The Million-Dollar Heart by Rebecca Ryan

Quincy ducked, but with the wall at her back, there was nowhere left to hide. She had no choice but to succumb to F-Poison’s twisted sense of humor.

“Boss, just how many masks are you hiding behind that poker face of yours?” As F-Poison leaned in close, the disguise becunmistakably clear.

The face F-Poison was wearing was that of Gillian.

F-Poison patted her own cheek. “Doesn’t matter, as long as it looks good.” With that, F-Poison pulled a pill from her pocket and popped it into Quincy’s mouth. “Life-saving pill, half a mil a pop, you're getting a sweet deal.” The moment Quincy swallowed the pill, the oppressive weight she felt lifted. It was indeed the real Life-saving pill.

“Boss, my bad. | could not keep a lid on Patrick’s factory and let those Vanguard Agency rats find a foothold. And what | said was true: Percival really did get to Patrick's factory by tailing Gillian. To be safe, Patrick always sent Gillian to fetch the samples. Poor girl was clueless and thought she was just helping Daddy with spaperwork, so we never got made.

When Percival showed up, he focused on Gillian, and that’s when the spot blew up. | wanted to swipe Keco’s formula, but that Thomas was crafty and had bombs rigged up in advance.” F-Poison waved it off. “I know, it’s not on you. Rest up. We can’t lose our grip on Sea City. I'll hit you up once you're back in the game.” Quincy nodded, watching F-Poison slip away.

Glancing back, F-Poison’s smile shone brighter. “Had you not fired, the bomb you were leaning on would have gone off by now. Congrats, you've lived another day.” [x] With that, F-Poison shut the door and left the safe house.

Cold sweat drenched Quincy. It was clear that F-Poison did not let any detail go unchecked, no matter how small.

And Quincy had not even realized the gun at her waist was rigged to a bomb! She found the bomb; its countdown halted.

The trigger was the bomb’s remote! Wiping her brow, Quincy reflected on her hesitation to shoot. With Vivienne’s sudden appearance and her clouded judgment, she could have been an easy mark.

Thankfully, she trusted Vivienne would not meddle.

For now, she had survived F-Poison’s test.

At Rivenwood.

After dropping Vivienne at her place, Leopold drove Percival to the Ellington Mansion.

Parking in front of the grand estate, Leopold killed the engine, reluctant.

“Pickup at seven sharp tomorrow,” Percival said, tapping the seat before exiting the luxury car.

Rolling down the window, Leopold called out, “Hey, when's Thomas getting back? | can’t be your chauffeur forever!” Percival looked back casually. “Didn’t he say he’s coming with Griffin?” It was not even late, but Percival slapped Leopold's shoulder, saying, “Congrats, you're finally free of Griffin.” Leopold could not even voice his complaints.

Free of Griffin? Since when did he want to be? Had he ever said that? Never! Percival strutted off, leaving Leopold alone in the car, yelling his frustration to the heavens.

“Thomas, this means war!” Fresh from the shower, Percival texted Vivienne.

She replied quickly with a photo of a note that read, [Beware of Vance Edwards.] Tapping away, Percival replied: [That mystery person again?] [Yep. Didn't messagethis time, cstraight into my house. ] Vivienne chuckled, then added: [Seems like they've got tabs on me.] [Beware of Vance, huh? So, this person is surprisingly very familiar with Vance. Could he be someone from the Vanguard Agency?] Percival always felt the enigma bore no ill will but remained elusive, never leaving a trail to follow.

Who could it be? Vivienne turned in her bed and replied: [Doubtful, but definitely linked to Vanguard Agency.] [Be careful.] Vivienne shut off her phone, gazing at the night sky.

Last time, it was her mentor sneaking around; now, that mystery man? Perhaps it was tto beef up her estate security? These folks seemed to waltz into her backyard like it was nothing. Unsettling, to say the least.

Somewhere in Rivenwood.

Finnian poured a cup of water for his guest. “Why the sudden urge to tidy her place up?” “It's been years of neglect. Just a whim,” the person replied, sipping water with a smile.

Finnian eyed the person sitting opposite, smirking. “After all this time, what's a little longer?” The person glanced up. “Any objections?” “Me? Never,” Finnian took a leisurely sip. “Just a heads-up. Knowing my apprentice... if she learns the truth, whether she accepts you is another story.” The person's fingers froze on the cup, whose expression shifting ever so slightly before exhaling, “She’ll understand.” “We'll see,” Finnian added.

An apprentice that chased him down for a mere grand for years was petty beyond belief. This bombshell? Forgiveness seemed a tall order.Books Chapters Are Daily Updated Join & Stay Updated for All Books Updates...

The person slammed the cup down, frost in the voice, “Mind your own business. Remember, I'm the one who covered for you a few days ago.” Finnian fell silent.

The next day.

Leopold dragged himself out of bed to drive to the Ellington Mansion.

“Man, you look like hell,” Percival remarked as he slid into the car and caught a glimpse of Leopold's haggard face, shadowed with dark circles that screamed of a night spent battling insomnia.

Leopold yawned, his voice tinged with the frustration of the sleep-deprived. “I was on the phone with that rascal Thomas till the wee hours. Droveup the wall.” Percival shook his head, got out, and gestured for Leopold to move over to the passenger side. “Drowsy driving is asking for trouble. You trying to get yourself killed?” “Hey, don’t make it sound so dramatic,” Leopold protested with another yawn, but he complied, sliding into the passenger seat to catch smuch-needed rest.

Just then, Thomas rang Percival to report in, his voice betraying none of the weariness one would expect.

“Surprised you're not dead on your feet after that all-nighter with our Husky here,” Percival quipped, glancing at Leopold, who was now snoring like a chainsaw in the next seat.

Thomas let out a resigned sigh. “The guy’s nuts. Insisted on keeping a video call going just to watchsleep.

I'm telling you, Percival, we might want to get him sprofessional help.” Whatever had gotten into Leopold in the middle of the night, he just would not hang up.

Percival raised an eyebrow in disbelief. Leopold had spent the entire night on a video call watching Thomas sleep.

Was he that worried about Griffin moving in on Thomas? That was definitely remarkable.

Leopold, the Husky of humans—loyal to a fault, or maybe just plain loopy!