Samantha, completely unaware of the fire she was igniting, only felt her body burning. Albert, like a giant block of ice, was pleasantly cool to be next to, and she involuntarily wanted more.
Albert detested women who threw themselves at him and pulled her out of his embrace.
However, Samantha clung to him like an octopus, tightly pressed against him, wriggling restlessly.
The fire in Albert's heart burned hotter.
Whether out of anger or instinctual response.
Meanwhile,
Ethan left the study, scanned the hall, didn't find Samantha, and was about to look for her.
Suddenly, a servant rushed in urgently, exclaiming, "Something's wrong! Miss Samantha fell down the steps on the terrace in the back garden. It seems like her right leg is broken."
The voice was loud enough for half of the people at the venue to hear.
Ethan, without seeing the servant's face clearly, hurriedly ran towards the back garden upon hearing this.
Alex and Noah had their hearts in their throats and followed suit.
The guests also followed suit.
Ellena was looking for Albert.
Upon hearing about Samantha's injury, she immediately followed.
Kilian, seeing Brent sitting disinterestedly drinking, asked with curiosity, "Aren't you going?"
Brent raised an eyebrow casually, saying, "Why should I? She's not my woman who got hurt!"
Kilian felt he had a point, so he canceled the step that had already been taken.
The two sat together, each drinking their own glasses.
Seeing the lively banquet turn into chaos because of Samantha, Anna's face turned a shade of red and black.
"Samantha is a jinx, wherever she goes, trouble follows!"
Suzy took the opportunity to say, "Aunt, I know you don't like her, but there's nothing I can do. Uncle likes her. To avoid affecting your relationship with Uncle Liam, you'd better not show your dislike too openly."
Hearing her say this, Anna became even more irritated.
Suzy immediately took hold of her arm, smiling, "Alright, don't be angry. Let's go and see. After all, she fell in the Steele family's place. What if something really happened?"
Despite grumbling, Anna, to maintain the reputation of the Steele family, went along with Suzy.
Suzy grinned triumphantly, her excited heartbeat trembling.
This time, Samantha should have no place to bury herself, right?
She had finally succeeded in getting rid of this thorn in her side.
The group went to the back garden terrace in grand fashion.
From afar, they saw two figures entwined, under a streetlight, tightly clinging to each other.
Ethan squinted his narrow eyes, his entire being emitting a murderous aura like a devil.
Everyone, being experienced individuals, instantly understood the situation and revealed expressions of tacit understanding.
Sensing Ethan's powerful rage, an older man among them awkwardly cleared his throat. "Young people nowadays are quite open-minded! Let's go, don't disturb their private matters."
Everyone nodded in agreement.
Just as everyone was about to leave, someone suddenly shouted, "Are those two Samantha and Albert?"
Samantha and Albert?
Hearing these names, everyone's steps halted.
Eyes widened in disbelief, they stared at the entangled figures on the terrace.
One was Ethan's woman, and the other was Ellena's fiancé.
If these two were together, it would be a scandal in the upper-class society.
Especially for Ellena, her face turned deathly pale upon hearing the words. She forced a smile, more hideous than crying.
"You must be mistaken. Albert is right now..."
Before the self-deceptive words could finish, Albert's voice came from the terrace.
"Stay away from me!"
His voice carried a threatening and dangerous tone.
Ellena's breath hitched, and her body softened, swaying unsteadily.
Anna immediately supported her, her body trembling with suppressed anger. "Ellena, don't worry. I will make sure to bring you justice and won't let you suffer any injustice."
After saying this, she handed her over to Suzy and angrily walked towards the terrace.
Suzy supported Ellena's arm, suppressing a triumphant smile. "Ellena, I've told you before, Samantha is not a good woman, she's used to playing with men! Now, it's gotten worse, she has invited trouble into our house!"
Ellena didn't want to listen to Suzy's words, but she couldn't help but etch them into her heart.
Three years ago, she had fallen in love with Albert at first sight. It took great effort for her to marry him. However, he was involved with her brother's woman.
Thinking about it made her heartache unbearable.
To make Ellena see Samantha's true colors more clearly, Suzy deliberately supported Ellena and walked closer to the terrace.
The others, filled with curiosity, couldn't help but follow.
As they got closer, the entangled figures in the terrace became clearer.
The woman was sticking tightly to Albert.
Albert leaned against the terrace pillar, continuously pushing her away, trying to maintain some distance.
Helplessly, the woman was just too persistent.
Every time Albert managed to create some distance, the woman immediately clung to him again.
Anyone with eyes could see that the woman was clinging to Albert.
In the dimly lit surroundings, the yellowish streetlights shone on the side of the two, making it hard to see their faces.
Thinking about the ruined banquet by Samantha, Anna couldn't maintain her usual elegance any longer. Filled with anger, she rushed forward, pulled the woman away from Albert, and slapped her face.
"How dare you seduce my son-in-law...!"
As the words fell, the woman's face became clear to Anna. She widened her eyes in astonishment.
It wasn't Samantha; it was a maid from the Steele family—Erika.
The maid, wearing Samantha's clothes, panicked as soon as she saw Anna, lowering her head and trembling uncontrollably. Her voice even trembled as she said, "Ma... Madame..."
Seeing that it was a maid, Anna's anger dissipated considerably.
In wealthy families, cases of maids trying to seduce their masters were not uncommon.
However, if it involved the brother's woman and the sister's fiancé, that was a huge disgrace.
The maid was much easier to deal with than Samantha.
When Suzy saw the little maid, her entire being froze.
Incredulously, she widened her eyes.
No matter how she thought about it, she couldn't understand why Samantha would turn into a little maid.
The servant had just told her that everything was done, and Samantha and Albert had successfully fallen for the trap.
Why was it the little maid?
Where was Samantha?
Ellena's face remained pale; she looked at the little maid with red-rimmed eyes. She was breathing heavily, her anger evident. She rushed forward and slapped the maid hard.
"How dare you seduce my fiancé!"
The maid's face turned to the side from the impact, and a clear imprint of five fingers appeared on her fair, small face.
Albert glanced at her indifferently, adjusted his disheveled clothes, and walked calmly to Ellena. He explained without any emotion, "This is a misunderstanding."
Whether it was his expression or tone, it didn't reveal any tenderness towards Ellena. It was as if Ellena wasn't his fiancée but just a somewhat familiar woman.
Anna furrowed her brows slightly, feeling a trace of dissatisfaction towards Albert.
For some reason, she felt that Albert didn't like Ellena that much. It seemed like they were marrying just for the sake of it, and her foolish daughter was completely devoted to him.
Standing in front of the little maid, Ethan looked down at her, the sharpness in his eyes covered with frost.
"Why are you here?" he asked sternly.
The little maid trembled under the chilling atmosphere he exuded. She answered while bowing. "Young Master, I was passing by here and saw no one around except Young Master Davis, so..."
She couldn't continue; her legs went weak, and she knelt on the ground, repeatedly bowing.
"Young Master, I know I was wrong. I just wanted to climb up the social ladder by seducing Young Master Davis, thinking that if I could attract him, I could marry into a wealthy family. I won't dare again. Please spare me this time."
Ethan pursed his thin lips, his handsome face expressionless, and a frosty aura surrounded him. He asked, "Why are you wearing Miss Miller's clothes?"
The maid explained in a hurry, "I accidentally dirtied Miss Miller's clothes. I was planning to take them to wash, but to seduce Young Master Davis, I specifically changed into Miss Miller's clothes..."
Everything she said seemed logical, and there were no apparent flaws. However, Ethan knew that things were not that simple.
He looked at Anna, "Since this is a family matter, let's resolve it privately. Take everyone back to the banquet hall, don't let this affect their mood."
Anna understood his intention and nodded, signaling everyone to leave.
Suzy, however, was unwilling.
Staring coldly at the little maid, she gritted her teeth, "Where is Samantha now?"
If Samantha had really fallen for the trap, the effects of the drug should have already kicked in. Once the drug took effect, she needed to find a man to resolve it. Even if it wasn't Albert, any man would do.
The little maid shook her head, "I don't know. After I changed her into Miss Ellena's clothes, she left!"
Suzy looked at Anna, saying, "Aunt, I'm afraid my sister might be in trouble. I want to go and look for her."
Anna, feeling displeased, maintained her composure, "I will send someone to look for her. We can't let everyone's mood be affected by her. Let's return to the hall for now."
"But..." Suzy was dissatisfied and wanted to say more.
Anna cut her off with a stern voice, "Enough. Go back to the hall."
Seeing Anna seemed upset, Suzy dared not insist any longer and could only follow back to the hall.
Alexander and Noah now even more disliked Suzy.
Especially Alexander, she made a face at Suzy and pouted, saying, "Hateful ghost, as long as we're here, you won't be able to harm my mommy..."
Suzy was so infuriated that she felt like spitting blood. She wished she could strangle Alexander.
Albert walked beside Ellena. Ellena hesitated, wanting an explanation. However, Albert seemed to ignore her, offering no explanation at all.
Ellena's heart felt like it had fallen into an icy cellar, cold to the core. Tears of grievance welled up in her eyes.
Sure enough, he never cared about her feelings. From beginning to end, it was just her wishful thinking.
No matter how much she invested, he wouldn't see it, wouldn't like her.
In his heart, there was only that woman...
For more than ten years, he still couldn't forget, couldn't give up. Even if it was like searching for a needle in the haystack, he still hadn't given up hope.
Suzy noticed the subtle atmosphere between them and kept a close eye on it.
After everyone left, only the maid, Ethan, and Alexander and Noah remained on the terrace.
Ethan had originally wanted Alexander and the others to leave first, but they refused. They insisted on finding Samantha before leaving.
Ethan sternly questioned the maid, "Where is Samantha?"
Before the maid could speak, Ethan guessed her intention. He warned in a cold tone, "Don't try to deceive me! What happened just now? Where is Samantha?"
The maid, trembling, crawled over to Ethan, hugging his legs tightly and crying, "Young Master, please save me! This has nothing to do with me. I did it to save Miss Miller."
Ethan's heart sank.
"Speak, what exactly happened? Where is Samantha?"
The maid tearfully explained, "Miss Miller and Young Master Davis were set up by someone. To prevent the enemy's plot from succeeding, Young Master Davis had me stage a play. He had me replace Miss Miller."
Afraid that Ethan wouldn't believe her, she hastily added, "Even if I have the courage of a bear and the heart of a leopard, I wouldn't dare to seduce Young Master Davis! Young Master, I really did it to help them. Please spare my life."
Ethan asked, "Where is Samantha now?"
Trembling, the maid pointed to a dark building not far behind her.
"Miss Miller has been settled in the room at the far south on the second floor."
Upon hearing this, Ethan rushed towards the building.
The maid, feeling like she had no hope, sat on the ground weakly.
It was over.
Completely over this time.
She couldn't save her job, and maybe she wouldn't even save her life.
In her utmost despair, Ethan's voice drifted from afar, "Alexander, Noah, keep an eye on her. Don't let anyone harm her."
Alexander and Noah hesitated but ultimately decided to stay.
...
Ethan arrived at the building pointed out by the maid.
It was pitch-black all around, and you couldn't see your hand in front of your face.
Ethan turned the doorknob of the room at the far south, and intermittent moans came from inside.
The restrained and hoarse voices sounded uncomfortable and painful.
Following the sound, Ethan found the bathroom. He gently pushed open the door, revealing a dark curtain.
The sound was coming from behind the curtain.
***