novelxo Chapter 3
Chapter 3
The office of the City Watch commander of Riverside City Watch
A graceful woman in a high-class uniform stood in front of the window with a cup of steaming coffee in hand as she listened to her subordinate’s report.
“We’ve got a rough understanding of the situation. One of the suspects involved in Josephine Beaumont’s kidnapping was Alexander Kingsley. He had been serving her father, Arthur Beaumont, as a driver for several years. The reason he took the risk to kidnap Josephine was that he had incurred a gambling debt of more than 200,000 this month. When he asked Arthur Beaumont for help, Arthur Beaumont rejected him and even fired him. That was why he grew resentful of Arthur Beaumont.
“He has two accomplices. One’s called Oliver Windsor, aka Scar. The other’s Nicholas Pembroke, aka Beanpole. They’re all Pablo Montague’s subordinates!”
“Pablo Montague?” Abigail Hampton narrowed her eyes. “Is he behind this kidnapping?”
Jonathan Kensington wasn’t sure. “It seems so, but we can’t get any incriminating info out of Oliver. But we know Pablo is Alexander’s creditor!”
He added, “One more thing. The guy who saved Josephine, Markus Blackthorn, once smashed Pablo’s head in when they
were students.”
Abigail was surprised, and then she ordered, “Find a way to get evidence of Pablo’s crimes from Oliver and Nicholas! In addition… send someone to keep an eye on Markus. He ruined the kidnapping and even cost Pablo two of his men. Coupled with their old grudge, Pablo might very well target Markus!”
“Uh…”
Jonathan hesitated for a moment before saying, “I think… Markus doesn’t need our protection!”
Abigail looked over with questioning eyes.
“We’ve investigated him. He’s fresh out of… the Greenvale Mental Institution!”
Abigail was instantly stunned. Greenvale Mental Institution was a place full of monsters!
“What’s his background?”
She was one of the few people who knew that the Greenvale Mental Institution was the highest-level mental hospital in Sinoval.
It was also the harshest interrogation institution in Sinoval.
In other words, it was a prison for VIPs!
The prison was open only for senior officials and generals… as well as special criminals of Sinoval!
No ordinary person could be found there.
Jonathan fell into a dilemma after being asked about Markus’s background.
“Markus is a local, but he’s been outstation for eight years. Based on our intel, he used his connections to enter the Legio Fenricus Commandery in the Northern Garrison eight years ago. However, there’s no record of his time at the commandery whatsoever.
“To put it simply, everything he has experienced since leaving Riverside City is a giant question mark. No one knows what he’s been through in the past eight years.”
This was strange.
Abigail was no fool. She knew very well that it was impossible for a person to have no experience in eight years.
The reason that nothing was recorded meant that someone had concealed Markus’s experience for the past eight years. “Speaking of which, Markus and Pablo had been at odds since young. Ten years ago, he sent Pablo to the hospital with a brick. Then, he started working at a bar after being forced to drop out of school. He stayed there for two years before joining the army, though no one knew what he did there. When he appeared again, he was fresh out of the Greenvale Mental Institution. Talk about an interesting life!”
Abigail’s eyes lit up with a trace of curiosity.
What kind of person was Markus exactly?
Abigail pondered for a moment before saying, “We should consider letting the two of them meet.”
“Miss!”
“Miss
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Chapter 3
By the time Markus and Josephine left the City Watch, it was already evening. The setting sun cast a layer of afterglow over the city.
Two luxury vans were parked outside the City Watch.
A middle-aged man dressed as a butler stood in front of the vans with eight bodyguards standing neatly behind him.
“Thank you for saving me today!”
Josephine nodded to the bodyguards before looking at Markus gratefully.
If it hadn’t been for this seemingly lustful young man’s help, she would’ve been in trouble beyond imagination.
“That’s it? You’re just going to thank me verbally?”
Markus asked matter-of-factly.
Josephine blushed. Of course, she knew what Markus meant. She looked a little embarrassed and said, “I know you were joking before! But don’t worry. Leave me your number. My dad won’t let you help me in vain!”
Markus naturally understood what she meant. She intended to give him a sum of money to express her gratitude.
As for marrying him in repayment…
How was that possible?
He cleared his throat.
He was actually just joking.
He was a man of principle.
Though, he would gladly accept the high thank-you fee.
Markus grinned and said sincerely, “Thank you, Miss Beaumont. Call me if you need help again. Oh, but… I don’t have a phone.”
Josephine was taken aback. “Are you kidding?”
How could modern people not have phones?
“I’m 100% serious. Why don’t you give me your number so I can call you instead?”
“Well… okay.” Josephine hesitated for a moment before asking the butler to give her a pen and paper. She wrote her number on the paper and asked, “Where do you live? Do you want us to give you a ride?”
“It’s okay. I live nearby.”
“See you then?”
“See you.”
Suddenly, Josephine stopped Markus. “Hey, I have a question for you!”
Markus turned around blankly.
“Do you really have… mental illness?” Josephine asked with some embarrassment.
Markus paused for a moment. “No.”
“So the diagnosis report is fake?”
“It’s real.”
Josephine didn’t understand.
“It’s all in the past.”
A gust of wind blew in the night sky.
Markus was lost in thought.
There was sadness in the air.
When the two luxury vans were gone, Markus smirked and threw the paper with Josephine’s number into the trash can next
to him.
Judging from the luxury vans and the bodyguard lineup, it was obvious that Josephine came from a well-off family.
If he asked her for money without any shame, he was sure that she would give him a hefty sum.
Henight even get hundreds of thousands of dollars.
If it had been eight years ago, Markus would have thought that he had hit the jackpot.
Chapter 3
But eight years ago, he wouldn’t have the ability to save her from her situation.
Therefore, things were different now.
“I travel the country road as flowers scatter over my head; who is that young man I see, so handsome and elegant…”
Markus sang as he walked toward the west of the city with a military bag on his back.
Inside the van. Josephine looked in the rearview mirror and found that Markus was gone.
He said he wasn’t mentally ill.
She believed him.
For some reason, her heart felt empty.
“Miss Beaumont, get a good rest when you’re back and you’ll feel a lot better. What happened today won’t happen again.”
The butler sitting beside Josephine thought that she hadn’t recovered from her shock yet, so he tried to comfort her. Josephine blinked her beautiful eyes. “Do you think he’ll call me?”
The butler was stunned. “Miss, are you talking about that young man earlier?”
“Yeah.”
“Of course he will. The Beaumonts are known to be generous with our gratitude.”
“But… why do I have a feeling he won’t call?”
But even Josephine didn’t believe her own words.
Her impression of Markus was that he was someone lustful and money-grubbing.
Oh, and that he was kind of tacky.
How could someone like him give up such a large sum of gratitude fee?
“Markus. Markus Blackthorn.”
Josephine couldn’t help thinking of the scene when Markus introduced himself.
He had looked very… handsome then.
A man with such a name should be more dignified.
The western part of the city was packed at twilight.
Markus breathed in the air greedily.
This was no doubt the smell of his hometown.
In the past eight years, everything had changed.
On the opposite side of the street was a bar that had just been refurbished.
Fortunately, they didn’t change the signboard.
However, why was the signboard of the Leaky Goblet crooked?
It was as if something had just happened to the bar.
The cripple at the door cut a desolate figure as he locked the door.
His back looked very familiar.
Markus approached him silently.
The cripple seemed to have sensed something and slowly turned around. When his gaze fell on Markus, he was stunned. “Mark!”
Markus dropped his military bag to the ground and took a deep breath. “Mr. Harrington!”
Smack!
Sebastian Harrington looked to be in his thirties. He limped toward Markus and slapped him on the shoulder. “Kid, why didn’t you tell me you were coming back? Don’t you care about my feelings anymore?”
“Sorry for not telling you earlier. I had to come back rather suddenly.”
Earlier today, Benjamin Wellington suddenly came to Greenvale Mental Institution and released him.
He took a plane back to Riverside straight after.
Chapter 3
How could it not be sudden?
“Mr. Harrington. your leg.
Sebastian raised his head with a lonely expression “You can’t expect to stay unscathed forever in this business. My leg is fine. In just a month or two…
“Why are you crippled now? Mr. Harrington, are you called Crippled now? I used to think you’d get your legs broken sooner or later for fooling around with married woment Gosh, look at what I’m saying! But fortunately, only one of your legs was broken. They really let you off easy, didn’t they…”
Sebastian almost rolled his eyes after listening to Markus’s muttering. “This is just a fracture! Don’t you see the cast?”
Markus was stunned for a moment, and then he became embarrassed. “It’s too dark to get a clear look… But how come you’re not crippled?”
He seemed to find it a pity that Sebastian wasn’t crippled.
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