The Million-Dollar Heart by Rebecca Ryan

When Vivienne and Percival turned to look again, the woman in red had vanished without a trace.

Vivienne wanted to chase after her, but Percival grabbed her wrist. “Vivienne, let it go. She hasn’t shown us her full hand yet.”

Even for Vivienne and Percival, it had been a stalemate at best. If they pursued her, their chances of victory were slim.

Besides, their main reason for coming to M State was to rescue people, and now that they had, their mission was complete. However, they still hadn’t figured out why the puppet master behind this charade had gone to such lengths.

Vivienne peered in the direction the red-clad woman had disappeared, her gaze murky and unreadable.

Atop a nearby hill, the woman in red stood, her eyes fixed on the scene below where she could see Vivienne’s group.

Lucky for her, she had packed a smoke grenade, which briefly obscured their vision, allowing her a swift escape.

It had been years, and it was time for her to return to Veridia.

She scoffed disdainfully, snapped her fan shut, and walked away. “Wait for it. We’ll meet again.”

…

Elsewhere.

Huxley had fainted from fright during the scuffle and was now jabbed awake by Vivienne’s needle.

“You guys alright?” Vivienne asked, looking toward Larry and Carl.

Larry, clutching his chest, replied, “Vivienne, we’re fine.”

He had sustained some injuries, but they weren’t a big deal for him.

shook his head, too, indicating he

familiar faces – and the red-clad woman gone – he knew he

I was a

him and wanted to punch him out of

looked like under that mask?” Yuri couldn’t help asking. The woman had given him an odd sense of familiarity as if they had met before. The mention of having held Vivienne as a child had also piqued his curiosity. However, he combed through his memory but found no trace

face under

disguise; they wouldn’t dare show their true faces

“Vivienne, she

was to investigate Samantha’s whereabouts. Instead,

“Mr. Wolf, it’s

having completed

“Okay,” Percival nodded.

to cause a problem. After all, they had deliberately allowed

Apart from being third wheels, what else did we accomplish?”

Percival: Don’t

get used

bizarre, and this was the first time Vivienne had encountered such tactics. The silver needles from her fan were coated in a deadly poison, which would have required her some time to

severely shaken Huxley, Vivienne addressed the latter, “Didn’t F-Poison capture you? How did you end up

of woe began. “I have no idea! Back then, Mom lost everything for that man, leaving my sister and I

was torture! But when I almost lost it, she suddenly brought me to this sanatorium, where I found Carl.

eyelids lowered, hiding

to come back with us?”

replied without

lips curved in a mysterious smile.

heard outside. The

ask, “Just two

Vivienne and I will head back first. In

Everyone was puzzled.