The woman yelled out curses as the car receded into the distance. Stella looked away. She was about to leave when she heard the woman shouting at her.
âHey! Whatâs your name?â
Stella paused her steps. She turned around and looked at the woman but said nothing.
âWhy are you all alone in such a place?â the woman continued, not minding that Stella didnât answer her question. âHmph! I bet you got dumped by a scumbag just like me, didnât you?â
Stella raised her brows. The woman wasnât wrong⦠She shrugged wearily.
âDo you want to walk home together?â Stella asked.
âNo,â the woman shook her head. âItâs your lucky day. I just called someone to pick me up. You can come along with us.â
Stella gave it a good thought before she finally agreed.
âThank you,â she said earnestly.
âOh, donât worry about it. Weâre in the same boat, after all! Dry your eyes, sister. Letâs never get involved with scumbags, ever again!â
âYes,â Stella laughed. âI agree!â
Meanwhile, in the car on the road ahead, the so-called scumbag Xavier Ford glanced at the angry woman through the rearview mirror and tugged at his collar nonchalantly. Sounds of rapid wind filled his ears. He picked up his phone and called a number.
âThis is the first time you ever asked for my help, and itâs all for a woman,â he said. âArenât you worried that Guinevere would blow up if she finds out?â
âThanks for helping,â the man on the other side replied simply before hanging up.
Xavier snorted at the beeping dial tone.
âShouldâve shown more respect for your uncle, kid!â he grumbled as he tossed his phone aside.
As he turned the steering wheel, he suddenly thought of the woman he had just met, and his expression turned mischievous. Heâd heard of the woman who committed suicide, but when he tried to investigate the matter, he found that all information about Stella Sealey had been completely wiped clean. The culprit was obvious. But he couldnât find any news about her anywhere in Ahn City either, so he thought she mustâve died and left it at that.
But then, who was that woman that he had just met? All these years, his nephew had never messed around with women before. The only woman in his life had always just been Guinevere Cohen. So what was it with his sudden change recently? There was even that mysterious unknown woman that suddenly popped upâ¦
It was already dark when Stella finally got home. Just as she stepped through the door, she saw Roger preparing to go out.
âWhere are you going?â she asked, a little alarmed.
Rogerâs tense body completely relaxed when he saw Stella. âWhere have you been?â he asked. âIâve been worried to death!â
Roger heaved a long sigh of relief before continuing, âI went to the training center to find you, but they told me that you left long ago, so I came back home, but youâre not here either. I thought that something happened againâ¦â
Ever since the kidnapping, Stella had always been back home on time every day. If she was even slightly late, Roger would instantly grow concerned and get antsy, fearing the worst. That horrible incident had been hanging over the two siblings like a dark, heavy cloud, but they never talked about it because they were afraid of upsetting each other.
Stellaâs eyes reddened, and the tears welled up. She stepped towards Roger and rested her head on her brotherâs shoulder.
âSomething happened again, didnât it?â Roger asked as he gently patted his sisterâs back. âItâs all going to be okay, Sis. You still have me by your side.â Roger was right, thought Stella. She still had him. At the very least, she still had one family member who loved her.
âEverythingâs fine, Roger,â she assured him, looking up at him with a smile. âCome on, letâs eat out tonight!â