Chapter 524 Keep Them Safe
Oliver almost choked on his breakfast. He leaned on Alexander’s shoulders and coughed nonstop. His face was red, while Alexander looked annoyed. He pushed Oliver away.
“You got your food on my shoulder.”
Courtney gave them a deadpan look and turned the conversation back to the topic at hand. “What are you two hiding from me?”
Oliver looked at Alexander with hesitation. Alexander took off his soiled suit in disgust and loosened his tie. He wondered if he should keep this a secret, but then he thought there was no need for that. “We’re sending them overseas to keep them safe.” A pause later, he added, “Oliver found something.”
Courtney was not surprised at all, and she turned her attention to Oliver. “What did you find, Oliver?”
Oliver frowned. He had a serious look on his face as he said, “Remember the tattoo I told you about? I went to Vietnam to find out more, and the police there have some records about this. The reason the Crescent Church was disbanded was because of an internal feud. The leader was captured, but there’s an important accomplice who’s still on the run.”
“And?”
“She’s the key. The woman is the Crescent Church’s leader’s girlfriend. She also gave him a lot of stock after she started dating him five years ago. It’s also thanks to her that the leader became the top drug lord in Vietnam. If I’m right, the stock she provided was the one missing during Dragon’s case five years ago.”
“What did you say?” A frown appeared on her forehead, and she felt a chill running down her spine. She also subconsciously clasped her hands together. The mention of Dragon caught her by surprise, and she was reminded of something awful.
Oliver noticed Courtney getting pale at a terrifying speed. He hesitated, and he eventually swallowed what he was going to say next. The man looked at Alexander.
Alexander leaned forward and put his hand on top of Courtney’s. Alexander’s warmth, in comparison to the cool table top, calmed her down a little. “Dragon and his men died in the fire on the island, and we found a female body too. According to the DNA test results, the body belonged to Poppy.”
Alexander sounded calmer than Oliver, and his voice soothed Courtney’s trembling heart down.
“Britney,” Courtney said with difficulty.
Oliver nodded.
“This drug lord had always been at odds with Dragons. The whole thing couldn’t have been a coincidence, so we suspect that Britney might have taken the drug lord’s side five years ago. She’s on the run now, and she might be in Melrose.” Oliver took an old photo out of his bag. It was the woman who pushed Natasha down the stairs. Then, he took out another old photo, but this time, it was a photo of Britney, and he laid it out on the table beside the first photo. Both of them were covered from head to toe, so they could not tell the difference between the two women. “We can’t see anything from this photo, but I sent this photo to my colleague in the Identification Bureau, and they told me that these women might look different, but their bone structure and body shape are a match.” In the end, he said, “I suspect Britney underwent a cosmetic surgery.”
Courtney felt a chill run up her spine. “If she is Britney, then she’s doing this to get back at me. Natasha, Grandpa, and even Tina. She’s trying to get her revenge, and she’s doing it fast.”
“If that’s true, then this is not the same Britney we know. I asked around, and the locals told me that she’s a fearsome woman in Vietnam. She destroyed the Crescent Church all by herself.” Oliver took another file out of his bag. “This is the result of the investigation I just got this morning. The brake lines of Melrose High School’s bus were cleanly cut, so someone did it on purpose, and all the surveillance cameras of the stadiums’ underground car park were destroyed. This was planned. Britney alone couldn’t have done this. Someone must be helping her.”
Courtney suddenly remembered something, and she froze up for a moment. “What about the number I gave you? Did you find out who’s the caller?” The guy who called her the day before could not be contacted even until now. Thanks to that call, a bunch of people were saved. She thought it would be great help if she knew who that person was.
Oliver’s frown deepened. “I did. The number’s under Lila’s name.”
“Mike.” Courtney knew who it was right away.
Oliver nodded, but he had no idea why Mike did that. “He’s the prime suspect behind Raymond’s death, and he was probably involved in Walter’s case as well. He’s the only one we know who’s helping Britney, so why did he tell you that your car was sabotaged?”
Silence fell upon them for a while. In the end, Alexander said hesitantly, “Maybe they got into a fight. What you found tells us that he might be doing this for money. He and Britney are both fugitives. There’s no need for him to do this and attract the cops’ attention.”
Courtney thought that was a logical explanation. “Oh yeah! Lila! Mike did tell her he’s gonna have a lot of money soon. He even told her his boss lent it to him. I think Lila doesn’t know about this, but he is doing this for money.”
Oliver leaned against the chair, tapping his finger on the marble table. He then nodded. “Keep calling. I’ve asked my colleague to keep an eye on this. We’ll find something if we can establish a connection, but I think he’ll burn this number and switch to another one soon.”
Courtney nodded absentmindedly, as if she was in a trance. Alexander held her hand to reassure her. “So we’ll send the kids overseas. Britney can’t leave the nation as she is. They’ll be fine, so don’t worry.”
Courtney smiled, but she looked pale. She mustered her courage and stood up, and the chair creaked as she did. When she spoke again, she sounded confident. “I’m not worried about her. She’s not worth my time, but she will pay for what she did to Natasha and Grandpa.” She shrugged, looking tired.
“I have a competition later. I have no time to worry.” She went to the room and took her bag. Alexander changed into a new suit and followed behind her.
“I’ll take you there.” I’m worried about you. He did not say that, but Courtney could feel it. She saddled her bag and was about to nod, but before she could, someone called Alexander.
Alexander frowned. He looked at who was calling and wondered if he should take it. Eric did not let up. Alexander thought about the mission he sent Eric out on. He was worried, and in the end, he took the call, but when he heard what happened, his face fell.
He hung up, and Courtney could see that he was worried. She straightened his collar and tie out, then she smiled at him. “Go. Call me when you’re done.”
