“What’s the big deal?” Stanley looked genuinely confused, his brows practically knitting together. “Getting eyelid surgery or tweaking your features isn’t exactly out of the ordinary these days.


    “Why bother pulling out cash for that?” Riley said, shaking his head. It had taken him ages to dig all this up.


    Stanley pressed, “How can you be sure she spent that money on cosmetic surgery?”


    “I checked the surveince tapes from that time,” Riley replied matter–of–factly, not trying to hide anything. “The day after she withdrew the cash, she went to the hospital and stayed for a couple of hours. The catch is, there’s nothing online about her getting a follow–up or second appointment.”


    Getting hold of those surveince tapes was a nightmare for Riley; it took almost superhuman effort.


    Since it had been ages, most of the stuff was nearly impossible to track down.


    On paper, hospital records only stick around for two years, but honestly, if you know the right tricks, you can still dig them up.


    Stanley scratched his chin, a puzzled look on his face. “Yeah, that is kind of strange.”


    “Should we keep digging?” Riley asked, since this was Jeffrey’s personal stuff and he figured Jeffrey ought to decide. “Doctor’s details are in the files.”


    Jeffrey’s voice was cold as ice. “Go ahead and check.”


    “Wasn’t your order,” Riley said with aid–back shrug. “I was just bored and killing time online.”


    Jeffrey handed the file to Gregory. “Go to Honn.”


    Gregory nodded. “Got it.”


    Riley arched an eyebrow, a mischievous glint in his eye.


    ‘Seriously? We’re just dropping this?‘ he wondered to himself.


    “Aren’t you going to say something about it?” Stanley chased after him as they headed out. “You’re really not going to look deeper into Andrea’s situation?”


    “No need,” Jeffrey replied, keeping it short.


    Whatever Andrea did had nothing to do with him.


    Jeffrey honestly didn’t give a damn about stic surgery.


    ‘So what if she’d changed her whole face?‘ Jeffrey thought. ‘She still saved my life, and none of that can be erased.


    Stanley shot a look back at Riley. “Aren’t you at least going to try convincing him?”


    “What’s it got to do with me?” Riley said with azy shrug, like he couldn’t care less. “I’m only digging into this because we’re friends. If he doesn’t want my help, I’m not about to force it down his throat.”


    Stanley could only gape at him, speechless.


    ‘Forget it,‘ Stanley thought, shaking his head in resignation.


    ‘Better focus on handling Reba’s situation first,‘ he told himself.


    He dragged Riley out and stuffed her into the car–just in case things went sideways in Honn, Riley would be way more useful than he ever could be.


    Meanwhile,


    Reba, Amelia, and Samuel were busy browsing online listings together, narrowing down three housekeepers from different agencies and two security guards from top firms. They’d scheduled interviews for tomorrow afternoon, and if any of them made the cut, Reba would hire them and set them up with a ce to stay in a building just next door.


    Once they were done, Reba finally grabbed her fully charged phone and saw several missed calls from Jeffrey. Her brows furrowed slightly, barely noticeable.


    After thinking it over, she decided not to call him back.


    That evening, after dinner, Reba took Samuel out for a walk.


    After they’d had some time to digest, she took him in for a bath.


    While Samuel was cleaning up, Amelia found Reba and chatted for a while. “If Jeffrey shows up and you can’t handle him, just stall him until I’m back. I’ll take care of it.”


    Reba nodded. “Okay.”


    Noticing the look on her face, Amelia asked, “Got something weighing on you?”


    “He called me several times between five and six this afternoon,” Reba said, not even sure what she was feeling. “Probably showed up, saw the house all locked up, and no one around.”


    Amelia ruffled her hair. “Whatever he says or doester, don’t waver from what you want.” <fnd475> Latest content published on fι?dnοvel</fnd475>


    “Okay,” Reba nodded.


    “If he really goes after Jessica or Ian, just leave it all to me,” Amelia said, steady and unfazed. With her resources, threats like that meant nothing. “Don’t let him get to you.”


    Reba nodded obediently the whole time. “Okay.”


    Amelia pulled her into a gentle hug.


    10:45 Fri<b>, </b><b>Oct </b>3


    :


    That night, Reba tossed and turned, unable to sleep soundly.


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    She dreamed that Jeffrey showed up in Honn, knocked her out, and secretly took her back with him. When she tried to fight back and escape, he seized her, his eyes cold and resolute as he told her, “If you want me to let you go, you’ll have to wait until I’m dead.”


    She woke up with a start.


    Her forehead was slick with cold sweat, her heart still pounding with lingering fear.


    “Mommy…” Samuel mumbled sleepily, his little hand unconsciously clutching her arm. “Did you have a bad dream?”


    “No,” Reba said, trying to steady her nerves as she gently patted his back. “Go back to sleep.”


    She’d only slept next to Samuel because she was worried he might have trouble adjusting to the new ce.


    But in the end, it was her who couldn’t get any rest.


    Shey awake for the rest of the night, Jeffrey’s words from her dream echoing in her mind. Just thinking about the look in his eyes in that dream made her heart clench.


    Jeffrey was just as restless that night.


    He spent the whole night staring at Reba’s chat window, waiting for a message.


    He’d already decided–if Reba messaged him, told him where she was, he’d let everything from yesterday slide, act like nothing ever happened. But the sun came up and her chat window stayed silent.


    She didn’t send a single message, didn’t call back.


    She was intentionally shutting him out of her life.


    “Mr. Hanson,” Gregory showed up just after seven, carrying breakfast. “Here’s your breakfast.”


    “Get Reba here by ten,” Jeffrey said, not even ncing at the food, his voice icy andmanding. “Have Riley look after Samuel. Don’t let him worry.”


    If she wasn’t going toe to him, he’d go to her.


    “What if Ms. Jensen refuses…” Gregory hesitated, unsure how to handle it.


    Jeffrey’s eyes were cold and emotionless. “Do I need to spell it out for you?”


    Gregory nodded. “Understood.”


    Around eight o’clock,


    Amelia finished her breakfast and headed out.


    Gregory sent someone dressed up as a delivery guy, and less than ten minutes after Amelia left, they called


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    Javeliare


    Reba toe out and sign for a package.


    Reba didn’t think twice; she’d just ordered some things online yesterday, so it all seemned legit.


    But the moment she took hold of the package–before she could even sign–someone chopped the back of her neck. Wait, what?‘ shed through her mind, then everything went ck. She dropped, knocked out cold.


    Gregory stepped out of the ck sedan parked not too far away. When he saw what was happening, he looked a bit sorry for a second, but he still told his guys to get Reba into the car.


    Reba woke up an hourter.


    Shey on the bed, looked around the strange hotel room, and rubbed the aching spot on her neck.


    She didn’t panic.


    She figured this had Jeffrey written all over it.


    “Ms. Jensen…” Gregory called from the doorway, his voice a little awkward. “You okay?”


    Reba let go of her neck, her expression totally t. “Where’s Jeffrey?”


    Gregory coughed, sounding a little awkward. “Mr. Hanson is waiting for you outside.”


    Reba pushed herself up from the bed.


    Gregory reported, “Boss, Ms. Jensen is awake.”


    Jeffrey was sitting on the couch, looking toward the bedroom. Less than a minuteter, Reba came out, her expression unreadable. Their eyes met, but she didn’t give him a single reaction.


    They just stared at each other, neither one saying a word.


    “I’ll leave you two to talk,” Gregory said quickly, sensing the tension in the air. “Just call if you need anything.” He slipped out before things could get any more awkward.


    The door clicked shut behind him.


    The suite suddenly felt even bigger with only the two of them left inside.


    Jeffrey locked eyes with Reba–she looked a lot gutsier than before. He couldn’t help but break the silence. “So, you really don’t have anything to say to me?”


    Reba fired back, “You’re the one who dragged me here. Shouldn’t you be the one talking?”


    Jeffrey replied, “No. I want to hear it from you.”


    If she just said she was here for a break, a visit–anything like that–he could let it go.


    Even if she was just making it up, he’d ept it.


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    “Nothing worth saying,” Reba shot back, her gaze way more distant and unfamiliar than thest time they’d spoken. “As you can see, I slipped away and came to Honn without you knowing.”


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