“Well? Answer him!”
Irritation flooded Leandro.
Argh! I loathe spies! They’re best at deceiving others’ trust and feelings, utterly reprehensible!
Despite his fury, Winnie remained unperturbed.
Instead, she chuckled softly. “Okay, I’ll lay my cards on the table, then. I don’t know.”
“What did you just say?” Picking up the gun, Leandro pointed it at her forehead. “It seems that your
identity is indeed fake! Who exactly are you? And who sent you here?”
Winnie straightened in her seat.
“I’m Vivian. But since Big Black Bear is here in person, I can’t quite continue using his identity to
impersonate him. Indeed, I’m not Big Black Bear, but I only pretended to be him out of desperation. No
one had ever heard of the name Vivian, but I had to survive. I really have a formulation, so I needed a
buyer, money, and someone to protect me. Thus, I borrowed the moniker. But Boss, is it truly that
important whether I’m Big Black Bear? Even if I’m Vivian, I can still help you complete your orders! Why
must you place such importance on this moniker?”
Leandro’s eyes narrowed into slits. “I’m not concerned about that moniker! I just don’t want to be
duped! I don’t want to be in the dark even after I’ve been stabbed in the back!”
“I’ll never betray you as long as you pay me!” Winnie lifted her left hand in a gesture of swearing an
oath.
“Hmph! Previously, I didn’t know you were lying to me, so I promised you an equal share of the profits.
But now—”
Without Leandro having to spell it out, Winnie voluntarily offered, “I’ll give half of that to Mr. Big Black
Bear here. With him here now, my workload will be halved. As such, I naturally won’t hang on to the
substantial profits without sharing them. I’m here anyway, so my fate hinges on you at the end of the
day. I’ve been here for a long time, but I don’t even have a phone and have no way of contacting the
outside world. What else is there for you to be suspicious of, Boss?”
Regretfully, Leandro shook his head. “Harold has always been an exceedingly cunning man, yet you
managed to win him over. I’ve got to admit that you’re indeed a capable person. I don’t dare trust you.”
Nonetheless, Winnie merely chortled. “I understand, but as distance tests a horse’s strength, so time
reveals a person’s integrity. As long as you spare me, Boss, you’ll know in the future that everything I’m
saying right now is only for the sake of better survival. I don’t need you to make a decision right away.
You can consider it carefully or even forge a collaboration with Mr. Big Black Bear here first as long as
you spare me.”
As she mentioned sparing her several times, Leandro burst into laughter. “It looks like you’re really
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtterrified of dying.”
“Of course! To tell you the truth, I first chose to seek Harold out to collaborate because he had firearms.
I felt that a collaboration with him would be a much safer option. But then, he’s far too ruthless for the
average person to deal with and I was no exception.”
Hearing that, Leandro was tickled pink. “Hah! Are you sure about that? You’re definitely the biggest
surprise he’d ever encountered in his life. After all, you blew his factory up!”
In response, Winnie heaved a sigh in exasperation. “Boss, you’ve mentioned that too many times to
count! If I hadn’t done that, I would’ve ended up dead. Put the gun away first, okay? Or would you
rather have a dead body than a helper?”
In the face of benefits, there were no permanent enemies. Needless to say, Leandro was reluctant to
kill her, for he could see the benefit she might bring him.
At that precise moment, his phone rang without warning.
He took his phone out and glanced at it, only to start snickering.
“I almost forgot that your man is still in my hands. You’d best obey me to the letter. I can tell that you
care about him quite a bit.”
Winnie stole a peek at his phone screen and glimpsed a video call request.
Flashing him a smile, she replied, “You’re right. Actually, I’m also afraid at times, so I wish to have
someone who treats me sincerely by my side. I find Chris to be a pretty good fit, so I hope you’ll spare
him, Boss.”
Leandro guffawed triumphantly. “That depends on your performance.”
“I’ll do my best! Can I please talk to him? I think I need to see him.”
At her words, Leandro couldn’t help letting out a bark of laughter. “What’s wrong? You’re now afraid
and want some comfort, huh?”
Looking at him, Winnie fibbed, “Well, no matter how strong a woman is, she still needs some emotional
assurance sometimes.”
Leandro didn’t bother speaking further, handing his phone to her directly.
Winnie accepted the video call request. In no time, Christopher’s face appeared on the phone screen.
“Are you okay? What happened earlier? Why did you hang up abruptly?” Christopher questioned,
bombarding her with question after question.
Winnie first glanced at Leandro, who had been staring at her. Then, she shifted her gaze to Christopher
on the screen.
In an even voice, she explained, “I’m fine. Boss came over just now, so I chatted with him for a bit. I’m
truly happy to see you. As per our agreement previously, you’ve got to rest well and follow the plan
devised by the doctor. I’ll go over and visit you soon.”
In truth, Christopher couldn’t shake off the feeling that the matter wasn’t that simple. He suspected that
she was in danger.
Hence, he used Morse code to convey a message to her.
He asked her whether she had run into trouble.
To that, Winnie answered in the negative and told him to execute the plan without worrying.
Still, Christopher was worried. Concern was written all over his face.
Exasperated beyond words, Winnie inquired, “Where’s the doctor? Is he there? I’ve got something to
ask him.”
Christopher knew that she was asking about Xavier, so he nodded.
“Wait a moment. I’ll call the doctor over right away.”
He depressed the call button. Shortly after, Xavier arrived.
Pointing the camera at the latter, Christopher said to Winnie, “The doctor is here, so you can ask him
whatever it is.”
“Okay.” Winnie pinned her eyes on Xavier. “Doctor, I think the patient is a touch unstable emotionally.
Can you care for him specifically, not only in terms of his physical injuries but also emotionally?”
Christopher’s brows furrowed. “I’m fine emotionally.”
However, Winnie chuckled. “You naturally don’t think there’s anything wrong with yourself.”
Subsequently, she shifted her gaze back to Xavier, the look in her eyes resolute. “Listen to me! Do you
get it? Do as I said!”
Xavier understood her meaning. In truth, she wasn’t referring to Christopher’s condition but their plan.
Christopher was worried that she would be in danger, so he didn’t want to leave. But Winnie was
insisting that they continued adhering to the plan.
Truth be told, Xavier was likewise concerned about her.
He was worried sick about her, but at that critical juncture, he chose to trust in the decision she made.
Bobbing his head, he assured, “Don’t worry, for we’ll do our best to take good care of the patient.”
“Great!” Winnie beamed at him. He’s gotten increasingly better at working with me. In the past, I could
accomplish plenty by myself and didn’t need anyone to be with me at all times. But at some point in
time, he has silently become my greatest backing!
Later, Winnie hung up the video call and returned the phone to Leandro.
With the phone in hand, Leandro got to his feet. He then waved a hand and summoned two men over.
“Keep a close eye on Ms. Vivian. From now on, she isn’t allowed to go anywhere without my orders,
nor is she allowed to interact with anyone else other than me. If anything happens, I’ll hold the two of
you responsible!”
“Understood, Boss!” the two subordinates answered at once.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏm
Leandro nodded. He pondered for a moment before warning Winnie, “I’m going to meet up with Cabell
soon. If I were to find out that you’re his spy—”
“Cut me into a thousand pieces then!” Winnie interrupted without waiting for the man to finish speaking.
“Fine! Remember you said this yourself.” Leandro pointed a finger at her.
Having said that, he made to leave.
When Winnie saw that Big Black Bear was going to leave with Leandro, she immediately opened her
mouth.
Unexpectedly, Big Black Bear himself made a request of Leandro before she had even spoken.
“Wait a moment, Boss. I’d like to speak with this woman privately. Do you mind?”
At that, Leandro frowned. “What’s there to talk about between you both? Hasn’t the matter about your
identities been resolved now?”
“I don’t care about that. If she likes the moniker of Big Black Bear, I don’t mind giving it to her. I’m only
interested in the formulation in her hands,” Big Black Bear admitted.
“It won’t do you any good even if you’re interested in it. Such a thing is considered a means of survival
to the likes of you. Yet, you hope she’d give you the formulation?” Leandro scoffed.
“Of course not. I tested the sample you gave me. I’m merely curious about how she happened to have
such a formulation. It goes without saying that these questions I’d like to ask her wouldn’t harm your
interests. I just want to talk to her.”
Leandro didn’t agree to it right away. Instead, he cast a glance at Winnie. “What do you think? Are you
willing to talk to him?”
Coincidentally, Winnie had the exact same plan. “Sure! Let me talk to him privately for a while. How
about we go to my room? There are too many mosquitoes out here. Besides, I think there are some
things he doesn’t want a third person to know.”
While saying that, she swung her gaze at Big Black Bear. “Don’t you agree?”
Big Black Bear didn’t answer her. He merely sought Leandro’s permission. “May I?”
Leandro eyed Winnie. “Are you up to some trick or other?”
“What trick could I be up to? Just have your subordinates keep guard outside the door. Chris is still in
your hands, Boss. Moreover, he was the one who proposed talking to me privately. Even if you want to
suspect something, Boss, shouldn’t you suspect his motives and not mine?”
For a moment, Leandro was left without a retort. “Fine, go ahead then. I’ll be keeping an eye on you
both outside.”
Thus, Winnie and Big Black Bear entered the room behind them under the man’s watchful gaze.
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