"That was a brilliant move, Star. How did you even find that guy?"


    "He was mentioned in the files Hand sent me," Ste replied.


    Antoney paused. Ste had shared the files with him, but he had no memory of this person. His memory was excellent, so for him to not recall the name meant the man must have been a mere footnote. How many times must Ste have gone over those files to find such an obscure individual and use him so perfectly?


    ***


    **The Lerman Estate.**


    The night was pitch-ck, and the room was unlit. Only a sliver of moonlight filtered through the window, reflecting in the eyes of the man sitting in a wheelchair. Hand listened as his assistant delivered a report.


    "I didn''t expect Ste to be so resourceful," Hand said with a faint smile. "To think she found him... Leonard never would have dreamed he''d be brought down by such a minor yer."


    "What should we do now, sir?" the assistant asked. "Do we continue to wait?"


    "Ste has proven her strength and capability," Hand replied. "To remain idle any longer would show ack of sincerity." He smiled. "It''s time to add more fuel to the fire."


    Just as the assistant was about to respond, his gaze shot to the door, his eyes sharp. "Who''s there?!"


    A woman''s voice came from the other side. "It''s me, sir, Moon... I''ve brought you ate-night snack."


    "You may go," Hand told his assistant, who nodded and left swiftly.


    Abby entered the room and found itpletely dark. She instinctively flipped the light switch and carried the tray inside. "Sir, I made you this medicinal soup myself. I even learned the recipe from my best friend! Please, try some."


    A strange, pungent odor filled the air, mingled with the distinct smell of something burnt. Hand couldn''t help but cough. "*Cough, cough!*"


    "Sir, are you alright?" Abby asked with concern. "Did you catch a chill? Here, have some soup to warm you up."


    "You''ve gone to a lot of trouble, but... I don''t usually eat thiste," Hand said, trying to decline politely.


    "But sir, I simmered it all day! Please, just have one taste," Abby pleaded.


    Under her incessant begging, Hand finally relented and took a small sip. He immediately spat it out.


    Seeing his pained expression, Abby panicked, "Sir, what''s wrong? Could it be... that assistant poisoned you? Help Someone, help! Sir has been poisoned!"


    A vein throbbed in Hand''s temple. *I have no quarrel with Ste,* he thought,<fn9f35> Get full chapters from FιndＮovel</fn9f35>


    bewildered. *So why on earth did she send this half-wit to my side?*


    ***


    At an auction, Ste sat beside


    Neville, who had invited her. She had agreed, hoping to find a suitable gift for his grandmother. She hated being indebted to anyone, and after receiving such a precious gift from Old Mrs. Connolly, she feltpelled to give something in return, even though she nned to give the bracelet back eventually.


    As she was listening to the auctioneer, her phone vibrated. It was a call from Harold.


    "I need to take this outside," she murmured to Neville, who nodded in understanding.


    In the hallway, she answered the call. Harold''s frantic voice immediately filled her


    ear. "Ms. Cameron, it''s terrible! Joshua''s gone missing!"