Chapter 1553: Hey there, Uncle. Missed me?

Meanwhile...

Hugo had been idling outside the Global Prime Logistics building for quite some time now. Yesterday, he had spent the whole day following Kiara. A single day of trailing the woman was enough to get a sense of the kind of life she led.

She didn’t seem like the type to be involved in illegal dealings.

However, as an experienced soldier, he knew not to judge a book by its cover. After all, he had encountered quite a few women in the field—both enemies and comrades—who wore the face of a tamed angel but harbored some truly unbelievable intentions.

Still, Kiara wasn’t his focus. He only followed her out of curiosity, since Stephen seemed to visit the young woman more often. His real priority was Stephen.

"Screw it," he muttered, shoving the last of his beef jerky into his mouth before putting on his helmet.

Hugo revved up his motorbike and drove straight to the building’s parking area.

---

[Global Prime Logistics: CEO’s Office]

Stephen watched the news with a grim expression. Even though he knew he had already tried to help Kiara, he couldn’t shake the sense of urgency in his chest.

"Maybe... if I reach out to Charles..." he trailed off, shaking his head to dismiss the thought. "I can’t do that. He’ll kill me."

Another heavy sigh escaped him as he slumped in his seat. Becoming the CEO of Global Prime Logistics had always been a dream. He thought that once he took the head of the Bennet family, he would gain the importance he sought.

But alas...

Stephen glared at the nameplate on his desk with bitterness and frustration.

The longer he held the title of CEO, the heavier it became. Not just physically, but emotionally. It felt more insulting every day, especially at moments like this, when he needed strong backing but couldn’t find it. Why? Because it was clear as day that this title was nothing but an empty one.

"If it weren’t for Charles holding back, Global Prime Logistics would’ve fallen apart," he grumbled, acknowledging the truth. "How can Global Prime Logistics and the Miller’s Company, once worlds apart, be slowly catching up?"

In just a few more months, or maybe a year, the Miller’s Company would be number one in logistics.

"...." Another heavy sigh escaped him as he wiped his face with his hand. "This is giving me more stress than anything."

His only saving grace was that the people who had put him in this seat hadn’t reached out to him yet.

"Did they forget about me?" he wondered aloud, glancing cautiously at the drawer where he kept that other phone. "Did they finally let me go?"

Questions that Stephen had asked himself every single day resurfaced in his mind.

Back when he poisoned the chairman and kicked Atlas out of the company, the people who had instructed him to do so kept in touch. But after Atlas’s announcement of joining the Pierson Corporation and Charles’s takeover of the Miller’s Company, they had stopped.

It made him wonder: Was that all they needed from him? Or did they want more?

But then again, he couldn’t entirely rely on that theory, not when he still had a few pills tucked away in a safe place. Pills that Penny had altered into something else—the ones the enemy thought were the real killer pills.

"I don’t want to think about it," he muttered, shaking his head. "Don’t think about it. Out of sight, out of mind."

Stephen repeated this to himself over and over as he tried to refocus on his work. With so many things happening in the company, including the loss of several key clients to the Millers, there wasn’t much for him to do. Just signing a few documents. Nothing significant.

Time passed quickly, and before he knew it, it was already time for him to head home and rest. After going through his usual routine, Stephen adjusted his tie as he stood in the lift, heading down to the parking lot.

His briefcase swung to and fro as he stepped out of the lift and walked toward his car. He jumped into the backseat, leaning back as he fixed his tie again.

The car immediately began moving as soon as he settled in.

For a moment, silence filled the vehicle until Stephen noticed something—someone—odd about the driver. Deep lines formed between his brows, and his heartbeat slowed. His breath hitched as his eyes widened, then quickly averted. He didn’t want to look, but a part of him knew.

He didn’t need to.

After all, he already recognized the person in the driver’s seat—it wasn’t his usual driver. In the past, when his driver had been replaced, it had been by someone from the same group that had put Sven in prison.

That driver still haunted Stephen’s nightmares, for he knew all too well what had happened to that person after their "mistake."

’I was just thinking if they forgot about me,’ he thought, clasping his hands tightly in his lap. ’I shouldn’t have asked.’

Closing his eyes, he gathered the courage to look up. But instead of facing the driver, he turned his gaze to the window.

’I was right,’he thought, realizing they were taking a different route than usual. ’Oh, God, help me. I don’t know what else to expect tonight.’

Fear quickly overcame him as he considered the vile people he was dealing with.

"Where are you taking me this time?" His voice cut through the still silence, trying to sound unaffected, though he felt like he might hyperventilate at any moment. "Can’t your boss just make a phone call? Is it really necessary to take me somewhere whenever your boss pleases?"

He glared at the driver’s seat, slowly slipping back into character. Much to his surprise, as he studied the driver’s profile, his brows knitted together in confusion.

Stephen stretched his neck and examined the face of the driver. His eyes widened. "Hugo!?"

"Heh," Hugo smirked, glancing at the rearview mirror. "Hey there, Uncle. Missed me?"