Chapter 226 Touch Him if You Dare
The piano performance did not stop. Its volume was just enough to cover up Alexander’s voice. Thus, they didn’t attract too much attention. Nonetheless, the guests on the surrounding tables were casting strange glances at them.
Elijah was the first to come back to his senses. Immediately, he got someone to send Tina out.
After Courtney recovered from the shock, she saw the woman behind Alexander through the corner of her eye. Instantly, her gaze turned cold and she said apathetically, “What does that have to do with you?”
With a gloomy expression, Alexander’s cold gaze swept across Elijah and he demanded, “So, this is the ‘friend’ you keep talking about? Having fun with a ‘friend’ with your daughter by your side?”
When he saw Elijah leave Courtney’s house that day, she also quarreled with such confidence. Even though he had witnessed the scene, she insisted that Elijah was just a friend. In the end, he even doubted his own investigation and judgment.
Yet, at this very moment, he finally met Elijah. Based on his intuition, he could clearly sense that this man definitely had feelings for Courtney—Elijah didn’t see her as a mere friend.
“Don’t you think that you owe me an explanation?”
Facing Alexander’s aggressive tone, Courtney only felt disheartened. She then took a deep breath. “Alexander Duncan, I have nothing to say to you. Please leave.”
Upon hearing that, Alexander clenched his fists. Snorting, he said, “Fine. I’ll leave.” His eyes were flashing cold lights, and all of a sudden, he grabbed Courtney’s wrist and pulled her up from her seat. “But, you’ll have to come with me.”
She had been cheating on him since the beginning. No matter what, he was determined to demand an explanation from her.
However, a big hand pressed on his arm at the same time. The powerful arm stopped him from pulling Courtney up. Frowning, Alexander glanced at the side and he met Elijah’s calm and collected gaze.
Elijah’s gentle voice then rose. “Mr. Duncan, I’m afraid that what you’re doing is inappropriate.”
“This has nothing to do with you.” Alexander put on a grimace. Without giving Elijah face, he said in a cold voice that made anyone feel like they were trapped in an ice cellar, “This is our problem. You better leave us alone.”
Elijah stood up from his seat. Nevertheless, his force on Alexander’s arm did not subside. His expression was as gentle as always, and he said faintly, “Courtney is an independent individual, and she has her own thoughts. It has nothing to do with whether I should leave you guys alone. The point is whether she is willing to go with you.”
“I don’t care if she’s willing, or not. After all, this is still a matter between us.” Impatient, Alexander increased his force, trying to tug Courtney up from her seat.
“It’s too bad, then.” Elijah’s grip on Alexander’s arm increased. It was sufficient to keep his arm from moving away from its original position. His voice was not loud, but it was full of certainty. “It is my priority to respect and protect Courtney’s will.”
A cold light flashed before Alexander’s eyes. If one could kill another with their gaze, right now, there would be two flying knives piercing through Elijah’s face. With a warning in his cold voice, he said, “Mr. Grant, we’re in Melrose City, not Manhattan.”
A powerful dragon couldn’t crush a snake in its old haunts. No matter how respectable Elijah was in Wall Street and the financial world, if he wanted to do business here in Melrose City, he had to follow the custom.
In Melrose City, the Duncan Family was the snake.
The melody of the piano stopped abruptly. Although the two men were merely staring at each other, the restaurant seemed to be overwhelmed by a strong smell of gunpowder. It was as if a war was about to start.
Everyone had noticed the situation between them. Some even secretly took their phones out and tried to take pictures of them. Yet, as soon as they turned on the cameras, men dressed like bodyguards came forward and warned them to switch off their phones.
Amongst these men were people from Alexander’s and Elijah’s sides.
“A home game or an away game makes no difference to me in order to win a match.” As if he was the winner, who had already predicted the ending, Elijah looked calm. He continued to stare at Alexander with an imposing charm. “After all, I made it to this day without relying on my family.”
Instantly, the spectators gasped at his words.
Who was Alexander Duncan? He was the young master of the Duncan Family from Melrose City. Even if he didn’t have the capabilities, the fact that he had inherited the Sunhill Enterprise was sufficient to scare off anyone. No one would dare to criticize him to his face, especially since his capabilities were recognized by the public.
However, what he had was not a big deal to Elijah.
With the word ‘family’, he had simply dismissed Alexander’s reputation.
Alexander’s expression hardened. Subconsciously, his grip on Courtney’s wrist tightened. Even he had not realized how horrible his expression was at the moment.
What Elijah said just now was something he had never really cared about. Everyone was born with their own starting point and this was an indisputable truth. Because, even if it was the same starting point, the result might be different depending on the person. Whether one’s life was successful couldn’t be determined only by their family background.
Nevertheless, at this moment, he felt that Elijah was deliberately letting Courtney hear that.
He was using the comparison between them to show off his achievements.
“Family?” Alexander’s eyes were as cold as the night sky. “Listening to your disdainful tone, you probably don’t know what it means to have a strong family background.”
With just one glance, Alexander’s bodyguards, who were standing afar, understood his order. Quickly, they found someone to send the guests out. In just a few minutes, all guests were sent out gradually. Courtney and the others were the only guests left in the originally crowded restaurant.
“Alexander, what are you doing?” Courtney panicked. She struggled and tried to break free from his control. “Let me go.”
Still, Alexander had no intention of letting her go. His cold gaze remained fixated on Elijah. “Family background means that if you don’t walk out of here alone now, you won’t ever walk out of here again.”
His purpose was obvious.
It was impossible for the Duncan Family to stand strong in Melrose City for so many years just by relying on their legal business. The root of their success was that they were equally invested in the underworld.
To make someone vanish into thin air was not something difficult for him.
Nevertheless, Elijah remained undisturbed. His eyes under the gold-framed glasses did not stir. “It seems like the young master of the Duncan Family always handles things with such simplicity and crudity. Apparently, I’ve overestimated you.”
His ridicule ignited the anger that had long accumulated in Alexander’s chest. With a grimace, he turned and glared at Courtney. “I’m giving you one last chance to leave with me; otherwise, he will never get out of here.”
For a very long time, Courtney had been silent. When Alexander finally acknowledged her presence, she could hardly make an expression. Her face was frozen and her words came squeezing out from her teeth. “Alexander, I never knew you were so childish.” Her woeful and farcical tone was like cold water splashing over Alexander’s head. Traces of coolness soaked through his nerves that were about to burn up.
“See if you dare to touch him.” Not knowing where she found the strength, Courtney shrugged off Alexander’s arm. There was a clear bruise surrounding her fair wrist. Vaguely, one could see traces of fingerprints. Her voice was extremely cold, and with certainty, she said, “If you’re so capable, make me stay here forever too.”
