LOGIN“Sophia, Jerry, do you two have any way to get me out of here?”
With a desperate expression, I hooked my arms around both their shoulders.
Three heads leaned together — it was time for some serious best-friend crisis talk.
Sophia said, “Since you’re already here, just go with it. What’s there to be afraid of? Besides, if you don’t show up soon, that Edith girl might pull some dirty trick — maybe even slip something into your
Dante’s eyelid twitched violently.The words had come from Kyle.His tone was a direct strike, his gaze a blatant interrogation. He might as well have asked point-blank: *Is this your doing?* On the surface, Kyle’s approach lacked finesse and he clearly didn't care for social niceties, but the effect was potent. It was designed to trigger the most honest, unguarded reaction from a person caught off-guard."Mr. Jackson!" Dante cried out, nearly bolting from his chair in shock."Mr. Fletcher, you seem rather agitated. Is it because you actually know something?" Charlie’s voice was gentle and polite, but the implication was enough to cause a heart attack.Sensing that Charlie was the more "reasonable" one, Dante immediately abandoned the difficult Kyle and turned to Charlie with a pained expression. "Mr. Clemens, I can see you’re a man of reason. You know why I organized this gathering and invited so many people. You are all th
The female bodyguard’s frantic pleas did little to move the crowd. While she didn’t *look* like she was lying and lacked a clear motive, she was their only lead. As Sherlock Holmes famously said: "When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth."The atmosphere remained at a standstill.Charlie glanced at her. His gaze was aloof and cold, yet his voice was low, magnetic, and persuasive—almost hypnotic. "Why don’t we calm down and try a change of perspective? If you were standing where we are, what conclusion would you reach?"He paused for two seconds, letting a sense of mounting pressure fill the silence before speaking again. "You are currently the prime suspect. If you can’t prove your innocence, going back will likely be..."He didn't finish the sentence, but the meaning was crystal clear. Gabrielle had been lost on her watch. Denise would never forgive her. If she remained
The group stood frozen.Edith lay there alone, but the others were nowhere to be seen. However, the stalls had yet to be checked.Rex walked over and pushed the doors open one by one. When he reached the third-to-last cubicle, he called out, "Found one."He carried a woman out from the stall. It was the female bodyguard."She’s alright, just unconscious," Rex reported after a quick check.Charlie signaled him to check the remaining stalls and the men's restroom next door just in case. Rex did a rapid sweep but found no sign of **Gabrielle**.They moved Edith and the bodyguard out of the restroom to a nearby lounge, laying them both on the sofas. With Sophia and the others currently unreachable, they had to focus on the crisis at hand.Rex shook the bodyguard awake and cut straight to the chase: "What happened?""What..."The bodyguard’s expression was vacant, but the confusion lasted only a few seconds. Sudde
"What about Gabrielle and her bodyguard?" Candice asked.For some reason, she felt Rex’s words were a bit odd. Edith was supposed to be with Gabrielle, yet he only mentioned Edith.Rex shook his head. "I don’t know.""You don't know?" Candice was taken aback. "Do you mean they weren't together?"Charlie’s brow furrowed. "Explain yourself clearly."Rex explained with a pained expression, "I really don't know. It might be because Edith's perfume was just too cloying; it completely masked the scent of the other two. Or perhaps they didn't take this path and used a different corridor instead. In any case, I only smelled the lingering scent of Edith's perfume heading toward the right. I couldn't pick up anything else."The group fell silent.Choosing between left and right was a headache enough; now things had become even more complicated.*Only* Edith?So, it was possible that Gabrielle and her bodyguard hadn't stayed with her. Alternatively, Edith’s perfume might have simply been so over
Candice used her hand to shield her eyes.Seeing this, Charlie reached over to block the light for her. His palm was broad and thin, his fingers long and well-defined, and his palm was warm and dry, radiating a faint, clean fragrance. While shielding her eyes, he naturally pulled her closer to his side.Kyle held his breath, gritting his teeth. "..."Dante led the group to the best seats on the second floor. Shortly after they sat down, the performance had just begun when a waiter rushed over and whispered a few words in his ear.Dante Fletcher’s expression stiffened slightly. He turned to the group and said, "Apologies, there’s a small situation elsewhere that I need to handle."With that, he strode away. His face didn't look like it was just a "small situation."The guests remained silent, exchanging looks with those they knew. Their expressions were even more varied than the unicyclist performing on stage; some were secretive,
Candice couldn't help but look at Charlie. She hadn't acknowledged him the entire evening.She had been harboring a fire in her heart before she even arrived, and the very first thing she saw upon meeting him was Edith lunging onto him—a sight that added frost to the snow of her mood. She gave him the cold shoulder, and he didn't overextend himself trying to force a warm face onto her icy one.Her mood was foul, and his was equally gloomy. A troublesome younger brother was already headache enough, and then seeing his pregnant girlfriend appear in a place she never should have come to... Though he didn't smoke and had no habit of excessive drinking, even he had felt like reaching for the full "tobacco and liquor" set at the card table earlier.By now, the emotions of both parties seemed to have been digested.Charlie was already standing close to her. Seeing her look his way, he took the initiative to approach. "Are you tired? Let Rex take you to the guest
The judge’s generally stern and dignified tone made Denise shiver slightly inside.She paused for a moment, then responded calmly on the surface, "If I couldn’t get in touch with her, naturally, I would be suspicious—"Candice immediately retorted, "Suspicious? You
Edward, one of the primary parties involved, was actually remarkably relaxed.He sat with his legs crossed, "I’ve been mulling over the details of last night, and it does feel a bit strange. Suppose someone was targeting me, Grandma, and Candice; they could have just lured me directl
Charlie's face was as cold as if it had been covered with a layer of ice.Sophia and the others were confused.Who pissed him off?Sophia glanced at Candice: "BFF, did I miss something exciting?"Candice just smiled and didn’t respond.Sigh, the third youn
Denise stood frozen for a moment.Everyone: "……?!!"Assassins??!!Could it be that the reason Old Mrs. Lawrence arrived so late was not just the reason she mentioned earlier in the banquet hall, but there was another hidden agenda?!Tonight felt like bein







