Before Matthias’ arrival, Leon connected his laptop to the satellite and found out Heather’s whereabouts. It had been a long while yet she was still on the roads, reluctant to head home.
Accordingly, Leon attempted to call her, only to find out that she had turned her phone off. No wonder! He revealed a helpless grin as he mused, She’s so persistent!
Looks like his actions had hurt her. Since he was unable to support his friend into doing the wrong things, he could only think of righting her wrongs.
Even now, Leon was trying to prove that point with his actions—baiting Matthias to see how concerned he was about Heather.
If Matthias chose to be smart and strategic in this case, that would prove he hadn’t fallen deep enough for her. Back when Leon was all in for Heather, the Langstons used her as bait to lure him home. Although he considered himself sharp-witted, he didn’t contemplate too much back then and eventually fell for such ridiculous excuses. Perhaps he was blinded by love!
Now, Leon wished to draw the same card—luring Matthias over. And all he had to do next was to wait for the latter to knock on his door.
Surprisingly, Matthias showed up much faster than he had expected. Pulling the door open, Leon saw a drenched Matthias standing outside.
Looking at Matthias, who was soaked after running around under the storm without an umbrella, Leon felt a gush of satisfaction in his heart. After all, they were technically love rivals.
“How may I help you?” Leon pretended as if he didn’t already know Matthias.
“Is Heather here?” Matthias inquired with a frighteningly dark expression. Terrified, Leon swore to himself not to reveal to Matthias that it was him behind the text message.
“Why are you looking for her?” Leon acted as if he was clueless.
Gazing at him, Matthias responded, “I know you’re her junior, so she must be inside. Let me in!”
Leon then looked at him perplexedly as he countered, “What a load of bull! Have you lost it?” he muttered as he pointed at his head.
“Sod off!” Shoving him away, Matthias entered the room as he yelled, “Heather? Heather!”
Although Leon stayed in one of the most luxurious rooms, the room wasn’t at all complex as everything fell in sight at the entrance. Crossing his arms, Leon stated, “She left earlier, so she won’t respond even if you shout yourself hoarse.”
Upon hearing that Heather was no longer here, Matthias turned around and walked toward the exit, only to be stopped by Leon. Upon seeing that, the former said, “Let me through.”
Snickering, Leon scorned, “You enter and exit as you want. What do you think my place is?” Of course, at that moment, he had to irritate Matthias in order to see how perturbed the other man was.
“Please move—I wish to look for Heather. Do you know where she is?” Truth was, he could not stop worrying, not until he found Heather.
“And I wish to know why you are here and what’s your business with her.” Leon was so into his act that the disdain on his face seemed genuine.
“Tell me where did she go.” Suddenly, Matthias grasped Leon’s collar, effectively exhibiting his fighting skills that were higher than that of Heather’s. With just a swing of an arm, he quickly subdued Leon.
“Ouch! Let go of me. I can’t breathe!” Not expecting Matthias to be so terrifying when he got triggered, Leon figured that he should proceed with a rather amicable method or he would be digging himself a grave.
“So do you know where she is?” Matthias repeated the question as he was about to lift Leon up with one hand, effectively making the latter slightly panicked.
The reddened eyes and threatening gestures all indicated his love for Heather. Seeing that, Leon was almost sure that he indeed cared about her.
“I’ll need you to explain the situation to me. I’ve no idea what’s going on. For starters, do unhand me or I’ll tell you nothing,” Leon urged furiously, shocked by Matthias’ monstrous strength.
“Okay.” Despite loosening his hands, Matthias was still maintaining his scowl—a horrifying one, at that.
Meanwhile, Leon was still dazed by Matthias’ fighting skills. Although he had heard from Heather about how Matthias was really adept at fighting, he had never imagined him to be this proficient, perhaps even in another league altogether.
“Tell me what’s going on. You’re looking for her so panickedly, so what’s the urgency? If it’s so urgent, why don’t you call her? Even if I tell where she is, do you think you’re able to chase her down?” Leon continued to play pretend. In that instant, there was no way Matthias, who was about to blow a gasket, could see through Leon’s acting.
“Someone texted me saying that Heather was in danger and had me come over to Violeast Hotel to look for her. When I arrived, I went to the reception and asked whether Heather was here as a guest. I even described her appearance in detail. One of them claimed to have seen Heather and I soon found out that she was in your room. And here I am now, knocking at your door.” Matthias explained his side of the story in detail, from beginning to the end.
Upon hearing that, Leon acted as if he had an epiphany. “I see…”
“Now, can you tell me where she has gone?” Having not the time to lurk around, Matthias wished to pinpoint her location immediately.
Seemingly troubled, Leon muttered, “About that…”
“Hurry up! Don’t waste my time!” What Matthias wanted was a place, not Leon’s stressful expression.
“She’s either at the Langston Residence or…” Leon deliberately made a pause, only to see Matthias frowning tightly, as if he was going to burst into rage again.
At that point, Matthias had long become frustrated by Leon’s suspense. “Or what?” How could a man be this hesitant?
“I’m not sure if I should tell you about this because Heather didn’t want me to tell anyone…” Leon seemed unsettled, as if he was wondering whether to reveal the truth or not.
“Spit it.” Seeing that Leon was so indecisive, Matthias figured something was off and Heather must have been heading toward somewhere dangerous.
“Please, you mustn’t let her know that I’m the one who told you this.” Requesting affirmation, Leon made the matter seem so serious as if it would cost him his life if Heather were to find out he had betrayed her.
“Hurry up, then!” Matthias, on the other hand, was growing impatient. How is this guy such a p*ssy?
“Earlier, Heather mentioned that she intends to get close to Caleb. As for why, I’m afraid I’m in no place to tell you. The point is, I suspect that she’s going to look for him,” Leon finally exposed the full truth to Matthias, and what would happen next was up to the latter’s imagination.
“But why would she do that? What’s really going on?” Of course, Matthias had heard about Caleb, but he couldn’t fathom the nature of the relationship between Heather and the other man.
However, Leon simply replied, “I have no idea either. Some family feud, I reckon.” After a few seconds, he turned to Matthias with a stern face and urged, “I’ve told you everything I know. Please keep this from Heather, okay?”
In order to settle Leon down, Matthias had to give him an assurance. Thus, he nodded his head and earnestly promised, “I swear I won’t let anyone know about what happened here.”
“Honestly, I’m worried about Heather as well, but I don’t think I have the power to interfere in such a matter. If you really care about her, you have to protect her well. And remember—do not let her know I’ve told you all this. Just pretend that you know nothing and shield her discreetly,” Leon advised Matthias. After revealing his ultimate purpose, he felt immensely relieved.
“I got it.” Matthias patted him, signaling his gratitude.
“That’s all the help I can give. I think you’d better not look for her now, but you may try waiting for her at the Langston Residence. She might reach home very soon,” Leon advised Matthias.
“I’m really worried about her. Even though I don’t know who sent me the text, I can’t help but feel uneasy,” Matthias stated as he showed Leon his phone.
After scanning the message, Leon smilingly claimed, “Must have been a fake. Even the number looks sketchy.”
At once, Matthias shot him a weird gaze as he didn’t quite grasp what he meant. Realizing that, Leon scolded himself internally for speaking too much.
Very quickly, he attempted to cover up his lies and offered, “I’m good with computers so I can track down callers and senders,”
“How could you tell that the number is sketchy and the content is fake?” Matthias was not one to mess with, so he demanded a clear explanation from Leon.
“Typically, people wouldn’t use their personal numbers to send such shady texts, so the number is most likely fabricated. As for the message, it must have been a prank of some sort. Sure, Heather was here in Violeast Hotel and in my room. But the question is, why would she be in danger when she’s in my room? That’s utter bull!” Leon exclaimed, as if he was speaking facts.
Pondering on the other man’s words, Matthias thought they weren’t entirely illogical. Regardless, he couldn’t put down his worry, not until he made sure that Heather was safe.
“Just trust me and wait for her at the Langston Residence. She’ll surely return,” Leon suggested as he didn’t want Matthias to wander around aimlessly in such hazardous weather.
“But you told me she might be looking for Caleb, so why should I wait for her there?” As Matthias remembered everything vividly, Leon couldn’t dismiss him so easily.
“She’ll definitely go home so it’s best you wait for her there. Otherwise, where would you look for her in such heavy rain?” Seeing how assiduous Matthias was to detail, Leon grew slightly helpless as he became more careful with his words.
“No way. I’ll search for her right now. I’ll find her,” Matthias claimed as he was about to push Leon away and storm out the door.
“Sure, if you insist. Don’t forget to try calling her, though; she might have turned her phone on.” With that, Leon gave no more suggestions, fearing Matthias would catch him red-handed.
Before leaving the room, Matthias expressed his gratitude for sharing such critical information and he murmured, “Got it, thanks.”
“You’re welcome. Be sure to protect her! Honestly, I don’t hate you that much. In fact, I kind of think you guys are a good match,” Leon commented with a bright beam as he complimented his rival, all the while cursing himself in his heart for doing so.
Upon hearing that, Matthias, who had always thought Leon was interested in Heather, was surprised by his sudden blessing. And so, he responded with a smile, “Thank you.” With that, he quickly took his leave after voicing his last words.
