Two days flew by in a flash. Finally, Diana's concert began.
The audience filed into the hall in a neat and orderly line. Charlotte, escorted by Aaron and Ian, smiled happily with a sense of honor on her face. They had prime seats at the front of the stage, affording them a clear view of the proceedings.
"Chris is here!" Charlotte exclaimed suddenly, her gaze darting towards the passageway in surprise. Aaron and Ian followed her look, raising their eyebrows in unison. Chris stood alone, apparently not having reconciled with his first girlfriend as he had hoped.
The music prelude began, signaling the imminent start of Diana's performance. The audience had already settled into their seats, waiting with bated breath. Charlotte, too, awaited eagerly, but she couldn't shake the feeling of being watched.
Turning her head reflexively, Charlotte scanned the dimly lit corner where the sensation emanated from, finding nothing amiss. Rows of spectators were seated there, their features obscured by the shadows.
"Charlotte, what's wrong?" Ian noticed Charlotte's unease and voiced his concern.
"I feel like someone's watching me," Charlotte confessed.
"What?" Ian's expression turned guarded as he followed her gaze. Chris and Aaron also turned their attention to the corner.
The Scott family was particularly sensitive to Charlotte's well-being. Chris immediately offered, "I'll go check it out."
"No, Chris, don't," Charlotte interjected, pulling him back. "It might be nothing. Diana's concert is about to start; it's not the right time."
Ian agreed, adding, "We can have someone keep an eye on it for now and investigate after the concert."
Chris nodded in agreement.
As the stage lights illuminated, the crowd gasped in anticipation.
Diana appeared on stage in a long white dress, her stunningly beautiful face resembling an angel. Seated at the piano, she was surrounded by a professional accompaniment team.
The elegant and melodious notes of the piano transported the audience into a new realm, and time seemed to slip away.
Until long after the concert ended, people remained captivated by it.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the corner, Kingsley, sporting a blue hoodie with a duck hat and mouthpiece, couldn't help but glance in the direction where Charlotte had been.
"Kingsley, we should leave," Carl's expression was somber. "The Scott family is too observant; we're being watched."
Kingsley averted his gaze, adjusted his hat, and muttered, "Let's go."
Carl breathed a sigh of relief and, accompanied by a few others, guided him away from the dim, secluded corner.
Charlotte sensed something and glanced back, catching a glimpse of a familiar figure—Kingsley!
She froze momentarily, then hastily tried to catch up, only to have her arm grasped by someone.
"Charlotte, where are you going?" Aaron inquired.
Chris and Ian also turned their attention to her, their expressions tinged with concern.
As they glanced toward the rear, they noticed the audience starting to disperse, the scene becoming increasingly chaotic with nothing out of the ordinary visible. However, Chris and Ian, being observant, couldn't ignore the sense that something was amiss.
"Ian, stay here and keep an eye on her. I'll investigate," Chris declared.
"No, I'll go," Ian insisted.
After a brief pause, Chris relented. "Be cautious and maintain communication."
Outside the theater, the streets bustled with people. Kingsley's car, nestled among others, swiftly departed into the distance. Behind them, several inconspicuous black cars followed closely.
"Kingsley, it's the Scott family," Carl informed.
Kingsley's demeanor grew colder, his fingers tapping urgently on the computer. Without lifting his gaze, he curtly commanded, "Take the river road, lose them."
The river road, near downtown, was bustling and congested. Fortunately, the Livingston family's driver was adept, having meticulously planned various routes in advance. Utilizing the cover of the crowd, they swiftly changed vehicles, evading pursuit.
Meanwhile, the Scott family's car trailed behind.
The driver spoke up, "Mr. Scott, those cars headed north..."
To the north, ending at the river, there was no other route.
"Impossible, they must have diverted," Ian asserted, eyeing the black dot on the computer screen intently, "The west..."
The driver caught his cue and promptly reversed direction.
But the message on Ian's computer screen was rapidly evolving, as if it were under attack.
"Mr. Scott, this..." the bodyguard beside him gasped in shock.
Ian, a computer genius since childhood and now leading international cyber missions, was among the world's elite hackers.
How could these adversaries still resist him online?
"Not under attack," Ian declared, narrowing his eyes slightly.
No one could challenge him in the realm of computers.
Instead, his opponent was actually 'self-destructing'.
Indeed, the black dot soon vanished from the screen, and Ian's tracking lost its target.
He inhaled deeply, exhaling a cloud of tense air. "No need to pursue. Let's head back now."
Though the driver and bodyguards were puzzled, none dared question or resist; they promptly reversed course and returned.
Ian called Chris. "Chris, maintain surveillance on the concert hall to prevent any video from being corrupted by a virus," Ian instructed swiftly.
"They have a cyber master? Even you couldn't track them?" Chris's voice betrayed surprise. "Mm-hmm," Ian murmured, pinching his brow, a hint of concern flickering in his eyes.
Whoever was behind this, he made a mental note.
The car sped along the road, soon rejoining the concert hall.
By this time, the audience had departed, leaving only essential staff and a few Scott family members along with their accompanying shadows, the bodyguards.
Ian headed straight for the surveillance room. "Any anomalies in the surveillance?" he queried Chris, who sat before the computer with a grim expression.
Chris turned to face Ian, his demeanor serious. "It's too late. The surveillance system self-destructed immediately; I couldn't fix it!"
Ian grimaced, his expression contorting with extreme displeasure.
Charlotte's other siblings all remained serious, particularly Diana, who, far from relaxed after the concert, wore an expression of unease and guilt. A handsome man stood beside her, murmuring words of comfort.
Unusually, Ian disregarded Diana's emotional state and approached Charlotte, addressing her with a hint of urgency. "Charlotte, tell me the truth. Do you know that man?"