âDo you remember what | told you before?â Ryan asked.
Even though Ryan had only recently become an adult, he handled situations with maturity. He would sometimes purposefully act naive in front of Anna. He didnât bother pretending in front of Wayne, though.
Wayne appeared solemn, like a statue. He then analyzed, âRichard owns approximately twenty nightclubs in Birmingham. The police discovered drugs in two clubs this time, but neither had anything to do with him. | paid close attention to where they were checking this time and was surprised that they didnât check even one of Richardâs clubs.â
Ryan looked at Wayne, hoping he understood what he was saying.
Wayne certainly got his meaning, as he had expected. They both knew there would be no such thing as a coincidence in the world.
Since the cops were going to search the entire city for illegal drugs, they wouldnât have spared all of Richardâs nightclubs.
Asa result, they both suspected Richard of bribing the cops.
âWhat are your plans?â Wayne asked, his brow furrowed.
âTo be honest, Iâm not going to call the drug squad and tell them about it. Next month, our school will host a live exercise with the Eighth Military District, and the Blue Eagle Department is located right downtown. | believe they are more trustworthy than the drug squad. But Iâm only concerned about one thing: the driver saw Anna.â
Ryan paused briefly before continuing, Normally, drug dealers are extremely cautious and cruel. Iâm afraid that he might endanger Anna or even kill her.â
Wayne became serious after hearing his words, knowing that Ryanâs concerns made sense.
In the evening, Anna had just finished signing with a client when her phone in her pocket kept vibrating.
She took it out and found that someone had sent her several text, messages. To her surprise, they were all from Leon.
Leon had just texted her to say hello after she left the studio.
And she had no idea how he had got her cell phone number. She examined the messages and noticed that Leon didnât send any words to her. Instead, he sent a lot of emojis and selfies with words on them:
âAnna, what are you doing?â
âDo you think Iâm cute?â
âWhy are you ignoring me? Iâm mad at you now!â
âIâm starving...â
The longer Anna read his texts, the more irritated she became. As a result, she read his final message directly: âDonât forget about having dinner with me tonight! Iâl be at the studio waiting for you.â
It wasnât until then that Anna remembered that she invited him to dinner.
Then she asked Mona, âMona, what time is Mona, who was in the passenger seat, glanced at her watch and said, âItâs 7:30.
Whatâs up?â âIs the commercial shooting over?â Anna asked. Mona replied, âI asked the planner, and she said they had just finished their work. Everyone is now ready to leave.â
âTell them not to leave just yet because Iâm going to treat them to dinner later. Will you find a restaurant nearby for me?â
âSure, no problem. Will you be there?â
Anna motioned with her hand and said, âNo, Iâm not going. You can go there on behalf of me.â
âOKIâ
After calling one of her colleagues, Mona said to the driver, âSir, please stop at the next intersection. Iâll take a taxi there. Will you please take Miss Gabriel home?â
Later on, as they passed through a downtown mall, Anna noticed a large LED advertising the Carousel Group.
âAda had been appointed as the groupâs spokesperson. She was dressed in a pure white silk gown and appeared very innocent in the photograph.
But Anna was well aware that Ada was no innocent woman at all. She had harmed Matthew several times in recent years and nearly killed him.
âAda pretended to be naive at first. But after dating Richard, she began to get tired of pretending. Anna would have sued these two vicious people immediately if Wayne hadnât said it wasnât a good time.
Someone called her just as she was still in a daze.
Anna didnât recognize the number and paused before responding, âHello?â
âAnna, why arenât you here yet?â Leon asked, sounding as if he was about to cry.
Anna froze and asked, âLeon? Is that you?â
He sniffled and grumbled, âYes, this is me. Itâs freezing outside! Iâve been waiting for you for AGES, Anna.â
âHuh? But my assistant has reserved a table for dinner. Didnât you get the message?â
Leon expressed his dissatisfaction, âNo! | was desperate to see you, so Heft as soon as I finished my work. Iâll meet you at the fountain in the center square.â
Anna smirked and said, âYou really donât have to wait forme. Mona informed everyone that they were going out to dinner. Iâll give Mona your phone number and have her call you.â
Leon cut her off before she could hang up. âNo! Donât hang up just yet! Weâre not having dinner alone tonight, are we?â
Anna expressed her resignation by saying, âNo. Iâm having the entire crew over for dinner because everyone has been working extremely hard today. And | want to reward them all for it.â
âAre you not coming?â
âSorry, Iâm not gonna make it. My assistant will go there on behalf of me.â
âBut youâve promised me that you would have dinner with me this afternoon. Iâve been looking forward to seeing you for a long time! Iâm not going to eat with them.â
Hearing that, Anna had a headache and felt like she was speaking to a kid despite the fact that Leon was only a few years younger than her.
âIâm sorry, but Iâm afraid | wonât be able to make it this time,â Anna said as calmly as she could.
Leon sounded like he was already crying, saying, âBirmingham is far too cold, | just got back from Melbourne, where itâs still summer. And | forgot to bring my jacket with me.
When Anna heard his voice, she suddenly thought of Scott, whom she had met many years before in the underground boxing ring.
Back then, he was a quiet kid, and he just stared at her with his clear eyes.
âAnna was fifteen years old at the time. She told Scott, âDo you wanna leave with me? Iâll get you out of here, and Iâll be your sister from now on.â
At last, Anna was finally persuaded by Leon into meeting him in the fountain plaza.
It took Anna half an hour to get to the street he was referring to. She walked to the fountain plaza as soon as she got out of the car and noticed a tall man sitting by the fountain pool. He stood out in a crowd of people wearing down jackets.
Leon wasnât wearing a jacket, which surprised Anna. He only wore a sweater and a collar over his face. He was shivering as he sat on the steps by the pool.
Anna felt sorry for him and took off her jacket, wrapping it around him and saying, âMy God! Why donât you go wait for me inside the mall? Itâs freezing out here!â
Leon sniffled and replied, âThere are too many people in the mall, and | was afraid someone would recognize me.â
Anna understood his concern but was perplexed as to why he was waiting for her on such a cold day. She asked, âYou said weâd eat here, didnât you? So, whatâs the big deal about being recognized by your fans?â
Then she thought to herself, Well, Leon, you donât seem to be a smart guy. But... What can | do about it?