Lucille assisted Eleanor in packing her things. Despite sharing the same room and working on the task together, an eerie silence hung between them."I feel like I'm missing something," Lucille mused, stealing a glance at Eleanor. "You're unusually distant too.""What?" Eleanor questioned, sensing Lucille's gaze on her."Are you truly okay with living apart from your brother?" Lucille inquired."I'm not, but it's more frustrating to keep staying with him when he's like this," Eleanor responded.Lucille continued folding clothes, her mind wrestling with unspoken thoughts. Finally, she sighed and added, "We've got to talk about this, Eleanor. You can't keep shutting me out."Eleanor avoided eye contact, a pained expression flickering across her face. "There's just so much going on, Lucille. It's not that simple."Lucille nodded, her concern palpable. "Fine, but we can't pretend like everything's normal. We need to confront the issues, whatever they are."Eleanor sighed, realizing Lucille
Lucille and Eleanor froze for a moment, surprised that Drake had appeared in front of them out of nowhere."What is it that I can't know?" Drake asked. Despite the suspicion in his tone, he wasn't actually suspecting anything about the two. He simply thought the two sweet women in his life had their own little secrets, a thing he found cute."It's a surprise for you. Why would we tell you?" Lucille said."You're ruining our plan," Eleanor added.Drake chuckled, feeling happy to hear that they were preparing a surprise for him, even though his birthday was still a month away."Okay, fine. I'll leave you girls alone," he said, taking Eleanor's bag to lead them to their car."You look happy sending me away," Eleanor commented."I am not. But I am relieved that you want a vacation. I would be totally happy if you would accept the people I want to protect you," Drake said."I am not hearing anything," Eleanor said, rolling her eyes.Eleanor and Drake spent the whole trip from Magrao to the
Eleanor bid farewell to her brother, acting as though she wouldn't see him for a long time. She discreetly glanced at Lucille before boarding the ship with Aunt Ling, who was unaware of her plan.It took them four hours to reach the island, where a strict entry procedure awaited them at the port before they could enter the gates."Aunt Ling, let them go in first," Eleanor suggested."Who? Your guards? That's not possible," Aunt Ling said."I want everything settled before I enter. Look at how many bags we have. I'll feel dizzy seeing them busy around," she reasoned."But you didn't feel dizzy when everyone was busy at home," Aunt Ling grumbled inwardly, looking irritated as usual but still forcing herself to smile. "We have to go inside together anyway," she added.Eleanor gestured towards the bustling street outside the gate, where inns, shops, and restaurants lined the thoroughfare dedicated to tourists and those denied entry to the main town on the island. Ships only arrived and de
At the port, Drake watched the ship fade into the distance when Marianne suddenly arrived, a sight that struck Lucille as unusual."Why is she here?" Lucille asked, arching her brows at Drake."I told you we have to catch Zack this time," Drake responded."Now? Without even making sure Ely arrives at the island first?" Lucille's confusion was evident at Drake's abrupt plan, which could potentially disrupt her own arrangement to meet with Eleanor later."She'll be fine. She's with Aunt Ling," he assured."Why do you trust Aunt Ling so much?" Lucille inquired."She's already proven herself trustworthy, so you don't have to worry," he replied."When did she prove it? You hired her just recently," Lucille pressed."A long time ago...""Excuse me, but can we focus?" Marianne interjected, subtly nudging Lucille aside without Drake's notice. "Kale Justinbaste returned to Bellrox. He's meeting with the directors.""You can have him all you want," Lucille thought inwardly. While it would be be
Drake Chwe returned to BellRox, anticipating Zack White's retaliation after everything he'd done.However, there was an eerie calm amidst the chaos he expected. The headquarters remained tranquil, unaffected by the poisoning incident and internal conflict."What's going on?" Drake blurted out, breaking the silence."What's the matter?" Lucille asked, noticing his unease."These people are unusually quiet," he said, scanning the surroundings.Lucille looked around, puzzled by Drake's observation. "Is it necessary for them to be noisy right now?""No, but usually there's a buzz of gossip whenever someone falls from grace. They laughed at my misfortune and spread rumors instantly, but why is there no chatter about Kale Justinbaste?" Drake wondered aloud."Hmm, you have a point. Even if the issue should be kept out of public view, the employees usually catch wind of it. Could it be that the executives forgave Zack so easily?" Lucille speculated."Forgiven or not, these people tend to spea
Lucille hurried to Bigas's agency to meet Eleanor. She anxiously checked her phone for any updates from her boyfriend's sister."Where's Bigas?" she asked, addressing one of the staff members as she entered the agency."He's on his way back here," the staff member replied, gesturing for Lucille to follow them inside to wait."Why isn't she sending updates to me yet?" Lucille wondered aloud, growing increasingly worried."You won't receive updates through your phone; please use this one," the staff member informed her, offering a burner phone.Lucille stared at the burner phone for a moment before taking it. "I can't believe Ely is so thorough. Is she really a teenager?" she commented to herself. "When I was her age, I was completely dependent on adults. I wasn't as brave as her. I wonder what made her like this."She was essentially talking to herself, as the staff member didn't seem interested in her thoughts.She proceeded to call Eleanor, who answered immediately."Ely, are you sti
In Drake Chwe's office at BellRox Corporation headquarters, Drake looked at his guests with bored eyes. "What's taking this long?" he wondered inwardly, running out of patience. He had thought clearing his name would be easy with Marianne's competence, but it seemed her magic wasn't working today. She looked rattled and unorganized while presenting evidence that his businesses and sources of income were all legal."Aren't we done yet?" he asked Marianne, who appeared busy checking documents."They're still asking for copies of investment declarations, franchises—" Marianne began, but Drake cut her off mid-sentence."Whatever. Just hurry up. Didn't we deal with audits with ease? You're taking a lot of time today," he said disappointedly."I'm sorry," Marianne apologized. "The detectives were kind of complicated to talk to, and they were very thorough."Drake scowled. He could only sigh in front of the detectives, knowing he couldn't leave without completely disproving their suspicions
The accusations from the crowd washed over Drake like a relentless wave, yet he remained composed, irritation simmering beneath the surface. He was no stranger to the ungratefulness of BellRox employees, who always seemed quick to pin random crimes on him."I can't believe this nonsense," Drake muttered to himself, shaking his head in disbelief. Despite knowing he had saved their lives by alerting them to the danger, gratitude seemed to be in short supply among the panicked crowd."Do I have to get used to this malice they always throw at me? These people never change," he bitterly mused, feeling a mix of frustration and disappointment at their lack of appreciation. "Next time, I won't even bother if they're all on the brink of death.""Restrain him!" an employee exclaimed upon seeing Drake's lack of reaction to the accusations."Is that true, Drake Chwe?" Chairman Sy asked as he emerged from the crowd, looking haggard at the instant destruction of his beloved headquarters."No. Why w