Unedited.
……….
“Hah!” Harringfort pursed his lips. Lily’s words surprised him. He tried to observe her for a few seconds before he answered. “You are not here to become one of us.” This was not a question as he could clearly see everything in Lily’s eyes.
“You are right.”
“Then… why are you here?”
“I wanted to live a carefree life, your highness. I wanted to give these people what they wanted and leave. I wanted to be free with my small family.” The smile on Lily’s face was so gentle it somehow made him feel chills on his spine. He immediately frowned. There was nothing wrong with Lily’s words. But… Why does it seem so ominous?
“So… you know that they wanted something from you?”
“I do.” Lily smiled. “I am nothing special. I am a little talented in manipulating people but I am quite sure a lot of people from the CIA or other organizations are more talented than I am. I am not as rich as other people. I have no interest in politics and power. There is no reason for them to watch me since I was a kid. I mean… there was a reason as they could always use me against Lilian but there is no reason to involve me now that Lilian is dead.”
“For you to think like this….” Harringfort made a deliberate pause. “You are really the sharpest woman that I have met, Lily. That is a compliment.”
Lily frowned. For some reason, she could feel that Harringfort seemed too tense around her. “Is there something you wanted to say, your highness?”
Harringfort glanced at his wristwatch again.
“We still have about one hour before the plane lands.” Lily smiled. “I have that much time to answer your questions.”
“Where are you going? And why were you in Hong Kong?”
“Obviously, I am going to the Mainland. I was in Hong Kong to catch a ride.” She beamed.
Harringfort ignored Lily’s sarcasm. “What do they want from you?”
“I’m not telling you.”
“What are you going to do next?”
“Stop asking questions when you already know the answer.”
In response, Harringfort pursed his lips. Obviously, Lily was no longer pregnant. However, this made him wonder where is her baby now that Zhou Jingren was injured? Who is taking care of her child? “The crisis in Luxembourg?” he continued.
“My doing,” Lily answered. “It is only right that you let them get a taste of despair.”
“Do you know that the Duke is still alive?”
“I do.” Lily nodded. Duke Phil was alive but the siblings, Mikaela and Leandro kept him in the underground of the palace. The place where they used to keep Claude. Speaking of the young man, he was able to escape and disappeared. Of course, Lily was able to track him down but since he was not someone important in the organization, Lily chose to let him live his life under the alias that he chose.
“Eliza and Levi as well as the Duchess had been imprisoned too,” Harringfort added. “Are you planning to kill Leandro and Mikaela?”
“No.” Lily answered truthfully. She was not very good at killing. However, Zhou Jingren was the opposite of her. She was sure that he would not let them go even if they kneel in front of him. Not when the two had been very ungrateful and endangered his family. Of course, Lily was not planning on telling Harringfort about this.
“You do know… Lord Neeson was the one who was backing Leandro up, right?”
“I do.” Lily frowned. She also happened to know that Harringfort was the one who instigated the whole thing.
“Then… if you are going to harm them… are you prepared to face Lord Neeson’s anger?”
“If he gets in my way… I would harm him too.” Lily started smiling again. Of course, Harringfort didn’t miss the hint of madness swirling in Lily’s eyes. This made Harringfrot uneasy. This version of Lily seemed to carefree, too crazy. He couldn’t help but wonder what kind of storm this woman is brewing now. Could it be possible that she wanted to use Luxembourg against the Order? But isn’t that too ambitious?
“The order… existed for decades.” Harringfort started. “We have survived wars and famine. I don’t think… I don’t think you can just destroy the organization just because you wanted to. I would highly advise you to reconsider.”
“You are telling me that they have plans for Luxembourg?” she asked. Of course, she already knew this part. How could the organization not take advantage of the richest country in Europe? “I only wanted revenge, your highness. For what they did to my husband.”
Harringfort didn’t answer her. Rather there is no need for him to answer Lily. It was obvious that she was only playing with him. She wanted him to say something that could help her figure out whatever it is that she wanted to know. But why would Lily do this? Was she so desperate to know about the Order that she would really come in here to talk to him and make him confused? Was it because… Zhou Jingren was badly hurt? Did Lily lose her logic because…
For a few seconds, Harringfort turned silent. Then his pupils shook as he realized something. Zhou Jingren …. That man must have died in that explosion!
That is the only explanation that he could come up for Lily’s illogical behavior! There is no way that she would have acted so recklessly if Zhou Jingren was still alive! This woman… This woman must have been planning to kill everyone in that meeting that she wanted. Of course, this was all inside his mind. On the outside, Harringfort looked calm and collected as she stared at Lily’s crazed eyes.
What is more scary than a woman who had nothing to lose?
…….
This novel will end this month. I will start doing mass releases once I have the time. My kids are sick after we went to the beach. I think its because of the heat? Anyways, its been days. I hope everything will be alright soon.
