The flame of the red candle swayed and flickered in the cold wind, and the taste of waiting was exceptionally torturous.
Leaning against the wall, Hazel rubbed the middle of her brows to relax her tension.
It was another sleepless night.
Hazel remembered that day with Elva. It was a rainy night, too. She was imprisoned in an abandoned warehouse by the Plum Blossom Organization. Hazel and Elva were shivering from the cold, and they huddled together to keep warm.
Hazel thought they should be closest friends because they had been to hell and back together. However, Elva was the one who wanted to send Hazel back to hell.
Was there anyone trustworthy in the world?
The villa was comfortable, and there were various delicious dishes on the service; however, no one was in the mood.
People were anxious, and silence and sighs came one after another.
“If I were not here for the masquerade, I would never suffer from such a thing,” many people thought.
“The auctioneer has not been back yet. The bathroom will not take him that long,” someone said.
There was emergency lamp in the bathroom, but it had almost run out of battery and was very dim. It wouldn’t last until dawn.
“He can’t be the murderer! If he were, he would have run away long ago!”
Of course, the murderer had run away; otherwise, would he stay here and welcome the first ray of dawn with them?
“Maybe he has committed suicide!”
Everyone was restless. Some of them argued in a bitter tone, and some words were hard to hear.
No one knew who the murderer was, but people guessed it was the auctioneer.
“Stop arguing. You’ll know if we go upstairs and take a look.”
Roger smiled sarcastically and urged those who were arguing to take a look. But he didn’t believe those cowardly people dared to do so.
All the guests agreed that someone should go upstairs and see what had happened exactly.
The problem was that no one wanted to go.
People were all afraid that the auctioneer was still there, and that he might be ferocious and dangerous.
People all wanted others to go upstairs instead of themselves.
“I have a proposal. We all know it’s a dangerous task. I suggest that each of you give me 1 million and I go upstairs to have a look.”
Roger asked for a large amount of money.
No one would complain about having too much money; besides, Roger was also curious. The available information could offer them limited results. Roger could get similar results as Baron according to what they knew.
“Can money be more important than life? Mr. Garnett, are you lost of mind?”
Edie was shocked, especially when she realized that Roger was serious.
“What, Ms. Turner, are you concerned about me?”
Roger flicked the golden button on his chest and spoke lazily.
Edie’s face turns gloomy. She lowered her head and pondered, “No, I’m thinking if the Garnett family will go bankrupt. Otherwise, how can you work so hard?”
The two of them were then in a tit-for-tat argument.
All the guests here were rich, and they didn’t take 1 million as a big deal.
They were wondering if it was worth it.
And could Roger’s deed be seen as taking advantage of the situation?
They didn’t care about the auctioneer. They just wanted to know if they were safe and if the auctioneer was life-threatening to them.
“Mr. Garnett, do you think all of us offering you 5 million is acceptable?”
Someone bargained. He thought 5 million was more reasonable after splitting.
And he didn’t need Roger to go himself. With such a lucrative award, there would be many people who wanted to go, such as waiters.
The rain subsided gradually. The storm must have stopped by dawn.
Hazel slowly relaxed and yawned.
Hazel used to write down her daily arrangements in a notebook.
Hazel’s new agent was famous and capable but had been out of showbiz for a long time. It was said that he was serious and a man of his words.
Hazel was worried and wondering, “What will he do to me if I’m late tomorrow?”
An actress or actor should never look down on negligible roles because they were bricks on the way to better acting skills.
Without acting skills, one could only be a flash in the pen and soon be replaced by new actors or actresses, and no one would remember them.
“Let’s go.”
A series of roars sounded from outside.
In the darkness, Baron grabbed Hazel’s arm and walked to the door before she could react.
“Where are you going?”
“It’s raining heavily! It’s too dangerous!” Heedless of bargaining with other guests, Roger tried to stop Baron.
The rain might cause landslides. It was extremely dangerous to go out after heavy rain.
“Look.”
Baron pointed at the door and answered coldly. Then he, holding Hazel’s hand, went straight to the door.
A helicopter was parked in the open space at the entrance.
“Mr. Andrew! It’s Mr. Andrew’s helicopter!”
Someone immediately recognized that the helicopter belonged to the CEO of the Floyd Group.
Baron seldom showed his face in public; therefore, only a limited number of people met him in person. People were not so excited even when Potbelly was murdered.
“Fuck!”
Roger couldn’t help but curse. The rich could be willful. The assets of all the people present together might not be comparable to the Floyd family!
And Baron Floyd could court a girl with a helicopter!
Roger, who was rich and young, wiped his tears and found he was never rich enough.
“Mr. Andrew, please take me with you! I am willing to give you everything, including my body!”
Roger thought, “Who cares about millions of money? Who cares to know if an auctioneer is alive or dead? Baron Floyd is the top priority now!”
“Keep it for yourself.”
Normally, Baron would pretend he did not hear anything.
But for some unknown reason, Baron replied, “Or you may ask Edie. I think she will like it.”
Edie was shocked by the relationship between Hazel and Baron. And she was sensible enough to stay away from them.
Edie and Baron had grown up together and knew each other well. She knew it was not easy for Baron to do those things.
“Farewell, guys.”
Baron nodded to all the guests. Just as he walked to the door, he heard a scream from upstairs.
A waiter had gone upstairs for the award. He found the auctioneer dead in the guests’ locker room with blood on his mouth, nose, and eyes.
Baron had almost gotten the right answer, so he decided to leave anyway.
“Mr. Andrew?”
Sally knew that man was the famous Baron Floyd through people’s talks.
Sally remembered that some news said that Baron was ugly. It was said that Baron’s face was severely burned because of the fire when he was young. But the Baron in front of Sally was handsome and well-shaped. In Sally’s eyes, Baron was even more charming than a model.
Sally knew even the cutting-edge plastic surgery could not restore one’s appearance completely.
And who would care about his appearance when he was rich beyond imagination!
…