Declan’s Whereabouts
“I am a little surprised,” Sonia said with a nod. “Shouldn’t you be in Norfolk, Miss Stryder? What are you
doing here in Seafield?”
The woman standing before Sonia was none other than Melody, the young lady of the Stryder Family
who had a close relationship with Tina. A few months ago, when Tina had been kidnapped by Carl’s
men, both Melody and the Gray Family had assumed that Sonia was involved in the matter. Melody
had used the Stryders’ connections with the government to control the banks, and the banks had
forced Sonia to clear all her debts within a short period, all so because Melody could avenge Tina.
Paradigm Co.’s business nearly collapsed because of this matter.
Fortunately, Sonia managed to use Toby’s suggestion to resolve this matter. After that, strict
investigations had been run on the Stryders because of their involvement in municipal affairs. In the
end, Melody was identified as the main culprit, and the Stryders dragged her back to Norfolk. No one
heard of her after that incident.
Sonia assumed that Melody would never be allowed out of Norfolk after that incident, but her
assumptions had just been proven wrong. “My husband stays in Seafield. Is there anything wrong with
me showing up here?” Melody uttered with a rather unpleasant look on her face.
“My apologies, Miss Stryder.” Sonia lifted her right brow. “I forgot that you were married to Peter from
the Southfield Family.” Sonia wasn’t the only one who forgot about this—Peter and Melody never had a
good relationship, after all. Peter had never fancied Melody, and he would make sure to leave for
another city whenever Melody was in Seafield. If he had a choice, he would stay away from Melody for
the rest of his life.
In fact, he had even sent out orders to stop others from referring to him and Melody as husband and
wife, and he threatened to punish anyone who did such a thing. Eventually, the public ceased to
discuss this matter, and the majority of the people forgot about the fact that they were a married couple.
Sonia was a perfect example!
When Melody heard what Sonia said, she frowned. Melody wasn’t exactly a feminine-looking woman,
and she was relatively tall for a girl. She had the typical look of a strong and independent woman when
she cut her hair short and dressed up in a suit. However, Melody knew that Peter preferred hot and
sexy-looking girls, so she often dressed herself up to suit his taste. She never appeared in public
without flaming red lipstick smeared all over her huge lips. Her facial features didn’t go well with her
makeup, but she insisted on dolling herself up in a way that would attract Peter.
However, her heavy makeup only enhanced her facial expressions, and it made her especially ugly
when she wore a frown. One could easily imagine how terrifying it was to look at her whenever she
scowled. “Peter and I have gotten a divorce thanks to you.” Melody clenched her fists as she spoke in a
sinister tone.
“Thanks to me? I’m not sure I understand what you mean, Miss Stryder. What have you and Mr.
Southfield’s divorce got to do with me?” Sonia eyed her curiously. She wasn’t surprised to hear that
they had gotten a divorce since Peter was talking about it all the time. They would have gotten a
divorce eventually anyway. However, Sonia didn’t understand why Melody was blaming her for their
divorce. Does she think that I urged Peter to get a divorce with her? What a joke!
But that was precisely what Melody thought. Melody fixed her cold glare on Sonia as she explained
herself. “It definitely has something to do with you. Peter and I wouldn’t have gotten a divorce if I
continued to insist on staying married. However, Toby ended up offering help to Peter, and that was
how my marriage with Peter came to an end. After Toby and Tina called their engagement off, he has
been going after you with hopes of getting back with you—everyone knows about this. Toby only
decided to help Peter because he wanted to ruin my marriage, and he only did it because he knows
that I attacked you in the past. He was taking revenge on behalf of you!”
Sonia froze. So… That was how it all happened! I can’t believe Toby is involved in this! But… Sonia
took a deep breath to calm her racing heart. “Do you have any proof that Toby did all of this for me?”
she uttered in her calmest voice.
“Do you need proof for something like that?” Melody sneered. “If you don’t believe what I say, you can
just ask Toby about it.”
“I’ll certainly do that,” Sonia uttered before pursing her lips.
“Why are you asking me about it, then?” Melody glared at Sonia with rage-filled eyes. “One way or
another, both of you ruined my marriage and my love life. I’ll never forgive you guys for this!” When the
time is right, I’ll make sure that you guys suffer the way I did! Melody thought.
Sonia frowned when she saw the hateful look on Melody’s face. Sonia was about to say something
when Melody calmed herself down to continue speaking. “But there is one thing that I’d like to thank
you for,” she said.
“What are you talking about?” Sonia narrowed her eyes.
The other woman curled her lips into a satisfied smile. “I’m talking about Tina. I hadn’t expected you to
defeat her.” The Stryder Family had to undergo an investigation from the higher-ups because of what
Melody did to help Tina. After this incident, their family went from being the most well-respected family
to ranking fifth place in Norfolk. Everyone at home hated Melody for this, and they all saw her as a
curse that had ruined the family. The rest of the Stryders treated Melody as if she was invisible, and no
one showed her any respect back home.
All of the sorrow and suffering that Melody felt were transformed into anger and hatred for Tina. My life
wouldn’t be such a disaster if it weren’t for Tina. I used to be the beloved daughter of a wealthy family,
but now, I’m just an outcast who’s not welcomed at home! After Melody got divorced, she wasn’t even
allowed to live in the main building of the Stryder Residence, so she had no choice but to find her own
place.
At first, Melody intended to visit Seafield in order to deal with Tina. After all, sShe had to release her
anger somewhere! However, she was a little too late to the game as Sonia had already dealt with Tina
while Melody wasn’t around. I guess it’s a good thing since I don’t have to waste my effort on dealing
with this. Later, I’ll just visit Tina at the hospital where she’s serving her sentence. Once I’m done
mocking her, I can place all of my focus on dealing with Sonia.
Sonia was surprised to hear Melody’s explanation. I can’t believe she’s glad that I defeated Tina.
“Aren’t you guys friends? Why would you thank me for treating your friend that way?” A hint of disdain
flashed in Sonia’s gaze. I thought their friendship was deeper than that. Hah!
“We aren’t friends!” Melody growled with an ugly expression on her face. “I don’t have a friend like her.”
Melody had always thought of herself as a decent friend to Tina—she had done a lot for Tina. However,
she hadn’t expected to risk her whole family’s reputation for the sake of a friend. While Melody was
locked up in her house, she had a lot of time to think about the situation. During that period, she
realized that Tina had never treated her as a friend, and she was nothing more but a useful tool to Tina.
Whenever Tina cried or pouted, Melody and Cynthia would stand up for Tina without any hesitation. It
was almost as if they had fallen under Tina’s spell. I bet Tina’s secretly laughing at Cynthia and I behind
our backs. I bet she thinks we’re idiots because of all that we’ve done for her. Yet, Melody had never
seen Tina as such a manipulative and experienced woman in the past. That explained why Melody
hated Tina so much after the whole incident.
Sonia merely shrugged when she saw the rage pouring out of Melody’s glare. “I don’t care if you and
Tina are friends. I was just asking a question for the sake of it. Alright, Miss Stryder, I’m done picking
my outfit. I’ll excuse myself now,” she uttered. After taking a black, one-shoulder mermaid dress off the
rack, Sonia walked over to the cashier. Jade green accessories went the best with black fabric because
they contrasted against each other, making it a perfect match.
Sparks danced in Melody’s eyes as she stared thoughtfully at Sonia’s figure. Melody didn’t stop Sonia
as Sonia walked off.
…
Meanwhile, Toby was editing some documents in Fuller Group. Tom knocked on the door before he
walked into the office. “President Fuller, the man who has an eye on Carl gave us an update. It seems
like Carl has managed to hunt down Declan’s whereabouts.”
“What?” Toby’s ball-point pen halted in mid-air as he looked up. “Where’s Declan?”
“He’s at the largest harbor in Sundale. Carl sent his men over there, so we’re guessing that Declan
might have sneaked in from there,” Tom replied.
Toby’s eyes glinted when he heard Tom’s words. “Carl’s hacking skills are impressive. He wouldn’t
have managed to find Declan otherwise.” Refugees who entered another country wouldn’t use their
own documents but fake IDs, and some didn’t even have IDs. Most of them would change their
appearances, and they would stay away from electronic devices to avoid getting tracked by hackers.
Toby was certain that Declan knew the rules as a refugee, but Carl still managed to get his hands on
Declan. That showed how scary of a man Carl was.
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