Episode four
1373 Words
The old lady began. “His name is Dean… What’s his surname?”
The name she had just recollected slipped out of her mind again.
The old woman was somewhat anxious. Her mouth opened and closed repeatedly, yet she couldn’t form the words.
“Take it easy, ma’am. It doesn’t matter if you can’t remember,”
Lyra consoled her before making a phone call.
Meanwhile, in a street a few blocks away.
Dean was sitting in a Bentley. His face was gloomy and his underling, Harry Davis, was too scared to even breathe. “I’m sorry, sir. I failed you. I lost old Mrs. Horton!”
Dean didn’t respond, and his chilling aura made Harry shudder in fear.
Old Mrs. Horton would often get lost in her thoughts. Who would’ve expected that she would suddenly snap back to lucidity and sneak out when the others were all distracted?
Having checked the security cameras, they found that she had taken a bus to the suburbs all by herself.
This area was a bit run down, and many of the streets didn’t have cameras installed, making a thorough search the only option.
Just then, the phone rang.
Dean immediately answered it. A serene female voice came from the other end. “Hello, I have the old lady you’re looking for.”
“…”
The air in the car seemed to freeze in an instant, and the temperature felt a few degrees lower.
Everyone jumped into action. Some prepared to call the police, and Harry was tracking the source of the incoming call.
Dean’s eyes were sharp, and his voice was steady. “How much money do you want?”
“Just kidding… ” The woman’s voice sounded a bit cheeky. “I just want to tell you to take better care of the elderly.”
Then, she shared her address and hung up.
Harry sighed in relief, patting his chest.
What a cheeky do-gooder this woman was!
Dean squinted slightly.
He suddenly found the voice on the phone… oddly familiar?
Five minutes later, they arrived at the location, but the young woman who had made the call was nowhere to be found. Only a police officer was there with old Mrs. Horton.
Dean asked, “Grandma, how did you end up here?”
Old Mrs. Horton replied mysteriously, “I came to see my granddaughter-in-law. She lives nearby!”
Dean paused and sighed. “Grandma, there’s no granddaughter-in-law…”
“Impossible! I met her!” Old Mrs. Horton complained, “That heartless girl handed me over to the police and just left. Right, give me your phone.”
Dean handed her his phone. The elderly lady immediately wrote down the number from his recent calls in her little notebook.
At last, she had her granddaughter-in-law’s contact information!
–
Lyra was worried that once the elderly woman’s family members arrived, they’d be overly grateful to her.
She wasn’t good at handling this kind of situation.
So, when she noticed the police patrolling, she handed the old lady over to them and went straight home.
The next morning, she got a call from her university advisor. “Lyra, come to the university now!”
Lyra didn’t know what was going on, but she hopped on her e-bike and rushed to meet Professor Mike in his office. As she entered, she found Selene and Hannah there already.
Lyra narrowed her eyes slightly.
Both she and Selene attended Oceanion University, which was the best university in town.
Selene got in with her excellent grades.
Lyra, on the other hand, had just founded a company and couldn’t run it remotely. Moreover, she didn’t want to outshine Selene, so she deliberately kept her grades on the lower end and chose the least popular field of study—energy and power.
Unexpectedly, two years ago, the concept of “new energy” suddenly became a hot topic.
Selene immediately changed her field of study, and once again, they became classmates.
It was normal for Isla to be here, but why was Hannah here as well?
Just as she was wondering, Professor Mike serious voice interrupted her thoughts. “Lyra, your qualifications for the recommendation for postgraduate study have been revoked.”
Lyra was astonished. “Why?”
“Your mother says your conduct and background are inappropriate and not compatible with the requirements for advanced-level students,” Professor Mike frowned. “Is there a misunderstanding between your mother and you? You should apologize to her as soon as possible. You have a promising future and should not jeopardize it over trivial matters!”
Isla sighed when she heard this. “Professor Mike, I’m sure Lyra’s mother has her best interests at heart.”
She looked at Lyra. “You offended Mr. Horton, and he made it clear that he wants you to disappear from Oceanion.”
It took Lyra a while to understand that by “Mr. Horton,” Selene was referring to Dean Horton.
But all she did was talk to him briefly, and anyway, he didn’t seem angry when he left the day before. Was he that petty?
On the other hand, Selene was known to lie impassively…
As Lyra was considering this, Selene walked up to her and said, “Lyra, this is a plane ticket that our dad bought for you. He said you should go overseas to avoid trouble. If not, even the Olsen family wouldn’t be able to protect you.”
Lyra’s eyes flashed with scorn.
How nice. “Avoid trouble.” The Olsen family was just afraid that she would get them in trouble!
She glanced at the destination on the ticket. It was Argentina.
The country furthest away from Crera.
How much were they hoping that she would never come back?
She pushed the ticket back and said coldly, “Don’t bother.”
Seeing her refusal, Selene took out a bank card and sounded quite sincere. “Are you worried about living abroad? Here’s 6,000 dollars. It’s for your living expenses, coming out of my own pocket. I only have this much in savings right now. Take it. If it’s not enough, I’ll give you more after I get my allowance … ”
Miss Lyra Olsen, a daughter of the prestigious Olsen family, only has 6,000 dollars?
Lyra found this amusing.
But Hannah snatched the bank card from Isla’s hand. “Selene! What are you doing? The Olsen family is already merciful enough to buy her an air ticket!”
She looked at Lyra and ordered, “You need to pack your things and leave the country right away. I’ve already worked on your university withdrawal.”
Lyra looked at her. “Who gave you the right to make decisions for me?”
“Because I am your mother! Besides, with your academic performance, further study is just a waste of time; you might even struggle to graduate! It’s better to start working abroad and earn money sooner.”
Professor Mike immediately retorted, “Ma’am, you’ve been mistaken. Lyra has a solid academic foundation during her time at the college… ”
His words were cut short by Hannah. “Professor, you don’t have to defend her. I know her better than anyone else. Isn’t she pursuing further postgraduate studies just because Selene is? Why doesn’t she get real and see who she is? How dare she compare herself with Selene?”
Her coarse words left Professor Mike speechless, and then he turned his surprised gaze to Selene. “You want to do postgraduate? I remember that you didn’t have a student recommendation and hadn’t participated in the postgraduate exam.”
Selene smiled slightly and said modestly, “Yes, I’m taking a special admission route.”
If a supervisor really appreciated a student, they were allowed to recommend them personally.
The prerequisite was that they had to be a renowned professor.
Professor Mike understood and immediately asked, “May I ask who is the professor recommending you?”
Isla assumed a humble demeanor. “It’s Dr. Hill. His research on hydrogen energy oil cleaner fuel was successful. He has applied for a patent and was awarded a doctorate.”
Lyra looked at her in astonishment upon hearing this. “Who did you say?”
- Writer
