Autumn Linden instantly choked and started coughing. Whether she was frightened by him or just choking, her eyes were completely red. Tears hung in her eyes, threatening to fall. She wondered if he was really here to save her.
Autumn instinctively glanced at the car beside Sean Sheffield. She wasn’t an idiot; she could recognize a luxury vehicle at a glance. This man was clearly too noble to belong in a place like this.
Sean curled his lips into a smirk. With her red eyes, she looked even more like a frightened rabbit.
He released the girl’s chin and leaned lazily against the car. "Wouldn’t it have been easier if you were this obedient from the start? What are you just standing there for?"
Autumn froze. "What?"
Sean frowned, seemingly dissatisfied with her lack of tact. "Aren’t you going to say thank you, big brother?"
Autumn’s face instantly flushed red again. She didn’t understand the current situation, but as long as she could get out of this casino, it was better than living in constant fear inside. She pursed her lips and stammered, "Thank you..."
The words "big brother" felt like a hot coal on her tongue, and she absolutely refused to say them.
Sean scoffed. "What a hassle. I thought I was dragged out of bed in the middle of the night to save some stunning beauty, but it turns out to be an elementary schooler."
Simon Hawthorne had given him an order. He was to ensure she was sent back safely. Simon had even demanded that he bring her and her entire family safely back to Kingsford.
Just because he secretly ran his own casinos and had an endless array of methods to handle casino-related matters with ease, Simon really treated him, the great Sheffield, like a petty lackey. He had every reason to suspect that Simon was using his position for personal revenge.
Just because his wife had toasted him with two glasses of wine and praised him a little?
Bah!
What a bastard!
Of course, he could only keep these thoughts to himself. Even a bad-to-the-bone scoundrel like him had to tread carefully when dealing with someone like Simon, who appeared gentle and aristocratic on the surface but was actually a ruthless, venomous lunatic.
"I’m in college—"
Suddenly, a voice as soft as a mosquito’s buzz reached his ears. It was weak but carried a certain stubborn defiance. Sean slowly lowered his gaze. The little girl in front of him was clutching her bag tightly, not daring to meet his eyes, but she still dared to talk back. "I’m not an elementary schooler."
Sean was momentarily speechless. He poked the inside of his cheek with his tongue and suddenly chuckled. Bending down, he abruptly leaned in close to Autumn. "So you’re in college, which means you’re an adult. That means you can be sold inside to provide... services. Right?"
Autumn’s eyes snapped wide open, her small face instantly paling several shades in fright. She wasn’t a child, so she naturally understood what that meant. During her two days at the casino, she had seen all sorts of pretty women weaving their way through the crowds of men inside.
Terrified, she flinched and shrank back.
Sean grabbed her by the back of her collar, pulled her back, and tossed her directly into the car. "Still dare to talk back, little girl?"
Autumn shook her head frantically, frightened out of her wits.
Only then was Sean satisfied. He snubbed out his cigarette and got in. She was Simon’s wife’s sister, after all. It wouldn’t be good if he actually made her cry, as Simon would undoubtedly give him trouble later. He decided to stop teasing the girl.
He hadn’t gotten a good night’s sleep. Right now, he only wanted to deliver them to Kingsford and go back to catching up on sleep with a soft, fragrant beauty in his arms.
However, even with his eyes closed, he could feel the little rabbit beside him taking cautious, highly guarded peeks at him from time to time.
Sean curled his lips into a smirk. He let the girl stew in her terror, not bothering to explain that it was her sister, Zoe Lancaster, who had found a way to save her. It was so amusing to watch an innocent, naive girl tremble with fear; she was probably imagining countless horrifying possibilities in her head.
Later, at the Linden residence.
Claire Sutton had been waiting. Seeing Autumn return safely, she immediately hugged her daughter, and the two wept together. Sean waited with good temper for the mother and daughter to finish crying before saying, "Pack your personal items, phones, and wallets. You’re coming with me."
Claire guessed this man was connected to Zoe, but she couldn’t help wondering how her Zoe knew someone who looked so wealthy and powerful.
Sean irritably ran a hand through his hair. "Hurry up. I’m tired."
Claire didn’t dare to delay. No matter where they went, it would be better than this purgatory! As for her suspicions, she would ask Zoe about them later.
It was past ten o’clock in the morning when Zoe Lancaster received a call from Claire.
She had already ordered a box of medication through a delivery app. He had been rather fierce yesterday, and they hadn’t used any protection. Simon had personally handed her the pill last time, so she wasn’t lacking in self-awareness; she consciously took it herself.
Now, after taking the medicine, she was still lying in bed. Her limbs felt impossibly weak and limp. She had broken a sweat in the car yesterday and must have caught a chill from the wind when Simon carried her out. The night of torment combined with a cold left her feeling miserable all over.
Claire’s voice still carried a sense of disbelief. "Zoe, Autumn and I have arrived in Kingsford. What exactly did you do? I can’t believe the situation was resolved so quickly..."
For ordinary people, this situation would have been an absolute catastrophe. It was something impossible to withstand or resolve. To see something so insurmountable in their eyes settled in just a few simple strokes was incredibly shocking.
Zoe was also slightly taken aback. She wondered if Simon had actually brought her aunt and cousin straight over. "Where are you right now?" she asked.
Claire replied, "We’re in a residential complex. It’s quite... high-end. The man who picked us up arranged an apartment for Autumn and me. It has three bedrooms and two living rooms. A man named Linden came over to help us settle in, and he said the property is in your name, so we can live here with peace of mind.
"Zoe... what exactly is going on? Martin Lancaster didn’t intervene, did he?"
If it was Martin, she would rather refuse! That bastard had betrayed her sister, forced her niece into a life of displacement, and allowed his mistress to take over the house. She naturally despised him to the core!
"No, it wasn’t him," Zoe said, recovering from her shock. She hadn’t expected Simon to be so thoughtful as to arrange everything and even claim the apartment belonged to her. "It was a..."
At this point, Zoe found it somewhat difficult to continue. She had never told her aunt about her secret marriage. Now that her relationship with Simon was so terrible, how was she supposed to explain it?
Claire immediately grew anxious. "Zoe! Are you hiding something from me? If you had to trade something of yourself to resolve my situation, I would rather not have it. You can’t hurt yourself!"
The people she had encountered today were one more powerful than the next. And Zoe was entirely out of favor with the Lancaster family. She wondered how Zoe could have managed this. Claire’s eyes were red with frantic worry.
Hearing that her aunt was genuinely panicked, Zoe closed her eyes and finally said, "I... I got married. It was my husband who helped. The Lancaster family doesn’t know about my marriage, so you don’t need to worry, Aunt Claire. I’m doing very well."
Claire was stunned for quite a while before she could digest this bombshell.
"Married... Does he treat you well?"
Claire didn’t ask for any personal details about Simon; she only cared about this one thing.
Listening to her aunt’s care, Zoe buried her face in her pillow. For some reason, a surge of grievance overwhelmed her. The more she tried to suppress it, the more she broke down. Tears silently streaked across her cheeks. Thinking about everything that had happened with Simon, and how he had abandoned her last night to go God knows where, she still had to pretend to be completely happy. "Very well. Don’t worry, Aunt Claire, I’m doing great."
She didn’t want to make Claire worry about her anymore.
Only then did Claire feel relieved. "As long as my Zoe is doing well."
Zoe silently wiped away her tears. Her voice carried a smile and sounded quite relaxed. "I’ll come visit you two when I have time. Just live there peacefully; everything will be fine now. A good lawyer will handle the divorce lawsuit, too."
She had to admit, Simon was indeed thorough. He had arranged everything perfectly.
But—
Where was he right now, and who was he keeping company?