Chapter 37
Sensing danger, Vincent’s protective instincts kicked in, and he moved to rush out of the car.
Fearing Vincent’s recklessness, Zane slammed the door shut and charged to confront the man.
However, he was a step too late.
Stephanie had already sent the assailant reeling with a swift kick, shattering the glass bottle in his hand with a hissing c r a c k as shards splintered across the ground.
The man howled in agony as remnants of the liquid splashed onto his skin, eating away at his flesh.
Mercilessly, Stephanie ground the heel of her shoe into the man’s hand as he writhed on the ground. “Speak! Who sent you?” she demanded.
“No one! Ahh!” the man whimpered pitifully.
Observing Stephanie’s ruthlessness, Zane was struck by how similar she was to Vincent at that moment. Truly, birds of a feather flock together, he mused.
“Let me handle this, Mrs. Fletcher,” Zane respectfully interjected.
Stephanie’s mind was already churning through a list of suspects. “Coco from the styling studio, Florence, Douglas. None of them are above suspicion,” she said darkly.
Zane nodded. “Please get into the car, Mrs. Fletcher, I’ll call the police.”
After all, with the assault happening in public and people witnessing, it was best to involve the authorities.
With a nod, Stephanie ran to the get into the car,
She got in and closed the door. Sliding into the backseat, she noticed Vincent’s tense jaw. Stephanie gave him a faint smile, saying, “Vincent.”
Gripping her shoulders, Vincent asked, “Are you all right? Did he hurt you?”
Stephanie nonchalantly shrugged. “Yeah.”
Vincent’s brows furrowed. “Are you hurt anywhere?”
“Right here,” Stephanie said, pouting playfully as she pointed to her lips. “Can you blow on it and make me feel better?”
Vincent flicked her nose gently. “You, silly girl,” he chided.
“I’m sorry I didn’t get to you sooner,” he said apologetically.
Stephanie chuckled. “Oh, I’m fine. Don’t blame yourself. Even if your legs were fine, you wouldn’t have made it in time. I’m perfectly fine, so don’t look so worried. Mr. Quinlan called the police. They’ll be here any minute. We might need to head to the station to give our statements.”
The onlookers watched as they spoke, noticing Vincent’s obvious attempt to handle things discreetly.
Upon seeing his furrowed brows, Stephanie gently held his chin. “I’m really fine-don’t worry.”
A me arrange a few more bodyguards for you,” Vincent insisted.
09:49
Tue, 28 May M
Chapter 37
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Stephanie sighed inwardly. Having just Willow watch over her was already cumbersome enough, and more guards would only be a .
“Willow alone could handle ten men,” she said. “I let her leave early today, but I’ll make sure she follows me closely from now on.”
At that assurance, Vincent reluctantly agreed.
Stephanie smiled and leaned in closer, linking her arm through this. However, as she shifted her foot, she fraze.
There on the ground was the silver needle she had used to secure her gown last night.
Her mind raced. ‘How did it get here? Did my gown tear in the car last night? Didn’t Vincent say it was the housekeeper who changed me into my nightgown while I was sleeping?”
Vincent had lied. It was he who had helped her change into her nightgown.
Stephanie’s toes curled at the thought of that embarrassing scene.
Nonetheless, Vincent had not humiliated her over it. Everything would be fine if she did not bring that up.
Soon, the police arrived and took the man in the cap.
Meanwhile, Stephanie went to the police station to give her statements. She mentioned a few names that came to mind as suspects.
The police started investigating, and it didn’t take them long to find out that Coco was behind the assault.
Consumed by bitterness over 5
Stephanie ruining the styling studio in less than a day, Coco had hired a thug to disfigure the former.
Truly, people like Coco were quick to fault others while forgetting they themselves were the true instigators.
As the assault unfolded on a busy street at the close of the workday, many bystanders had taken photos and videos.
At present, those images were being circulated on the internet.
In no time, Stephanie trended on Twitter once again.
StephielsTheBest commented: [Did you see Stephanie’s flying kick? Who knew she could throw down like that?]
MyldolStephie chimed in: I know right? That kick was straight fire. How b a d a s s!
LoyalFanOfStephie commented: [Stephanie slays! So gorgeous and talented. That flying kick was iconic. Not like that phony, Florence, who tries so hard but could never compare to Stephanie’s wealth and status.
FloreFanClub retorted: [Hey no-no need to bash Florence. She does a lot of charity work with orphanages and nursing homes. She’s a kind soul.]
ObsessedWithFlore remarked: [Yeah, let’s not throw stones. Stephanie has a sketchy past, too. Rumor has it she had an incest baby that she aborted as a
teen.
SuperStephie commented: [Excuse me, those are just nasty rumors with zero proof. Don’t believe every piece of gossip you hear. Cyberbullying is not cool. You should be ashamed.|
ILoveFlore replied: [Hey, you were just cyberbullying Florence two seconds ago though?)
SuperStephie responded: (I was just stating facts. The video shows Florence was behind the attack. You’re just a blind follower defending her no matter what.]
09:50 Tue, 28 May MG
Chapter 37
Stephanie felt overwhelmed as she scrolled through the heated posts and replies on Twitter.
“What’s wrong? You look troubled,” Vincent asked.
Lying on the bed, Stephanie swung her slender legs idly. “They’re talking about me on the internet again.”
“Want me to handle it for you?” Vincent offered.
Stephanie smiled faintly as she recalled Vincent’s wish for her to rely on him more. “Would you? Just delete the comments please.”
With a nod, Vincent said, “Okay. Why don’t you get some rest and leave it to me? I’ve got a video conference to attend,”
touta
“Okay,” Stephanie replied obediently. She watched Vincent’s retreating figure as he left and let out a sigh of relief.
Just thagining Vincent changing her into a nightgown made Stephanie flush uncontrollably.
She burrowed under the thin blanket, rolling around in embarrassment.
Just then, her thoughts were interrupted by the buzz of her phone.
It was a message from Giovanni..
He texted: [Someone’s offering you 4 million dollars to look for Dr. Summer. This is quite funny. They’re basically offering you free money.]
Stephanie tapped back: [Let me look into who it is]
67%
She jumped out of bed and hurried back to her bedroom. She turned on her laptop and logged into the dark web to look at the client’s information.
The location was traced back to Jacaster, it was a hacker by the looks of it.
However, a deeper dig into call records revealed a familiar number. It was unmistakably Douglas
It could only mean one thing. Clearly, with his health deteriorating. Douglas was desperate to see Miracle Doctor Summer.
However, it wasn’t just to seek her treatment, he was likely seeking vengeance, too.
Without hesitation, Stephanie accepted the case and promised to reply within three days.
That was easy money
y she could not pass up.
Astonished, Giovanni texted back: [You actually took the job?]
Grinning to herself, Stephanie responded: I might need your help when the time comes.]
Giovanni could only shake his head, knowing that it was a dangerous game she was playing.
Meanwhile, in the study, Vincent logged onto the dark web, searching for any mentions of Miracle Doctor Summer’s whereabouts.
Despite the tempting reward, Vincent had an uneasy hunch that taking that case could be risky, worried that the client might have ill intentions toward
Summer.
Vincent firmly decided not to accept the job. However, when he went to decline, a message popped up that Hacker Yern had already taken the case.
Vincent’s brows furrowed in frustration. He tried to dig up information on Hacker Vern, but they had installed an unbreachable firewall to conceal their identity.
09:50 Tue, 28 May –