Dear Sweetheart novel

Chapter 709 Potted Roses

“A pot of roses,” said Curtis as his gaze fell on Cassidy.

“It's gorgeous, right?” Upon hearing the word “rose,” Rayna instantly thought of the roses in the courtyard.

“Yes. Their petals are bigger than usual,” Curtis added.

When Rayna heard that, she said softly, “Exactly. Steal some of the soil from the courtyard later tonight and get

James to run tests on it.”

Understanding finally dawned on Curtis, and he responded, “All right. I'll do it later.”

Meanwhile, Cassidy's sudden emotional breakdown frightened Yasmin so much that she hid behind Robin.

Robin had a perfect view of the courtyard from where he sat. He watched Cassidy stomp on the pot of roses that

was shattered in the courtyard while yelling Fernando's name furiously.

Rayna turned to Yasmin and asked softly, “Yasmin, do you know why Cassidy is suddenly acting like this?”

Yasmin pondered for a moment before explaining, “It's because that pot of flowers wasn't grown naturally. Those

roses didn't look like that in the first place. When Ms. Cassidy's father was still around, he told us Jayfort's soil had

always been rich in nutrients and can produce mutated plants that humans have never seen before. Even those

Serekos didn't use to look like that.”

Curtis stood beside Rayna and said softly, “I've talked to James about it before. He says the Serekos we saw was the

original size.”

“So that pot of roses had been experimented on?” Curtis' words made Rayna become more certain of her guess.

She suspected the area around the house was an experiment ground.

Otherwise, there was absolutely no explanation for the appearance of all these unusual-looking creatures and

plants.

“Curtis, is that thing in my body really a parasite?” They were in the age of science. Hence, Rayna found it hard to

believe things as parasites existed.

Curtis lowered his gaze to look at her, not knowing what to say all of a sudden.

“Curtis, could there be a possibility that it's actually—” Before Rayna could finish, Curtis interrupted, “Even Cassidy

says it's a parasite, so that means it's a parasite. It's not a scary thing. We just need to find the person who knows

how to remove it.”

Rayna sensed the anxiousness in his tone.

Thus, she merely hummed softly in response.

Curtis hugged her and spoke softly. “Just wait a little longer. The food should be ready soon.” Deep down, however,

he began suspecting Cassidy and the people they met along the way, including what they had said.

Experiments?

Late at night, the butler of the Faymon residence made his way to Alfred's room with a phone in hand. “Old Mr.

Faymon, it's a call from Mr. Faymon.”

After taking the phone from the butler, Alfred said, “Why are you calling so late at night? Did something happen to

Rayna?”

On the other end of the line, Curtis held the phone while standing on the road outside the house. “Grandpa, I need

to ask you something.”

“Go on,” Alfred responded with a deep voice.

“Back then, you said the thing in Rayna's body is a parasite. Is it true?” Curtis' tone was flat as he stared coldly at

the river on the opposite end.

“Do you suspect something?” Alfred understood the meaning behind Curtis' question. He paused for a moment

before adding, “Is it not a parasite?”

“What made you come to that judgment?” asked Curtis without beating around the bush.

Alfred gave it some thought before saying, “I saw it when I was young. Back then, I only heard about it from others

and never really analyzed the truth.”

Alfred was a smart person. Naturally, he knew Curtis was calling because the latter had doubts.

“Anything else?” asked Alfred.

“That's all. Please rest early.” With that, Curtis hung up.

As he stood by the road, he brought the unfinished cigarette to his lips and took a deep puff.

Meanwhile, Rayna was alone in the room, listening to music with earbuds on when Cassidy knocked on the door.

Thus, Rayna removed the earbuds and glanced at the door. “What is it?”

Rayna stepped into the room and sat in front of her. “I need to ask you for a favor.”

“Let's hear it,” Rayna responded.

“Did you know Curtis asked someone to report the death of the cook's father-in-law to the police from abroad?”

Cassidy asked softly, occasionally glancing at the door.

“Abroad? Wasn't it reported to the local police? Can police from abroad deal with it if it's a homicide case?” Rayna

was unsure of such things. Hence, she did not understand what Cassidy was getting at.

“I'm not sure either, but when I was out with Yasmin today, I heard people saying the higher-ups of the local police

want to look into this case.” While Cassidy said that, she reached out and grabbed Rayna's hand. “He died because

of old age. It's normal. There's nothing special about this. I think it's a bit of an overkill to alert the higher-ups about

it.”

Upon hearing that, Rayna said, “Since it's a natural death, then all the more reason for you to not be afraid. Just let

the higher-ups investigate it. They can even prove your innocence.”

“I no longer care about that. I'm used to all the name-calling after living here for so long. They're just spouting

nonsense, and they don't mean what they say. Can you please stop Curtis from looking into this?” asked Cassidy

while pursing her lips.

Retracting her hand from Cassidy's grip, Rayna answered, “I'm afraid I can't do that. I have no say in this. Besides,

there's also this hellfire bird thing that sounds magical. I think it's best to get an animal research expert to look into

this. It'd be disastrous if this bird goes somewhere else and harms others.”

Cassidy frowned when she heard that. She then lifted her gaze and glanced at the door.

When Cassidy said nothing, Rayna said, “Cassidy, I think it's best if you don't get involved in this. By the way, surely

I'm not the only one who finds this town weird, right?”

Cassidy cast Rayna a puzzled look. “W-What are you trying to say?”

Instead of giving Cassidy a direct answer, Rayna gave her hints. “You know what I'm saying. The cook's a high

achiever. She should know this place well.”

“W-What are you saying?” Cassidy rose from the couch anxiously.

Rayna repeated calmly, “As I said, you know what I'm saying. You've always been an honest person, and most

honest people won't allow themselves to be wronged. Yet, you're willing to bear the accusations made by the

people of this town. Clearly, you have a reason to do so. The pot of roses today is the best explanation.” Rayna

stopped beating around the bush.

Cassidy swallowed hard as she avoided Rayna's gaze. “Isabelle, you're always so presumptuous.”

With that, she turned around to leave the room.

Seeing that she was leaving, Rayna said, “Cassidy, what you're doing is not helping the person you want to help. In

fact, you're making things worse for him.”

Upon hearing that, Cassidy stopped in her tracks.

She slowly turned around and glanced at Rayna in disbelief. “How did you know that?”

“I made a guess, but it's not a baseless one.” Rayna reached out to take the cup of water on the coffee table and

took a sip. “You and Fernando are childhood sweethearts. Both of you have feelings for each other and are at a

marriageable age. You even have a marriage contract. The fact that you're not holding a wedding yet is already

suspicious enough.”