconds.
The two crossed the street and sat down at a corner table on the second floor of the coffee shop.
Nancy told her about someone causing trouble at her door yesterday and then filing a report at the police station.
"That person is too much!" Rachel said, feigning anger after hearing the story. "You absolutely can't let her off easy. She needs to go to jail!"
While telling the story, Nancy was also observing Rachel's reactions.
But still couldn't detect anything unusual.
Could it be that Kira really wasn't sent by her?
Did Rachel really not know about her and Steven?
Then who could it be?
And who could be behind Faith?
She pushed aside the questions that had been plaguing her for days without answers, took a sip of coffee, and said with a bitter smile, "I don't know who I've offended to deserve such trouble."
"Once the police finish their investigation, these rumors will fall apart on their own. Don't worry too much. Right now, the most important thing is to heal the injuries on your face."
Rachel looked at the handprint on her face. "Did you hit her back?"
Nancy smiled. "Of course. Do I look like someone who takes a beating lying down?"
They chatted for a while, and her tense body gradually relaxed. She remembered to ask, "How have things been with you and Steven lately? Has he been spending time with you?"
Rachel's grip on her cup paused.
Here it comes.
Here's the real point.
She suddenly seemed to understand why Nancy had come to Stargaze Gallery to find her today.
It was to probe about Steven.
Steven had unilaterally cut off contact with her, and with yesterday afternoon's incident, Nancy must be panicking.
She raised her eyelids, her face showing a sweet, happy smile, and began to "casually" show off.
"Yes, after he came back from his business trip a few days ago, he's been picking me up every afternoon, then cooking all kinds of food for me. He's really attentive to me and the baby. He actually wanted to take me abroad, but I'm too busy at Stargaze Gallery to leave. Plus, the baby isn't stable yet. Jennifer said the first three months are when miscarriages are most likely, so she told me to wait until after three months to travel."
Picking up Rachel every afternoon?
So Steven wants to break up with her again?
But why?
That morning when he left the hotel, he was still holding her, saying sweet things, unable to control himself and pulling her into bed again.
She couldn't figure it out. She flexed her stiff fingers, lowered her eyelids, and smiled. "That's good. You're pregnant now, you do need someone to be with you more."
The two chatted in the coffee shop for over an hour, then had lunch together at a nearby restaurant before parting ways.
Rachel withdrew her gaze from Nancy's retreating figure and turned to walk toward Stargaze Gallery.
While waiting at the traffic light, she stood still, letting the warm sunlight envelop her.
Her phone's text message notification suddenly sounded.
[Nancy will wait for Steven outside the construction company this afternoon, using her pitiful advantage to win Steven's sympathy and soften his heart again. The two will resume contact.]
Rachel looked at these words and suddenly laughed.
It had only been two days.
So what were Steven's promises really worth?
Indeed, a leopard can't change its spots.
Absolutely right.
A trace of sarcasm flashed through her eyes. After thinking for more than ten seconds, she pulled up Benjamin's chat window on WhatsApp: [Mr. Wright, could I ask you for a favor?]