Chapter 33
Chapter 33
What’s going on? What is the meaning behind that smile?
Although Irvin was freaking out, he still took out his phone and dialed Ethan’s number as soon as the elevator doors slid shut. Even if he failed to stop Alice from leaving, he should at least inform Ethan about the matter.
“Boss, I failed to keep her here. She left.”
“I’m already here. When did she leave?” Ethan’s voice was carried over the phone swiftly without the slightest pause.
“Huh? You’re already here? She just went downstairs, so she’s in the elevator right now.” Irvin was currently feeling a swirl of emotions that he couldn’t untangle.
I don’t know whether I hope he catches her or whether he fails to catch her… But, since he is already here, then this matter has nothing to do with me anymore. I didn’t stop her from leaving. But, since he is already here, he can stop her from leaving himself!
This service apartment in West City did not have an underground garage. In other words, she could only head to the first floor by taking the elevator. Ethan had mentioned that he was already here, so he must be in the lobby on the first floor. There was only one exit in this service apartment. He would be able to stop her from leaving as long as he waited on the first floor. With his abilities, nobody could possibly escape his clutches if he was intent on capturing them.
“Boss, she knows somebody is trying to stop her from leaving.” Irvin felt that it was essential to inform Ethan about the situation.
When he thought back to the smile she showed him just as the elevator doors closed, he suddenly felt uneasy. Her smile indicated that she clearly knew something. Moreover, she seemed as though she
had a countermeasure to evade Ethan.
“Okay,” Ethan responded softly. He was standing right in front of the elevator in the lobby on the first floor. Exclusive © content by N(ô)ve/l/Drama.Org.
On the other hand, Caleb, who came along with Ethan, was blocking the entrance to the stairway. It would be impossible for Alice to escape at this rate.
Ethan glanced at the numbers displayed on the elevator display. The elevator came down from the sixth floor and stopped on the fifth floor. His eyebrows twitched slightly at the sight.
“The elevator has stopped on the fifth floor. Does she plan to get off on the fifth floor? Or is she deliberately doing this to throw us off her trail?” Irvin was currently standing at the elevator entrance on the sixth floor, so it stood to reason that he had seen the same thing. At this moment, he was on the phone with Ethan. “Boss, I believe she might be deliberately trying to lure you upstairs.”
In his opinion, this possibility was relatively high.
However, isn’t she underestimating Ethan? Ethan would not be so easily fooled. The entire service apartment only had one entrance. Regardless of which floor she got off the elevator, she would eventually need to leave through the entrance. The best plan was to continue guarding the entrance.
The elevator did not stop for long on the fifth floor. Finally, after it stopped for two to four seconds, the elevator started moving again.
Based on the number displayed on the elevator display, Ethan and Irvin could clearly see that the elevator had stopped once more on the fourth floor.
“What’s going on? The elevator has stopped again! Did she get off on the fifth floor? Of course, there’s also the possibility that the elevator was stopped by somebody else who wanted to get on the elevator.”
Irvin was out of wits.
“Can you spare somebody to check the surveillance cameras?” Unfortunately, Ethan was waiting in the first-floor lobby and could not go upstairs. Hence, he was also clueless about the current situation!
“Sure. There are around twenty more minutes before we reach our turn in the Eastburgh Design Project, but I don’t need to go there personally. I will check the surveillance cameras immediately.” Irvin felt as though he was playing a part in an action movie, and the suspense was killing him. This mystery so absorbed his attention that he no longer placed much importance on the Eastburgh Design Project.
Naturally, the main reason behind his attitude was due to his confidence in the proposal. He felt that there was no need to worry about the project with such an ace in his hands.
At this moment, he simply wanted to know what was going on with that woman. But, even more than that, he wished to know if Ethan could successfully capture the woman!
Who will win and who will lose in the face-off between that woman and Ethan?
The surveillance room happened to be on the sixth floor and nearby. He also happened to know somebody on the inside, so he quickly gained access to the surveillance footage of the elevator.
At first glance, there was nothing unusual about the footage from the surveillance camera. The displayed image seemed ‘normal’. But, when he took a closer look, he couldn’t help thinking that something was wrong. He tried to adjust the image on the screen and…
Before he could figure out what was happening, the screen went black the next second.
It wasn’t just the surveillance footage of the elevator that had gone black, but all the surveillance footage. So, therefore, one could say that someone had destroyed the entire surveillance system of the service apartment!
The timing was far too coincidental for it to be mere chance. If he was slightly earlier, then he could have seen something. If he were any later, he would not have been as depressed as he was now.
“Boss, somebody destroyed the surveillance footage.” Irvin’s voice carried a hint of disbelief. He thought the woman was only impressive when it came to writing proposals. It would now seem that he was sorely mistaken. She had even managed to hack into the surveillance footage. Just how many tricks did she have up her sleeve?
She had obviously made all her preparations before she got on the elevator. Just as expected of somebody introduced by Justin.
Ethan was far from surprised that things would turn out this way. It was the same method that she deployed this morning. Likewise, it was also identical to what happened seven years ago. The surveillance footage had been thoroughly destroyed, leaving not the slightest trace behind.
At this moment, he became even more confident that she was the person he had been looking for. He wasn’t mistaken.
There was no way he would make such a mistake!
She had slipped through his fingers once. But, no matter what kind of method she used this time, he would not allow her to flee from his grasp.
The elevator stopped once more on the third floor.
“Boss, is she stopping at every single floor?” The surveillance footage had been destroyed, so Irvin returned to stand in front of the elevator on the sixth floor. His expression was confused. “What is she trying to do? Is this some sort of psychological tactic?”
If this was indeed some sort of psychological tactic, then he had to admit that her tactic was undoubtedly beguiling.
He did not understand what Ethan was thinking. Besides, his entire being was currently suspended in a state of bewilderment.
Anybody with no patient bone in their body would have lost their cool with the way she was stopping at every single floor. At the very least, he was already at the end of his patience.
Could she be doing this to lure Ethan upstairs? Then, she could divert his attention and find an opportunity to escape.
Unfortunately, he was intelligent and would not fall for her tricks so easily. If that was the plan she was trying to achieve, then her tactic might not be effective.
Irvin suddenly thought of another possibility. “Boss, if the elevator stops at the second floor, would she get off the elevator on the second floor and leave the building by climbing out a window? The second floor is not that high. She could pull that off without a hitch as long as she has some skill.”
“I’ve already thought of that and made arrangements in advance.” Ethan was a brilliant man. He had already considered this possibility, so he made arrangements for such a possibility a long time ago.
After all, he was well aware of how skillful that woman was!
“You’re amazing indeed, Boss!” Irvin couldn’t help feeling a sense of admiration. Every one of them is so amazing!
“Boss, I’ll go down and help you… take a look.” He couldn’t help feeling somewhat guilty since he had failed to prevent the woman from leaving earlier.
More than that, he felt like the cat from the quote, ‘curiosity killed the cat, but satisfaction brought it back’. It was a sense of restlessness and anticipation toward the situation’s ending.
He wanted to go downstairs and watch the scene unfold. Especially when he recalled her enigmatic smile when the elevator doors closed behind her, he could not fight his impulsive urge to go downstairs.
At this moment, the elevator started moving again and arrived on the third floor.
Irvin entered the other elevator. After some serious consideration, he pressed the button for the second floor. Based on her history, she might make a pit stop on the second floor.