I exchanged a look with Nora right then. She asked Spencer inquisitively, “Spencer, why is the siren blaring suddenly? What happened?”
There was a momentary weird look on Spencer’s face before he squeezed a smile. “Ms. Oberick, you don’t have to worry so much. The bodyguards are checking on it now. It’s probably caused by the system which malfunctions at times. Here, let me lead you to Mr. Murphy.”
Nora nodded constantly and asked deliberately, “Armond is currently in his bedroom, right? I’ll go and see him now.” After that, she trotted eagerly toward his bedroom. Fearing that she would unintentionally stir up any troubles again, Spencer quickened his pace to catch her up. Meanwhile, I purposely slowed down behind them, trying to grab the golden opportunity to wander around by myself in order to find ways to flee the horrible place.
Seeing that, I strode forward, following the route that Nora had told me in advance. Only the fourth floor of Armond’s villa was occupied at that moment. Nonetheless, it was exceptionally challenging to locate the stairway leading downstairs because the place was humungous. He might have possibly built it that way on purpose to make it difficult for people to find the staircase.
Remembering what Nora told me, I managed to locate the exit and quickly headed downstairs to the living room.
I was stunned to see several hundred policemen besieging the villa. Right then, I also noticed Anthony in their midst.
It had been a few days since I last saw him. That man stuck out like a sore thumb in the crowd, wearing a dark-colored trench coat, looking as dapper as ever.
I was taken aback for a moment until our gazes were fixated on each other. A fuzzy feeling arose in me, and I ran toward him without the slightest hesitation.
Oh, how I’ve missed him and longed for his embrace these days. My overwhelming emotions fueled me to dash toward him relentlessly like waves hitting the shore.
Simultaneously, he was darting across the room to me. Nothing else mattered at that moment besides falling into his arms and hugging him tightly with my head buried in his chest.
The reunion made me tear up. “I thought I’ll never be able to see you again in this lifetime. I thought I’ll have to face everything on my own this time. I thought you’ll never come. I…”
“Silly girl!” He assured me in a low voice while hugging me, “How could I let you face this alone? Not now and never will.”
Resting in his arms, my body started to warm up as I calmed down. I could feel my heart beating normally again with him beside me, and that felt good. I felt like I owned the whole world only when he’s around.
Moments later, he said gently, “Let’s get this mess sorted.”
I nodded in agreement. After all, the main priority was to settle the matters at hand.
At that moment, the policemen had the entire villa surrounded. The person-in-charged consulted Anthony, “Mr. Featherstone, should we barge in?”
Anthony nodded and ordered, “Locate Armond at once while controlling the rest. Try to keep the site as it is and reduce any possible damage to the least.”
“Noted!”
Subsequently, the troop entered the villa. I reminded them, “Armond’s pets are on the third floor. Beware, they are mostly venomous snakes and scorpions.”
The leader of the troop acknowledged, “Thanks for the reminder, Mrs. Featherstone.”
Meanwhile, I remained outside of the villa with Anthony. His composure piqued my curiosity. “When did you return? It takes at least four hours to get from A City to K City.”
He stared at me and replied, “Before Holden came here with you, he sent me a message. To be honest, Armond wouldn’t call you here for nothing. If he failed to get the sandalwood box, it’s expected of him to detain you. Moreover, the Murphys are anxious to obtain the contract. Hence, it’s a necessary step for him to look for you.”
“So, you came back as soon as you got the message?”
He nodded. “When Holden has gotten full knowledge of the situation in the villa, I brought in the police. With Holden’s help, Armond will definitely go to jail.”
Nodding my head, I continued asking, “How did the investigation go in A City? Did you manage to find some solid evidence? Did they confess?”
“Yes, they’ve confessed. Joseph will follow up with the rest.”
This chapter was finally closed.
Earlier, Armond fell unconscious after getting hit by Nora. Hence, the raid was conducted successfully, where items found included numerous Class 1 protected wildlife species and weapons.
Charged with a crime, Armond was taken away directly. On the other hand, the others at the villa were required to record their affidavits before being released. As for the Murphys, they were all affected because of what Armond did.
The less-than-ideal stock market plunged even further, resulting in a severe crash. In the end, Armond was held in police custody.
After a tiring night, I woke up to a loving Anthony next to me.
He looked me in the eyes and curled his lips. “You’re up?”
I nodded as I let out a coquettish smile unknowingly. Snuggling in his embrace, I said with a hoarse voice, “I dreamt of you last night and thought that you’ve left for a business trip. I was thinking to myself how disappointed I’d be if I couldn’t see you when I woke up. Thankfully, you’re here with me, and this makes me glad.”
He chuckled. “You can come with me on all of my business trips in the future. It’s always a real bummer when I don’t see you the moment I open my eyes in the morning and when my arms hug nothing at night.”
I buried my face against his chest. “Now that Armond’s case is settled, isn’t Rachel taking care of everything in A City? You can now remain here instead of traveling to A City and Moranta. Oh, by the way, Nick is getting married soon.”
He nodded and then cast me an intense gaze. “We’ll organize our very own wedding as soon as Nick is done with his. How’s that?”
He had me flabbergasted. “Our wedding? Didn’t we have one already? It’s so troublesome to do it all over again. It’s better the channel the energy to plan for a trip when the weather gets better soon. It’s been ages since I traveled.”
He laughed. “We’ll surely go traveling, but only after our wedding.”
Squinting my eyes, I hugged him. “Let’s think about that in the near future. Any ceremony that we hold right now is considered our anniversary celebration.”
Chilling with him on the bed made me feel sleepy. At that thought, I checked the time and realized that it was already noon. Lifting my head, I asked, “Are you hungry?”
Arching his brows, he responded with more questions, “What about you? Are you hungry?”
I admitted, “Quite. But, we don’t have that many groceries at home, and the helper isn’t around. What shall we have for lunch?”
After pondering for a while, I suggested, “Why don’t we eat at Aunt Sally’s? Apparently, she’s bought a new place in the city, and it’s quite near to K University. We can visit the university library thereafter and spend some time reading. How does that sound?”
He brushed his finger lightly on my nose and replied affectionately, “Sounds like a plan.”
I sat on the bed briefly to clear my mind. After showering and getting dressed, Anthony walked out from the walk-in closet.
He saw me and asked, “Are you still sleepy?”
I shook my head. “Not anymore. Any reason why you’re not wearing your black jacket anymore?” I was surprised to see him wearing something that was not black. His first?
He carried me up and lugged me around his waist, then placed me on the bathroom countertop. With a smile, he handed over the toothbrush to me, with the toothpaste squeezed in advance. “Don’t you like seeing me wearing other colors?”
In a muffled voice, I explained, “It’s not that. It’s refreshing to see you in other colors. You look so handsome that I’m falling head over heels for you. I’ll doll up just to match you when we go out.”
Hugging me, he stared at my reflection in the mirror. “You’re dressing up because you’re going to the university!”
I giggled. “That’s one of the reasons. However, my first priority is to look good for you.” After gargling, I struggled to get off him. He obliged and sat me on the toilet seat.
Frowning, I asked, “Hey, I’m not done.”
His gaze fell on my feet, then he reminded, “The floor is cold. Don’t walk around barefooted. I’ll bring you your slippers. Stay here.”
After a while, he came back with a pair of slippers and put them on for me. Pecking my cheek, he said, “I’ll go make some breakfast. Come down when you’re ready.”
I nodded and continued washing up.
After I had freshened up, I searched high and low in the walk-in closet and found a lovely pink dress for the occasion. I wondered where Anthony got it from since it had just been newly released by a famous brand early this year. The style was quite ladylike, different from my regular picks. Wearing it to see Sally would be like a breath of fresh air.
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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