novelxo Chapter 1928
The two men before him had most likely done many wicked things without even batting an eyelid; they were real criminals.
But in Jefferson's eyes, they were nothing more than circus clowns.
"You don't need to put on a menacing farce with those glare of yours. Don't you feel uncomfortable staring at me with your eyes wide open like that?" asked Jefferson with a chuckle. The two men did not answer, thoroughly confused.
Jefferson brushed the dust off his shoulder and said, "Since you've let me get to this point, you must know why I'm here. Please lead me to the person I came here to meet."
After a couple of seconds, the thinner man of the two stepped forward and told him, "Mr. Hefner, Stephen knows you're here for him, so he's been waiting for you. But before you meet him, we'll have to frisk you."
"Of course. I'm not here to fight today. I'll do whatever you ask me to," Jefferson acquiesced and raised his hands. "Check to your hearts' content, but please make it quick. I don't have the patience to dawdle around wasting time with you people."
The two men hurried forward. One of them frisked Jefferson while the other searched his car. After confirming that he had no weapons or any wiretapping equipment on him, they took his cell phone. Jefferson then entered the house.
The exterior of the house looked just like any other houses in the area. It was a three-story high with white bricks all around. The hall on the first floor looked ordinary as well. But they didn't stop there; the two men led Jefferson straight up to the second floor.
Jefferson expected the second floor to be very different from the first. Perhaps it would be decorated luxuriously with glitz and gold. However, upon entering, he realized that the interior of the house, too, was just as ordinary as any other house. Apart from the bare necessities like a sofa and some other decorative items, there was nothing much.
The henchmen brought Jefferson upstairs and left silently. The person Jefferson intended to meet wasn't there, so he stood alone in the empty hall.
Jefferson looked around. The room was decorated in a plain and simple manner, but there were subtle quirks to it. For example, the painting hanging on the wall was equipped with miniature pinhole cameras that most ordinary people would probably not notice. Someone was watching his every move.
Jefferson was already there by himself, but the man he was waiting to see had not shown up. What was he waiting for? Did he not believe that Jefferson had not brought any accomplices?
"I drove here alone for two hours, but I haven't even been offered a glass of water. Is this how you treat your guests?" asked Jefferson.
The words barely left him before Jefferson heard the sound of a door opening on the third floor. Then, a middle-aged man, propped up by a young and beautiful woman, descended the stairs slowly. "Stephen, it's already this late. You should just leave him to me. Why do you have to come and see him yourself?"
Jefferson recognized the woman who spoke. They had met not long ago at a bar, where she had set him up. It was none other than Ninetina.
The middle-aged man said, "Because he is a distinguished guest. I have to meet him in person to show my sincerity."
As for that middle-aged man, Jefferson was extremely familiar with him. To be precise, he could not know him better if he tried. Jefferson had known this man for more than twenty years,
after all.
It was then that Jefferson realized crystal-clear, time meant nothing when it came to truly knowing a person.
Jefferson was surprised, but it only showed for a brief moment in his eyes. The fruit of his investigation was somehow unexpected, yet not at the same time when he thought about it. He understood all the questions he had at that moment.
Jefferson's guess was right after all. The dismembered corpses from two years ago was someone else, not Sheridan.
Sheridan had "died" two years ago but it turned out he had been living freely under a new identity, Stephen Carter. Had he even bothered to consider how his only daughter had been living for the past two years?
Now that Jefferson's hunch was confirmed, he did not know whether to laugh or cry, so he merely said, "I never expected to see you again in this lifetime."
"Yes, I've never thought that we would meet again under such circumstances." Stephen, supported by Ninetina, went over to Jefferson and stood beside him. Like a kind elder, he looked at Jefferson and asked, "Long time no see, Jefferson. How have you been?" "With you taking such good care of me, I've been doing great, of course," said Jefferson with a smile.
"Ha, ha, ha..." Stephen burst out laughing. "I didn't expect you to be just the same as you were before. You speak and act so casually without any care about the consequences."
"You're right. I'm still the same old Jefferson I was all those years ago. But you are no longer the person you used to be. For all you've done thus far, you deserve to die ten times over." Jefferson stared straight at him, as if he was trying to read his mind and understand what was going on in his mind.
"Jefferson, don't overstep..." Ninetina shouted at him, but she was halted by Stephen. She said discontentedly, "Stephen..."
Stephen patted her hand, comforting her. Then he looked at Jefferson and said, "Everyone dies sooner or later. They won't live longer just for being a good person, nor will they die ten times over just for being evil. That's the reality, don't you think, Jefferson?"
Looking at the fake smile of the man in front of him, Jefferson felt like he had met his match. Compared to that sly old fox, his banter was nowhere near good enough. He said, "Just because you'll die eventually? That's why you chose to turn to a life of crime?"
Stephen raised his hand and patted Jefferson on the shoulder lightly. "Look at you. You're not the respectful man you used to be. You used to greet me politely whenever we met. Now, you don't even do that anymore. You shouldn't act that way to your elders."
"Huh! Do you think you deserve any respect from me?" asked Jefferson with a sneer.
Stephen's smile never left his face. It looked kind, but behind that facade was a flash of viciousness. "You think you can disrespect me just because you've got Adrienne by your side now?"
"Shut up!" Jefferson shouted abruptly. He gazed right into Stephen's eyes, the look in his eyes morphing from disappointment to fury. "You have relinquished your right to say her name since you chose to go down this path."
"Oh, if I don't have that right, then who does? You?" Stephen laughed out loud, "Adrienne is my daughter. My blood flows through her body. If it weren't for me, she would not exist in this world. We are father and daughter. That's a fact that no one can change."
Jefferson was trying his best to maintain his composure. But at the mention of Adrienne, he couldn't hold it in anymore.
He had decided to go alone because he had hoped he would be able to settle everything and not let Adrienne get hurt by the truth.
Jefferson gnashed his teeth and hissed, "If Adrienne found out she had a father like you, I think she would rather drain every last drop of blood from her body than admitting to being your daughter."