Abby''s words trailed off. Messing with Rachel was one thing; Rachel deserved it. But Ste was the innocent one caught in the crossfire.


    As for the culprits... she was tired of cursing Rachel. And Haynes, though he''d acted like he was under a spell, she could almost understand it, considering he was surrounded by people like Jasper, Foreman, and a mother like Deanna O''Brien. Under that much pressure, being brainwashed was slightly more forgivable. Plus, he had behaved decently since learning Rachel''s true colors, rying the facts about Joshua without adding any personal bias or nder, which had restored a bit of her respect for him.


    And Joshua... Abby just couldn''t bring herself to condemn himpletely. He was terrible, yes, but when he decided to be good to someone, he was impably so. Then again, he could also harm an innocent person for his own amusement. He had surely done plenty of ruthless things for Ste''s sake, eliminating her enemies. Those people may have wronged Ste, but they had no quarrel with Joshua. Just like Ste, in the beginning. In essence, Joshua clearing obstacles for Ste wasn''t so different from Leonard destroying her hand for Aurora. To the people he destroyed, Joshua was an irredeemable monster. But if he were kind to everyone, wouldn''t he just be a people-pleaser? Abby was torn.


    Her attempt to console Ste was a mess.


    Ste remained silent, her eyes fixed on the violins, lost in thought. Abby decided to drop the subject. It was understandable that Ste needed time to process the truth.


    She turned to Ste. "Should we check out the other rooms?"


    Ste gave a slight nod.


    back


    Abby went back to her treasure hunt. She found a room filled with luxury brand clothing and essories, another with perfumes and one with antiques and various valuable Collectibles. She even discovered a greenhouse filled with rare and


    expensive flowers.


    Finally, she found


    room that


    looked like a study, containing


    stacks of deeds and contracts. There were documents for private inds resorts, properties in various countries, and even contracts for gemstone mines. When she saw a contract for a gold mine her hand trembled nearly dropping the file Diamonds were one thing-their value wasrgely manufactured. But gold... gold prices were soaring. In times of war or peace, gold was the ultimate currency.


    Abby counted them. "One, two, three, four..." Good heavens, ten whole gold mines.


    If Abby had any lingering sense of propriety before, it waspletely devoured by the contents of that room.


    "Oh, Joshua," she whimpered dramatically, "please send another Rachel to steal my man! I wouldn''t mind! If a husband and kids are this valuable, I''d sell them in a heartbeat... Is it toote for me to get married and have a baby?"


    Her eyes gleaming, Abby continued her search like a pirate who''d just found a treasure map, chattering nonstop about her discoveries to Ste Ste followed quietly behind her the entire time, neither stopping. Abby''s exploration nor saying a word.


    By the time the sky outside grew dark, Abby was still far from finished exploring.