Chapter 306: Chapter 306
Conrad Sterling arrived at Ocean Park’s entrance, only to find a large crowd queued up.
He found the spot selling seahorse balloons, surrounded by small children making selections.
One little girl, denied by her parent, could only watch longingly, discussing with the undecided friend beside her about which color seahorse balloon was the prettiest.
Conrad overheard and immediately bought the top three balloons the girl thought were the prettiest.
The kids gazed at him, angry but too afraid to speak.
The wind was strong today, and Conrad was dressed in a black formal suit, as if he were heading for an important meeting, walking through the crowded Ocean Park. The three adorable seahorse balloons floated above his head, attracting the attention of surrounding adults and envious children.
In such circumstances, Conrad was glad this place wasn’t Aethelgard, as there weren’t many who could recognize him.
Anna had said earlier that they were on their way.
But Conrad arrived and saw no sign of them.
He called Anna, but the woman didn’t answer.
Frustrated, Conrad brushed aside the balloon that the wind kept blowing into his chest and tried dialing Anna’s number again.
The call went through, but it hung up after just one ring.
Conrad called Mary next. Mary hesitantly explained.
The key point was that the Ocean Park trip had been canceled, and Mary had taken the two little ones home.
Yet nobody informed Conrad, leaving him standing foolishly with three ragged balloons.
Anna was nowhere to be found!
President Sterling felt something was amiss, sensing that something had happened.
The immediate priority was to find Anna.
Conrad finally found Anna at the riverside.
Anna sat on a tourist rock by the river, facing the wind. Hearing footsteps, she lifted her eyes to confirm.
In Conrad’s hand was still the seahorse balloon, carried all the way from Ocean Park.
"Lola and Pop said they were tired, so I had Mary take them home first. Didn’t you call Mary? Who’s the balloon for?"
"I did, it’s for you!"
Since Conrad didn’t plan to head home first, he left the balloons meant for the little ones in the car.
The one for Anna, however, stayed in his hand all along.
Hadn’t this woman complained previously about her short-lived adolescence?
Conrad decided to treat her the same as the little ones, surely, that would suffice.
Conrad passed the balloon to her, then noticed Anna was barefoot, standing on the rock.
His heart aching, the man furrowed his brows and squatted down before Anna.
The weather was chilly, her feet had been made cold by the wind.
Conrad didn’t rush to put her shoes on, instead, he first held her delicate foot in his hand, then raised the second one, warming them with his palms.
President Sterling didn’t forget he was a germaphobe, but lately, his relationship with Anna had grown increasingly intimate.
The woman finally seemed willing to accept him, Conrad seized the opportunity over the past few days to emphasize his role as her man. Every night, he strongly asserted himself, alongside compromises and pleas hidden within tenderness.
Conrad had carefully observed every inch of Anna, loving each part, treating them all as treasures.
Watching him take out a handkerchief to wipe the dirt off her soles, Anna suddenly asked, "Conrad, how did you find me here?"
"You definitely installed a tracking system on my phone!"
Conrad didn’t deny it: "Without it, how do you think I managed to save you when Holly went crazy?" Content orıginally comes from n͟o͟v͟e͟l͟f͟i͟r͟e͟.net
"You installed tracking on my phone, constantly monitoring my whereabouts to control me, yet you say it’s for my sake. And when you left my father to die, who was that for?"
Hearing this, Conrad’s pupils shook.
His hand holding her foot stayed still, while the other hand holding the handkerchief tightened, trembling slightly.
After a moment of silence, Conrad looked at Anna: "What are you trying to say?"
"Someone told me a story about a crime organization called ’Psyche’. Most members were women, trained to seduce wealthy businessmen domestically and internationally with the aim of embezzling money. Once the property transfer was achieved, they’d ruin their targets, taking the money to live carefree lives. This organization’s methods were shockingly ruthless, terrifying wealthy businessmen nationwide for a long period. Later, it was said the organization disappeared, you destroyed it? Good job, Conrad, you really have a sense of justice!"
Anna praised him, but the man’s expression turned darker.
Anna pulled her foot back, put her shoes on herself, and continued, "Holly was a member of that organization, wasn’t she?"
Conrad’s palm lost all warmth.
"According to my dad’s friends, you once discussed cooperation with the Thornton Family, which coincidentally was also when Holly first met my dad. After my dad and Holly confirmed their relationship, Sterling Group’s collaboration with the Thornton Family was decided to end. Quite the coincidence!"
Anna’s lips curled into a sneer: "I’ve been sitting here thinking, thinking about our relationship, thinking about your thoughts four years ago. Yet I still can’t figure out, when seeing ’Psyche’s remaining members deliberately approaching the Thornton Family, where did your justice go?"
"Don’t tell me you didn’t recognize Holly back then! Conrad, I know your skills, I don’t believe you would leave any loose ends. As for Attorney White who conspired with Holly, after his last visit to Veridia he vanished, because you don’t want him to recognize you, right?"
As Conrad remained silent, Anna chuckled, her heart turning colder.
She continued, "You visited my dad the night before he passed, Attorney White was discussing the will with him at the hospital, and you drove him out upon arrival. Nobody heard your conversation with my father that night, but a friend of my dad visited that night, saw you leading people out with authority from the ward, my dad went through emergency rescue three times. He can attest you at least until my dad’s dying moments watched the Thornton Family’s situation, you watched our family collapse, didn’t you?"
"Anna..." Conrad’s face turned grim.
Anna cut him off, "Or perhaps I should ask differently, did you deliberately let Holly approach the Thornton Family? Otherwise, it’s inexplicable why you didn’t expose her when you knew she wasn’t a good person! Her presence beside my dad was to aim for the property, once securely in hand she would harm my dad, causing the Thornton Family’s downfall, you knew that! At the time, my dad considered you a business partner, inviting you to my birthday party, yet you watched as the Thornton Family walked step by step into the abyss, why were you unwilling to say even a word?"