Chapter 376
A maid finally managed to unlock the door with a spare key.
Nolan wasted no time-he kicked the door open, his face carved in stone.
The door slammed against the wall, exposing a sight that stunned everyone into silence.
Elora was crouched on the rug, clutching a jagged shard of broken vase tight against her wrist.
"Stay away!" she shouted, mock panic in her voice."Just let me end this!"
Two startled maids rushed forward, wrestling the shard from her shaking hands.
Utterly spent, Elora collapsed, sobs ripping through her as she curled up on the floor.
Nolan stood above her, gaze sharp and clouded with suspicion.
Her cries were raw and unrestrained, her whole body wracked with grief. "Nolan, I won't blame you. I'll keep my mouth shut,I promise. We can just pretend none of this ever happened."
A deep furrow formed on Nolan's brow.
Elora was trying to sound forgiving, but every word felt like a quiet accusation, as if he had touched her.
Everything about the scene reeked of planning.
From the suspicious pool incident to Elora's dramatic breakdown, it all felt rehearsed, like lines from a poorly written script. "You'll stay right here," Nolan said,voice flat.
Without another word or backward glance, he turned on his heel and walked out.
Outside, the tension in Nolan's face didn't let up.
Fannie hurried after him, glancing at his stormy expression, searching for words and coming up empty.
She fidgeted with her hands, anxiety etched in every motion.
Noticing her troubled look, Nolan stopped in the hallway. "Keep an eye on her, Fannie," he instructed quietly.
Fannie hesitated only a moment before giving a determined nod. "I'll handle it, Nolan. Don't worry
Nolan let out a short grunt and walked off with Erick.
The hallway grew quiet, leaving only Nolan and Erick standing there.
Nolan stopped and turned to face Erick directly.
"Dig into this further," Nolan said, his voice steely. "I want to know exactly what was in that pool water."
He remembered the odd, sweet aroma lingering in the air.
It hadn't seemed important at first, but now he couldn't shake the feeling that the dizziness he had felt was no coincidence.
He didn't have concrete evidence yet, but every instinct told him something was off.
"Understood," Erick replied quickly.
He passed Nolan a crisp new report. "Mr.Stewart,the half-million was transferred through an anonymous prepaid card. We're working on tracking the IP address behind the transfer. We should have results soon."
Nolan flipped through the document, his expression tightening as he read.
He wasn't stopping until he got to the bottom of this. Fannie stepped back into the room, spotting Elora still curled up on the floor. and quickly moved to help her sit up.
"Elora, you don't have to panic. Nolan's going to figure things out," Fannie responded, her voice soft and reassuring.
Panic flared in Elora's eyes as her mind spun out of control.
Figure things out?
What exactly was Nolan trying to dig up?
Elora's thoughts snapped to the swimsuit she had tossed in the trash bin.
With the pool's constant filtering, any trace of sedative in the water would be gone by now.
There would be no evidence there.
But the swimsuit was another story.
The torn straps, the leftover traces of sedative-those would be impossible to explain.
Elora's face drained of color, her heart pounding in her chest.
With desperation in her swollen, tear-streaked eyes,she looked at Fannie. "Fannie, I, uh... I left my swimsuit near the pool earlier. It's really important to me. My mom gave it to me a long time ago."
Elora's eyes darted away, unease flickering across her face as if she were guarding a secret. "I'd rather Eleanor didn't find it. Could you please get it for me?"
Fannie, ever the trusting soul, assumed Elora was just anxious about a misunderstanding.
She nodded right away, eager to help. "Alright, Elora,don't worry. I'll take care of it. Just try to calm down,"she replied gently.