Kyle had gotten visibly tanned. He glanced at the wailing men and snapped, "Shut up! Keep crying, and I'll cut off your tongues!"At that moment, Summer rushed inside."Ms. Hartford," Kyle greeted politely.Summer nodded at him. "Was it these two?"Kyle nodded. "Yes. You two, tell Ms. Hartford exactly what you did."One of them said, "Someone told us they had a grudge against the production manager and wanted to delay filming. They gave us some money to tamper with the chandelier a little. We just wanted to delay the filming. We didn't mean anything else!"Summer said coldly, "So, you were just supposed to delay the filming? If the production manager hadn't noticed something was off, he wouldn't have been worried and ordered a recheck of all the equipment. If the filming had continued as planned, the chandelier would have been hanging over my mom's head."She sneered. "Then, if the chandelier with the tampered rope fell, my mom would have died on the spot! Is this what you call
"Mr. Hunt, what probation period?" Kyle suddenly appeared out of nowhere just as Mason was lost in his thoughts.Mason remained silent, but the look he gave Kyle was practically enough to kill.Kyle immediately stood up straight. "Don't worry. I'll definitely take care of the future Mrs. Hunt!"Kyle had some understanding of Mason.Mason had a death stare just now, but the moment Kyle mentioned "Mrs. Hunt", Mason's expression softened greatly.Mason instructed, "Keep a close eye on this Kristen affair. Make sure Summer isn't hurt.""Understood. I'll do my best!" Kyle responded.Mason cast him a glance before he got into another car.He had deliberately put things on hold for two days at Royal Financial Group to let some uneasy individuals stew in their own anxiety. Now, it was time to pull up the net.Summer returned to the hotel and met the director, who was just about to go have dinner, in the lobby."Mrs. Hartford, did you go out for some fun?" the director, Joshua Hanz, g
"What kind of person? Describe him to us. We might have seen him around," Emma said.Summer looked at the six staff members in the room. All of them were Kristen's closest people."He was chubby, short, and had narrow eyes," Summer said.She quickly swept her gaze around the room, taking note of everyone's reactions.Emma thought for a moment before she asked the others, "Have we seen someone like that around?"The others shook their heads after some thought. "There are so many crew members. We were mainly at set A today, and he might be from B."Summer looked away. "Alright, then. It's not that important. What's important is that we enjoy our dinner!""You really just latch onto one thing after another." Kristen laughed helplessly.Summer laughed as well. After that, she lowered her gaze and slowly started to eat.The dinner table was very lively, but Summer didn't really say much. She would only chime in on occasion.Then, when it was past nine, Summer excused herself to
The hotel where Summer and everyone else was staying had viewing balconies on each floor.At this hour, the balconies were practically empty. A figure was pacing anxiously in a corner. She seemed to be trying to call someone, but the other party wasn't answering."It's already so late. Who are you calling?" At that moment, a cold voice was heard behind that figure.The person was startled and quickly turned around. "Summer, didn't you go back to your room to rest? Why are you here?""I'm out catching ghosts," Summer said slowly.Lily's face paled a little as the corner of her lips twitched. "Is this some new game you young people are into? I don't really understand them, but you go ahead and play. I'm going back to my room to sleep."Just as she was about to lower her head and leave, Robin came in from the entrance with a few bodyguards and blocked the exit."Summer, what's the meaning of this?" Lily frowned.Summer glanced at Lily's phone. "It's already so late. Who are you ca
"No! You can't touch my children!" Lily said in a panic."Then, tell me who that man is. Where is he right now?" Summer demanded.Lily froze.After a brief internal struggle, she said, "His name is Xander Flint. We met at the airport two years ago when I went for a charity event abroad with Kristen. After we got to know each other for a while, we started dating.""How much have you told him about my mom?" Kristen asked."Not much. I've never told him anything private. At the most, he would occasionally ask a curious question, but that's really rare. They were mostly insignificant!" Lily seemed eager to defend Xander.She continued, "He works in rehabilitation therapy for autistic children. He's a really good person. Ms. Hartford, you must be mistaken. He would never try to harm Kristen.""Where is he right now?" Summer asked coldly."He's been busy the past few days, and I have been, too. We haven't really contacted each other. He didn't answer me when I tried to call him just
However, no matter how well one covered their tracks, they would still leave a trace behind.Summer quickly pinpointed the last known signal from the phone number. It was on the island.Summer sneered. "His girlfriend is here, but he's not answering her calls or meeting her, even though he's around. That pretty much confirms it's him."Robin had a dark look on his face. "Lily said earlier that they had never taken a picture together before because the man said he had some trauma from being photographed. He also avoided meeting her in public places, so even finding surveillance footage of him will be hard.""Love really does make people blind. Lily is a smart, career-focused woman, but she wasn't suspicious at all that he was so secretive," Summer said."Or she could be in this from the start," Robin answered.Summer shook her head and dismissed it. "Lily has children. Back then, she nearly gave up everything for the sake of winning custody. Even if it's just for her children's sa
Everything was done through digital payments nowadays, but Xander never used any mobile payment methods or cards. He would pay in cash wherever he went. Just think about it. Who only used cash in this day and age?Setting aside those who didn't know how to use digital payments, then only those who were afraid of leaving a digital trail refused to use digital payments.There was also the fact that he practically never brought her to any public places for dates. Most of the time, they would just watch movies at home. Sometimes, he would drive her out to the countryside on a road trip.Lily felt that it was because Xander was romantic at first, but thinking about it, there were so many holes in his explanations.The more Lily thought about it, the more scared she got.At daybreak, she immediately asked to see Summer.When Summer went to see her, Lily handed Summer a picture of Xander that she had sneakily taken."He was incredibly careful. Even when we would sleep together, I wou
Summer smiled.Then, the two of them headed to Kristen's room.After having breakfast together, the group left according to the schedule and headed straight to the set.Since there were some mishaps on set B yesterday, Kristen had to shoot an additional scene to make up for the lost progress.The set was bustling with crew members, and outside, there were loads of paparazzi lurking. Just looking at it all gave Summer a headache.Robin's men, as well as Mason's men, had all blended into the crew with some clever disguises.Summer had already ordered them to carefully check all of the props that day, so at the very least, there shouldn't be any issues with that.As the filming began, Summer stood in place, focusing all her attention on Kristen.She had already memorized the information of all of the actors that were appearing in Kristen's scenes that day. Every time she looked at someone, she would immediately recall their details.After over an hour, that nerve-wrecking scene w
Summer added, "Another example. You happily get home and reach your building when suddenly, some lunatic jumps out of nowhere with a knife. He slashes through everyone, not leaving a single one of you left."She shrugged. "Or maybe you make it home safe. But in the middle of the night, when everyone's sound asleep, there's a gas leak. Or better yet, a fire. Everything's gone in a blaze, just like that. Stories like that pop up among rich families all the time. You can give it a shot if you don't believe me.""Quit trying to scare me! I'm fearless!" Ruddy thumped his chest."Paul was a good man who had been nice to my whole family. Ten million dollars is no small sum. I believe I've shown more than enough sincerity. As for what you choose, I won't interfere," Summer said calmly as she motioned for someone to open the door.Seeing this, Ruddy rushed forward and pulled his relatives to leave. "Come on. Let's go first. We'll talk about it among ourselves later.""If you want to leave,
Bailey had never been one to make decisions.Her two sons had their own difficulties as well. They didn't want to betray the truth behind Paul's death, but Ruddy had a point. Pauh was gone, and the living had to carry on."Ms. Hartford, my uncle is right. This is a family matter. I think we should handle it ourselves," the eldest son, Dustin West, said with great difficulty.Bailey looked at him in shock, then lowered her head silently."I understand. We all have our own burdens." Summer didn't blame him.Only those who had truly suffered understood how hard it was to make choices in the midst of hardship."Come on, let's go! The lawyer's still waiting. As long as we sign the letter, that ten million dollars is ours!" Ruddy urged eagerly."Bailey, you really need to think this through! You're doing Paul so wrong here!" Phoebe felt like crying.Summer said, "If it's for the money, you don't need to leave. Paul died because of me, so I was planning on compensating you anyway.""
Summer didn't have much of an expression on her face as she walked down slowly.But Phoebe explained anxiously, "Let's not even talk about whether the ten million dollars is real or not. Ruddy, that's your brother's life! Are you really going to be the kind of person to take money in exchange for his life?""What's it got to do with you? You're already siding with this family anyway!" Ruddy glared at the lavish interior of the Hartford residence. "Just look at this place. Is this how you all make your money?"Ruddy's last sentence had been aimed at Kristen, it was obvious he knew that Kristen was the lady of the house.Summer walked over to Kristen and said, "Mr. West, what's the rush? You didn't even bother with basic manners before coming in, and you started shouting the moment you entered. Don't you think that's a bit out of line?"She looked at Bailey's arm and saw that her wrist was red from being grabbed too hard. "Why don't you let go of Mrs. West's hand first? Her wrist is
"I got it." Summer knew that going head-to-head with the Hunt family this time must have caused Mason to be caught in the middle of some immense pressure and criticism.So, she didn't want him to worry about her too much.Chandler's incident had stirred massive public attention following Summer's live stream. In the next two days, more and more people were speaking out online.The police department responsible for the investigation was finally compelled to issue a statement, promising a lawful and thorough investigation into the case.Paul's family had rested at the Hartford residence for a day before they started to recover a little."We won't hold the funeral here. Our family back home is already handling the arrangements," said Paul's wife, Bailey Oak. Her eyes were still swollen from crying.Kristen nodded. "Alright. Don't worry. Mr. West has worked with our family for over ten years. He was practically one of us, so we'll make sure to take care of your family in the future."
"You know how vicious the Hunt family can be. Back then, I…" Kristen instinctively pressed her hand to her lower abdomen with an expression of grief. "I'm afraid of losing another child."Luke had an expression that was full of heartache. He gently pulled Kristen into his arms. "That won't happen. From now on, we will face everything together. We'll definitely protect Summer."Can I really do that?" Kristen's tears fell uncontrollably.Back then, she thought she could protect the child in her belly, too. But in the end…Luke said firmly, "You can. You definitely can. My wife has always been the strongest person I know!""Yes." Kristen nodded as she leaned against his shoulder.They had never spoken of that pain over the past 20 years. This was the first time. Summer's actions today had been like a key that unlocked this long-suppressed wound in Kristen's heart.Neither of them knew that Summer hadn't gone to sleep, either. She stood at the window in her room and could just see th
"Something like that happened?" Rosanna looked shocked. She had been locked up at the time.Jane sighed deeply. "I just heard about it, too. The kidnappers told her not to go to the police. They said they'd kill the kids if she did. In the end, she didn't report it and ended up paying 70 million dollars in ransom."Jane sighed again. "But she ran into some real monsters. After they got the money, they sent her a location to get the kids. When she got there, all she saw were their decomposing bodies!"Rosanna covered her mouth. "Oh, my God! Did they catch the kidnappers in the end?"Jane shook her head regretfully. "They were professionals, so how could anyone catch them? She lost her money and her children. Mrs. Mills fell seriously ill and is still in the hospital.""Those kidnappers are truly heartless!" Rosanna said."They were only missing for three days. Based on the state of the bodies, the kids were probably killed the moment they were kidnapped," Jane said.As Rosanna lis
Jane always outshone Rosanna in every way, so how could Rosanna possibly like her?Jane said softly, "Rosanna, I know you don't like me, but you're still family. I know you're just a straightforward and blunt person. You've never meant me any harm.Rosanna rolled her eyes internally at that. Jane couldn't be more wrong."I don't want you and Aspen to get divorced." Jane helped Rosanna sit down and crouched to examine her ankle. "It's sprained. I'll call a doctor.""No!" Rosanna was incredibly vulnerable at that moment.A vulnerable person's greatest weakness was someone being gentle to them.Jane frowned. "How could you not see a doctor? Just wait here. I'll go quietly. I'll make sure no one notices and bring the doctor over. No one will find out."After a pause, Jane continued, "I won't tell anyone about the divorce, either."Rosanna's ankle was throbbing with pain. After a moment of hesitation, she nodded. "Don't tell everyone!"Jane smiled gently and went off to find the doc
"As lawyers, we only need to achieve the desired outcome for our client. Nothing else matters," Malcolm said.The assistant fell silent.Aspen slumped down onto the hospital bed, looking defeated, while Rosanna sobbed uncontrollably."Enough crying. Go check on Mom," Aspen said impatiently.Rosanna choked out, "I refuse! Your mother never liked me to begin with. With what happened to Chandler, both of us are responsible as his parents, but your mother will definitely only blame me! You can go if you want!"After that, Rosanna grabbed her purse."Where are you going?" Aspen asked."I'm going to figure out a way to save my son!" Rosanna snapped and started to walk off.Aspen grabbed her arm. "I'm warning you. Don't go after Kristen again! This has nothing to do with her!""Kristen, Kristen! She's all you care about, even now. Her daughter stood there and humiliated you in front of everyone, making you out to be some creepy stalker, and you're still defending her?" Rosanna finally
"Chandler from that certain all-powerful family underwent a psychological evaluation every six months at his school abroad. Just over two months ago, when he had just returned to the country, he had one done. "His mental state is fine. You parents might've been driven crazy by anger, but not him."There was a frenzy online.The original post was quickly deleted, but people had already saved screenshots of all the relevant documents.Inside the Hunt residence, Aspen's hand was wrapped in gauze when he heard what the lawyer had to say. He exploded on the spot. "Who leaked something this private? Check with Chandler's school! I'm suing them! Every last person who leaked it!"The lawyer said gravely, "I've already checked. The school's digital database was hacked. Mr. Hunt, I told you yesterday to maintain a good line of communication with the victim's side. If you did, there might have been a chance for settlement. Why did you hire online trolls to spread lies?"The lawyer added, "N