Rachel went out alone and drove to a suburban cemetery.
Jolly was actually worried about Rachel going out on her own, but it was better to have fewer people involved in what Rachel was doing. She knew very well that it would only make things difficult if she insisted on following.
When Rachel arrived at the cemetery, Janice was already there waiting for her for quite some time.
The cemetery was probably the quietest place in Riverdale. It was always silent, no matter whether day or night. Other than the groups of people coming here during All Souls Day to honor the departed, not even a shadow could be seen here during ordinary days.
In fact, since Rachel’s spy identity was already exposed and ‘S’ was coming after her, it was actually unnecessary to meet at such a secluded place. Yet, Janice asked to meet here, and Rachel felt that it was natural to meet here too since Hans was buried here; the reason for her accepting the spy mission was buried here.
“Janice.”
“Oh, you’re here.” Janice turned around and smiled at Rachel. Behind her was Hans’ tomb, with a small bouquet of fresh daisies on top of it.
Seeing that, Rachel asked, “You bought flowers? Today’s not any special day, though.”
With a faint smile, Janice answered, “I didn’t buy it. I just picked them up by the road. Since there are no flowers in the cemetery other than the evergreen trees, I wanted to bring him some flowers to let him know that winter has passed.”
“Right. It’s already spring,” Rachel said melancholically. Then, she looked at Janice and wore a smile. “You weren’t this sentimental previously. Why are you acting so differently today?”
“Does this count as sentimental?”
“Does it not?”
“If you say it is, it is then.” Janice always had a straightforward personality, so she didn’t mind details like these. “Mr. Egerton called me two days ago, telling me Jessica is doing well in school. She even applied to volunteer during the holidays.”
“She has grown up already, slowly maturing.”
“Mr. Egerton also asked me to thank you.”
Rachel was stunned when she heard that. Since Hans’ death, she was ashamed to face anyone from the Egerton Family. This was also probably the reason why the Egertons didn’t contact her for such a long time. Even when Jessica landed into trouble in Riverdale, Hans’ father looked for Janice right away.
“What for? I didn’t do anything.”
“Thank you for getting things off Jessica’s chest. Only the one who caused the trouble could fix it. If it wasn’t for you, Jessica wouldn’t have given up on finding her foe. She would’ve lived with the grudge and wouldn’t have enjoyed her life.”
“That’s the least I could do.” Rachel was still feeling the guilt for Hans’ death.
Janice patted her shoulder and told her, “Don’t overthink it. Hans would want you to live a good life too. You should move on.”
“By the way, let’s talk business. I asked you here to show you something.” She then took out an envelope from the pocket of her coat. The opening of the envelope was folded, but it was not sealed. She gave it to Rachel right away.
After accepting the envelope, Rachel opened it and took out a stack of photos from it. “What are these?”
“Have you seen this woman before?”
Startled, Rachel looked closely at the person in the photos. The woman in the photos was wearing a traditional women’s suit. She had short hair and handsome features, but she didn’t give off a righteous aura like Janice. Instead, there was something sinister about her.
“She looks quite familiar, but I don’t think I’ve seen her before.” Rachel’s tone was hesitant.
If she had seen the woman before, it was impossible for her to forget the woman. Her face was quite outstanding, and her aura was extraordinary too, so she believed she might not have seen her. However, her features, especially her eyes, looked very familiar, but she couldn’t tell where she had seen those eyes before.
“Who’s this?”
“The secretary of Yatruinia’s Department of Commerce. She has some connections with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Although she’s under a non-governmental commerce chamber, she has the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ support from the back, so she has a close connection with the royalty.”
“Yatruinia?” This little country appeared too many times in Rachel’s life, forcing her to pay attention to it. Since Janice mentioned it, it should be something really important.
“What are you suspecting?” she continued asking.
“This woman’s last name is Porter, Genevieve Porter.”
“Porter? Is she under ‘S’?”
“I’m not sure about that yet since Porter is a very common last name in Yatruinia. I’m just guessing, so I took the photos here to ask you and see if you have any ideas. After all, other than Coraline, you’re the only spy who has had in-depth contact with their group.”
“I’ve never seen her before.” Rachel shook her head.
“It’s okay. It’s even better if you didn’t, or else…”
“Or else?”
“Yatruinia’s Department of Commerce is reaching out to Riverdale. If everything goes well, they will work with Riverdale’s Merchants Bureau and some local corporations to develop a free trade port.”
“They’re developing a free trade port in Riverdale?”
“There’s a port in Riverdale that’s quite near to Yatruinia. Our government always had the intention of developing that area, so it’s a good opportunity now. I’m just worried that since the smuggling problem is not solved yet, developing a trading port will only let those people exploit it.”
“So, you’re looking into the people in the Department of Commerce?”
“Yup, but it looks like I was just overthinking.” Janice heaved a sigh of relief. “I’m really tense these days. Maybe I’m affected by what happened to you and Justin. So, I’m quite worried about Coraline.”
“There’s still no news from her?”
“It’s quite normal to have no news from her for a year or so. Maybe I’m just overthinking.”
Rachel placed the photos back into the envelope and handed them back to Janice. “Don’t always be so tense. You need to take some time to relax too. After all, you need to have your own life, right?”
“I know. Sorry for holding you for so long. You should go back.”
“Are you not leaving?”
“I’m staying a little longer.”
Looking at Janice’s figure, Rachel still didn’t ask her the question that she had had at the back of her mind for a long time.
Janice had been single throughout these years. She said her life was dedicated to working, and everyone had seen it too. But other than work, Rachel always felt that there should be some other reason why she found it hard to tell others.
There might be someone she can’t forget until today. Those who can’t move forward are those with baggage.
Before she left, she couldn’t help but take another glance at Hans’ tomb. How nice it would be if he’s still alive.
On the other hand, Julian appeared with the support of Yatruinia’s Department of Commerce at the business cocktail party. At once, he became the focus of the meeting. Almost everyone there was sure that when this meeting ended, Riverdale’s Burton Group would definitely be the one to sign the contract.
The leader of the Merchants Bureau was also shaking hands with Julian and Genevieve. The atmosphere was very harmonious.
Meanwhile, Justin and Lionel were standing far from the center of focus.
“Mr. Hudson, it’ll be too late if you still don’t shoot your shot,” said Justin.
Hearing that, Lionel looked at him and put on a surprised look. “Why are you so sure that I still have a hole card?”
“You wouldn’t be here in the first place if you didn’t have an ace up your sleeves.”
Lionel isn’t merely going against Julian alone, but he’s facing the whole of Riverdale’s Burton Group and all of Julian’s support. How could he get revenge for his daughter with just words?
“Are you still not going to show your hole card?”
