Chapter 4
1300 Words
Isabella Montgomery felt the world had gone mad—how could this be such a coincidence? Her father had called, saying someone would come to see her and that she must do everything possible to help him. She never expected that person to be this jerk.“So it’s you. What a small and unpleasant world.” Rising from her chair, Isabella sized up Alan. “Your name is Alan White?”“Yes,” he replied.Suppressing her irritation, Isabella spoke as calmly as she could manage: “My father has already told me everything. I’ll do my best to help you find Leah. But you must apologize to me for what happened last time.”Alan swaggered over to the sofa and sat down. “Shorty, it’s been years. Aside from your figure changing a lot, you’re still as prickly as a hedgehog.”“You… who are you talking about?” His baffling remark left Isabella utterly confused.“Shorty, do you remember Fog Ridge? Remember the Alan brother who used to take you around when you were little?”No way—Isabella barely stopped herself from blurting that out. Her face full of surprise, she walked out from behind her desk, all her focus back on Alan, her teeth itching with resentment: “So it’s you! No wonder you still look like such a scruffy thug. You’re a total jerk.”“Hey, Shorty, it’s been years. Don’t be so hedgehog-like. Be gentler. It’s true what they say—a girl changes a lot as she grows up. Besides, you spent an entire summer running after me in split pants,” Alan said leisurely.“Ahhhhh…” Isabella nearly lost her mind. Not mentioning it was one thing, but now she completely snapped. This was the guy who bullied her back at Fog Ridge—shoving her into a stream, smearing her with mud, and worse, scaring her with little animals. He put cockroaches in her cup, threw a mouse into her room, and made her too terrified to sleep at night… Every incident was still vivid. Thinking about it, Isabella wanted to throw this j******f the thirtieth floor. And when she thought about the awful things he had done in the past few days, she turned into an ice queen: “Mr. White, I haven’t settled accounts with you for what you did when we were kids. Since you’ve come to me, let’s settle them now.”Isabella was in no hurry. After all, she held all the cards—this guy needed her help.She sat back down in her chair, staring coldly at Alan. “Mr. White, I remember a lot of things. And since you’re the one asking me for help, you know the rules, don’t you?”“What rules?” Alan didn’t care; he picked up an apple from the table and took a bite. After all, he had Edward’s “imperial sword”—he didn’t believe his daughter would disobey.“If you want me to do something for you, you have to give me something in return.”Alan noisily ate half the apple before saying, “You won’t even listen to your father?”“Don’t bring my father into this. He listens to me too. From now on, you belong to me. As payment, I’ll help you find Leah. You do whatever I say, no complaints.”Tch—Alan gave a scornful smile. “In your dreams.”“Think carefully. My father told me about your Leah situation. You have less than two weeks. If you can’t find her, you know the consequences. I have plenty of resources to help you find Leah as quickly as possible. You saw last night—my best friend is a cop. Is finding someone really that hard?”“You… you’re threatening me.”“Wrong. This is called a fair partnership.”With no choice, Alan put down the half-eaten apple and immediately called Edward: “Uncle Edward, your daughter…”While Alan was on the phone, Isabella put her hands together in front of her and watched him with an easy expression.“Alan, my daughter controls no fewer resources than I do. I’ve been retired for a long time. Only she can help you. She’s a sensible girl and won’t do anything excessive. Don’t worry.” That was Edward’s final reply.What a useless answer—it said nothing at all. Alan hung up helplessly. That path was closed. Next, he tried to get Hank to pressure Edward. But the call went to voicemail. He looked up sharply and saw Isabella on the phone herself.“Hank, your apprentice is as cynical as ever. He came here and…” Isabella paused briefly, then continued: “Hank, Leah’s matter is my matter too. But Alan won’t cooperate with me. He’s against me at every turn. I really can’t…”When she finally finished, Isabella handed her phone to Alan: “Hank wants to talk to you.”Biting his lip with a pained expression, Alan took the phone. Before he could speak, Hank began: “What the hell are you doing, kid? Don’t you know how important Leah’s situation is? Listen to me. From now on, do whatever Isabella tells you. Just cooperate.”“What? Hank, you might as well kill me! You want me to cooperate with this shorty…”“Shut up! If you want to see Leah, do as I say.” Hank hung up.Reluctantly tossing the phone onto the table, Alan felt like cursing his luck—was this even his Hank anymore?“Since someone is so unwilling, forget it. It saves me a lot of trouble. You can leave.” Isabella waved her hand dismissively, as if to say, do whatever you want.With less than two weeks left, Alan knew exactly what the consequences would be if he couldn’t find Leah. Left with no choice, he walked over with a sheepish grin and said, “Let’s talk this over.”“No way. If you don’t accept my terms, leave.” Isabella gave a cold laugh—Hmph, for bullying me when we were kids, and for embarrassing me in public last night—Hmph, if I don’t torment you until you cry and beg, my name isn’t Isabella Montgomery.“I…” Alan hesitated but ultimately couldn’t get the words out. If he agreed to this shorty’s terms, given how much he had bullied her as a child and how he had embarrassed her yesterday, would he have any peace afterward? But if he didn’t agree…“I have work to do. No need to see you out.”Alan gritted his teeth. “Fine. I agree. But no corporal punishment, no verbal a***e, and definitely no making improper advances on me!”Pfft—Isabella nearly laughed out loud. “With that country-bumpkin-just-came-to-town look, who would want to make improper advances on you? They’d have to be blind.”Alan ignored her, brushing off the remark. “Bring me the contract. I’ll sign it.”“What do I need a contract for? You’d break it anyway, so signing is pointless. Besides, during these days until we find Leah, you’ll obediently do what I say—fifteen days is plenty.” Isabella stood up with a cheerful smile, picked up her folder, and walked out. Before leaving, she added one reminder: “Go home and change your clothes. Now that you belong to me, you can’t look too shabby and embarrass me out there.”Ah—Alan let out a long howl at the sky. What kind of life is this? Especially that old man Hank… You old… He swallowed the rest of that sentence.
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