The President’s office on the top floor was fully lit.
Credence’s ears caught the sound of someone pushing the door open. At this hour, it couldn’t be Jonathan, Benjamin, or Marvin, and his gaze sharpened.
With his phone in one hand, he swiveled the chair around, his gaze falling on the entrance of the office.
The moment he turned around, the door swung open silently, like it had been blown by a gust of wind. A woman stepped in, her deep purple heels leading the way. She had a pair of diamond sunglasses on, and she was dressed in black. Her hair was pulled back in a ponytail, and she strode towards Credence seductively.
Credence zeroed in on her, his face expressionless, and he said coldly, “Melanie, you’re really here!”
The woman took off her sunglasses, revealing a sharp, beautiful face. She looked at Credence with a smile, and she said in a tender voice, “Yes, Credence, it’s me! I didn’t die, and I came all the way to Talco City to see you. Aren’t you happy?”
“Oh? It’s been years since we last saw each other. When have you switched from having coffee to tea?”
Melanie’s narrowed eyes swept over the desk, and her lightly calloused hand reached out towards Credence’s cup of tea. She was just about to bring it to her mouth for a taste when Credence swiftly grabbed hold of her wrist and shook it violently.
The teacup immediately fell from Melanie’s hand and shattered on the ground.
“Ah!”
Melanie let out a charming cry. When she noticed her wrist being grabbed by Credence, she took the opportunity to fall into his arms with her hands around his shoulders. She laughed coquettishly, “Credence, it’s been so many years, but you’re still the same as before. You’ve always liked to grab me by the wrist and pull me into your arms.”
“Get off me!”
Credence’s face was darker than ink, and he wanted to rip Melanie’s arms off of his neck.
Though Melanie looked slender, she was extremely strong. She held on to Credence’s neck like a leech.
He simply stood up and placed his phone on the desk before pulling Melanie back by the collar and throwing her onto the desk.
“Credence, this is our first time seeing each other after so many years. Your way of welcoming me is really special!”
Melanie reacted quickly. She placed a palm on the desk and leapt away, landing two steps away from Credence. She crossed her arms over her chest, and raised an eyebrow at him, saying with a smile, “I noticed that you had a call connected. Were you sweet talking that Dorothy Fisher that you just proposed to?”
At this, Credence’s face darkened and he quickly swept his eyes over the phone’s screen. It showed that the call was still connected.
The words “Mrs. Scott” were displayed on the screen.
He quickly ended the call and looked up. He walked towards Melanie and gripped her neck, his fingers tightening. He looked at her with a malicious gaze. “What are you trying to achieve by coming to Talco City?”
“What other purposes could there be?”
Melanie laughed lightly, “It’s simple! It is because I love you, Credence!”
“You loved me so much that you betrayed me and shot me to the bottom of a cliff?”
Credence’s face was cold, but a faint smile formed on his lips as he said, “Tell me what’s your real motive, and I can consider letting you die swiftly.”
“Credence, I didn’t plan on getting back there alive when I came here to see you.”
Melanie didn’t mind Credence’s coldness towards her. She just looked at him dazedly, then sighed, “You know me, Credence! I’ve always been extremely domineering and possessive.”
“Any man that I take fancy to either dies or belongs to me completely! There’s no way I’d allow you and Dorothy to fall in love and live happily ever after.”
“Credence, you know what I’m capable of. It’s not easy for you to get rid of me, because we’re equals, and you might even have to pay a high price. At least, I’m sure that I’ll be able to kill your woman and child before you kill me.”
“Credence, a weak woman like that is undeserving of a strong, upstanding man such as yourself. Only I am a perfect match for you, and only I deserve to stand by your side!”
The same arrogance and haughtiness that she had from the past burst out on her cold face.
Credence’s heart remained unmoving at Melanie’s words. He only felt annoyed, and he narrowed his eyes. “Melanie, I wasn’t even the slightest bit aroused when you stood before me completely naked all those years ago. What makes you think things would’ve changed now?”
“Besides, I’m the only one who knows who deserves to stand by my side. An outsider like you has no right to judge.”
“Credence, do you really want to hurt me like that?” Melanie’s expression changed, and she looked at him sinisterly. She sneered, “Fine, I’m an outsider, but you don’t even know that Dorothy that you view so preciously is just a time bomb that’s going to kill you.”
“What do you mean by that?” Credence raised his elbow and punched her in the abdomen hard.
“Ouch!”
Melanie groaned in pain. She knew that Credence had never felt any different for her, and her eyes darkened. “You’re treating me so cruelly because of some weak woman? Credence, I’ve always been good at holding grudges. I’ll return this one punch of yours on Dorothy, in tenfold, until she’s completely gone from this world. Don’t push me too far!”
Credence had to admit that he couldn’t keep his guard up around her.
Dorothy and Leilani were truly mother and daughter, but who was her biological father?
Considering all the absurd things that Leilani had done when she was young, perhaps Dorothy was just a product of Leilani’s one night stand with a random man.
She had been in bed with so many men, and there were even times when she slept with several men at once too. Hence, Leilani wouldn’t know who Dorothy’s father could be as well.
Was Melanie saying that Dorothy’s parentage had something to do with a drug lord?
The one thing that Credence hated the most were these drug lords that would stop at nothing to earn dirty money.
With Leilani’s chaotic relationships, it wasn’t impossible for her to have some physical relations with these drug lords.
In this moment, as he looked at Melanie, Credence felt like he was looking at a poisonous snake that was waiting to pounce on him and bite off a piece of his flesh. His hatred for her doubled.
“What? Are you thinking of ways to kill me?”
Melanie looked directly into his ice-cold eyes and smiled lazily. “Credence, I bet you still don’t know that I found out a lot about you from Rosalie.”
“I was the one who got someone to record that video of Dorothy and that man kissing.”
“Also, I’ve already completely memorised everything about that ward that Dorothy and your daughter go in and out of. The two teams of bodyguards that you’ve placed there are totally useless, in my opinion.”
“If you kill me now, Dorothy and your daughter will go down with me. I’m not losing out you know, taking down two lives for the price of one. It just depends on whether or not you’re willing to pay the price!”
Credence looked at Melanie. After a long moment, he let go of her neck and his hand trailed down to her waist. He pulled her close to him, his lips coming close to her eyes. A cold smile formed on his lips, and he said, “If you truly want to be my woman, tell me honestly why you’re in Talco City.”
He did not believe that she was just here to cause trouble for Dorothy and himself.
“Credence, my motive is to love you and be with you for the rest of my life!”
“Of course, as long as you give Dorothy up and choose to be with me, marry me and make me feel how sincere you are, I will tell you everything honestly. I will tell you why I betrayed you, who is the person behind me, and the real truth to Dorothy’s parentage. If you want to use your connections to find the truth, then I can honestly tell you that you won’t be able to find anything. In the end, it will all be in vain, your efforts will all be for nothing.”
“Credence, those are my conditions. Once you’ve thought it through, you can call me. I’m still using the same number!”
After that, she gently broke free from Credence’s grasp and left.
Coincidentally, Jonathan hurried in at this moment and almost ran into Melanie, who was leaving. He shuddered at her cold gaze, then sped over to Credence, muttering, “F*ck, Credence, who’s that woman? She almost froze me to death!”
Credence’s voice was nothing out of the ordinary, but a trace of obvious coldness could be detected. “That’s Melanie Jenkins, Jenciga’s top killer.”
“Top killer! Sh*t, Credence, what kind of a horrible woman have you provoked? Wait, if such a horrible woman is preying on you, then what should Dorothy and Belle do?”
“We’ll send them off first.”
“Send them off? To where?”
“You will know when the time comes. I need to keep this matter an absolute secret.”
After that, Credence picked up his suit jacket and hurried out of the office, his handsome face betraying his exhaustion. “I’m going back to the hospital.”
Melanie knew him well, just as how he knew her.
With her arrogance, she wouldn’t go after Dorothy right after dropping such a bomb.
Therefore, he had to move Dorothy and Belle to a safer place as soon as possible.
In Belle’s ward.
Dorothy felt distressed when she saw Belle forcing herself to stay awake.
She heard Credence flirting with a woman named Melanie on the phone, and her heart was in great pain.
She suppressed her intense pain and forced a smile out. “Belle, it’s late. Daddy might not be back tonight, so maybe you should go to sleep.”
“No! Mommy, I’m not sleepy! Mummy Germaine told me how pitiful Daddy is. He’s always been alone on his birthday. I don’t want him to be pitiful. I’m sure he’ll be really happy when we celebrate his birthday with him!”
Belle looked extremely serious and persistent.
Dorothy had no choice but to agree with her. “Okay, I will wait with you!”
As she was in a daze, she heard steady and familiar footsteps coming from the corridor outside the ward.
Following that, Dorothy head the bodyguards outside calling out, “Mr. Scott.”
Was Credence back?
Dorothy trembled. She turned and looked at the heavy door, her eyes filled with a complicated look and a trace of pain.