Chapter 507
Orlando arrived at the hospital and was stopped by Jackson as well.
“Tell Aria that Orlando is here to see her,” Orlando said.
Liam glanced at his half–brother and sneered. “I wasn’t even allowed in. What makes you think?
you
can?”
Jackson looked Orlando over, then knocked on the door. “Fryderyk, someone named Orlando wants to see Ms. Saxon.”
“Let him in,” Aria said.
Jackson stepped aside. “You can go in.”
Liam’s face darkened. “Why does he get to go in?”
Jackson was speechless. “Because Aria said so. If you’ve got a problem, take it up with her.”
Orlando entered the hospital room, cast an unfriendly glance at the two men on the hospital beds, and turned to Aría. “Is Pearl okay?”
Aria lifted her gaze, her tone laced with irony. “If something had happened to Pearl, do you think I’d still be standing here?”
Orlando said quietly, “My apologies.”
Pearl wasn’t really their responsibility, so Aria didn’t bother to press the issue. “They’re taken care of. Since you’re here…”
She paused and looked at Fryderyk. “No need to send me the digital version. Just send him the recording.”
Fryderyk nodded. “Okay. I’ll send it to you. You send it to him.”
With everything settled, Aria prepared to leave, but the two men called out, “Once the Wolfshade Syndicate is wiped out, send someone to the prison and let us know!”
“Got it,” Aria replied.
Orlando thought, ‘How did the conversation get to taking down the Wolfshade Syndicate and going to prison?‘
Feeling like he’d missed a lot of key information, Orlando followed Aria out of the hospital room. Fryderyk signaled Jackson to take the two men back to the police station.
Watching Aria and Orlando walking away side by side, Liam frowned deeper and deeper. He didn’t know they had gotten this close.
The two headed down a different hallway. Liam was left behind and unacknowledged. He quickly caught up and stepped right next to Aria.
Liam said, “Aria, Orlando is my brother.”
Aria kept walking without acknowledging him. Frustrated, Liam stepped in front of them. “Did you hear me?”
Orlando’s eyes narrowed. His tone turned cold, “We’re just walking together, and you immediately assume something else. You got
Liam retorted, “That’s how you’re going to talk to me?”
As the eldest son of the Cole family, Liam was always treated with respect. His feelings toward his illegitimate brother were complicated.
Orlando’s arrival had helped him a lot, but the increasing praise for Orlando made Liam, the official heir, seem like the forgotten one.
Orlando couldn’t be bothered to argue. “We’ve got things to talk about. Move.”
loose?”
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Chapter 507
Cole shot him a glare and snapped, “What could you possibly need to discuss with Aria?”
Orlando glanced at Aria, silently asking her to get rid of him.
Aria moved her arm slightly, and Liam instantly recalled the three times she had thrown him to the ground. His body reacted before he could think. When he came to, he had already stepped aside.
Orlando didn’t miss that. He looked at Aria, curious about what she’d done to make Liam afraid of her.
A flicker of embarrassment crossed Liam’s face. He cleared his throat and said, “Aria, those two guys seemed like terrorists. I know you’re skilled, but at the end of the day, you’re just a woman. You should stay away from dangerous people and situations.”
“Idiot.” She walked off. Orlando chuckled and followed.
Liam was angry, but after thinking it over, he realized he had wronged Aria. If she was still angry at him, that meant she still cared. That was better than being treated like a stranger.
As they walked down the corridor, Orlando said, “Those two were just peripheral members of the Wolfshade Syndicate. The organization has already abandoned them, and they don’t know much. The gang probably won’t make another move.”
He added, “That guy was Damon’s right–hand man. They’ll probably blame you for this. The recording isn’t going to be much use. No need to send it to
me.”
The Wolfshade Syndicate had never valued their peripheral members. Most of them were small–time crooks. Those with real skills had long been absorbed into the inner circle.
Aria glanced at him. “Sometimes you shouldn’t underestimate outsiders. Some people would rather be a big fish in a small pond than a small one in a big sea.”
Orlando was momentarily stunned. Before he could respond, Aria took out her phone and showed him a sketch. “This woman’s last name is Calderon. She’s in charge of the back–door warehouse. Investigate her quietly. If you find anything, let me know immediately.”
Orlando frowned. “She’s from the Wolfshade Syndicate? Why are you investigating her?”
Aria replied, “Don’t ask. Just do it.”
Orlando was silent for two seconds. “Got it. I’ll assign someone to check her out.”
“No.” Aria’s tone sharpened. “You go personally. She’s connected to Pearl.”
The Wolfshade Syndicate hadn’t given up on trying to kill Pearl
Orlando took it more seriously now. “I’ll go myself.”
When Aria got home, Owen handed her a photo of the defector from Arressto.
He said, “Margery Calderon, 37 years old. Former core member of Arressto’s reconnaissance unit. Defected at age 30. It’s the same person as in your sketch.”
The woman in the photo looked very young, smiling brightly. The age difference from the sketch was obvious, but the resem
Aria asked, “Why has she been hunted for so long? What did she do?”
“Owen said, She killed one of Arressto’s investigators.”
Investigators weren’t just decision–makers. They were also the nerve center of the organization’s intelligence network.
Margery had been one of that investigator’s students, and she knew many secrets. Arressto had been hunting her ever since.
was clear.
Chapter 507
“Why did she kill the investigator?” Aria asked.
Owen shook his head. “That’s an Arressto secret. Hard to uncover.”
No one would choose a path of no return without a reason. To go so far as to kill someone, it had to be due to a deep grudge, or to stop or cover something up.
Arressto was notoriously secretive. Finding out the truth wouldn’t be easy.
They had to find Margery before Arressto did.
+21
Aria had a gut feeling that Margery didn’t join the Wolfshade Syndicate just to hide. She must have had a reason. Hopefully, Orlando could dig something
- up.
Margery had been on the run alone for years. She wouldn’t be found easily.
With Pearl’s situation resolved, Aria’s life became a simple loop between home and the library.
When Lincoln wasn’t painting, he’d visit the library to read. Whenever he saw Aria, he’d come say
He said, “Madelyn, we meet again. Has Mono decided to come back to the country?”
- hi.
There had been an exhibition in Fraibia. Mono went to attend it. The event had long ended, but he hadn’t returned.
“No,” Aria said.
Lincoln kept chatting. “He’s your mentor. Aren’t you worried about him?”
Aria replied, “No.”
Lincoln scratched his head. “I guess he’s always traveling. Nothing to worry about.”
The library wasn’t busy. Lincoln, who never got along with his family and rarely had anyone to talk to, felt a certain familiarity with Aria and chatted more than usual.
Lincoln said, “I actually have a niece I’ve never met. She’s same age as you. They say she’s got a really aloof personality.”
Aria glanced up at him.
Lincoln grinned. “Yeah, just like that look you’re giving me now. They said she looks exactly like that.”
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Chapter 508
