Chapter 134
Presently, Yvette was seated in the VIP waiting room, on the verge of boarding her flight.
Upon hearing Cecilia’s question, Yvette assumed that the former wanted a trip to relax herself.
“Cecilia, did you change your mind and decide to travel with me? I can change my flight ticket and wait for you.”
Cecilia hadn’t expected Yvette’s call to come at such a perfect moment, so she let out a sigh of relief.
“Yvie, reconsider your trip plans. Juliana is dead because of me, and you might become the next target.”
Yvette was confused when she heard that. “Ceci, what do you mean?”
Just as she asked that, the announcement in the waiting room blared, reminding passengers to board the plane.
“Yvie, head back home for now. I’ll explain everything to you later.”
“But I’ve already made arrangements with my travel companions, and the itinerary is fixed. Breaking our commitment now wouldn’t be fair,” Yvette explained.
“Yvie, listen to me!”
Cecilia’s stern tone made Yvette realize the gravity of the situation, and she promptly agreed, saying, “Okay, I’ll be right back. Please don’t be upset.”
“I’m not angry. I just don’t want anything to happen to you because of me. I’ll make it up to you by accompanying you on another trip in the future,” Cecilia reassured Yvette.
Yvette was delighted to hear that and simply replied, “Okay.”
“Take care on your way back, and please let me know once
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you’re safely home.”
“Okay. I’ll see you later.”
After the call had ended, Cecilia stared at the darkened screen of her phone, torn about calling the Yancey family or not.
She was reluctant to involve herself further with them, yet she couldn’t bear the thought of being the reason for their potential demise.
Whatever debts the Yancey family owed Cecilia, she had resolved to settle them on her own terms. She refused to resort to the enemy’s hand bringing harm to them.
Thus, in the end, she decided to call Sophia herself.
Sophia was both surprised and delighted when she saw Cecilia’s call.
She hastily grabbed Gordon, who was preoccupied with raising money, and eagerly showed him the screen of her phone.
“Ceci is calling me. I think she changed her mind and wants to help us.”
The sadness on Gordon’s face vanished, replaced by a glimmer of hope. “She has finally come to her senses. Answer the call,” he urged.
Sophia nodded. Her fingers slid across the green answer button, and she then put it on speaker.
Under the watchful gaze of everyone in the Yancey residence, Cecilia’s cold voice reverberated through the living room.
“Juliana is dead. She was thrown into the hospital’s furnace room after being dismembered and burned.”
After those words fell, the already hushed living room descended into a chilling silence.
An unsettling image involuntarily flashed through Sophia’s mind, making her feel nauseous.
When she regained her composure, she questioned sharply, o
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“What do you mean? Do you think I killed Juliana?”
She desired Juliana’s demise, but she hadn’t intended for her to die so swiftly.
Cecilia brushed off Sophia’s hostile demeanor and issued a stark warning. “Someone is after my life, and anyone connected to me is in peril. The same person who killed Juliana is behind this. Take care of yourself.”
With that, she abruptly ended the call.
Cecilia believed that she had fulfilled her duty by alerting Sophia. Whether or not Sophia would choose to take the warning seriously was not within Cecilia’s control, and the latter chose to leave it at that.
Sophia stared at the ended call and sneered.
“What is wrong with her? Is she suffering from some kind of victimization paranoia?”
However, Jonathan didn’t dismiss Cecilia’s warning as mere paranoia. He spoke in a deep voice, saying, “Mom, call the hospital to verify the authenticity of Juliana’s death.”
Gordon nodded in agreement, adding, “Yes, we should call the hospital. What if there’s some truth to it?”
The mere thought of Juliana being dismembered and burned sent shivers down his spine.
Sophia wasted no time and immediately called the hospital.
The hospital staff confirmed Juliana’s death but omitted specific details.
Sophia persisted, reaching out to the police station for more. information. In the end, she found out that Juliana had indeed been dismembered and thrown into the furnace, as per Cecilia’s gruesome account.
Sophia broke out in a cold sweat, and her hand, which was clutching the phone, trembled uncontrollably.
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“Why would something so horrifying happen? Who has Cecilia offended?”
She attempted to call Cecilia immediately, but her efforts were futile.
That was because her number remained blocked on Cecilia’s phone.
Sophia’s anger boiled over, and she hurled her phone onto the coffee table. Her eyes blazed with fury.
“I used to feel a twinge of guilt toward her, but now, I can’t help but be infuriated just by thinking about her. I don’t care if she keeps harassing us, but how could she attract the attention of such a monstrous killer and put us in danger? What does she want?”
Gordon gently stroked Sophia’s back, trying to help her calm down.
“Sophie, try to calm down. Something doesn’t add up in
Cecilia’s story. If someone truly wanted to kill her, they would have had the same motive as Juliana. There’s no reason to kill Juliana.”
Realization dawned on Sophia at Gordon’s reminder.
“Do you mean Cecilia orchestrated for someone to kill Juliana, and now, we might be next?”
Upon hearing that, Jackson intervened, speechlessly stopping Sophia’s wild imagination.
“Mom, if things were as you suspect, why would Ceci call to warn you? We are the ones who have wronged her and hurt her. It’s unfair to think ill of her and consider another twisted. possibility.”
“She’s hell–bent on destroying the Yancey family, so why shouldn’t I have negative thoughts about her? Let’s not forget–if it weren’t for her, your life wouldn’t have been ruined!”
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“I ruined my own life. It has nothing to do with Ceci. Regardless of her motives, we should be cautious. I’ve
withdrawn all my money. There’s nothing more I can do to help. I’in leaving.”
After saying that, he got up and left.
Sophia stopped him angrily, demanding, “Where do you think you’re going?”
“I’m heading to the racing track to drive a tour bus for
customers. I am fulfilling the promise I made as a consequence of my defeat!”
“Are you trying to embarrass yourself even more? Stop right there!”
Jackson ignored Sophia and strode away.
In his perspective, losing wasn’t embarrassing, but refusing to acknowledge defeat was.
Gordon sighed and gently coaxed Sophia, who was seething with anger. “Sophie, Jack might not be thinking clearly. Let him be. The most important thing now is to handle Jerry and Jay’s penalty.”
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