No longer a pushover (Noelle and Cedric)

Sean must have been pulling the strings.

Noelle scrolled through Xenia's phone, but there was nothing else aside from those two brief messages. The number was from a burner phone and was impossible to trace back to anyone.

The only thing she found in Xenia's encrypted album was a collection of intimate photos with Justin. But it was nothing of value. After thinking for a moment, Noelle implanted a bug in Xenia's phone to monitor all her future communications.

She shut her laptop. Sean was indeed cautious, which meant he would be difficult to deal with. But wasn't he just a migrant worker who came to the city as a driver? How did he know how to use such advanced technology?

The more Noelle thought about it, the more suspicious it seemed. However, there was nothing she could do except wait with no concrete leads at the moment. She didn't believe Xenia could hold out forever.

After some rest, Noelle went to the garden to observe the ants. Before long, a well-dressed woman passed by. She wore a hat and a mask, clearly trying to avoid being recognized.

The woman took out her phone and whispered into it, "Have you found out which room that girl is staying in?"

Emma had decided to meet Noelle in person to see who enchanted Cedric. She kept sneaking around, afraid of being spotted by the people Cedric had assigned to watch her. If they found out, she wouldn't be able to approach Noelle at all. However, Emma didn't pay attention to where she was walking. Her heels slipped, and she lost her balance, tumbling toward the ground.

"Careful!" Noelle reacted swiftly, grabbing Emma's arm to steady her.

Emma patted her chest, shaken. "Oh my, that scared me. Thank you, young lady!"

Noelle let go of her hand but accidentally jostled her injured arm in the process, making her face go pale from pain.

Emma immediately supported her and helped her sit down. "Is your arm okay? Do you need to get it checked again? I'll take responsibility if anything happens."

Emma would have broken a bone if Noelle didn't catch her.

Noelle shook her head. "No need. It just hurts when I touch it."

Guilty, Emma handed Noelle a business card. "Here, take this. Contact me if anything happens."

She still had to meet Noelle and couldn't waste too much time here. Otherwise, Cedric's people would find her soon.

Noelle glanced at the card but didn't think much of it.

As Emma hurried away, she suddenly turned back to look at Noelle. For some reason, she seemed oddly familiar.

Noelle was crouching by a tree when she suddenly received a call from Donovan. She answered calmly.

calmly

"What is it? If this isn't about the company's firewall, I don't see why we need to talk."

Donovan sighed. "Noelle, do you think I want to call you? Franknoveldrama

brough

Xenia to apologize to you,

and She's already been beaten to a pulp.

"Can't you at least soften your stance? Do you want her dead?"

Was he here to lecture her?

Noelle snorted. "First of all, I wasn't the one who hit her. Second, I found it quite entertaining to watch. And lastly, what the hell does this have to do

with me?"

Donovan sounded exasperated. "Noelle, where's your heart? You and Xenia grew

up together, and you're just going to be this heartless?"

Noelle huffed. "Don't try to guilt-trip me. Did you forget I nearly died during the livestream?"

Donovan was silent for a moment before muttering, "But you didn't die, did you?"

Noelle gritted her teeth. "Exactly. I survived. So now, someone else has to take my place."

Donovan groaned. "Xenia's father saved our parents' lives, Noelle. I'm begging you to let her go this once."

Noelle's eyes gleamed. "Are you so sure that Xenia's father is dead?"