Love's Change of Heart

Chapter 709 Are You Surprised To See Me?

Adjusting his glasses, Joseph replied, "President Pearson, you must be joking. It's not often that someone gets the chance to work with Pearson Group. Why would I make up an excuse to leave?"

At that moment, the waiter returned with their food, and Joseph took a sip from his cup and placed it on the side of the table. Aidan, sitting opposite him, watched everything calmly without changing his expression.

Once the waiter was done serving their food and prepared to leave, he accidentally bumped into the cup on the side of the table. The water flowed from the cup and drenched Joseph's coat and shirt, eliciting terror on the waiter's face. "I'm sorry, sir. I…"

Joseph hurriedly rose and pulled two tissues to clean his clothes while the waiter stood to the side, dumbfounded. On the other hand, Aidan looked at the waiter and asked calmly, "Why are you so clumsy?"

The waiter apologized repeatedly, "I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry."

Joseph barely maintained his smile. "It's fine. Just be more careful next time." After saying that, he turned to Aidan and Leanna. "Mr. Pearson, Miss McKinney, I should head to the washroom."

"Sir, I'll bring you there," the waiter suggested, after which Joseph nodded and left the room.

Leanna looked at Aidan. It seemed like Joseph was about to run, so Aidan got up and said, "Wait here. I'll go check it out."

She replied, "Okay." Not long after that, she felt her phone vibrating. It was from Zoe. "Zoe, what—"

"Do you want to know how your mother died?"

The voice on the phone belonged to Leroy.

She could not help but grip tightly on the phone. "What did you do to Zoe?"

After a cold chuckle, he answered, "Come to the rooftop if you wish to know. If I see anyone besides you, you'll have to come and pick up your friend's corpse. I'll see you within five minutes." With that, he hung up.

When Leanna heard the beep signaling the end of the call, her face paled as she hurried out of the room and into the elevator. Since the rain was still pouring, the rooftop was pitch black, and all she could hear was the sound of water tapping against the ground.

She rushed into the rain, screaming, "Zoe, Zoe!"

However, the only reply she received was the sound of the rain.

"Stop looking. She's not here."

Turning around, Leanna saw Leroy standing not far from her. She gritted her teeth and questioned, "What did you do to her?"

The man held an umbrella and wore a cap. Since he had been hiding for several days, he no longer looked as high-spirited as before and even looked slightly pathetic. He casually threw the phone on the ground. "I sent her to be reunited with Daniel."

She rebuked, "You're lying! You just asked for a huge ransom fund. It's impossible—"

"Nothing is impossible, and I'm sure you know better than me that you won't use such a huge fund to save someone you have nothing to do with. But, with you as my captive, whether it's Crossley Group, Lloyd, or Aidan, they're willing to exchange any amount of money for your life!"

"You're being delusional. Since you've appeared, there's no way you're leaving this place today."

Leroy retorted, "The pot calls the kettle black. Do you think Aidan would come to save you? He's already on his way to save that little girl. Everything will be too late once he realizes what's going on."

When Leanna heard that, she gripped tightly on her dress. It was then that she knew everything was a trap. Their real target was never Charlotte but her.

…

Meanwhile, when Joseph came out of the washroom and saw Aidan standing not far away, he smiled. "President Pearson, is there anything I can help you with?"

Aidan replied, "I was wondering why you brought Charlotte away."

Without denying it, Joseph kept his smile. "You're smart, President Pearson, so how could you not figure it out?"

"Even though Leroy shamelessly asked for fifty billion, he must know that he can't get that amount of money with just Daniel, let alone Crossley Group. On the other hand, even if he could, he would assume a huge trap was awaiting him."

Joseph smiled and said nothing.

Aidan continued, "Taking Charlotte is indeed a good bargain. She could hold the Woodley Family back and implicate me in this matter because the Woodleys would be furious with me if something happened to her while she was in Highside. But Leroy didn't want to cause such a ruckus; he only wanted to get the money and run. As for you, you know that Lachlan is in Highside, and every move you make will become leverage he could use against you. Therefore, your target was never her."