Chapter 77

Chapter 77

The janitor playing on her phone jumped in fright, then looked up at me warily.

A strange feeling flashed through my mind. I felt there was something odd about this person.

But she quickly stood up from her chair. "Ms. Smith, I... I forgot my house keys, waiting for my husband to pick me up."

I nodded.

"At ten-thirty, all the electrical systems in the Johnson Group shut down completely. You should leave soon."

After she nodded, I grabbed my bag and headed downstairs.

But when I got to the entrance, I remembered I'd forgotten my car keys.

I took the elevator back up. As soon as I stepped out, I saw that the janitor was hurrying out of my office, looking flustered.

I frowned.

What was she doing in my office at this hour?

"Ms. Smith, I thought I'd tidy up your office for you." Facing me directly, the janitor said calmly.

I frowned.

"You should leave now."

Her phone rang at that moment, as if to confirm what she'd just told me. The person on the other end said, "Honey, I'm already downstairs. Come down quick, I'll pick you up, and we'll go home together."

After hanging up, she smiled at me and said, "Ms. Smith, my husband's here to pick me up, so I'll be leaving now."

I nodded and walked into my office.

Inside, everything was indeed clean and tidy, as if that janitor had really just done it.

I checked the documents on my desk too. They'd all been organized and stacked up neatly; nothing seemed strange.

As I went downstairs, I saw the janitor leaving.

"Nancy."

A weak, powerless voice suddenly came from behind me. Hearing this voice felt like something from a past life.

John really hadn't shown up for a while.

I turned around and saw him standing behind me.

"What are you doing here?" I asked with a frown.

John forced a smile onto his face. "I saw you still hadn't left the Johnson Group, so I thought I'd wait for you, hoping I might see you."

I frowned. "Are you following me?"

If he wasn't following me, how could he possibly know I hadn't left the Johnson Group?

John quickly waved his hands. "How could that be? I just wanted to care about you more. When we were together before, I really didn't care for you properly, which led to our breakup."

I smiled.

The issue between us had nothing to do with caring or not caring.

"I don't care whether you're following me or not, but if I find out you are, I won't hesitate to call the police!"

After saying this, I turned and left, completely ignoring whatever John was doing behind me.

Recently, the threats and persecution I've faced have a lot to do with the Brown family. Plus, John is a jerk, so why would I give him any kind of pleasant face!

When I got to the underground parking garage and started my car, I was still angry. Then Michael's call came through, instantly drowning out my anger and leaving only a sweet feeling.

"Honey, when are you coming home?" Michael asked pitifully.

"Soon." I almost told him about running into that janitor today, but since it was just speculation without evidence, I held back.

"I'll wait for you at home."

When I got home, I found Michael sitting in the living room with a plate of pasta on the dining table.

"Honey, I made this especially for you, just waiting for you to come home and eat," Michael said with a smile.

I nodded repeatedly and took a bite. I realized it wasn't the housekeeper's cooking. I looked up and saw Michael's eyes eagerly hoping for praise.

"Who made this? It's really delicious."

The next moment, Michael smiled even more happily.

The next day at the Johnson Group, I checked my office setup again and found nothing had changed.

However, I had Tom buy a tiny camera and placed it on the filing cabinet behind my desk, facing the desk, so it could capture some content.

At the same time, I placed a disguised document that appeared to be extremely important Johnson Group material in a drawer that the camera could capture.

"Ms. Smith, the camera has been tampered with. Some of the stored data is missing."

When I discovered the documents had been moved, Tom came back with the tiny camera and said this.

I frowned.

So someone really had been here, I just hadn't captured it on film.

That evening, I didn't go straight home. Instead, I chose to continue "working overtime."

I wanted to know if that janitor was connected to whoever was behind this.

At eight o'clock that night, I ran into the janitor again at my office door. Same actions, same conversation, but I didn't leave. Instead, I went back to my office.

There was a knock at the door. I got up to open it, thinking it would be the janitor, but instead I came face to face with Michael.

"You..." I wanted to ask Michael why he'd come at this hour. I'd told him today that I'd be working late, so he should have gone home already.

"Tom told me you installed a tiny camera in your office, but the content was deleted."

Michael's expression wasn't good, as if he'd already guessed why I was staying here.

I coughed twice. "That's right."

Michael sat across from me.

"If I remember correctly, you don't seem to have any unfinished work today. Are you staying here to work overtime, or are you using yourself as bait?"

I wasn't surprised Michael had guessed my plan.

After pressing my lips together, I said somewhat helplessly, "Michael, this is the Johnson Group. Nothing will happen to me. I just feel the truth is very close, and I want to find it."

Michael's brow remained furrowed, staring at me intently.

"But I'll worry about you."

Of course, I knew that. Under Michael's gaze, I actually felt a bit guilty. I opened my mouth to explain, but when the words reached my lips, I couldn't say anything.

Michael seemed to see my guilt and moved even closer to me.

His eyes were fixed on me. "Nancy, let me handle everything, okay? I'll help you solve this. I'm not comfortable with you doing this."

I frowned. "But I have the right to know who's trying to hurt me!"

"Once I investigate everything, you'll know too." Michael continued to press.

"I think I can do this."

"You can't!" Seeing me refuse again and again, Michael's tone grew colder, but he remained firm.

I pressed my lips together. "Michael, I hope you'll respect my choice."

"I want to protect you," Michael said firmly. "That janitor has already left. With both of us appearing here, we've already alerted them."

I knew very clearly that Michael did this on purpose!

He deliberately alerted them, deliberately made the janitor leave, to prevent the janitor from doing anything else to me.

My heart sank.

Did Michael not trust me?