“As the saying goes, you can’t wake a person who’s pretending to be asleep. It’s going to be hard to make them spill the beans.” I sighed.
Anthony stared blankly at the door for a few seconds before taking his phone out to dial Charlie’s number.
The call rang for a while before it got through.
Charlie immediately stated, “Hi, Anthony. I forgot to tell you that we’re going on a trip today. We’ve planned this trip for a long time. Feel free to stay at the house for a couple more days and take your time to pack before…”
Before he could finish his sentence, Anthony cut him off, “Uncle Charlie, I won’t force you to say anything if you’re not willing to tell me the truth, but I don’t want to be kept in the dark anymore. I promise I won’t bother you again after you tell me all the things I have the right to know.”
After a brief silence, Charlie replied, “Meet me at the café opposite Featherstone Corporation.”
Anthony and I arrived at the café an hour later, nine o’clock sharp.
Soon we ordered our coffee, we sat down at a table by the window, waiting for Charlie and Helen to arrive.
About half an hour later, a deafening screech of tires suddenly came from the road outside, masking the relaxing music in the café.
Then, a clamor of footsteps and screams ensued.
“What a terrible driver!”
“Did they survive? Quick, call the police!”
“Go and check on the victims.”
I frowned. Though I felt sorry for the people in the car, the situation did not affect me as much as the others in the café.
Meanwhile, Anthony looked out of the window, seemingly deep in his thought. Suddenly, as though realizing something, he sprang to his feet and rushed out with a frown. Worried, I immediately followed him out.
The two squeezed through the crowd and saw the crash.
The victims were a man and a woman. The face of the unconscious woman was so bloody that no one could even see her appearance. On the other hand, the man, who was nearer to us, lay face-down, and his body was twitching slightly.
Realizing that he might be conscious, Anthony went forward and tried to put him in a comfortable position.
However, as soon as he saw the man’s face, Anthony froze and called subconsciously, “Uncle Charlie? Are you Charlie Featherstone?”
The dying man tried to open his mouth to say something, but he suddenly gasped and collapsed to the ground, motionless.
One of the bystanders found the victim’s wallet and saw his identification card. “Oh my gosh! This guy is Charlie Featherstone!”
“That Charlie Featherstone?”
“Then… The woman must be his wife, Helen Clarke.”
“The Featherstones were doing quite well in K City recently. Of all times, why did such a horrible thing happen now?”
“I don’t know. Maybe they were making dirty money. It’s probably karma.”
Just then, the police and ambulance arrived at the bloody scene.
“Move aside! Don’t block the authorities!”
Once the police dispersed the crowd, he shook Anthony’s body and snapped him out of his trance. “Sir, please cooperate with us. You need to leave now.”
With a blank face, Anthony stood up and walked towards me, his face painfully expressionless.
Behind him, the police placed a finger under Charlie’s nose and checked his pulse before reporting to his colleagues, “No breath. Weak pulse.”
Anthony and I went to the police station to give our statement, and at 3 p.m. that day, Charlie Featherstone was pronounced dead.
The Featherstones did not have any other relatives, so all the legal proceedings were handled by us. By the time we were done, it was already late at night – daytime in M Country.
As we made our way out of the police station, Anthony’s phone rang.
The silence from the other side of the line made Anthony’s face fall. “Why did you do it?”
He did not say much, but I instantly knew who had called him.
Only the heartless hypocrite, Christopher, would call at this hour to check the condition here.
Anthony’s voice was low, but it was laced with anger. His face remained expressionless, but he was exuding an aura of deep resentment and boiling hot anger.
The blood of the covenant is thicker than the water of the womb. For Anthony, the Featherstones who raised him were much more important than his biological parent.
“Anthony.” I held his clenched fist in my hands, letting him know that he still had me by his side.
However, Christopher was by no means a good person who would want the better for Anthony. I did know what the man said to him, but Anthony could not seem to stand another word from him. He hurled his phone into the distance, smashing it into a thousand pieces.
Being the head of the Featherstone Corporation in J City, Charlie had a great social influence within his community. After his tragic death, the police formed a special task force overnight to investigate the accident. The report was out the next day.
The car crash that took the lives of the couple was declared to be a motor vehicle accident.
Anthony wasted no time in arranging Charlie and Helen’s funeral.
Although the Featherstones did not have any close relatives, they had plenty of friends in J City. Many came as a sign of respect for George as well. Hence, many people showed up at Charles and Helen’s house that day.
After a long exchange of pleasantries with the guests, Anthony and I headed into the study behind the living room for a short moment of silence. A moment later, Joseph followed us inside.
“Mr. Featherstone,” the man greeted respectfully.
Slumped onto the sofa, Anthony was too burnt out. He did not bother opening his eyes to look at Joseph as he asked, “Did you find anything?”
Joseph answered stiffly, “It’s the same as the report from the police. It seemed to be a simple car crash. The car suddenly got out of control and crashed into Mr. and Mrs. Featherstone. I’ve also checked the driver’s background. We found nothing suspicious.”
Christopher had once forged a fake DNA report. How difficult would it be for him to plan a perfect car crash?
Back then, the man had also used the same tactic to run away, and he had lived peacefully ever since. Now, the same old trick had been played again; a fatal blow to the man’s own brother.
Anthony did not believe that the crash happened by accident. He ordered Joseph to continue to search for evidence and dismissed him right after.
Knock! Knock!
The housekeeper knocked on the door, saying apologetically, “Mr. Featherstone, it’s time for the eulogy.”
It was time for us to pay our tribute.
“Okay.” Anthony stood up and adjusted his sleeves before striding out of the room.
All the guests were quiet and behaved respectfully. Even though the service was somber, I was glad that the service went smoothly with no hiccups.
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.
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