The Paranoid Jadesons
“Ms. Ichika, when will Mrs. Minamoto and Ms. Himari be arriving? I plan to begin with the preparations.”
“Huh?” Finally, Ichika raised her head and turned to look at Wendy.
The Minamotos had been invited to Frontier Bay for dinner that day. Since Sasha and the rest weren’t
present, Wendy had done an excellent job welcoming their Jetroinian guests on behalf of the Hayeses.
Naturally, Rufus, Jackson, and Sharon would be present too.
“All right, let me make a phone call to ask them about it,” Ichika replied as she rose to her feet.
She fished her phone out and prepared to call her husband. Yet, Ichika changed her mind when she
caught sight of the endless wave of messages in the chat group. With a purse of her lips, Ichika called
her mother.
“Should we wait for Mr. Akiyama?”
Aoi was situated at Hillside Villa when she received Ichika’s call. Upon hearing her daughter’s question,
Aoi hesitated.
When Himari heard this, she quickly cajoled, “Mom, let’s head there now. If we wait for Mr. Akiyama,
we’ll have to wait until he finishes his work so that he can fetch us there. Let’s not cause him any more
trouble.”
Himari was eager to leave as soon as possible. After all, she heard that her cousin-in-law was the
president of the Hayes Corporation. Furthermore, it was rumored that he was one of the wealthiest
men in Avenport.
Himari was burning with curiosity. I wonder, how will his house look like?
She vividly remembered the wedding too. Although the couple was dressed in simple attire, their
poised and elegant mannerisms outshone everyone else and made them the stars of the event.
Moreover, her cousin-in-law had been the one who paid for the wedding’s private jet and luxury
limousine.
Swayed by her daughter’s pleas, Aoi decided to head there first.
When Wendy heard this, she made a quick phone call to inform Rufus and Jackson. After her call, it
didn’t take long for them to arrive.
“When will they be arriving?”
“It shouldn’t take long for them to arrive. I apologize, Mr. Wand. I have not sent an invitation to the
Hayes family. Since Mr. Hayes and Madam aren’t home, it will be inconvenient to host a large event.
Tonight, I’ll have to ask for your help to entertain our distinguished guests,” Wendy explained with an
apologetic look.
Rufus merely smiled good-naturedly. “Don’t apologize. It is our duty to entertain the guests too. You
have planned everything out very thoughtfully. Besides, Sharon will be present tonight.”
Rufus mentioned Sharon on purpose.
In truth, Sharon was a complicated person. The woman, who married into the Blackwood family, hailed
from a family of studious scholars and was thus well-educated.
Despite her complex character, Sharon was an excellent host. Hence, she was more than capable of
keeping a few guests entertained throughout dinner.
After everyone gathered, they waited for the arrival of Aoi and Himari.
Similarly, Ichika was also waiting for someone else.
She stood at the entrance of Royal Court One, eagerly anticipating the man’s arrival.
After her earlier phone call, she couldn’t help but send him a quick message. In Ichika’s text, she told
him that her mom and sister would be attending the dinner too and implored him to return a little earlier.
Ichika glanced at her phone again.
Sabrina: Aren’t you guys blowing this out of proportion? How did this become a murder? Are you guys
delusional?
Devin, Solomon, Sasha, and Jonathan did not reply to Sabrina’s text.
Nevertheless, there was truth to be found in Sabrina’s message. Ever since their harrowing battle with
Eddie, they had grown paranoid.
They would panic and overthink the situation at the slightest sign of trouble.
However, Sabrina was getting annoyed about the Jadesons’ paranoia.
All of a sudden, Sebastian, who had remained silent throughout the entire conversation, sent a text.
Sebastian: Most research institutes rarely use zinc.
Following Sebastian’s text, deathly silence ensued in the group chat.
In his office, as Solomon stared at the text, his entire mind turned blank.
Truthfully, Solomon was terrified.
Although he was not involved in the matter, the mere thought of it left him restless, and he lost sleep
over it. However, Solomon’s sleepless nights were a well-kept secret.
He grabbed his smartphone and continued to stare at the chat group until Sebastian sent another text.
Sebastian: I’ll go back and handle it.
Finally, Solomon returned to his seat as his tensed body relaxed.
Beep… Beep…
Suddenly, Solomon’s phone rang, signaling an incoming call.
He picked it up and answered the call, “Hello?”
“Darling, a-are you free to talk right now? My mom and sister are already at Frontier Bay. Once you are
finished with your work, you can come over right away.” The feminine voice that echoed from his phone
was soft and demure.
There was a trace of wariness present in her voice. It was as if she was afraid of disturbing Solomon’s
work.
Solomon glanced at his watch and realized it was almost time for him to get off work. “All right.”
Throughout the call, Solomon failed to sense that something was amiss. After his curt reply, he
prepared to end the call.
However, before he could do so, Ichika said in a hesitant voice, “Darling, I didn’t help Himari this
afternoon, right?”
“Huh?”
Solomon had forgotten about the incident entirely.
His confusion put a damper on Ichika’s mood.
“I’m talking about the medical book. In the group chat, I noticed that Himari didn’t need it anymore…”
Ichika’s voice was tinged with disappointment.
At last, Solomon remembered. “The medicine isn’t the issue. I even asked Haruto about it. It’s just a
simple poisoning incident. Don’t overthink it,” he cautioned her.
“Really?”
“Yes, I’ll be hanging up now. Once I’m finished with my work, I’ll head over to dinner.” With that,
Solomon hung up.
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