The Heiress’ Return: Six Brothers at Her Beck and Call (Wynter Quinnell) novel Chapter 2003

Dalton said in a pleasant voice, "It could be that only someone in the know would understand the information in the notebook."

Wynter frowned. "Someone in the know… I have a hypothesis. Riley's father may have had dealings with Leviathan and Aidan before, only to get into some conflicts with them later on.

"When they had a falling-out, he wanted to report them all in an attempt to take them down with him. However, as he was on his way to do so, they orchestrated a traffic accident that killed him on the spot."

Dalton glanced sideways at her. "That's a bold hypothesis, but not an impossible one."

"Do you also think it's possible?" Wynter asked, putting her hand on her chin.

Dalton smiled faintly. "Yes. Be bold in your hypotheses and thorough in proving them."

"That makes sense." She looked up at him in interest. "We'll be able to unveil the truth at the dinner banquet."

Wolf leaned over upon hearing this. "A dinner banquet? Will we be able to eat and drink a lot again?"

Wynter smiled. "Yes. All you need to worry about is eating."

Hearing that, Wolf smiled sunnily. "Yay! You're the best, Boss."

As soon as the words left his mouth, the SUV stopped. Seeing this, Wynter stepped out of the car, followed by Dalton and Wolf. Vincenzo, on the other hand, parked the car a short distance away.

"You're here, Ms. Quinnell," said the person at the entrance upon seeing Wynter, stepping aside.

Wynter nodded. "Is that man still inside?"

The person pointed toward the inside. "He is. He can't run, as he's surrounded by our people."

Upon hearing this, Wynter walked straight into the building—a safe house, of sorts. The moment she entered, she saw Hildred sitting in a chair, with his hands and feet cuffed.

She pulled out a chair and sat down across from him. "Introduce yourself, would you?"

Hildred replied in a low voice, "Hildred Siena. Don't even think about asking me to betray Mr. Patsy."

Wynter asked coldly, "Hildred Siena, is it? You telling me what you know doesn't count as a betrayal."

Hildred clenched his fists. "I have nothing to say. Moreover, this is a private interrogation, so nothing you can get out of me will stand as evidence in court."

Wynter tapped her fingers rhythmically against the table. "Hey, have you considered that I'm qualified to carry out a private interrogation? Even if I beat you up here, nobody will speak up for you."

Hildred leaned backward. "What are you planning? Private torture?"

Wynter smiled faintly. "I might dirty my hands by hitting you. Even stepping on your back at the port was disgusting to me."

"Please leave," Hildred said with feigned calm. "If you have evidence against me, then just send me to prison. What's the point of keeping me locked up here?"

Wynter simply glanced at him. "Do you expect to enjoy free meals in prison after the things you've done? Dream on. Even executing you 100 times over would be too light a punishment."

Those words made Hildred freeze.

Wynter tapped her fingers against the table again. "By the way, I forgot to tell you something—Aidan went missing."

"What? How could he go missing?" Hildred was quite shocked to hear this.

"That's my question. I looked through your call history and noticed that you'd contacted him before I got to you."

Hildred frowned. "Are you trying to trick me into revealing information? Don't even try."

Wynter couldn't help shaking her head. "Do you think you're smart? In my eyes, you're dumber than anyone else. You think I'm trying to fool you when I'm just telling you the truth."

She paused, then added, "It's completely, utterly ridiculous."

Hildred lifted his gaze. "Say whatever you like. I'm not telling you anything."

Wynter spread her hands. "Alright. I'll let you go, then."

A hint of anticipation appeared on Hildred's face. "Are you serious? You're not planning to tail me in secret after letting me go, are you?"

Wynter put a hand to her forehead and sighed. "Sometimes, it's really hard to resist the urge to snap at someone. Can you please stop letting your imagination run wild?"

Hildred said nothing in response, simply gazing at her.

Seeing this, she continued, "I can let you go. I've also informed you that Aidan has gone missing. As for whether or not you'll be allowed to live once you leave, I have no idea."

"Are you saying someone wants to kill me?" Hildred's eyes widened.

Wynter looked at him and tossed a key his way. "This is the key to the handcuffs. Once you unlock them, you'll be able to leave."

Hildred was rather confused. "Can I really leave?"

"Do as you like," Wynter replied, standing and moving to leave.

However, Hildred called out to stop her. "Wait! Hold on a moment! What did you say was the reason Mr. Patsy went missing just now?"

Wynter looked back at him. "He went missing because someone didn't want him to ruin their plans. It'll be the same for you."

Immediately, Hildred returned the key to her. "M-Ms. Quinnell, I've changed my mind about leaving."

Wynter gazed calmly at him. "I think 'cheap bastard' is a good way to describe you."

Hildred lowered his head. "Mr. Patsy has always treated me very well. I have no reason to betray him."

Wynter sat down upon hearing this. "Let's talk about something else, then. Did you know Riley Maisie's father?"

"I did. Her father, Ansel Maisie, was the Cultural Relics Appraisal Association's vice president."

"So, that traffic accident wasn't an accident but a deliberate setup, right?"

That made Hildred's eyes widen. "H-How did you know? Very few people know about that."

Wynter asked slowly, "Mr. Maisie is related to what Aidan is doing, right?"

Hildred looked incredulous. "Who did you hear that from?"

Wynter could guess the truth from his reaction. The puzzle pieces fell into place alongside her previous hypothesis.

She smiled faintly. "Everyone inevitably leaves behind traces of their past actions. Aidan and the person backing him actually planned that traffic accident. What was your role in this?"

Hildred looked upward, his gaze wandering a little. "I… I found people to carry out the plan."

"Very good. Were Aidan and Mr. Maisie involved in the smuggling of cultural relics together?" pressed Wynter.

Hildred, feeling pressured, met Wynter's gaze with a hint of fear in his eyes this time. He then lowered his head and replied, "Yes… I'd like to know why you know so much."

Wynter arched an eyebrow slightly. "I made inferences."

Her answer weighed down on him like a boulder, leaving him feeling breathless.

She looked directly at him. "It's your turn to speak now."

Hildred sighed. "Before Mr. Patsy married Ms. Maisie, he and Mr. Maisie were both involved in smuggling cultural relics. They had a good relationship with each other back then, so Mr. Maisie introduced his own daughter to Mr. Patsy.

"I didn't expect them to get into a dispute later on. I don't know the exact details of their conflict. Later, Mr. Patsy met someone in secret, after which he instructed me to find people to orchestrate Mr. Maisie's accident."

Instantly, Wynter grasped onto a piece of key information. "Who was that person?"

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