Walter remained calm, and Natalie didn''t think much of it—but Marcus felt something was off.


    Still, he didn''t say anything. Natalie cared about his feelings, and she brought him along when discussing matters with Walter-that was enough for him.


    Marcus and Natalie went to Grace''s bedroom first. After finding Grace''s safe, Natalie entered her own birthday, and sure enough, it opened.


    "Grace sure is something else," Marcus said with a mocking tone. "Still using your birthday as the password at a time like this. Does she seriously think that kind of emotional trick still works on you?"


    Natalie didn''t respond. She simply took the phone from the safe, powered it on, and tapped the screen. "I need to connect it to myputer."


    "This phone model''s pretty outdated," Marcus noted, immediately handing her backpack over.


    Natalie unzipped the bag, pulled out a smallptop, connected the phone with a cable, and began typing rapidly on the keyboard. A momentter, a small red dot appeared on the screen.


    "The owner of this number is currently in Scarlet Hill."


    Marcus saw it too. "Looks like Scarlet Hill is an important ce."


    "I''ll make a call first," Natalie said, dialing the number.


    After three rings, someone picked up.


    "Grace Langley, I told you not to call! You just don''t listen, do you?"


    Natalie shot Marcus a look. He showed her his phone as he had already sent Ethan to apprehend the target. She gave a small nod, then mimicked Grace''s voice. "Where''s my daughter? I want to see my daughter."


    "Grace, if you behave, I''ll make sure Megan stays alive. But if you test my patience again, don''t me me for what happens to her. I wasn''t joking with youst time."


    The voice on the other end was icy and filled with impatience.


    "All these years and you''re still useless. You''ve botched every task I gave you. And that bastard Kenton-he''s gone and you have no idea where. If he dares betray me, you''d better be ready to collect Megan''s corpse."


    Without giving Natalie a chance to respond, the call ended abruptly.


    "The location hasn''t changed. Ethan will be there in ten minutes at most," Marcus


    said. "Nat, are you curious about this person?"


    Natalie nodded. "Very. Extremely curious."


    Just then, a knock came at the door. Walter stood outside. "Nat, I found something. Come take a look."


    "Okay." Natalie took Marcus'' hand, and the two left Grace''s bedroom.


    Walter headed straight to Grace''s study. He had been in there many times as a child, though Grace had never treated him kindly.


    But he didn''t care. Natalie brought him back, so his only duty back then was to study hard, grow up, protect her, support her, and help her. That was enough.


    At the desk, Walter opened a drawer and took out a pocket watch as well as a padlocked photo album. Walter opened the watch, then entered a string of numbers into the album''s lock.


    He opened it and handed it to Natalie. "Nat, take a look."


    Natalie took the album, and she and Marcus looked through it together.


    On the first page was a photo of a young Grace lying on a bed, gazing tenderly at the baby beside her. Her expression overflowed with maternal warmth. A small caption beneath the photo read, "My daughter, Megan, a joy to behold."


    "This must be Megan," Marcus said.


    Walter added, "Inside the pocket watch is a photo of baby Megan. Her birthdate was inscribed below it. That''s the password to the album. So Grace wasn''t lying. She really did have a biological daughter."


    Natalie turned to the next page. The


    photo showed a very young Victor-he couldn''t have been older than one. He was filthy, his clothes ragged and torn. A line beneath the photo read, "Foundling, standing in formy daughter, Megan."


    "So Victor was a foundling Grace picked up?" Natalie frowned, turning to the next page. This one held a photo so thoroughly shed it was barely recognizable. A line beneath it read, "May you drop dead where you stand!"


    "There''s nothing more after this." Walter nced at Marcus. "Mr. Holden, do you think this might be connected to the Holden family? After all, Cassie, a key figure in all this, is one of yours."


    "Cassie''s age doesn''t line up with the circumstances," Marcus said evenly. "And this photo is too damaged to restore. But the Holden family is still looking for her. Whether or not she''s the one responsible, she could still be a breakthrough.


    "Also, that call went through. The target''s in Scarlet Hill, and I''ve already sent Ethan after them."


    "I doubt it''ll be that easy to catch them," Walter said, tapping his fingers on the desk. "Here''s the real issue-someone is pulling the strings behind Grace. She''s being forced. Should we get her out of the police station?"


    "No," Marcus said, his deep, maic voice turning colder. "Forced or not, she used Nat as a living blood bank in the past. For that alone, I''ll never let her live out the rest of her life in peace."


    "Grace''s deeds wereplicated," Walter offered. "She''s older now, and I doubt she''llst long in the police station. It might be better to get her out. She could still help with the investigation.


    "Nat, what do you think?" he asked, looking at her. Walter and Natalie had grown up together and had always shared a mutual understanding. If he made a suggestion, she would usually agree.


    But to his surprise, Natalie thought for a moment, then slowly shook her head. "I agree with my boyfriend."


    "Nat, you can''t just side with Mr. Holden because he''s your boyfriend," Walter said, barely keeping his


    have her faults, but in this ca


    frustration in check. "Grace may


    she''s a crucial link to the person behind all of this. She''s an important witness, and—"


    "She still has to cooperate while in the police station," Natalie cut him off. "I''m not siding with Marcus just because he''s my boyfriend. I''m following what I believe is


    right."


    "But that''s not how you used to be," Walter said, standing up. "You always listened to my advice before."


    "That''s because your advice used to be right," Natalie replied. "Now it''s not, so I won''t follow it."


    She looked at him. "Walter, don''t take it personally just because I agreed with Marcus."


    "Nat, is that really how you see me?" Walter''s voice carried a hint of hurt. "I''m not


    as petty as you think. Just because you''re dating someone, does that mean we''re not friends anymore?"