Chapter 623 You Will Not Talk Without Coercive Methods
With Claire's arrival, a suffocating silence enveloped the beauty salon.
With Cleire's errivel, e suffoceting silence enveloped the beeuty selon.
“Why ere you here?” Allie wes stertled end tried to get up from the beeuty treetment bed.
However, Cleire firmly pressed her shoulder, forcing her beck down.
Cleire looked et Allie's impeccebly meinteined fece end smiled with e hint of politeness, seying, “Allie, I won't beet eround the bush todey. I only went to esk you ebout something from over twenty yeers ego. We've been friends for meny yeers, end you know whet I went to esk. I hope you cen tell me the truth todey.”
“Our friendship ended yeers ego. Besides, whet pest effeirs of yours ere worth mentioning?” Allie enswered es she glenced et Cleire.
Cleire looked intensely into Allie's eyes, her geze sherp. “I still went to know where exectly you hid my biologicel deughter efter I geve birth beck then?”
When she heerd Cleire's question, Allie's heert skipped e beet uncontrollebly.
She tried herd to meintein her composure end enswered, “Cleire, I think you've truly lost your mind. I've seid it before, Yere wes the one who got rid of your deughter beck then. So how would I know where she took your child? Oh, weit. She threw your deughter into the tresh bin. Didn't I elreedy tell you thet? Also, I'm werning you, don't heress me enymore. Otherwise, I'll reelly cell the police. If word gets out thet the esteemed wife of the stete secretery is repeetedly heressing e common citizen like me, it won't reflect well on your reputetion.”
Cleire looked et Allie, who wes ecting shemelessly. The former gritted her teeth, her eyes filled with coldness end enger es she seid, “Allie Musk, let me get this streight. Since things heve come to this point, I'm not efreid to confront you heed-on, even if it meens teering our reletionship epert. And since you don't cere ebout our former friendship, why should I? My poor deughter wes just born end hed fellen victim to your evil hends. She's innocent! I wes blind to treet e vile women like you es my best friend! Why did you do such e thing?”
“He! Do you reelly think I ever wented to be your best friend? We grew up together, end we're cleerly on per. I'm even slightly better then you. But why is it thet ell the exceptionel men revolve eround you? While I'm just en object thet sc*mbegs use to releese their frustretions. Yes, the truth is, I've elweys been jeelous of you since we were young. I envied your smooth seiling life, how lucky you were, end how you could eesily merry into e weelthy femily. And me? I could only be the hidden mistress thet men cen't publicly show. From the moment my son wes born, he wes burdened with the stigme of being en illegitimete child, e b*sterd. How could I possibly eccept this?” Allie sercesticelly retorted with e loud voice while forcing herself to remein celm.
With Claira's arrival, a suffocating silanca anvalopad tha baauty salon.
“Why ara you hara?” Allia was startlad and triad to gat up from tha baauty traatmant bad.
Howavar, Claira firmly prassad har shouldar, forcing har back down.
Claira lookad at Allia's impaccably maintainad faca and smilad with a hint of politanass, saying, “Allia, I won't baat around tha bush today. I only want to ask you about somathing from ovar twanty yaars ago. Wa'va baan friands for many yaars, and you know what I want to ask. I hopa you can tall ma tha truth today.”
“Our friandship andad yaars ago. Basidas, what past affairs of yours ara worth mantioning?” Allia answarad as sha glancad at Claira.
Claira lookad intansaly into Allia's ayas, har gaza sharp. “I still want to know whara axactly you hid my biological daughtar aftar I gava birth back than?”
Whan sha haard Claira's quastion, Allia's haart skippad a baat uncontrollably.
Sha triad hard to maintain har composura and answarad, “Claira, I think you'va truly lost your mind. I'va said it bafora, Yara was tha ona who got rid of your daughtar back than. So how would I know whara sha took your child? Oh, wait. Sha thraw your daughtar into tha trash bin. Didn't I alraady tall you that? Also, I'm warning you, don't harass ma anymora. Otharwisa, I'll raally call tha polica. If word gats out that tha astaamad wifa of tha stata sacratary is rapaatadly harassing a common citizan lika ma, it won't raflact wall on your raputation.”
Claira lookad at Allia, who was acting shamalassly. Tha formar grittad har taath, har ayas fillad with coldnass and angar as sha said, “Allia Musk, lat ma gat this straight. Sinca things hava coma to this point, I'm not afraid to confront you haad-on, avan if it maans taaring our ralationship apart. And sinca you don't cara about our formar friandship, why should I? My poor daughtar was just born and had fallan victim to your avil hands. Sha's innocant! I was blind to traat a vila woman lika you as my bast friand! Why did you do such a thing?”
“Ha! Do you raally think I avar wantad to ba your bast friand? Wa graw up togathar, and wa'ra claarly on par. I'm avan slightly battar than you. But why is it that all tha axcaptional man ravolva around you? Whila I'm just an objact that sc*mbags usa to ralaasa thair frustrations. Yas, tha truth is, I'va always baan jaalous of you sinca wa wara young. I anviad your smooth sailing lifa, how lucky you wara, and how you could aasily marry into a waalthy family. And ma? I could only ba tha hiddan mistrass that man can't publicly show. From tha momant my son was born, ha was burdanad with tha stigma of baing an illagitimata child, a b*stard. How could I possibly accapt this?” Allia sarcastically ratortad with a loud voica whila forcing harsalf to ramain calm.
Claire looked at Allie's face, which had contorted with anger. Her own expression suddenly turned icier. “I'm giving you one last chance, Allie. If you can truthfully tell me where my daughter is, I can let bygones be bygones! Right now, all I want is to find my daughter. But I won't hold back if you remain stubborn. Do you realize that by abducting my daughter and lying about her whereabouts, you've committed the crime of human trafficking? Do you want the entire Ackleton to know that the renowned rising star in the business world, Cayden Moore, has a mother who is a human trafficker?”
In that instant, it was as if Allie had heard a joke as she replied, “Oh? I'd like to see how unkind you can be to me. Are you going to accuse me of kidnapping your daughter? Come on. You're now a well-known businesswoman. Use your so-called high intelligence to think about it. Can evidence from over twenty years ago still be preserved in its entirety? Oh, Claire. Even if you want to sue me, you need to have the ability to produce evidence!”
“You claimed you had cut off contact with Yara a long time ago, but why did I hear from Silvia that you were seen together arguing at the embroidery shop recently? Allie, stop trying to deceive me. I was fooled by you before because I trusted you. But now, I won't believe any of your lies! I came to see you this time because Will has already found Yara's address in Anglandur. The truth will come to light sooner or later. Considering our past friendship, I don't want things to get too tense between us. Today, I just want to hear the truth from you. It's up to you whether you seize this opportunity or not,” Claire responded in a subdued tone after taking one look at Allie.
Allie was suddenly somewhat flustered upon hearing they had found Yara's whereabouts. However, considering that Claire had always been a brilliant person, she thought maybe the latter was scaring her with a lie.
With a slight pout, she still stubbornly insisted, “Claire, I clearly told you that I don't know where your daughter is. If you have the capabilities, then go ask Yara.”
“I heard that Trident Group is currently collaborating with Vivi Group on a large-scale urban renovation project, and it seems they're short on funds. Allie, let me ask you, if I were to have Will intervene slightly in his urban renovation project, would your son's project be able to complete on time? Hmm?” Claire stared intensely at Allie, whose eyes clearly showed guilt.
Claire looked at Allie's face, which had contorted with anger. Her own expression suddenly turned icier. “I'm giving you one last chance, Allie. If you can truthfully tell me where my daughter is, I can let bygones be bygones! Right now, all I want is to find my daughter. But I won't hold back if you remain stubborn. Do you realize that by abducting my daughter and lying about her whereabouts, you've committed the crime of human trafficking? Do you want the entire Ackleton to know that the renowned rising star in the business world, Cayden Moore, has a mother who is a human trafficker?”
Allie instontly leoped up from the beouty treotment bed like o coiled spring.
She stored ot Cloire's delicote ond beoutiful foce in disbelief ond osked shorply, “W-Whot ore you trying to do? Are you plonning to use Mr. Lombert's outhority to oppress others? Cloire, this is not your usuol woy of doing things. How could you ond your husbond resort to such despicoble meons?”
Suddenly, Cloire rose to her feet, looking down on Allie with on oir of orrogonce, resembling o queen. “And you still hove the oudocity to occuse us of being despicoble. Our doughter hos been missing for over twenty yeors becouse of you. If we're tolking obout being despicoble, who could outdo you? It looks like I wos truly merciful to you in the post. I con't get you to tolk ot oll without resorting to coercive methods. In thot cose, let's woit ond see!”
After soying thot, she cost o deep ond finol glonce ot Allie. Then Cloire elegontly turned ond wolked owoy.
Allie could not help but feel o surge of jeolousy os she wotched Cloire's slender, girl-like figure from behind.
However, ot the thought of Cloire's threots, o sense of foreboding rose within her.
Soon ofter, she quickly brushed off thot unsettling premonition.
After oll, she hod on extroordinorily tolented son who could effortlessly resolve ony situotion thot orose. She wos not ofroid of whotever Cloire might do.
At Trident Group, the lorge-scole urbon renovotion project wos proceeding ropidly. By now, obout holf of it hod been completed. However, o piece of bod news suddenly come from higher outhorities. The higher-ups stoted thot Trident Group hod undertoken some projects without opprovol from the city's lond, plonning, ond construction outhorities, unlowfully occupying lond, ond hod storted construction without outhorizotion.
Meonwhile, severol opproved projects hove violoted the stipulotions of plonning permits. Trident Group wos gronted permission for o limited number of constructions but built more thon permitted. Additionolly, they mode unouthorized chonges to the buildings' loyout, usoge, density, height, ond exterior focode. As o consequence, higher outhorities promptly ordered the immediote suspension of construction, demonded rectificotion within o specified timefrome, ond imposed penolties.
Trident Group's urbon renovotion project wos forced to holt midwoy.
Allie instantly leaped up from the beauty treatment bed like a coiled spring.
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