- Lundberg, what do you mean?”
“Cancel my ticket immediately.”
Devon was baffled. His boss’s sudden change of heart was as swift as flipping pages in a book.
Just moments ago, he had been demanding to leave as soon as possible. What had happened?
“Wait, Mr. Lundberg, you’re not going to look for Mrs. Lundberg anymore? What if she’s actually there?”
“At first, I couldn’t be sure. But now, I’m certain that this has something to do with Damon. Ally is just a pretext. Luring me there is his real goal!”
Hearing this explanation, Devon was even more confused. “Mr. Lundberg, I understand you’re deeply worried about Mrs. Lundberg’s disappearance, but you don’t seem very stable right now. What does this have to do with Mr. Damon? I really don’t get it.”
“You’re not supposed to. If Amber hadn’t reminded me, I might’ve been fooled, too. My uncle is definitely making his move to secure the Lundberg family’s inheritance. He’s targeting me!”
- 23.
Chapter 417
1/2
“Ally!” Shane jolted awake from his nightmare, shouting my name.
At that moment, dawn was just beginning to break. He turned toward where I stood, his eyes lighting up with joy as he rushed toward me.
“Ally, you’re finally back
!”
Predictably, he lunged at the thin air, falling hard onto the ground.
The fall was no light one. It instantly jolted him awake from whatever remnants of drowsiness.
remained.
As he rubbed his head, he glanced around.
Although I was standing right in front of him, looking down at him from above, his pupils only reflected the fluttering curtains and not me.
I almost thought for a moment that he could see me, and it startled me.
Shane let out a bitter laugh, mocking himself. “Ally is still abroad. How can she possibly be standing here?”
After checking the time, he realized he had only slept for two hours the entire night.
Now, his head throbbed with a dull ache.
While massaging his temple, he reached for his phone and called Devon. Surely, there had to
be some news by now.
The line kept ringing, but in the end, the call went unanswered. Shane’s frown deepened with each passing second.
Just before the call automatically disconnected, the other end finally picked up.
“Devon, what’s the situation now?”
“Mr. Lundberg, something serious has happened! We hadn’t reached the industrial park when we ran into a conflict between local factions. Right now, we’re ”
A deafening explosion blasted through the phone, the sound so loud it felt as though it were right next to him.
After that, the line went completely silent.
“Devon! Are you still there? Can you hear me?” Shane shouted.
After not getting a response, chaos engulfed Shane’s mind.
Without wasting any time, he immediately ordered an investigation into the situation.
Chapter 88
What they uncovered was even more troubling. The region had plunged into utter turmoil.
Jacksonville, as it was, had never been unified. It was divided among various gangs.
Surrounded on three sides by the sea and boasting convenient maritime routes, the area had long become a haven for global criminal organizations.
Domestically, there wasn’t a single day without disorder. Any profitable enterprise there inevitably skirted or outright violated the law.
Known as the City of Sins, the region thrived on corruption.
Greedy businessmen sold human lives as though they were mere commodities, and human life there was worth less than nothing.
Initially, Shane had believed that as long as he offered enough money, it would be easy to bring me back. However, the situation had spiraled out of control at the very beginning.
While pacing back and forth in his room, he was consumed with anxiety.
Before long, Vincent came bearing updates.
“Mr. Lundberg, Devon had the misfortune of arriving during an intense skirmish between two local factions. That area has now been completely sealed off, and we’ve lost contact with him.
“The conflict shows no signs of easing. It’s only escalating. If we don’t act quickly to get our people out, the longer we wait, the greater the risk.”
“I understand.”
After hanging up, Shane’s heart was in turmoil.
On the one hand, he couldn’t let go of his ambition and the power he wielded. On the other hand, he couldn’t forget the times we had spent together.
So, what would he choose?
Shane headed over to the Schultz residence.
When he arrived, the family was in the middle of a meal.
I watched as my parents held bowls that contained my ashes, although they didn’t know it. It made me feel profoundly unsettled.
Chapter 9
Chapter 89
