Not A Small-Town Girl

"You still have a few days left. Make sure to attend the assessments at Fortress regularly."

The group exchanged puzzled glances, feeling like Danielle was giving them her last words. What was going on?

"Danielle, has something happened? You can order us around, we’ll do whatever you need."

Juniper stared at Danielle’s face, searching for any hint of what she was thinking.

"It’s nothing. Just don’t slack off. Anything else?"

Her words were firm, but there was a quiet weight to them. The industries they were involved in had risen quickly, and she feared that once she was gone, enemies would target them.

While she was around, no one dared to act openly. But if she died, their laziness could give their enemies a chance to strike.

"Danielle, are you sure you’re alright?"

Lyla, who had sensed something was off, asked cautiously. But looking at Danielle’s composed face, she almost convinced herself that she was overthinking things.

"When did you all become so chatty? Are you hoping something’s wrong with me?"

"Alright, meeting adjourned. I have other matters to attend to. Goodbye."

Danielle’s gaze lingered on her people for a moment, a brief flicker of reluctance crossing her face. These were the ones who’d fought by her side, and now, she had so little time left to share with them.

She grabbed her phone, stood up, and walked out of the meeting room.

The others didn’t follow her.

"Does anyone else feel like she was giving a farewell speech?"

"Taylor, seriously? Shut your mouth with the ’farewell’ stuff. Stop being a doomsayer."

Denny was about to blow his top. He had the same feeling, but their boss was Danielle. She was untouchable. Nothing was going to happen.

"Juniper, you’re a woman too. Did you feel something?"

Juniper shook her head. "If Danielle wanted us to know, we would have figured it out by now."

With that, Danielle left Black Web Group behind.

While fighting the masked men, she had gathered their blood. Those people were strange—invulnerable, with long claws, and barely any weaknesses. She needed to get those blood samples to the lab.

And then there was the woman. She knew she had been poisoned. Only she and her mentor knew about it. If it hadn’t been for the poison attacking her in front of her family, they wouldn’t have known either. But that woman was fully aware.

"You’ll all meet different ends," the words echoed in Danielle’s mind. She wasn’t going to stop until she found the person hiding in the shadows. She needed to send more people to protect her family.

And her unreliable mentor—she had written to him, but there was no reply. Where had he gone?

Rubbing her aching head, she started the car.

The black Bugatti sped off.

In Hillside Bay, Polly dialed the assassin’s number over and over, but it wouldn’t connect.

A terrible sense of foreboding gripped her. She feared the little bastard had succeeded, and the assassin had failed.noveldrama

Thinking of this, Polly quickly destroyed the SIM card. Luckily, it wasn’t registered in her name, and the money transfer hadn’t gone through her account.

If the truth came out, David’s temper would lead him to send someone after her. She had to stay calm—she couldn’t show any signs of panic.

"Useless bunch. Can’t even kill one person..."

A knock on the door startled her. She flinched, assuming it was the maid. "What is it? If you don’t have something important, don’t bother me!"

"It’s me, Mom. I need to talk to you." Sebastian paused, noticing her sharp tone.

"Come in."