NovelEnglishGrace narrowed her eyes, a faint smirk tugging at her lips. "You know Tristan, right?"
Since Lyle had been tailing her, she figured he had to be aware of her recent movements.
He hesitated, then nodded. "Yeah."
"The people who caftertonight... that was him?"
"No. That was Daphne."
Grace lowered her gaze. Of course, it was Daphne-That one would be easy to deal with.
She pulled out her phone and, using the burner number she kept for situations like this, sent a series of
emotionally charged texts to Daphne-each one baited with just the right mix of provocation and vulnerability.
Unsurprisingly, Daphne took the bait and agreed to meet up.
Grace almost laughed. With a brain that soft, if she weren't a Yule by birth, she'd have been destroyed.
As she started the engine, Lyle immediately climbed in.
"You're not going there alone," he said.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇt
"I'm just going to meet her," Grace replied evenly. "She hatesway too much for no reason. | want to find out
if Jodie is behind it."
Lyle yanked the passenger door shut. "I'm coming along."
She didn't bother arguing.
They pulled up at the meeting spot a few minutes early. Grace glanced over at him. "You said you were tough,
right? The second she steps out of the car, knock her out and bring her over."
She parked in a surveillance blind spot, already having scoped the area.
Lyle stared through the windshield, then gave a curt nod. "On it."
Daphne's car showed up like clockwork. She stomped out, clearly fuming— probably expecting a chance to
scream in Grace's face. But before she could take
a full step forward, Lyle clipped her clean across the back of the neck. She collapsed, out cold.
Grace planned to take her to Ed's place, which was isolated, with no neighbors, and completely off the radar.
As they drove, Lyle grew visibly tense. When Grace finally parked outside Ed's quiet house, he looked shocked.
She knocked on his window. "What's wrong? Get out."
Lyle eyed the dark, silent house as if it were haunted. He muttered, "I'm good right here. Just... be careful with
that psycho inside."
Grace raised a brow. Did Lyle know Ed?
She slammed the door shut and walked around to his side. "You know my boyfriend? You've been to The
Obsidian? He's just a server there. How would you know him?"
She knew Ed only had one real friend-Anthony. Nothing about Ed said he had a wider network.
Lyle opened his mouth, but Grace's phone buzzed before he could get a word out. It was Ed.
She answered immediately. "I'm outside your place. Everything's fine. I've got two guests. If you'd rather not see
them, just hang upstairs. I'll be quick."
Lyle fell silent, looking like someone had just punched him in the gut.
Grace hung up, yanked Daphne out of the back seat, and doused her in a bottle
of cold water. Daphne screamed awake, flailing in a panic, until she saw who was standing over her.
"Grace! Are you insane? You kidnapped me?" she shrieked.
She scrambled to her feet, ready to bolt, but froze the second she saw the knife in Grace's hand.
Grace had swiped it from Lyle earlier. The blade glinted under the porch light, pressed just against Daphne's
cheek. Not deep, but enough to make a point. Daphne lost it, thrashing wildly.
"You wouldn't dare!" she spat. "You know who my family is? You touchand you're done!"
The blade nicked her throat before she could finish. It was shallow, but blood spilled fast.
It was like Daphne had been hit in a pressure point-she froze for a second, then suddenly clutched her neck and
let out a shrill, panicked cry.
Now worried that Ed might hear her from inside, Grace hissed, "Shut up!"
Daphne fell silent instantly, shaking all over. In that moment, she wasn't looking at the Grace she thought she
knew.
Wasn't Grace supposed to be the pathetic little lapdog?
Tears streamed down her face as she stared at the ground, too afraid to meet Grace's eyes.
Grace crouched beside her. She said evenly, "Daphne, I've been wondering why you hateso much. Is
someone putting you up to this?"
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