Abel brushed aside his memories, and beads of sweat trickled down his forehead.
Emmeline wrote in his palm. âDoes the scar on your back come from that incident?â
He nodded and smiled, tousling her hair. âI apologize for not telling you. I was afraid that I might have taken a life that night.â
âWhat about Oliverâs son⦠Tobias pondered and asked, âIs he dead?â
âItâs hard to say,â Abel frowned. âAlthough Oliver ambushed me, he didnât intend to kill me. Instead, I accidentally injured his son, which still counts as taking a life.â
âBut you saved Oliver from the attacker! Tobias said.
âYes!â Abel replied. âIf I hadnât acted quickly, the consequences for Oliver would have been unimaginable!â
âI understand why you wouldnât want to bring it up. Itâs clearly a complicated situation with at lot of history, Brandon said.
âBut Iâm curious,â Abel said. âWith Oliverâs immense wealth, why would he attack me over a piece of jade?â
âThere are two reasons,â Roland said. âMaster wanted to study that jade, and he also needed a large amount of funding for his esoteric medicine research institute.â
âWhat happened afterward?â Brandon asked Abel.
âAfterward, I waited quietly to see if the police department would intervene,â Abel said with at serious expression. âBut until now, there hasnât been any movement.â
âBecause Oliver knows heâs in the wrong, Tobias said. âIf his son died and the police investigated, none of you would be able to escape the consequences!â
Emmeline couldnât help but hold Abelâs hand. He patted the back of her hand and smiled wryly. âEmma, donât worry. I havenât done anything wrong. Nothing will happen to me!â
âWhat about the pendant you took from the attackerâs neck?â Tobias asked.
Abel said, âI lost it on the way back from Setwell.â
âLost it?â Roland, who had been silent all along, suddenly spoke up. âYou lost such an important item?â
âWhen youâre away from home, itâs normal to misplace belongings and money.â Abel chuckled lightly.
âCould all the answers be in that pendant?â Brandon asked.
Tobias furrowed his brow. âThat pendant would at least reveal the identity of the attacked Oliver. But the problem is that pendantâ¦â
Roland suddenly looked at Emmeline and said, âShe might know the whereabouts of that pendant.â
Emmeline widened her eyes in surprise, wondering, lâhy me?
Brandon said sternly, âRoland, please donât make reckless statements!â
Abel furrowed his brows, âMr. Harding, what do you mean?â
Roland casually took out a very old piece of paper from his pocket.
Abelâs gaze suddenly froze; he recognized that paper. It was the paper he wrote to Hogan, the jade craftsman, years ago, with the words âEmmeline Louiseâ on it. Abel wondered how this. paper could, after so many years and miles apart, end up in Rolandâs hands.
âWhat is this?â Brandon leaned forward and asked.
Roland slowly unfolded the folded paper and laid it on the table. Sure enough, there were two words in the middle of the paper, âEmmeline Louise.â It was Abelâs handwriting, but beneath his handwriting, there were a few more words written in an elegant script.
Abel stared at it; it said, âIf you encounter this Emmeline, choose between the two Jade Kings!â
âI didnât write these words!â Abel said. âHow is it related to Emma?â
Brandon asked, âRoland, what is going on?â
A cold light flashed in Abelâs eyes as he turned to Tobias and asked, âWas todayâs meeting part of your plan?â
Tobias lowered his eyes and remained silent.
Abelâs gaze turned icy as he shot a look at Brandon. âDid you have a hand in this plan, too? Is this something you initiated the first time you met Emma?â
âAbel. Brandon quickly stood up. T, Brandon Wyatt, would never stoop so low as to engage in such schemes. I just found out about todayâs events as well.â Ilis gaze suddenly turned toward Tobias as he sternly asked, âDad! Are you using me?â
Tobias waved his hand, gesturing for both of them to sit down. âCalm down, calm down!â
Roland said, âIf you encounter this Emmeline, choose between the two Jade Kings. This is the handwriting of Master Ryker. After the incident that night, Oliver and his son disappeared.â
âWhat does that have to do with me?â Abel said sternly. âI didnât do anything to him!â
âLater, I found this paper on his desk. Roland said. âI knew that Masterâs disappearance must be related to Emmeline.â
âItâs just a coincidence, Abel said. âEmmaâs name was something I randomly wrote!â
âChoose between the two Jade Kings undoubtedly refers to my masterâs colleague, Remy Zephyr.â
Roland continued. âBut what does Mr. Zephyr have to do with it? Only Emmeline can unravel this mystery!â
Emmeline looked puzzled, shaking her head repeatedly, wondering how she could know.