Chapter 1735: Striking At The Root

Chapter 1735: Striking at the Root

"Anderson, it's time for you to go to sleep. Mommy will discuss things

with Uncle Darrin, okay?"

Anderson obediently nodded, "Okay."

Joyce turned to Darrin and said, "Wait here for a moment. I'll settle him

first.”

"Sure, I'll check some information. You go ahead." Darrin picked up his

laptop and headed to the sofa in the living room. He noticed the late-

night snack on the table and asked, "Do you and Anderson want to eat

a bit more?"

Joyce shook her head, "I'm not hungry. You can finish the snack.” She

had no appetite, having hurriedly taken a few bites earlier. At this

moment, her mind was preoccupied with the new developments, and

she needed space to think.

Darrin replied, "Alright."

"Oh, by the way, check the records of my stay at Manderson Hospital

during my time at Mufron,” Joyce's eyes lit up as she suddenly said,

"See if there were any other special patients during my hospitalization.”

Darrin understood what Joyce meant, "Oh, I got it. Let me hack into the

patient information system of the other party and carefully investigate.

Leave it to me."

At this moment, Anderson peered out and asked, "Hack into their

system? Can you do it? Do you want me to help?"

Darrin glanced at Anderson disapprovingly, "Don't underestimate me.

Go to sleep quickly. I'm an expert in this field too, just not as young as

you to have learned it."

Anderson stuck out his tongue at Darrin. Kane was gone, and now

there was Darrin. That was fine too; he had someone to play with.

"Mommy, let's go. Can I play games with Uncle Darrin in the future?"

Joyce nodded, then took Anderson to wash up and brush his teeth,

making sure everything was set. She stayed with him in his room for a

while.

With the lights off, the room was enveloped in darkness. Joyce gently

stroked Anderson's back, soothing him to sleep. She knew that

Anderson must be restless tonight, recalling his past experience of

being kidnapped. She wanted to accompany him and wait until he fell

into a deep sleep before leaving.

The thought that both her children had fallen into Athena's hands made

her breathe faster, and her mood grew more restless.

If their analysis was correct, then Alisha might still be alive and in

Athena's hands.

Athena had met her that afternoon, forcing her to divorce, but she didn't

use Alisha as leverage. It meant that Athena had bigger plans, deeper

conspiracies, and didn't need to threaten them with Alisha. That was

what scared her the most and made her worry.

After a while, Anderson's breathing finally became steady.

He had been tossing and turning, unable to sleep, and she had tried to

soothe him. It wasn't easy for him to finally fall asleep soundly. Joyce

got up from Anderson's room and returned to the living room.

Darrin had finished his late-night snack, and the empty plate was on the

side.

Mr. Arnold came over and took the plate, a satisfied expression on his

face as he watched Darrin diligently at work. When he saw Joyce come

out, he quickly approached and asked, "Is Anderson asleep?"

"Yes," Joyce nodded.

Mr. Arnold turned and brought over a bowl of bird's nest congee,

saying, "Mrs. Warner, you're pregnant with twins. You need to take care

of your health. Please drink this bowl of bird's nest congee."

Joyce took it from Mr. Arnold, "Thank you, I will." Although she didn't

have much of an appetite at the moment, she would force herself to

finish it for the sake of her unborn children.

She walked over to Darrin and scooped a spoonful of congee, slowly

sipping it. She asked, "So, did you find anything?"

Darrin looked up, "Yes. I'm quite certain that Athena was treated at

Manderson Hospital. She was in a coma for ten years, and during that

time, she must have been at Manderson Hospital. Although I couldn't

find her name in the records, based on the dates of hospitalization,

special care, confidentiality measures, and the source of payment from

the Ballard Group, I can deduce that it was her!"

A cold smile crossed Joyce's lips. "So, she was in the same hospital as

me. After she woke up, she must have found out about Alisha. At that

time, we were at Christian's house, and although Christian mentioned

things about his sister, he always held back. We analyzed that his sister

hadn't died, and it seems to be true.”

"Exactly. Christian's ambiguous attitude made both of us suspicious.

This way, everythingcan be explained logically. After Athena woke up,

she concealed it from Christian and obtained information about Alisha.

Then, when Christian held a funeral for Alisha, Athena manipulated the

situation. So, Christian must not know that Alisha is still alive. Athena

must have hidden her. Afterward, Athena frequently appeared in

Rohomes and the Capital, colluding with Otis. It was probably to get

close to you and target Anderson,” analyzed Darrin.

Joyce agreed, "If everything goes as expected, that's likely how it

happened.”

"Mr. Warner must know, but he can't tell us. He's afraid of provoking

Athena, that crazy woman, which would be detrimental to Alisha. I

wrongly blamed Mr. Warner before. Commander, please don't blame

me. I always had some doubts about his actions," Darrin expressed

with a hint of apology.

Joyce smiled, "You haven't been with him for long, so it's normal to

have doubts. There's no point in discussing it now. Since he chose not

to tell us, it certainly means the situation is not optimistic. Therefore,

even if we know, we have to pretend we don't. We can't act rashly. With

Athena's vigilance, she must be monitoring Luther from all angles. If we

expose ourselves, he will be exposed too."

Darrin closed his laptop and agreed, "The commander is right. So, what

do we do next?"

Joyce took a few more sips of her congee, her eyes narrowing as she

pondered.

After finishing her congee, she suddenly brightened, "Since we can't

confront Athena directly, let's start with our cooperation with Reuben.

Let's start with OGW and the forces behind Athena.”

"Using a strategy to strike at the root?" Darrin's voice raised in

excitement.

"Yes, exactly. Let's find a way to undermine Athena's support. Without

her allies, the rest will fall into place," Joyce's lips curved with a

confident smile.

Chess, one move at a time.

If they couldn't confront the situation head-on, they would find a way to

circle around from behind.