Tabitha's POV
My heart skipped a beat. What Ivonne had said was indeed a touchy subject for Derek.
I remembered very well how hard I managed to keep my babies back then. If Derek went off the rails again, I wasn't sure if I would be able to handle it.
Derek glared at Ivonne fiercely. "Shut up."
She snorted, "You're gonna be tricked by her if you don't listen to me." Though saying so, she didn't dare to upset him again. After all, she was no fool.
Just then, a new item popped up on the auction block—a rose diamond necklace.
Designed by Niko, a famous contemporary jeweler, it was part of a collection with a rose theme.
The big screen showcased every angle and detail of that necklace's sparkle. I had been dozing off, yet seeing that, my eyes were wide open.
Derek rarely saw me interested in any jewelry, so he quickly asked, "You like it?"
I covered his mouth, snapping, "Shut up and listen. I wanna know the details."
Derek looked helpless, whereas Ivonne widened her eyes, finding it hard to believe how much he doted on me, his ex-wife.
The auctioneer started talking about the necklace's backstory.
Niko had put a ton of thought into designing it as a birthday gift for his sister when she turned eighteen.
The necklace belonged to a set, which also included a bracelet and a pair of ear studs, but unfortunately, the bracelet and the diamond studs were missing. Now all that was left was the necklace, or the value of the collection would be even higher.
I watched the photos over and over again and confirmed my guess.
I had seen those studs. Because of the unique design and the large size of the diamonds, I remembered them vividly even though I had seen them only once.
When I was kidnapped by Elena and jumped into the sea to hide myself, I saw a dead woman in a wreck.
Those studs were in her ears.
It had been half a year, and I had almost forgotten about it.
But the second I saw the photo, her miserable look came back to me.
I covered my mouth and went to the bathroom, feeling sick.
"Tabitha!" Derek hurried after me.
I retched without actually vomiting anything, but I just couldn't get the body out of my head whatsoever.
Even though that corpse had nothing to do with me, an uncomfortable feeling settled in my gut.
"What's wrong?" Derek asked with concern. "Do you want me to call the doctor here?"
"I'm fine," I said. Then I asked him, "Do you know Niko?"
"The genius designer?"
"Yeah."
"Nope, why? You wanna buy something from him?"
"No. I..." I hesitated about whether or not to tell, but those studs flashed across my mind again.
"Can you look him up for me? Maybe I know something."
If the dead woman was indeed Niko's sister, I felt obliged to tell him. Perhaps he was still searching for his sister everywhere.
Although Derek seemed a bit puzzled, he did as I requested.
When I got back to my seat, Ivonne was deep in bidding for that necklace. The competition was heating up fast with lots of people throwing down bids.
She looked at Derek pitifully, begging, "Derek, please help me."
He didn't even glance her way, just keeping patting my back and pouring me water instead.
Ivonne rolled her eyes and focused on bidding again.
The price shot up to 3 million dollars already.
It was already a lot for a diamond necklace. But just then, someone in the next room bid an astronomical price of 8 million dollars!
Ivonne complained, "What the hell? What kind of lunatic bids like that? An extra 5 million dollars for a stupid necklace?"
I already knew who was behind those bids—it was Klein. Was he back in Seattle looking for his sister again?
Could this necklace somehow be connected to her?
Derek took a phone call and then turned back toward me with the news. "Got it. Niko is Dwayne Hartley, Klein's younger brother."
As soon as I heard that, my cup slipped right outta my hand.
In an instant, I shot up from my seat and bolted toward the door.