Chapter 487 - 483: Infiltrating the Enemy
Holly Wood looked over. The moment she did, her face paled. About a dozen meters ahead stood several men, wearing the same kind of clothes as the two from the KTV last night.
She whirled around and bolted.
When they saw her run, the men started chasing after her. Holly was wearing flat canvas shoes, so running was easy.
She skipped the elevator and took the stairs.
She figured her pursuers would probably split up. One group would take the elevator to the first floor to intercept her, while the others continued the chase from behind.
Holly ran down to the third floor and darted toward the public restrooms.
After a quick glance at the men’s and women’s rooms, she ducked into a stall in the men’s restroom, locked the door, and plopped down on the toilet lid. She immediately pulled out her phone to call Leon Lynch.
"Leon, come to the public men’s restroom on the third floor of the Seagull Hotel! Hurry!"
At a time like this, her only hope was for her boyfriend to come and save her. She deeply regretted not listening to him last night.
She silenced her phone. Every second she sat there was agonizing.
The sound of footsteps in the corridor made her tense up. Her phone screen lit up with a silent incoming call from June Walsh.
She stared at the screen, doing nothing more.
Clasping her hands together, Holly forced herself to stay calm.
The footsteps drew nearer, until the door to the men’s restroom was thrown open with a crash.
"Search this place," a man ordered.
Holly sat frozen, not daring to move.
A moment later, someone banged on her stall door twice. "Who’s in there?"
She didn’t say a word.
The door was rammed a few times.
"Someone’s inside! They’re not talking."
"Climb up and take a look!"
"Yes..."
A few seconds later, a man climbed up. When he saw her, he broke into a contemptuous grin. "Boss, it’s her!"
"What are you waiting for? Get down there and open the door!"
Receiving the order, the man immediately replied, "Yes, sir!"
As he was about to jump down, Holly grabbed the toilet brush and jabbed it at him. The man tumbled to the floor.
The boss outside roared in anger, "Useless trash! All three of you, get up there!"
The three men didn’t dare delay, scrambling to climb up.
They climbed up and immediately jumped down, landing in a dizzy, disoriented heap.
They didn’t forget to scramble up and open the door.
The other two grabbed Holly and dragged her out by force.
The boss stepped forward and slapped her across the face. "Bitch, not running anymore, are you? Huh?"
Holly lifted her head. "You... you lackeys!"
SLAP! Another backhand sent her ears ringing.
"Take her away. The young miss will decide what to do with her." After giving the order, he turned and left the restroom.
The three men hauled Holly out with them.
But as soon as they stepped out, they stopped in their tracks.
Holly looked ahead.
Leon Lynch was approaching with about twenty bodyguards from the Lynch Group.
He walked right up to them.
"Young Master Lynch, what are you doing here?"
Leon Lynch exhaled sharply and kicked the boss square in the stomach.
"You’re asking me what I’m doing here?" Leon sneered. "You little bastards have the gall to lay a hand on my girlfriend." He turned to his bodyguards. "Call the police."
Then he stepped forward, took Holly’s hand, and turned to leave.
Holly’s frantic heart instantly calmed down. "I’m sorry."
"It’s not your fault. Take me to your classmates."
She nodded. "Okay."
Inside the elevator, Holly pressed the button for the floor and stood beside him in silence.
He looked at her. "Don’t associate with that so-called friend of yours anymore. If she can betray you once, she’ll do it again."
"Okay." ’Holly already had it figured out. Even if June Walsh was just being used, the plan had failed. If it had succeeded, her life would have been forever shadowed by something she could never wash away.’
The elevator doors opened, and the two of them walked out, heading down the corridor.
Seeing them, one of Maeve Sutton’s men immediately pushed open a door to announce that Leon Lynch had arrived with Holly Wood.
Maeve Sutton, who had been waiting, shot to her feet. "What?"
June Walsh and the three other female classmates were also stunned.
The three classmates exchanged uneasy glances.
Just as Maeve was about to get up, Leon and Holly appeared in the doorway.
He walked in and looked straight at Maeve. "I know exactly what you’re up to. But let me give you some advice, Maeve: you’d better stop right now. Otherwise, I’ll give you a taste of your own medicine, and that’s not an empty threat."
Maeve clenched her fists. "Leon Lynch! So this is the woman you like? I really don’t see what’s so special about her. She’s not as pretty as me, her family isn’t as good as mine. What do you even see in her?!"
Leon sneered. "Even if you were perfect, I wouldn’t like you. How long has it been? You’re still so shameless. You’ve completely disgraced the Sutton Family. You’d better watch yourself."
The three other classmates, who were standing to the side, finally understood the real story behind this dinner. They looked ashamed. "Holly, the three of us had no idea..."
Holly turned to June Walsh. "I thought we were real friends. I can pretty much guess why you did this. Miss Sutton must have offered you a lot of money. You went to all this trouble to lure me here so you could collect your reward and go have a good time. Just remember, you bought that money with the last shred of our friendship. Enjoy spending it."
"Holly..."
June called out her name, but Holly no longer trusted a single word she said.
"Leon, let’s go."
Leon grunted in agreement, and the two of them walked out.
The three classmates turned on June Walsh. "We can’t believe you’re this kind of person. Betraying your own friend... You even lied and told us you were treating us, or that your boyfriend was. June, you’re an amazing liar."
"I didn’t know! Miss Sutton just told me to invite Holly to dinner, how was I supposed to know..." June Walsh turned and fled the room, with the three other classmates right behind her.
Suddenly, Maeve Sutton was the only one left in the private room. She collapsed back into her chair, trembling with rage.
She had failed again.
BRRRING~
Nora Ainsworth’s eyes snapped open. She expertly slapped the alarm clock, silencing it.
She shot up in bed, didn’t turn on the light, and bent over to slip on her shoes.
She quietly opened the door. The hallway was pitch-black and eerily silent, without a single light on.
’The darker it is, the harder it is for the cameras to see anything.’
She crept down the stairs, all the way to the first floor.
There were guards on duty at the main entrance.
She went back up the stairs to the second floor. At the other end of the corridor, she saw a light. Nora Ainsworth peeked out and saw four men sitting in a circle, playing cards by the beam of a flashlight.
They were all clearly enjoying themselves.
Nora knew that slacking off on night duty and getting caught playing cards would lead to punishment.
She let out a soft, deliberate cough.
The four men instantly looked toward the sound, their expressions wary. What they saw made them jump.
They had heard that a new person had arrived tonight—Young Master Dalton’s favorite woman. They also knew the real reason he had her stay here: the large number of staff could both protect her and prevent her from escaping.
This must be her.
Terrified at the thought of the punishment, all four men immediately dropped to their knees in front of Nora Ainsworth with a THUD.
"I just couldn’t sleep, so I came out for a walk. I didn’t expect to see you all playing cards..." Nora Ainsworth walked in and sat down with a pleasant smile.
"We... we shouldn’t have been playing cards on duty. Please, spare us this once! We’re begging you, Miss Sutton."
Nora Ainsworth asked casually, "I’ve heard from Young Master Dalton that he’s very strict with his men. I wonder, what is the punishment for playing cards on duty? Why don’t you tell me?"
The four men were now too scared to move. They had been playing cards during their night shifts for a long time, thinking no one would ever find out.
One of the men spoke up. "Being away from your post during your shift... it’s thirty lashes with a leather whip. If you’re caught gambling in a group, the punishment is even worse."
"So, if Young Master Dalton finds out about this, you’re looking at a few dozen lashes, minimum. Even if it doesn’t kill you, you’ll be bedridden for half a month, won’t you?"
"Yes..."
The four men immediately began kowtowing to Nora. "Miss Sutton, please spare us just this once! We’ll never dare to do it again!"
Nora smiled. "I can spare you. But, since I’ve just returned, I’d like to know a few things about what’s been going on around here. I wonder if you’d be willing to chat with me."
"As long as it’s not a secret Young Master Dalton has forbidden us from speaking about, we can tell you."
Nora nodded. "Get up. It’s not a secret, and I wouldn’t ask you for one. Knowing secrets is of no use to me. I just heard that a young woman came here recently... and that she often went to Young Master Dalton’s room..."
Hearing this, the four men instantly understood. "Miss Sutton, that woman has nothing to do with Young Master Dalton."
"How would you know if she does or not? Where is she staying now?"
"She just left two days ago. We heard she’s helping Young Master Dalton with a mission. Miss Sutton, even with plastic surgery, that woman can’t compare to you. You have nothing to worry about."
Nora chuckled lightly. "Women are always sensitive. And I just got back, so I don’t know anything. Alright, I’m heading back. You all get back to your posts."
As she stood up, one of the men asked, "Miss Sutton, about this matter..."
Nora smiled. "I’ve memorized all four of your faces. As for whether I say anything or not... that will depend on your performance from now on. If you behave well, we can just let this matter go."
"Yes, yes, of course..." the four men said in unison, not daring to say anything else.
A faint smile touched Nora’s lips as she walked out the door.
"Miss Sutton is actually pretty nice. That scared me to death..."
"Yeah, yeah, I was scared stiff too."
"I have a much better impression of Miss Sutton now. It’s great that she’s not going to tell Young Master Dalton."
"Mm, right. When Miss Sutton talked about our future performance, do you think she meant we have to do whatever she says from now on?"
"Isn’t that obvious? Besides, Young Master Dalton loves Miss Sutton. If we’re under her protection, things will go smoothly for us. We’re not backing the wrong horse..."
"..."
Nora quickened her pace, heading for the other end of the hall and back up the stairs. ’It’s always convenient to have a few people on your side when you need things done,’ she thought.
When she returned to her bedroom and stepped inside, a shadow in the darkness startled her.
He was just standing there. Even though she couldn’t see him clearly, Nora knew exactly who it was.