Sitting on the other side of the bed, Edward looked at Echo with sharp eyes and shook his head. “You know why it’s called the underworld? It’s because everything’s done in the dark, behind the scenes. It’s not meant to see the light of day. You try to do things out in the open here, and you might as well be asking for death.”
“Out in the open?” Echo froze for a second.
Was he really calling her straightforward? Was he talking about her stealing things openly?
“In the underworld, if you’re talking about doing things ‘out in the open,’ you’re an idiot. Unless you become a big shot like Mr. Ryan or Mr. Kevin, don’t ever say that again. You think I’m gonna let you do that to me? Do you think I could survive in the Ford family if I lived like that? You think I just laid back and lived a peaceful life? The best way to protect yourself is to fight back and build your own power.” Edward stared at Echo for a moment, then shook his head. “Never mind, talking to you is just a waste of time.”
Echo was surprised at how sharp and calculating Edward was, given his youthful appearance. He was nothing like what she expected. This kid had a lot of depth.
She frowned, her voice sharp. “Why are you even telling me this?”
Edward casually leaned back against the headboard, giving Echo a look of mild disdain. “Because I think you’re insulting my intelligence.”
Echo glared at him. She had suspected this kid wasn’t simple, but she didn’t expect him to be this much of a handful. Her tone turned cold. “Then I will not insult you, I will kill you directly.”
With that, she slid her hand down and aimed her gun at him.
Edward just shook his head, speaking without sound. “You don’t want to kill me. Why bother scaring me?”
His words hit a nerve, and after a few seconds, Echo’s expression changed. She let out a cold huff, put the gun away, and sat back on the bed. If she wanted him dead, she wouldn’t have brought him back in the first place. This kid had sharp eyes.
Seeing Echo fall silent, Edward’s expression also softened. He nodded quietly. “That’s right. Keeping your emotions in check-that’s the first rule for the matriarch in the Dark family.”
Echo raised an eyebrow. “How old are you, really?”
Edward gave a faint smile, his eyes showing a depth that reminded her of people like Hawk. It was far from the gaze of a child.
Echo frowned as he said calmly, “Mr. Ryan took control of the Dark family at eighteen. It’s not that surprising that I’m like this at my age. Our backgrounds and identities mean we can’t walk an easy path. If one wants to stay alive, one has to grow up.”
Echo didn’t expect Edward to say this. She was momentarily stunned, then nodded slowly. “But you’re still a kid.”
Edward’s expression froze for a moment, and a cold light flashed in his eyes. “You underestimate me.”
Looking at Edward’s angelic face, which in an instant turned cold as hell, Echo shook her head slightly and reached out to pat his head. “I’ll say it again. Since I brought you back, I won’t just leave you to your own devices. If you want to survive here, you’ll have to let go of the things deep inside you. And you know I’m not lying.”
Echo’s soft voice and gentle gestures made Edward stay still, not flinching, but just lifting his eyes to look at her.
How could he not understand? This was the Dark family-everyone was waiting for him to mess up, to bring him down. As an enemy, they would never let him take root and grow here. He might be young, but he understood more than anyone. And the one in front of him-maybe she was a little different from the others.
Seeing that Edward didn’t speak, Echo rubbed his head and said, “Weigh the pros and cons.” After those simple words, she stood up and walked out.
Edward lay back on the bed, watching Echo leave. He frowned slightly. “Weigh the pros and cons,” she had said. Such sharp words, a dark hint, and a clever mind.
For the next few days, there was no movement in the Dark family.
Adolph went back to Italy to take care of his business, and Ryan, along with Hawk and the others, acted like any other day-no signs of conflict.
Echo couldn’t understand their conversations, so she went straight to the computer control room and started digging through all the information. She had to start from scratch. A building had to start from its foundation, after all. Ryan didn’t say anything, just letting Echo do her thing.
With thick files in her hands, Echo felt her head spinning. She rubbed her forehead. A hefty history of the world’s underworld-hard to digest.
Edward, who had been following her like a shadow, noticed no one else was around. He dropped the cute, weak expression and glared at Echo. “Following you was a mistake.”
Echo muttered, still focused on the documents, “Don’t even…” But before she could finish, she suddenly looked up, frowning as she saw Edward sitting on the couch across from her. “You can talk?”
Edward leaned back on the couch, casually flipping through the papers in front of him. “I never told you I don’t talk.”
Echo raised an eyebrow. “You’ve been hiding it, huh, kid?”
Even the information Hawk found showed that he was a mute, and now this kid could talk? He must have some serious skills, to have kept this hidden from the Dark family’s intel.
Edward sneered at her comment, but Echo didn’t mind. She turned back to the files and muttered, “What made you decide to speak?”
Edward noticed that Echo wasn’t really shocked or surprised. She seemed to accept his speaking so easily. His eyes flashed for a moment, and he shot her a cold look. “When the rabbit dies, the fox mourns. If you’re too useless and get taken out, you’ll drag me down with you.”
He’d been observing Echo for a few days. Seeing that she treated him like a child-if it were anyone else, he’d be more cautious, but with Echo, he could only say she was naive, so pure it was almost annoying.
She was clearly a lazy fox, but Ryan wanted to turn her into an eagle. If it weren’t for the fact that his own life and future were tied to Echo now, he wouldn’t have bothered.
But now? He was getting more and more frustrated. The more he thought about it, the angrier he got.
He could handle anyone else, but with Echo… she wasn’t stupid, but she didn’t always think things through. She could be smart, but also clueless, and it was driving him crazy.
As he watched her back, his expression hardened. In a flash, he grabbed a book and threw it straight at Echo.
Hearing the sound of the wind, Echo quickly dodged, avoiding Edward’s sneak attack, and snapped, “You asking for it or what?”
Edward gritted his teeth and glared at Echo. “What are you looking at? What’s the point of staring? Do you want to be Mr. Ryan’s lackey or his wife? What’s the point of having a brain if you’re gonna act like this? You’re an idiot. How did Mr. Ryan end up loving someone like you?”
Echo’s face darkened immediately. She crossed the room in a few strides and grabbed Edward, squeezing hard.
Edward shot her a look of annoyance and muttered, “What’s my luck? Just when I thought I could escape, I ended up stuck with you, sticking your nose in everything. Now you’re being all tough with me. I swear I’ll beat you senseless.”
He had started mumbling, but by the end of it, he was getting fired up and started throwing punches and kicks at Echo.
Edward didn’t stand a chance. Echo had been trained to dodge, and in just a few moves, she not only avoided his hits but managed to pin him to the couch.
She raised her hand and smacked him on the backside a few times, angrily saying, “Still think I’m sticking my nose in where I shouldn’t? If I hadn’t brought you back, would you even be alive today? Ungrateful little thing.”
Those sold out by the Ford family, the ones tied to the black market, had their dignity crushed in one night and faced death. They were nothing but trouble, and the Dark family never left loose ends. As for the Ford family’s side branch relying on Ryan for support, they knew exactly what to do-and they would do it.
Edward, still being treated like a child, turned red in the face after Echo’s slap. He grabbed her arm, his nails digging in, ready to hurt her-but for some reason, he stopped.
He eventually let go, still seething. “Don’t talk nonsense. If I dared get caught, I obviously had a way out. You think I’m some soft target?”
Echo froze for a moment and stopped, looking at him. “You did that on purpose?”