Nick widened his eyes, his face full of joy.
But then...
As soon as he saw the woman's face, his smile froze.
Ethan's expression also froze.
The woman furrowed her brows, annoyed, "What are you doing? Who are you? Let go of me, or I'll call the police."
Oliver realized something was wrong and immediately walked over, pulling Nick's hand away with apologetic eyes, "Sorry, my friend mistook you for someone else!"
The woman regained her freedom, rubbing her wrist that had been pinched, gave Nick a glare, then hurriedly left.
Nick watched her disappear from sight, disappointment evident in his eyes.
Oliver patted his shoulder, "It's common to mistake someone, don't worry about it! It's late, let's go back!"
Nick didn't say anything, he lowered his head and walked forward silently.
Seeing him leave, Oliver turned to comfort Ethan but was surprised to find Ethan unexpectedly calm. He was slightly taken aback, "It seems like you've truly moved on from Jessica's death."
In the past, Ethan's reaction would surely have been the same as Nick's.
But today, he seemed much calmer.
Ethan glanced at him indifferently, said nothing, and followed Nick out.
Little did they know, not long after they left, a white figure flashed past Jessica's grave.
...
Sky Group.
Samantha was working overtime, hoping to finish the design drafts soon and secure a collaboration with the Holy Emperor Group.
Suddenly, she received a call from Albert Davis.
"We found him. I'm downstairs at Sky Group now, come down immediately."
Samantha refused, "No need, just give me the address, I'll drive there myself."
Albert, in an unquestionable and assertive tone, said, "I'll give you five minutes. If you don't come down, I'll come up to find you!"
After saying that, without giving her a chance to refuse, he hung up.
Listening to the busy tone on the other end of the phone, Samantha was momentarily stunned.
Was this how wealthy people behaved?
Dominant and forceful?
Without any room for negotiation?
Samantha stood up wordlessly, tidied up quickly, and grabbed her bag before heading downstairs.
As she walked out of the building, she immediately saw a black Rolls-Royce Phantom parked at the company entrance.
She walked over, opened the back door, and bent down to get in.
Albert glanced at her meaningfully through the rearview mirror.
Samantha looked back at him openly.
Albert smirked slyly, started the car, and drove away.
An hour later, the two of them arrived at a villa in the suburbs again.
This time, Samantha saw the same maid.
The servant was covered in injuries, lying motionless on the ground, struggling to breathe.
Seeing them, their subordinate immediately brought over two stools and placed them not far from the servant.
Albert and Samantha took their seats.
Albert gave his subordinate a meaningful glance.
The subordinate viciously kicked the man lying on the ground.
The man struggled to lift his head.
Samantha recognized him at a glance; he was the servant who had deceived her that night at the Steele family's old mansion, claiming Ethan was looking for her and leading her to the backyard terrace.
She was the one who fell into his trap after drinking the tea he brought, almost getting involved with Albert inappropriately.
Albert stepped hard on the back of his hand and pressed down forcefully.
The servant immediately broke out in a cold sweat from the pain.
Albert's eyes glinted with a chilling light, a smile playing at the corners of his mouth, but his words sounded as if they came from the Antarctic, carrying bone-chilling coldness.
"You have some nerve, daring to plot against me. Don't you want to live?"
The servant, tormented by Albert's subordinate and now faced with this intimidating Albert, trembled uncontrollably.
"I'm sorry, it wasn't me, it really wasn't me. Someone instructed me to do it, I... I..."
If he had known how terrifying Albert was, he would never have agreed to it.
Albert suddenly wiped the smile from his lips, his expression emotionless. "If you want to live, explain everything clearly, including who instructed you. Otherwise, I'll make you disappear without a trace."
The servant nodded frantically.
"It's because I owed a loan shark five hundred thousand due to gambling. Suzy gave me a million to lure Samantha and Mr. Davis to the terrace and instructed me to make Samantha drink the drugged tea. She said Mr. Davis is the Steele family's rising star, and if Samantha and Mr. Davis got together, Samantha would have no future in this country. Not only would she be ostracized by the Davis family, but she would also face retaliation from the Steele family. This way, she could completely eliminate Samantha as a thorn in her side. The drug was given to me by her."
This outcome was completely within Samantha's expectations. She had long suspected Suzy was the mastermind behind it all, but lacked evidence. Now that her speculation had been confirmed, she felt surprisingly calm, without any surprise.
Having obtained the answer he wanted, Albert released his foot from the servant's hand, signaling for his subordinate to take him away.
He leaned back lazily in his chair, arms crossed, and asked with a smirk, "Now that you know the truth, what are you going to do?"
Samantha rubbed her temples wearily. "Thank you for finding out the truth."
Albert raised an eyebrow playfully. "Is that all?"
Samantha countered, "What else should I do?"
Albert couldn't quite figure out her reaction. "An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, perhaps?"
Samantha shook her head. "The grudge between Suzy and me didn't happen overnight. There's a lot of history between us that needs to be settled, bit by bit."
Especially since this matter also involves Ethan.
Right now, she didn't want anything to do with Ethan.
So, this matter could only be left unresolved like this.
The score between her and Suzy would be settled one day.
Albert said, "I can help you!"
Samantha shook her head, stood up, and smoothed out the wrinkles on her clothes.
"No need. I'll deal with my grudge with her on my own. I won't trouble an outsider like you. Please just take me back. Thank you."
Although she didn't want to bother Albert, the area was too far from the city center.
Last time, she walked for over an hour and still didn't see a car.
If she called a ride-hailing service, it would take another hour to come over, which would be too long.
Her reaction was too calm, which led Albert to have a different view of her and realize she seemed a bit different from other women.
On the way back in the car, Albert couldn't help but ask, "Are you and her half-sisters?"
Samantha nodded.
Albert narrowed his eyes dangerously and said coldly, "I'm someone who always seeks revenge for the slightest grievance!"
His implication was clear: he would seek revenge.
Samantha understood his meaning and shrugged indifferently. "We're not close, so you don't need to consider me. Seek your revenge however you want. Even if you kill her, it has nothing to do with me. I might even set off firecrackers for three days and nights."
Albert didn't say anything more. He glanced at her subtly through the rearview mirror.
Suddenly, his gaze unintentionally fell on her collarbone, and his pupils dilated abruptly, a flash of shock passing through his eyes.
Was it her?
***