“We should head outside first!”
Joseph looked confused. “We’re leaving already?”
I nodded. “Armond is currently in Moranta while Brandon is still occupied with the death of his wife. At a time like this, our main priority should be to locate Jody as soon as possible. Contact Dillan. He should have some information for us by now.”
Joseph nodded and left without any questions.
I then met up with Zachary in his hotel room. Using the noisy environment as an excuse, we checked out of the hotel and quickly left.
When we returned back to the hospital, Summer’s surgery was done. Cameron was accompanying her during her recovery in the hospital. Fortunately, everything went smoothly.
Meanwhile, I went to find Ann and Amy. They settled down in an urban village in A City. The environment they lived in seemed a bit vile and dirty. When Ann saw my face, she didn’t look surprised at all. She then continued on nonchalantly with her cooking using the induction cooker. Since there was no ventilation, the whole room was engulfed in smoke.
“The environment here isn’t that good. Apologies!” She coughed a few times as she was saying that. After helping to set up the food on the small table, Amy sat on the bench beside the table and waited.
Although their living conditions wasn’t that good, the two of them seemed happy together nonetheless. Cutting to the chase, I directly stated, “I’ve promised you that I’ll help you find Jody. In return, I’d like you to convince him to go with us to the Imperial Hotel.”
She lowered her head and continued washing the pots. “You guys want him to lead you to the basement right?”
“Yes,” I answered truthfully.
She glared at me and uttered, “You do know that there’s no need for you guys to confirm personally right? You can just call the police. Since they don’t have time to move the goods now, they’ll be forced to wait when the police do an investigation as the elevator is the only exit.”
I smiled and responded, “I’ll consider it. That being said, I still need you to convince Jody.”
She went silent for a bit before replying, “I’m not sure if I could convince him. Have you guys found him?”
I shook my head. “Not yet!”
“I see.” She walked to the table and sat down. “Do you want to have some?” she asked.
I shook my head. I then waited quietly on the side for her to finish her food before I added, “I used to think that what I did was right. But looking back at it now, I realized how daft and juvenile I really was. That’s what I get for being so dumb.”
Confused, she raised her eyebrows. “Ms. Stovall, what are you…”
“It’s nothing. I’m just blabbering. Okay then, I should probably go now. I’ll contact you again once I’ve located Jody.”
After that, I got up and left their small and narrow house.
As I got on to the car, Joseph reported, “Mrs. Fuller, I’ve received word from Dillan regarding Jody.”
I nodded and instructed, “Get some of your men to keep an eye on the Imperial Hotel. I want to know every vehicle that enters or leaves the place.”
He nodded in response.
However, there was still this uneasiness in me that I couldn’t seem to get rid of. Is Ann’s existence part of Armond’s plan all along? The timing of her appearance seemed rather contrived.
I decided to give Nora a call. Unlike her usual exuberant self, she seemed aloof when she answered the phone. “You have finally decided to call.”
“Let’s meet up at the café!” I suggested.
“Okay!” she nodded.
After that, Joseph and I headed over to the café.
When we arrived, Nora was already there. Something about her seemed different from when I last saw her. She was acting furtively.
Upon seeing me, she acted distant and let out a faint smile. “You’re here. Take a sit!”
I sat down and stared at her quietly.
After a while, she broke the silence between us and asked, “When did you realize that he loves you?”
She was referring to Armond.
I pursed my lips and answered honestly, “When he was in Moranta, he wanted to get his hands on the management right there. In order to achieve his goal, he locked Ashton up in a refrigerating chamber. We barely escaped death.”
She pursed her lips. “I won’t pry too much into your personal matters. I’m truly sorry about what you’ve gone through. That being said, we can’t be friends anymore.”
I shrugged and replied apathetically, “I know. I respect your choice. We can put this whole thing about the Imperial Hotel behind us now. With that said, I’m not here for your apology. You know that, right?”
She asked instead, “What do you want then?”
I stayed silent for a while before answering, “Do not bring the Oberick family into this. Armond has done a lot of bad things. From trading human organs to smuggling kyanine, a lot of lives were lost because of him. He’ll be thrown behind bars once he gets caught. Nora, Mr. Oberick’s good name will be smeared by Armond when that happens. You can’t put the Oberick family at stake because of a crude man like him.”
