Ste instinctively turned her head. A tall, ghost-like figure was standing behind her.


    Leonard.


    She could barely contain her terror. She whipped out the fruit knife she had taken from the kitchen and plunged it forcefully into Leonard''s chest.


    Leonard didn''t dodge, letting the knife sink into his body.


    The blood stained Ste''s hand. She stared at it, her face as pale as a sheet, her pupils trembling violently.


    In that moment, her fear of Leonard reached its peak.


    Looking at her terrified expression, Leonard felt an inexplicable pang of sympathy.


    He even tried tofort her. "Don''t be afraid. I won''t die."


    As if remembering something, Leonard gave a self-deprecatingugh.


    "I won''t die. If I did, you would never be able to leave this ind."


    At that moment, Ste understood with horrifying rity. Leonard was the only pilot.


    She had been too hasty.


    Too desperate to leave this ce.


    How could someone like Leonard leave such a ring weakness, such an obvious vulnerability?


    Every supposed w, every vulnerability, was just another one of his traps.


    Her face turned ashen. "So, you were never unconscious from the start. You were just ying with me, weren''t you?"


    Leonard''s voice was hoarse. "I told you, whatever you gave me, I would drink it, even if it were poison. I was unconscious, but my body has developed a resistance to drugs. The dose you gave me might put a normal person to sleep for a whole night, but its effect on me is limited."


    Ste''s breath caught. "A resistance?"


    Leonard looked down at her. "My paleplexion isn''t due to poor health. It''s because I''ve been poisoned too many times. The. Lerman family, in their attempts to kill me put all sorts of poisons in my food same fast acting others slow Although I was lucky to survive, some of the toxins have seeped deep into my system and can''t bepletely removed. Over time, my body has developed a partial resistance to various substances."


    The blood was spreading across Leonard''s white shirt. Ste knew that after this


    failure, her chances of escape were practically zero.


    "What do you want?" she asked.


    "I won''t do anything to you," Leonard said. "After three months, I will personally see you off this ind."


    At this point, Ste had no other choice.


    She looked at the blood flowing freely from Leonard''s wound. She knew that if he


    died here, she would truly never get away.


    And Leonard definitely wouldn''t stay on this ind forever.


    Ste forced herself to calm down. "Let''s get you to the doctor to get that bandaged."


    Solmaris.


    When Laurel Quinn burst into the dungeon, she was met with a woman''s heart- wrenching screams.


    "I don''t know... I really don''t know! Joshua Gardner, you can''t do this to me... The Williams family won''t let you get away with this... Ah!"


    Her cries were answered by the crackling sound of an electric current.


    The once poised, elegant, and beautiful leading socialite was now sprawled on the ground without a trace of dignity. Her hair was a mess and long chains were fastened to her hands and feet, clinking with her slightest movement.


    Laurel Quinn''s face changed at the sight.


    "Joshua, have you lost your mind?" she couldn''t help but exim. "If you keep Aurora Williams lockedup here the other major families wit ver let this go!"


    Ste had been missing for a month.


    For a month, Joshua had tried everything, but he still couldn''t find any trace of her.


    The kidnapping Leonard had orchestrated was nearly wless.


    So, Joshua had captured Aurora and Simone, trying to force them to reveal


    Leonard''s whereabouts.