Chapter 137
After handling those matters, Charlotte walked into the conference room.
She connected her laptop to the internal network and began to think through everything that had just happened.
From that brief confrontation, it wasn't hard to see that her opponent's technical skills were exceptional, and their behavior was particularly brazen—they hadn't even tried to cover their tracks.
Generally speaking, this kind of fearless attitude meant there had to be powerful backing behind them!
Lost in thought, she opened the tracking program she'd written on her computer and began analyzing the Zero-star information sent back by the data probe she'd attached to the intruder's exit path.
After reassembling and analyzing the data fragments, an IP address was reconstructed.
"So it's a foreign IP?" Charlotte squinted at the screen for a long moment before murmuring to herself.
Just then, Mireille walked in carrying coffee.
"Ms. Johnson, here's what you asked for."
After setting it down, she looked up and noticed Charlotte's furrowed brow and exhausted face, prompting her to speak up.
"Ms. Johnson, you've been at this all night. Why don't you go rest for a bit?"
Hearing this, Charlotte shook her head and picked up the coffee, taking a sip.
The bitter liquid cleared her foggy mind somewhat. She glanced out the window and noticed the sky had turned a pale grayish-blue.
Dawn had broken.
"Since they chose to attack and came away empty-handed, they definitely won't accept going home with nothing to show for it."
"Now that they've retreated, I'm going to keep looking for any other clues."
Mireille watched her pushing herself so hard, noticed the bloodshot eyes, and felt her heart ache with a mixture of concern and admiration.
She quietly left the room.
Time passed, second by second. The sun gradually rose, its light streaming through the glass windows.
At this moment, frustration began creeping into Charlotte's eyes.
She'd been sitting in front of the computer for a long time now but still hadn't found any new leads.
She was starting to get anxious.
Just then, her personal phone suddenly rang.
The caller was Flynn, the Langley family's butler.
The moment she answered, Flynn's elderly, panicked voice came through the receiver.
"Ms. Johnson! Something terrible has happened! Ms. Langley... she's in trouble!"
"What did you say?!" Charlotte shot to her feet, the coffee cup falling from her hand and crashing to the floor.
"Ms. Langley was planning to go for her morning run today, but after taking a phone call, she suddenly drove off alone. Then... then her car was run off the road on the mountain pass! When we found the vehicle, Ms. Langley... she was gone! All we found at the scene were signs of a struggle and some blood..."
A deafening roar filled Charlotte's head as her mind went blank, her ears ringing.
"I'm coming back right now!" Charlotte ground out through clenched teeth, grabbing her coat and rushing toward the door.
The door flew open, and she came face to face with Mireille.
Seeing Charlotte's bloodless complexion, Mireille froze. "Ms. Johnson, you—"
"I have an emergency to handle. You and Arthur watch the company. Contact me if anything unusual happens!"
Throwing out those words, Charlotte rushed into the elevator.
The scenery outside the car window kept retreating as Charlotte's grip on the steering wheel tightened, her knuckles turning white.
Flynn's words echoed endlessly in her mind, leaving her thoughts in chaos.
Half an hour later, the Langley Estate came into view.
Just as Charlotte was about to drive through the gate, several figures suddenly rushed to the entrance, blocking her way.
And leading them was her uncle, Charles!
The sudden appearance startled Charlotte. She slammed on the brakes, the tires screeching against the pavement.
Once she'd come to a stop, she bit down hard, opened the door, and stepped out with an icy expression.
"Move!"
"Charlotte! So you know how to come back?" Charles glanced at her with a sarcastic tone dripping with contempt. "Your mother just had an accident, and you're rushing back—what are you planning?"
"Let me tell you, the situation's still unclear. Don't think you can pull any tricks, you little upstart who just showed up out of nowhere. I'm telling you, it's not happening!"
Watching Charles block the way stubbornly, Charlotte's patience was completely exhausted.
Her mother's whereabouts were unknown right now—she didn't have time to waste on someone like this.
"Charles, I'm saying this one more time. Get out of my way!"
"Is that how you talk to your elders?!" Charles was enraged by her attitude, his voice suddenly rising. "I'm your uncle! How dare you speak to me like that?!"
Charles was getting more worked up, spittle flying.
"You grew up away from home with no manners whatsoever!"
"Today I'm standing right here! Let's see you try to get past me!"
"For all we know, your mother's accident has something to do with you! Who knows if you're even really part of our family—maybe you're an imposter trying to steal the Langley family fortune!"
Charles's ranting grew more hysterical. He completely failed to notice Charlotte's expression darkening.
Honestly, Charles's ulterior motives were obvious to everyone!
Now that Victoria's fate was uncertain, instead of thinking about rescuing her first, he'd jumped at the first opportunity to seize power. It made Charlotte feel absolutely disgusted!
She didn't want to waste more words on him. Just as she was about to push past him, Charles saw that she wasn't taking him seriously at all and clenched his fists.
"Damn it! Stop her! The Langley family isn't a place just anyone can waltz into!"
Several suited security guards nearby looked conflicted after hearing his order.
They'd witnessed Victoria's affection for Charlotte with their own eyes and knew she was the daughter Victoria had searched so hard to find, so naturally, they didn't dare offend her.
"...Mr. Langley... this doesn't seem right. She is, after all, Ms. Victoria Langley's—"
"Bullshit! Her identity is questionable to begin with, and right now I'm in charge here! Stop her!"
Charles frowned and barked at them.
The guards looked uncomfortable, but when Charles threatened their jobs, they had no choice but to comply.
"Ms. Johnson, forgive us."
The head guard said this to Charlotte before leading three others to surround her.
Their intention was to put on a show, to placate Charles while giving both sides an out.
But what they didn't expect was that the instant one of them reached out to grab Charlotte's arm, she moved.
In the next moment, the guard felt an impact to his ribs, couldn't help but grunt, felt half his body go numb, and found himself falling uncontrollably to the ground.