“That’s impossible. How can such a small company possess such powerful technology?”
As though dealt a heavy blow, the boys scratched their heads in defeat. It seemed like these rookies were no match for the technology the other party used to stop us.
The Crests had compensated a hefty sum because of the incident at the chemical plant. Their business was affected later on, so they couldn’t possibly have enough money to hire computer experts or solve this crisis in such a timely manner and even retaliate against us. Based on the Crest family’s connections, there weren’t many who could be behind this.
“It’s not your fault.” I grabbed my phone after some thought and went to the garden in the backyard before speed dialing Ashton.
He answered within a second.
“What is it?” As always, Ashton sounded calm and confident, as though everything was within his control.
“Are you the one protecting the Crest family?” There was a hint of hostility in my voice as well as a trace of anger, and I was sure he could tell over the phone. “You knew a long time ago that Jared was released from prison, didn’t you?”
Besides Ashton, I really couldn’t think of anyone else who would be willing to shield such a despicable family like the Crests or have so much power and influence in J City, not to mention how they countered the computer experts John recruited in J City without much efforts.
I was angry because Ashton obviously knew about the terrifying things Jared had done in the past, but had the audacity to hide his release from me. If I knew about it earlier, Summer wouldn’t have been tricked by him again and innocently placed her trust in him.
Silence drifted across the line before Ashton replied in a low voice, “Jared won’t hurt Summer.”
What’s that supposed to mean?
I haven’t even mentioned Jared posing as a teacher to approach Summer. How does he…
Panic instantly engulfed me.
“Were you involved in Jared becoming a teacher named Mr. Cress?”
I was dreading his answer and unsurprisingly, it didn’t come, but his silence was enough of an answer.
“You’ve gone too far, Ashton!” I lost my temper. When I thought about all the days I felt so troubled I could barely sleep or eat, my eyes stung with tears of betrayal. “You’re not the one who’s having a hard time. Who gave you the right to forgive that man in Summer’s place? Jared is a master of deception. If something happens to Summer this time, do you really think we’ll get so lucky again to find a suitable donor to cure her?”
“I won’t let any of this happen again.” Ashton reassured in a firm tone, “I’ve met with Jared. We’ve been friends for decades. I can tell when he’s lying, and he’s not. He’s a changed man now.”
“So? Before what happened to Summer, wasn’t he your best friend too? And then what happened, huh? Ashton, I never knew you were such a magnanimous and selfless man that you could even find it in yourself to forgive someone who crossed the limit!”
Ashton sighed in resignation and lowered his voice. “If that’s the case, I deserve to die a thousand times over as well.”
Words failed me all of a sudden and silence stretched between us through the phone.
In the end, Ashton was the one to break it.
“Letty, I love Summer as much as you do. You’ve also seen how happy she’s become after interacting with Jared. She’s slowly getting better. As parents, we shouldn’t overprotect our children. She needs to get out there more and build her confidence to face the real world. Both of us couldn’t get Summer to open up, but Jared succeeded. It’s worth giving this a try for Summer’s sake, right?”
Before I could respond, he powered on, “I know what you’re worried about. I’ve arranged for people to watch Jared twenty-four-seven. If he so much as poses a threat to Summer’s health and safety, they’ll immediately lock him up. I promise you, he came back this time only to help Summer open up again. He doesn’t have other motives.”
I was beginning to suspect Ashton was born with some sort of supernatural power because just a few simple words from him seemed to put me under a spell, instantly quelling the boiling rage in me.
Truth be told, even if I disagreed, what could I possibly do? Faced with an opponent like Ashton, whatever tricks we used would be ineffectual against him because he had countermeasures for everything we threw his way. For example, I had no idea that he paid such a steep price to employ such adept “watchdogs” for the Crests.
