“Mr. Waldburg, you’ve arrived very quickly.” Carter was the first to speak.
Kendrick’s cold gaze swept past Carter’s face, then walked straight to Niamh and grabbed her hand.
“Let’s go.”
“Don’t you want to sit down for a chat, Mr. Waldburg?” Carter asked as he took a new teacup and poured another cup of black tea.
“It’s snowing so heavily out there. Why don’t you sit down, enjoy some tea and chat for a bit?
Kendrick looked at the leisure and carefree Carter, then lowered his eyes, meeting Niamh’s eyes, and sat on the sofa facing Carter while holding Niamh’s hands.
“You want to chat, huh? Alright, I’ll chat with you. What’s the purpose of you doing all these? What on earth are you trying to do by asking Shirley to develop this kind of poison to manipulate others?”
Carter silently listened to Kendrick’s questions, then calmly said, “Specifically, I intend to manipulate you, but you should’ve already known that a long time ago.”
He briefly paused as he spoke, and the smile his gaze deepened as he peered into Kendrick’s sharp and charming eyes.
“For you, Mr. Waldburg, the physical pain and mental torture had been but a brief suffering, at most. However, it won’t be the same for your wife. She’s your weak spot.”
Carter certainly saw through this.
However, the anger in Kendrick’s heart was surging.
He felt as though he and Niamh were just like experiment subjects for Carter to examine in detail.
Regardless of what Carter knew, he certainly could not know everything about them.
“Carter, you’ve got one thing right. My wife is indeed my weak spot, but she’s also my armor. I’d advise you to stop provoking us. Otherwise, you’ll find it far more difficult to achieve your goals, and I’ll do everything in my power to stop you.”
“Heh.” Carter chuckled softly. “Mr. Waldburg, I don’t think you can threaten me anymore,” he said, standing up. “If the poison remains in the body of the love of your life, you will always have to worry. You might have also forgotten about one thing, so let me remind you.”
Carter deliberately paused as he spoke, the corner of his lips curled upward as he looked at Kendrick’s light flax-colored hair and amber eyes.
“It seems that you’ve forgotten that the poison in your body is not completely cleared as well.”
Carter spoke confidently.
Kendrick’s expression remained static despite this reminder.
“What about it? You seem to be quite confident. Was it just because of this?”
“No, I am completely confident.” There was an assured look on Carter’s face. “Kendrick, since you’re here and we’re done talking, let me bring you guys somewhere.”
Without speaking, Kendrick and Niamh shared a look.
“What is it? Are you guys scared?” Carter asked provocatively. “If you’re scared, you’re free to not follow.”
Carter then turned and walked toward the basement.
Niamh remembered this place. Carter had hypnotized her here back then. Unbeknownst to Niamh, a completely different world was hidden in the basement.
Through the side door, there was a large-scale laboratory.
The laboratory was equipped with state-of-the-art instruments.
Niamh saw that the test tube racks were neatly arranged with vials of various colors and sizes. This scene gave Niamh an extreme chill.
These vials of anti-toxoid test reagents, likely developed by Shirley, had a variety of effects.
“Can you guess whether the anti-toxoid test reagent you’re looking for is here?” Carter asked with a proud smile on his face.
Perhaps he was proud of the fact that he owned so many mysterious anti-toxoid test reagents.
“Eveline, do you know what will happen during your next flare-up?”
Carter kept them on tenterhooks. He observed Kendrick’s reaction before speaking.
“You will recall the worst and the most painful experience in your life.”
Niamh was unsurprised by Carter’s answer. On the contrary, she had already expected this.
However, Kendrick immediately froze when he heard this answer.
Carter was visibly very satisfied by Kendrick’s reaction.
“What about it? I’ve already figured out what you’re referring to. Did you think I would be frightened by this, then submit to you, listen to you, and return Shirley to you?”
Kendrick was now shocked by Niamh’s calmness and questions.
‘She knows?
‘How did she know?’
“What is it? Are you disappointed that the thing you’d thought could threaten me doesn’t affect me in the slightest?”
Carter looked at the smiling Niamh and suddenly felt slightly defeated. “Eveline, you truly are a special woman. Unfortunately, no matter how special you are, you will submit when the time comes.”
“We shall see.”
Upon hearing the conversation between Niamh and Carter, Kendrick felt his temples throbbing furiously.
He faced Niamh. The sight of her calm and serene mannerism left an excruciating ache in his heart.
‘It seemed that Nia had already known about the pain and torment she’ll be going through in the final stage, yet she never said a single word.
‘Does she intend to suffer this alone?’
Kendrick dared not imagine that Niamh would again suffer the horrendous experiences of the past.
He could not let her relive those horrible experiences.
“Carter, tell us your final terms. I’ll agree to anything as long as you have the anti-toxoid test reagent.”
Kendrick suddenly relented.
Niamh quickly turned, facing Kendrick’s firm expression, though she did not find this unexpected. He relented solely because of the concern he had for her.
The corner of Carter’s lips raised at these words. This was the answer he wanted.
“Carter, state your terms,” Kendrick requested, not showing much patience for Carter.
Carter did not beat around the bush. “Let Shirley go,” he said bluntly.
Niamh had thought that Carter’s demand would be something very difficult or unreasonable. However, she had not expected Carter’s only stipulation was Shirley’s release.
Kendrick too found this doubtful. If this was the only stipulation, why should he not oblige?
After all, his main purpose in kidnapping Shirley was to exchange her for the anti-toxoid test reagent.
“I can let her go, but I have to see the anti-toxoid test reagent first. She told me herself that there’s no completed product, so I’d like to verify that you’re telling the truth and that there’s truly an anti-toxoid test reagent,” Kendrick asked carefully, probing.
He could not afford any more mishaps. Niamh’s safety depended on this.
Understanding Kendrick’s concerns, Carter slowly turned and walked toward a mini-fridge. Once Carter had entered a passcode on the fridge, the door opened.
Niamh and Kendrick shared a look, then saw Carter retrieving a vial of transparent anti-toxoid test reagent from the fridge.
It looked the same as the anti-toxoid test reagent Shirley had given them back then.
“She’s not lying. There isn’t a complete product that can heal you completely. This one’s just a half completed. You can use it to alleviate your symptoms for the next flare-up.”
It was just a half-complete product.
Disappointment flashed across Kendrick’s eyes, but it was better than nothing.
He could not standby and watch Niamh flare up and suffer through those horrendous past experiences again, no matter the cost.
He reached out his hand to Carter. “Give it to me.”
Carter shook his head lightly. “I won’t give it to you until I see Shirley.”
“Carter, I’m a businessman, and trust is vital in businesses. Once I, Kendrick Waldburg, have promised something, I’ll certainly fulfill it.”
“However, I’m not a businessman,” Carter said with a cold expression, then placed the anti-toxoid test reagent into his coat pocket. “Mr. Waldburg, lead the way.”
Carter was asking Kendrick to take him to Shirley.
Kendrick, without hesitation, grabbed Niamh’s hand and turned. “Follow me.”
After saying two words to Carter, Kendrick turned and went back the way he came.
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.