Chapter 1085 Would Not Expose
Natalie lifted her head under Jerome’s stare and met his eyes. “I’m not going to hand this jade key to Zophie or Blaze before I can determine its usefulness. I’ll keep the key by my side. Now, I just need to find a way to duplicate the key in two days.”
His mouth was left slightly ajar as he was shocked by Natalie’s idea. “I may not have personally seen the jade key, but I imagine it’s not going to be easy to replicate a piece of jade that was carved into the shape of a key. I don’t think two days will be enough for you to copy it…” said Jerome. His concerns were already considered by her.
Thus, she nodded and said, “That’s right! There’s no way an ordinary person can do it. However, if that person is willing to help out, then two days is possible.”
“Who?” “Varre Appleby,” Natalie uttered his name slowly.
“Varre used to be a master craftsman hired by the government. However, I heard from my father that there has been no news about him in recent years.” Jerome sighed. “His skills can be described as divine, but his whereabouts are unknown. Two days may not even be enough time for you to find him…”
Despite that, Natalie didn’t seem at all dejected. In fact, she smiled confidently. “What if I say I know his daughter?”
Jerome couldn’t believe his ears. “What? You know Varre’s daughter?”
“Mhm.” Raising her chin, she continued, “I need to ask Mr. Appleby to replicate that jade key as fast as possible to fool Zophie. Even if I make the exchange with her, it’s not guaranteed that she’ll return Yumi to me. If I have to choose one over the other, I will do my best to protect Yumi. It won’t matter to me if the fake key is shattered or not. I don’t care how other people view my relationship with Yumi, but since I’ve adopted her, I’m not going to give up on her. She is my daughter, and she’s so very obedient. To me, there’s no difference between her and Xavian, Franklin, Clayton, or Sophia. This is the only way I can protect her and the children for now, so I must give it a try!”
When Natalie finished speaking, admiration and infatuation surfaced in Jerome’s eyes as he stared at her.
He thought the days he spent away from her and in the army would help him grow powerful enough to protect her. Yet, it surprised him that she was getting increasingly capable at an astonishing speed when he wasn’t paying attention.
It was as though the present and the past were overlapping. He could only stand by her side and stare at the confident glow emanating from her body, just like how it was when they were young. “I’ll go with you to look for Varre,” Jerome suggested.
With a shake of her head, Natalie declined, “I know you want to protect me, and I’m grateful for that, but you can’t come with me. There’s no way Zophie’s letting me roam around for forty-eight hours without having someone keeping an eye on me. I still need your help to put up a smokescreen!”
Since she had made her reasoning clear, he had no choice but to agree with the plan.
“Okay, I’ll continue to put up the act as you wish. However, you must maintain contact with me. If you encounter any danger at all, you must call me right away. Promise me.”
“I promise,” said Natalie without hesitation. After their conversation ended, Natalie summoned Billy. Before Samuel went to look for Jorden, he intentionally left Billy behind for her.
Even though on the surface, he simply left her a skilled bodyguard, the truth was anything but. Not only was Billy skilled as a bodyguard, but he also represented the power and resources that Samuel had secretly cultivated over the years.
“I’ve sent someone to track down Zophie, Mrs. Bowers,” Billy informed.
“Try to keep it discreet.” Natalie continued, “She’s a member of Blaze, so she has likely received professional training before and has a powerful anti-detection awareness. I’d rather have the process of tracking her down be slow than to have it noticed by her.”
“I understand.” “Oh yeah, help me find someone.” As she pulled out a hyper-realistic mask from the drawer and handed it to Billy, she informed, “I need someone who can act well to wear this mask before traveling between Chanaea and Loang once.
Also, remember to reinforce security and prevent any accidents from happening. You need to treat this substitute like she’s me. So, remember to use the Bowers family’s and Dream’s resources if it’s necessary to ensure she isn’t exposed.”
