The Million-Dollar Heart by Rebecca Ryan

Flynn took a deep breath. Sure enough, the agony coursing through him was beginning to subside.

He sat up straight, his gaze steady on Vivienne. “You call this way to see me. What else do you want to know?” Vivienne tossed her lollipop into the trash can without a second thought. “I'm more interested in what you have to say.” “I have nothing to say to you.” Flynn leaned against the headboard, his eyes closing, signaling he was done talking.

Vivienne, unfazed, shifted to a more comfortable position. “Is the infamous F-Poison your mentor? Is he dead?” A flicker passed through Flynn's eyes, but he remained silent.

“You're not still waiting for F-Poison to cto rescue you, are you? That's naive, Uncle Flynn!” Standing up, Vivienne seemed ready to leave.

That got a reaction. Flynn called out to her, “You're here to get the scoop on your mom’s abduction, right? Sasha's.” Vivienne froze, a piercing look shooting from her eyes like daggers sinking deep into Flynn's skin.

Suddenly, Flynn felt as if flames were raging inside him, threatening to conshim entirely.

“Vivienne, I'm the only one in this world who knows what happened to your mom after she was taken. If you want the truth, you must cureof this poison!” Vivienne's gaze softened, and Flynn felt immediate relief.

Struggling to his feet, Flynn approached the balcony. “Bring someone from the Perez family to see me.” Vivienne's frown deepened, but she left without a word. a Flynn chuckled, his eyes glinting with meaning. “There are things in this world that defy description. Only the ordinary can be understood.” Vivienne gave Flynn a long, hard look before walking out of the stifling cell and exhaling heavily outside.

Maddox opened the car door for her. “How did it go?” He asked.

Vivienne shook her head. “He didn’t spill anything.” “Damn.” Maddox slammed the steering wheel. “Flynn’s a slippery one.” “Let's go home, Uncle Maddox. I've had enough for one day.” Flynn claimed he knew all about her mother’s disappearance? Could F-Poison really trust him that much? “So, Vivienne, what else did he say?” Maddox asked as he drove.

“He wants to meet someone from the Perez family. Didn't specify who.” Maddox's expression darkened. “He’s seen Dad and Yuri. What the fuck does he want next—to see Natalia and Yasmine?” Vivienne looked up. “Uncle, why don’t you think he wants to see you or Diana?” “He’s locked up. How could he know that Diana and I are in Rivenwood?” Maddox scoffed. “Maybe he wants both of us to cover just to mess with us.” “Flynn said there are things in this world that defy description. Only the ordinary can be understood,” Vivienne mused. “What did he mean by that?” Maddox shook his head. “Who knows? The ramblings of a madman, yet strangely profound.” Vivienne smiled faintly, choosing to remain silent.

Maddox dropped her off at her hbefore driving away.

Back home, Vivienne sank into the bathtub, lost in thought about Flynn.

He wanted to see someone from the Perez family, but who was he most eager to meet? She ran through the names of the Perez family in her mind. Then her eyes snapped open.

Willa.

Flynn was F-Poisons’ apprentice, and Willa was his only daughter. Flynn would want to see the one who shared a bloodline with his mentor.

Vivienne wiped her face, grabbed a towel to dry her hair, and then reached for her phone to call Draven.

“How's the search for Vesper going?” She asked.

“Vivienne, that Vesper is a ghost. We can’t even get a bead on him,” Draven complained. “Our guys are getting played.” It was the first tDraven felt this frustrated since he joined the Nine Mystics Society.

Vesper was elusive; they would lose track of him in less than 10 feet, and after so many days, they could not obtain the tiniest information about him, not even his residence address. Draven was at his wits’ end.

Vivienne pinched the bridge of her nose. This was quite expected. She was well aware that someone like Vesper would not be easy to track. “Stop chasing shadows then. What about the other one | asked about? Any leads?” There was a pause on the other end, and then Draven said, “Vivienne, about Willa Perez, something’s odd.” “What is it?” Vivienne asked, curiosity piqued.

Draven rarely described someone as ‘odd.’ “I've cacross sclues about her, but they vanish every t| get close. At first, | thought it was the Perez family cleaning up, but it's not them. They lost Willa’s trail long ago.” Vivienne stood up, swiftly dressing amid the steam, and opened the bathroom door. “Who's helping Willa from the shadows?” “This is exactly what puzzles me,” Draven whispered, his voice thick with concern. “There’s a mysterious force backing Willa, a force we can’t quite grasp. I'm sorry, Vivienne, it seems we’ve hit a wall.” Having failed to deliver on not just one but two assignments, Draven found it hard to face Vivienne with his usual confidence.

Since its inception, the Nine Mystics Society had never encountered a task it could not tackle. Yet now, they had hit two dead ends in rapid succession, a blow that Draven could not easily shake off.

Vivienne, however, did not blhim. After all, the two people she had tasked the Nine Mystics Society to investigate were unlike any they had encountered before. Running into dead ends was to be expected.

She also understood that the success of this mission was not solely dependent on her or Draven’s capabilities but rather on how much the person they were investigating was willing to let them find out.

“It’s fine. Keep on their trail, and if you spot anything unusual, report your location immediately. I'll go over personally.” “Understood.” Ending the call, Vivienne walked over to the window and picked up her specially brewed chamomile tea. She gazed out quietly, contemplating.

Who was pulling the strings behind Willa? Was it someone from the GTO or one of her own? In the quiet Rivenwood suburb.Books Chapters Are Daily Updated Join & Stay Updated for All Books Updates...

Willa scrutinized the note in her hands, her brow furrowed in deep thought.

These days, she could sense someone tracking her movements. She had not expected them to be so relentless, making it difficult to slip away unnoticed.

Each escape had been narrow, a gof cat and mouse where she barely managed to keep her tracks hidden.

But as the pursuit intensified, Willa found herself cornered, tempted to confront her pursuer in a final showdown.

Yet, at those critical moments, she would find a mysterious note guiding her to safety, allowing her to evade the watchful eyes tracking her.

Willa had no idea who was leaving these notes or who was able to locate her so precisely, tand again, and place the notes right where she would find them.

But she knew one thing - whoever was behind the notes and the people tracking her possessed skills far beyond her own; otherwise, they would not have found her so effortlessly.

Crumpling the note into a ball, Willa tossed it into the trash can. She then twisted the throttle of her car and sped off into the distance, the engine roaring as she disappeared down the road.