With her heart in her throat, Nicole prayed. Dear Lord, please donât let this cruel woman be my sister.
Wait, how should I get her hair now? Itâs midnight. I canât help her comb her hair, can I?
She was deep in thought when the door suddenly burst open. A masked man appeared in a flash.
âWho are you?â demanded Daphne.
In no time, a row of silver needles came at them. Nicole immediately avoided the needles agilely.
The other maids fell to the ground after the needles pierced their skin. Daphne couldnât escape in time and slumped to the ground.
As everyone was down, Nicole pretended she was hit by the needle and lay on the ground, waiting to see what the masked man would do.
There was a knife glinting in his hand as he pointed it right at Daphneâs face.
Is he going to ruin Daphneâs face?
What if Daphneâs my sister?
I need to save her.
Nicole rose to her feet cautiously and ran toward the door. âHelp! Thereâs an intruder here! Help!â
The masked man stopped in his tracks before coming to her. âStop yelling. Itâs me.â
Nicole recognized his voice at once.
âYoda? Why are you here?â
Yoda said nothing.
Is he here to teach Daphne a lesson as she bullied me earlier?
When both of them were in a daze, a bunch of helpers rushed in.
âLeave now!â shouted Yoda.
A thought occurred to Nicole. âGo ahead without me. Iâm wearing a maidâs uniform, so they canât recognize me.â
Yoda was stunned, then nodded.
When he was facing the maids, Nicole plucked a few strands of Daphneâs hair and headed for the door.
In no time, units of bodyguards arrived at Daphneâs room.
Nicole hurried away. She was running through the hallway when she bumped into something that stopped her.
âWho is this?â a raspy sound demanded.
Oh, itâs a man.
Relieved, she retorted, âWhy would someone block the hallway at this hour? How silly.â
The man frowned. âWho are you talking about?â
âThereâs no one else here. You, of course!â
The manâs expression soured as he glared at her.
Suddenly, footsteps sounded behind her. Nicole panicked at the sound. Is Evan here?
He canât get caught.
Praying hard, she gazed at the man standing in front of her as an idea popped up in her mind.
She turned and shouted at the bodyguards, âCome here! The intruder is here! The intruder is here! Help!â
Nicole was pleased by her idea as she yelled for help. Iâm diverting their attention so Yoda can escape.
The bodyguards arrived and looked at her. âWhere is the intruder?â
She pointed at the man. âThere!â
The bodyguards looked in the direction she was pointing. When they saw the man in question, they froze in their tracks before lowering their heads quietly.
âItâs him! Heâs the intruder. Take him away!â
Alas, the bodyguards didnât even move an inch after her announcement. She turned to face the man behind her as uneasiness crept up her heart.
Nicole didnât take a good look at this middle-aged man earlier. She belatedly realized that he seemed different and unusual.
He was dressed elegantly, radiating an authoritative aura silently.
Is he a member of the Musgrave family? she wondered.
She was busy making guesses when Levant arrived anxiously. He glanced at her before greeting the man, âDad, are you alright?â
Dad?
Levantâs dad is Sir Musgrave.
Sh*t, I was too worried about Yoda earlier.
I didnât even recognize Sir Musgrave and accused him as an intruder.
What do I do now? Will I be punished?
She fidgeted nervously before looking up.
Instantly, she realized the man was scanning her intently.