Chapter 42 The Woman in the Photo
The so-called Deities were in fact not deities but a piece of wooden plaque carved with the birthdate and time. The four edges had locks on it, which were spray-painted red and bolted tightly to the ground.
On the right side of the plaque, there was a framed piece of bright yellow talisman and the writing on it was messy and indecipherable.
Just then, Rachel’s feet felt as if they were filled with lead. Her eyes were fixated upon the talisman and it felt as if she was about to bore a hole into it and find out what was beneath the frame.
Just then, Justin could sense that there was something wrong with her. “What’s wrong?”
However, it seemed that Rachel didn’t hear his words at all and she reached out an arm toward the talisman.
“What are you doing?” Justin pulled her back.
They must not touch a single item here. Otherwise, if Jefferey came back and saw it, he would definitely realize that someone had broken into the place and therefore it would be harder for them to obtain the formula next time if they failed to get it this time.
However, Rachel’s face was as pale as a sheet and she was still staring fixedly on the talisman with a dazed look on her.
Is she possessed?
Meanwhile, Justin frowned and admonished, “Don’t move.”
He was never a believer of spiritual objects, so he reached out his arm and immediately removed the talisman to reveal the frame behind.
There was a black-and-white artistic photo in the frame and it was evidently taken from a studio. The photo looked like it had been taken in the last century.
The woman had on a traditional outfit and she looked very young. She had a demure smile on her face which somehow looked quite familiar to Justin. He seemed to have seen her from somewhere before.
“Boohoo—“
Suddenly, there was a sobbing sound that came from behind.
Justin was momentarily shocked and he looked back to see a face filled with tears.
Rachel’s hands gripped the bookshelf tightly and her eyes were red-rimmed. Although she tried hard to suppress her emotions, she couldn’t seem to control her immense sorrow and she sobbed in a hoarse voice.
Justin glanced at her face and suddenly, he seemed to comprehend the part of the situation.
The woman in this photo was…
At that moment, Rachel’s vision was blurry. The bright-red necklace, the clear birthdate and time, coupled with that exact same photo that she had as well… Each of them seemed to be a clear indication for her.
Just then, the sound of Justin’s phone vibrations rang out from his pocket. Frustrated, he glanced at the safe right in front of him and then he took a look at Rachel.
After quite some time, he put back the talisman and dragged Rachel out of the room.
“Umphhhh—” Rachel struggled to break free as she wanted to remain there.
“Don’t look at it!” Justin reprimanded her in a low voice. “Even if you continue staring at it, she won’t be able to come back from the dead.”
This woman’s such a bother. If I knew that there would be such an accident, I might as well not get her to come along.
At the lounge of the second floor, Frankie sent a paper bag containing a gown into the room before retreating and closing the door after him.
“Mr. Burton, how did Mrs. Burton end up like this?”
Justin frowned slightly in response and he remained lost in thought. “How did Rachel’s birth mother pass away?”
Previously, he had assigned Frankie to conduct the investigation when he knew that he was going to marry Jefferey’s daughter.
Frankie paused momentarily. “It was due to a car accident.”
“Is that confirmed?”
“This was what was recorded at the police station. Mrs. Burton’s birth mother didn’t have a stable job in the past and she usually went out to work at night. Once, she consumed too much alcohol and ended up losing control. That’s how she got into a car accident and passed away.”
“What did she work as?”
“Well…” Frankie hesitated.
Truth be told, Frankie had already reported this matter to Justin in the past and it wasn’t something that was hard to find out either. In the records, Rachel’s mother provided illicit services. Because of her great looks, she was considered to be a popular hostess at one of the high-end clubs at that time and Jefferey had been a regular customer there.
“After some time, she suddenly quit and left the industry. She disappeared for quite some time and after that, Jefferey received the news that she had passed away from a car accident, leaving a young daughter behind.”
Illicit services?
Justin recalled the photo he saw at the altar. Come to think of it, Rachel had a strong resemblance to the woman in the photo and both of them had a demure and docile look—there was a clean look in their eyes. Whatever it was, she didn’t seem like one who would resort to working in such an industry.
Just then, Frankie noticed Justin’s silence and he couldn’t help asking, “I thought you went to seek for the formula today? Why are you suddenly asking about this? Did something happen?”
Upon hearing that, Justin finally recollected his thoughts. “Let’s talk about the formula another time.”
As soon as he finished his words, he raised his arm to look at his watch. “Has the dinner party started?”
“It’s started. Everyone’s waiting for you to get there and they’ve asked after you quite a few times already.”
“I’m leaving.”
“What?” Frankie asked, revealing a surprised look.
Just then, Justin replied in a low voice, “Inform Jefferey that I’ve got something else on. I’ll head back with Rachel.”
His original plan was to get Rachel to look for the safe. Once her face was captured on the footage of the surveillance camera at the corridor, then even if he took the formula with him, she would be the suspect in Jefferey’s mind.
However, he didn’t expect that there were so many disruptions which had delayed his time.
Right now, it looked like Rachel wouldn’t be able to continue attending the dinner party.
As soon as he finished his sentence, there came the sound of the door opening.
Rachel pulled open the door and stood at the entrance. Her new gown was quite figure-forming and the black-colored ruffled dress perfectly accentuated her neck and shoulders, putting her snowy-white neck on display.
It was quite evident from her eyes that she had just cried as they were tinged red from earlier, but that just made her seem more delicate than ever.
I’m fine. I can attend the dinner party.
Justin was significantly stunned by her response.
Meanwhile, it was dark out and the ballroom was filled with people.
Amber was currently chatting with her friend. Mid-conversation, one of the waiters handed over a bottle of wine from the cellar to her. Subsequently, he leaned over to whisper something into her ear. Thereafter, she revealed a smug smile.
“What’s up, Amber? Why are you so happy about a bottle of wine?”
“What’s there to be happy about? It’s just wine,” Amber muttered as she raised her brows. “I’m happy because someone who’s overestimated herself has jumped into a trap herself without even taking a look.”
“What are you talking about?” Her friend couldn’t understand Amber’s words and surveyed the surroundings confusedly. “I thought Tina said she was coming? It’s quite late already, so why is she not here yet?”
“She left.”
“Left? When did that happen?”
Amber then mentioned with a meaningful tone, “Her well-kept secret was revealed so she’s busy sorting things out. I don’t think she will be in the mood to join the dinner party. If I were her, I would definitely be trying to figure out how to kill off the person who knows my secret.”
“Kill someone? What in the world is going on?” her friend questioned with a frown. “I really don’t know what you’re talking about anymore.”
As she said that, someone standing next to them suddenly said, “Justin’s here.”
Amber’s expression brightened upon hearing that and she stood up from the couch immediately. She hurriedly checked her hair and straightened her clothes. Then, she followed everyone’s gaze and glanced in that direction.
“Isn’t that your elder sister?”
In fact, Amber had already seen the duo as soon as her friend’s words hit her ears.
Standing at the staircase, Justin was dressed in a crisp, black tuxedo and his expression was as cold as before. The terrifying scar on his face did nothing to hide his good looks and right now, he was walking toward the middle of the ballroom.
Rachel was his partner and she had changed into a black-colored ball gown. At the moment, she held onto his arm and had an elegant and composed look on her face. In truth, their arrival was quite harmonious and they looked the perfect match.
However, this scene was quite jarring to Amber.
All of a sudden, she clenched her fingers tightly and her newly manicured nails pierced into her palm, practically piercing through her flesh.
Rachel’s able to attend tonight’s dinner with Justin and she exhibits such composure too! Is she showing off in front of everyone and mocking me?
