All the dishes looked decent to him.
Out of habit, he tried the noodles first. âNot bad.â
He picked up a piece of beef and took a bite.
His movements were controlled, graceful, and pleasant to look at, as though he was born to be noble.
Ashlyn grinned and dug in.
She did not take off the rubber gloves she had been wearing, which made Lucas frown. âWhy arenât you taking your gloves off?â
She never wears gloves when she cooksâ¦
Something feels offâ¦
Ashlyn glanced at her gloves and answered, âIâm going to wash the dishes later, so Iâll just keep them on for the moment.â
âYou donât have to,â Lucas said, dabbing at the corners of his mouth with a handkerchief. âWe have maids for a reason.â
Ashlyn grinned. âI like it. How about that?â
Lucas started to get suspicious, but he knew that any attempt to extort information from her would be futile.
*
A private jet landed at the airport in the middle of the night.
Lucas turned to the woman beside him and tapped her on the shoulder. âWeâre here.â
Ashlyn slowly opened her eyes as her muddled brain struggled to make sense of the situation. âLetâs go.â
She had been feeling fatigued for the whole afternoon and ended up sleeping through the entire flight.
Even after waking up, her mind was still in a mess.
Taking out her phone, she sent a message to Jared, telling him to investigate the poison from the NN Terrorist Group. I wonder if heâs come up with anythingâ¦
They got into their Bentley after disembarking the plane.
Ashlynâs eyelids felt like lead, but she forced herself to stay awake as she took out her phone to check for incoming messages.
Jared had replied to her message. Boss, NN Terrorist Group is in possession of three types of incurable poison. Since the skin at the point where the poison entered your body is turning black, Iâm going to guess that itâs the Backtrack Poison. It will hijack your nervous system and turn back your mental age to that of a three-year-old. You will be paralyzed for life.
Ashlyn stared at his message intently.
Hijack nervous system⦠paralysis⦠for lifeâ¦
No! I canât let myself turn into a vegetable!
Ashlyn typed: How long does it take for the poison to take effect? Will I die soon, just like Lilian?
Lucas had put all his time and energy into taking care of Ashlyn after dealing with Lilianâs death. He could tell she was distressed with just one glance.
Whatâs wrong? Did something happen?
Sheâs hiding something from meâ¦
Lucas had a bad feeling about the future.
However, he held back from peeking at her messages out of respect for her.
The only thing he could do was sit up straight and glance at her every so often.
However, she was too preoccupied with her own shock to notice Lucasâs concern. She stared at her screen, waiting for a reply from Jared.
Jared did not disappoint. The dose is small, Boss. It wonât kill you immediately, but Iâd say you have about two weeks.
Ashlyn bit her lip as she wrote her reply: Find the cure, no matter what it takes. If Lilian can get her hands on the poison, then so can we. If all else fails, letâs try and make our own cure.
Yes, Boss!
Ashlyn turned her phone off and leaned back.
She closed her eyes as a million thoughts ran through her mind.
Backtrack poisonâ¦
How did a maid like Lilian get in contact with the NN Terrorist Group?
Was someone trying to harm Lucas?
Her mind was all jumbled up.
As the car pulled into the driveway of Whitland Villa, Lucas gazed at the woman beside him. âHoney, weâre home.â