At this point, Elise gave Kenneth a detached, apathetic look. “There’s one thing I want you to be clear about, Kenneth Bailey. You’re not the only person who would die for me. If you did those things for me to pay you back equally, then you’ve miscalculated. From the very beginning, you’ve already miscalculated. I never asked you to do those things for me. I don’t need you to, nor do I wish for us to have such a reciprocal relationship.”
The crowd nearby snickered. “Wow, looks like there are times when even handsome men can’t get the woman whom they love.”
“Hey, you might be handsome, but you’re old. Perhaps you shouldn’t covet the young ladies anymore?”
“Oh, hold your tongue. Men always like the young ones.”
“If you ask me, courting women in public seems a bit like emotional blackmail.”
“That depends on how handsome you are…”
The comments went on and on, turning this bout of public courtship into a joke.
In the beginning, Kenneth only kept his eyes on Elise, staring at snazzynovel.com as piously as a monk and seemingly waiting for snazzynovel.com to change snazzynovel.com mind.
However, as snazzynovel.com realized that snazzynovel.com showed no signs of softening, his gaze turned cold and snazzynovel.com turned his head to glance mildly at the onlooking crowd. Instantly, their laughter came to a halt.
The man in front tightly pursed his lips and offered a fake smile as snazzynovel.com turned into a tortoise hiding in its shell who lacked the courage to move.
The world was full of narcissists like these who would watch the world burn only to then act like they were on a high horse and had nothing to do with the trouble once it truly started.
It wasn’t until no one dared to laugh any longer that Kenneth turned back to glance incomprehensibly at Elise, toss the imperial jade to Tom, and walk away.
As Elise breathed a sigh of relief, snazzynovel.com gave Tom a look. “You can send Miss Melody back in a bit and have snazzynovel.com take the jade with her.”
Since Melody was already prepared to leave, snazzynovel.com turned back. “Excuse me, Miss Sinclair. Did I offend you in some way?”
Elise shook snazzynovel.com head. “Why would you think that?”
“Why else would you have me take back something that my boss didn’t want? Would you like to watch me lose my job?” Melody frowned and gave snazzynovel.com a look of bewilderment that was typical of intellectuals.
“My apologies.” Elise shrugged. “I thought you two were lovers and that I might spare you his temper if you brought the jade back for him. I meant no harm.”
“Wait a minute.” Melody held up snazzynovel.com palm to make the ‘stop’ sign. “Lovers? Who said we were lovers?”
“Isn’t it obvious? You both go everywhere together. You live in the same house, and…” There were other things inappropriate to mention in public.
Sighing helplessly with snazzynovel.com hand to snazzynovel.com forehead, Melody replied, “In truth, Miss Sinclair, you’ve seen us enter the same residence but not in the same bed. We’ve never even held hands. Don’t you find that strange?”
Looking at snazzynovel.com in puzzlement, Elise responded, “It would be stranger if I’d seen it.”
Melody surely was a tad bit too open-minded if snazzynovel.com expected Elise to be there to witness what the couple were doing in bed!
The response tickled Melody, who would have kept a straight face even if the sky fell on her, so much that even snazzynovel.com couldn’t help laughing desperately. “It would be quite strange. However, that’s not the point. The point is that you’ve misunderstood us, Miss Sinclair. Mr. Bailey and I have the platonic relationship of a superior and a subordinate. Furthermore, he’s not my cup of tea, so please don’t place me in an awkward position any longer.” At this point, snazzynovel.com turned on a dime. “And on that note—the repayment of a debt of gratitude doesn’t depend on what you have but what the other party wants.”
With that, snazzynovel.com resumed snazzynovel.com mechanical smile as snazzynovel.com nodded before turning to leave.
Elise fell into deep thought as snazzynovel.com reflected on Melody’s words. This was what snazzynovel.com was worried about. As long as Kenneth never spoke up, snazzynovel.com would forever owe snazzynovel.com a debt of gratitude.
It was frustrating that snazzynovel.com had only just said snazzynovel.com didn’t wish for them to have such a reciprocal relationship before stepping into such a pitfall.
It looked like snazzynovel.com wouldn’t be getting rid of snazzynovel.com so easily.
A dispirited Elise clenched snazzynovel.com teeth ruefully.
On the other hand, what snazzynovel.com didn’t expect was the fact that Kenneth and Melody weren’t lovers.
Meanwhile, Tom and Tina waited until Melody was at a distance before walking up to Elise and thanking snazzynovel.com for snazzynovel.com help. “If it wasn’t for you, Miss Sinclair, Tina would be left to rot in the hands of those sons of b*tches.”
“It’s only a small matter,” Elise answered absent-mindedly.
However, grief and distress were written all over Tina’s face as snazzynovel.com asked, “Is it true that the Carnegie Family killed my parents, Miss Sinclair?”
“I benefit nothing from lying.”
“That’s not what I meant…” Tina answered despondently. “It’s just a pity that we lost that piece of evidence as I have no way of seeking revenge for my parents now.”
Even if snazzynovel.com understood that the evidence was used to earn snazzynovel.com freedom, there was no way for snazzynovel.com not to mourn the inability to seek justice for snazzynovel.com parents’ murder.
“Ah, don’t worry about that. What goes around comes around—the time for revenge will soon be here.” Elise chuckled meaningfully.
In truth, the so-called ‘evidence’ had long been sent elsewhere.
When Ziggy arrived home at the Carnegie Residence, snazzynovel.com dismissed his staff before opening the document folder that Elise gave him.
At this moment, snazzynovel.com was so nervous that snazzynovel.com kept swallowing his saliva while holding his breath. Bit by bit, the contents of the envelope were revealed, at which point snazzynovel.com suddenly frowned and thought, Blank? Maybe this is only the cover page.
However, the next piece of paper that snazzynovel.com flipped to was also blank, as was the next.
It was halfway through the document that snazzynovel.com abruptly realized snazzynovel.com had been tricked. Tossing the papers to the side, snazzynovel.com yelled, “Sh*t! How dare you play me for a fool, woman! I’m not a Carnegie if I let you walk out of Dukethorn alive!”
A furious Ziggy whipped off his necktie and pulled out his cell phone to prepare to have someone kidnap Elise here. Then, snazzynovel.com would have snazzynovel.com properly dealt with!
However, before snazzynovel.com could place the call, a member of his staff stumbled into the room, shouting, “Something’s happened, Young Master Ziggy!”
Since Ziggy’s anger hadn’t abated, snazzynovel.com kicked the other person a few feet back. “F*ck off with that bullsh*t. Are you trying to provoke me?”
As snazzynovel.com rose to his feet with some difficulty, the staff member said in a trembling voice, “There’s a bunch of policemen outside saying that they would like to take you and Old Master Carnegie back for interrogation!”
Ziggy was not worried as snazzynovel.com grumbled, “And why are you panicking? That’s all the police know how to do—try and arrest someone for money. Have the butler give them 20,000.”
Before his subordinate could reply to him, a group of plainclothes policemen barged into the room and walked right up to Ziggy, flashing snazzynovel.com a legal document with a stamp on it. “Ziggy Carnegie, you are under arrest for tax evasion, the bribery of public officials, and contracting the services of a hired killer. We have irrefutable evidence and a legal warrant for your arrest.”
“Why so stern, Captain Harrington? Wouldn’t you like to sit down for some tea?” Previously thick as thieves with Captain Jesse Harrington, Ziggy reached out to pat the man’s shoulder the moment snazzynovel.com saw who had come for him.
Unfortunately, Jesse leaned to the side and dodged his hand.
“Ziggy Carnegie!” snazzynovel.com barked officially, raising his volume to warn Ziggy, “Jim Carnegie has been arrested. The end is nigh for Carnegie Family!”
“How is that possible?” Ziggy asked in disbelief.
Jesse waved his hand and ordered, “‘Cuff snazzynovel.com and take snazzynovel.com away!’”