Chapter 135 "Do you want to speak again?" she asked, tilting her head slightly.
The maid nodded frantically, her eyes wide with terror. She didnât dare hesitate, as if any delay might seal her silence forever.
Danielle removed the silver needle with a deliberate precision and snapped her fingers.
Instantly, the maidâs eyes lost focus, her gaze turning glassy and void of emotion.
"Who sent you here, and what was your mission?" Danielleâs voice softened, yet it carried an undeniable authority.
"Mr. Morris... infiltrate... eliminate if necessary," the maid replied mechanically, her voice eerily monotone.
Danielleâs eyes narrowed slightly. Her tone grew firmer as she asked, "And was it Mr. Morris who ordered the poisoning? Whatâs his full name?"
"Yes. Hugh," the maid answered, her voice wavering.
A flicker of resistance crossed her face, but the compulsion to answer overpowered her hesitation.
"Are there other tasks youâve been assigned?"
Danielle continued, carefully observing the maidâs responses and noting her subtle struggles.
"No..."
"Where are your people embedded in other families?"
"I... I donât... know." Sweat poured down the maidâs face as her body tensed, struggling against an invisible barrier.
Danielle sighed inwardly. It was clear the maid had been hypnotized before, but the person who had programmed her lacked finesse. Pushing further could irreparably damage her mind. With a snap of her fingers, Danielle brought the maid out of her trance. The maid blinked, disoriented, before collapsing into a silent heap.
Joshua, who had been watching the entire exchange, stared at Danielle in awe. "You hypnotized her... without saying anything? No countdown? No âbreathe deeplyâ? Just a snap?"
Danielle shot him a side glance, smirking faintly. "You want to try it out for yourself?"
Joshuaâs hands flew up defensively. "No, no, Iâm good. Thanks."
David, standing quietly at her side, raised an eyebrow. Even he was impressed by Danielleâs mastery of hypnosis-it was far more advanced than he had imagined.
"Sheâs just a pawn. A small-time spy," Danielle concluded, brushing her hands off as if she had just finished a mundane task.
The trio left the basement, the stale air giving way to the relative comfort of the living room.
"Miss Darling," Joshua ventured, his curiosity getting the better of him, "how did you get so good at hypnosis? I thought it involved a lot more steps."
Danielle gave a nonchalant shrug. "You either have it or you donât."
Joshua decided to drop the subject.
"Hugh is likely already in Soufield. The maids in various households are probably his contacts. If thatâs the case, then the Wulf Clan is definitely linked to the Shadow Domain," Danielle deduced aloud.
David nodded grimly. "Thatâs a certainty now. Iâve been holding back on dealing with him to see if heâd lead us to his superiors."
Joshua brightened up. "By the way, Miss Darling, my grandfatherâs eightieth birthday is next month. You and David have to come!"
"David already mentioned it. Iâll be there," Danielle replied. Still, her thoughts drifted elsewhere. She couldnât shake the unease over Elliotâs safety.
Elliot and his team were tracking a major drug lord, and after days of monitoring, they finally got a lead. The word was that the transaction would take place tonight at the Westland abandoned warehouse. They had been tailing the operation for days and were ready to act.
Elliot glanced at his watch-there was still half an hour until 8 PM. "Position yourselves and stay hidden. Our primary target is Scorpion. Try to capture him alive. As soon as the deal starts, we move in," he instructed.
"Understood."
At 8 PM sharp, several cars slowly rolled into the warehouse. The headlights turned off, but the people inside didnât get out for several minutes, making it hard to tell how many there were.
From his hidden spot in the corner, Elliot checked his watch again. Twenty minutes had passed, and no one had made a move yet. It didnât seem like theyâd been exposed-if they had, the targets would have bolted by now. All they could do was wait.
Ten minutes later, more cars arrived. The headlights went out, and again, the occupants stayed inside.
"Hold your positions," Elliot whispered into his earpiece.
Five minutes later, two men finally got out of the vehicles. They appeared to be in the middle of a conversation. The team kept their distance to avoid alerting them, unsure of what was being said.
It seemed like the deal was about to happen.
A tall man approached a 4x4 vehicle, and the rear window rolled down. Inside sat a man in his forties, dressed in black.
The moment the window dropped, Elliotâs eyes locked onto the man in the car-it was their primary target, the elusive drug lord.
This operation wasnât supposed to involve them directly, but Scorpion had proven so crafty in evading capture that Elliotâs team had been forced to step in. Every attempt had ended in failure, and despite being on the most-wanted list, he remained free.
The tall man leaned into the vehicle, speaking with the drug lord. After a brief exchange, the drug lord nodded, apparently agreeing to the deal.
A burly man stepped out of the car and opened a box-likely filled with illicit goods. The team watched closely, knowing they had to act the moment they confirmed the contents.
Both sides exchanged boxes. The burly man opened the box from the other party-it was filled with money. The other man slowly opened his box.
"Everyone, prepare to move. Once we confirm the goods, we execute the takedown," Elliot ordered.
"Copy that," came the immediate response from his team.
As soon as the box opened, confirming the presence of illicit items, Elliot gave the signal.
"Move in!" Elliot sprang into action, heading straight for Scorpionâs car.
"The deal was nearly complete when a gunshot rang out, disrupting the transaction. Elliotâs team swiftly surrounded the drug dealers.
"Freeze!" Elliotâs voice echoed through the warehouse, as the drug dealers muttered angrily, blaming each other for the operation being compromised.
His gut instinct was on high alert. There was something off about the ease of this operation. Scorpion, the top target on the international wanted list, was known to evade capture with large security teams. Why was this operation going so smoothly?
"Elliot, weâve got all the drug dealers contained," his teammate reported. Everyone had their guns trained on the criminals-any sign of resistance, and they wouldnât hesitate to shoot.
"Get him out of the car," Elliot ordered, his gun trained on Scorpion inside the vehicle.
Scorpion sat unfazed, a dangerous smile crossing his face. "Elliot, we meet again."
Back at the dorm, Danielle finished her shower and climbed into bed.
She planned to sketch some designs. The new skincare product line had been a massive success, and she was preparing to launch a few clothing series as well.
Danielle grabbed her pen and began sketching furiously, as if the ideas in her head flowed endlessly.
Since founding The Grace Group, Danielle had been the one creating the designs, and her unique vision had helped the company rapidly carve out a name for itself.
Her phone buzzed with a new message.
The message read: [Danielle, the response to the new products has been amazing. Our initial stock is running out, and Iâve already ordered more production.]
Danielle replied: [Got it. Iâll send over the clothing designs in a couple of days, and we can get the new collection live.]
The reply came. [Of course, our beautiful and kind-hearted boss, youâre really making it happen!]
Not A Small Town Girl (Danielle and David)
ï¤Chapter 134 Another message popped up.
It was from Emery. [Danielle, Iâve tracked the killersâ location. Theyâre heading toward Westland. The IP from the order is also coming from Westland.
It seems like Elliot is there. He might already be facing the person who placed the order. Weâre worried heâs in serious danger.]
Emery knew Elliot well and understood how capable he was. However, this time, nearly all of the top ten assassins on the wanted list had mobilized.
Each of these killers had dozens, if not hundreds, of contracts under their belt. As long as the price was right, they were sure to get the job done.
"Danielle frowned. âWestland? Isnât there a large abandoned warehouse there? Could Elliot be on an operation there?â
Danielle quickly typed. [Take extra people and head to Westland now. Make sure Elliot is safe.]
Emery: [Understood. Iâm on it.]
Emery responded: [Got it. Iâve sent the details to your email. Iâm heading over right now.]
Emery didnât dare delay. If anything happened to Elliot, Emery would never forgive himself.