Chapter 435:
A memory flickered through Freya’s mind, a remnant from her days of binge-watching dramas, where a joke had circulated: “If the villain is handsome, his misdeeds are often overlooked.”
Back then, she had scoffed, never finding the villains particularly magnetic.
But now, as she observed Kristian—transformed into a persona that seemed almost unnatural—Freya’s instincts sharpened.
Although his actions toward her were far less sinister than any villain’s, his striking looks and mesmerizing voice made it perilously easy to gloss over any past conflicts.
Kristian caught the subtle shift in Freya’s demeanor from serene to wary, and though his face betrayed nothing, confusion flickered through his mind.
He hadn’t made a single move, yet Freya seemed tensed, as if bracing for an unwelcome surprise.
“Alan.” Freya’s voice cut through the tense silence, sharp and commanding.
At his desk, Alan was engrossed in scrutinizing the camera footage. Her call jolted him from his focus, and he strode toward the study with a quick, determined pace.
By the time he reached them, his expression had shifted into a cool, collected mask. “What’s up?”
Freya didn’t miss a beat. “Mr. Shaw has calculated the damages from last night to be 999 dollars,” she stated, her tone even. “Please transfer the money to him.”
Alan’s eyebrows twitched in a barely noticeable frown. Doubt gnawed at him. He turned to Kristian, seeking confirmation, his voice tinged with skepticism. “Mr. Shaw, are you sure it’s only 999 dollars?” His gaze had swept over the array of high-end smart appliances earlier, and the figure seemed implausibly low.
Surely, Kristian’s losses from the previous night’s chaos extended beyond a mere smartphone?
“Yes, $999,” Kristian affirmed, his expression unyielding, as unreadable as stone.
𝘾𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙡𝙚𝙣? 𝙍𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙤𝙧𝙞𝙜𝙞𝙣𝙖𝙡 𝙖𝙩 𝖌ⲁ𝗅𝗇𝗈ν𝖊𝗅𝘀．𝖼𝗈𝗺
With no visible damage to dispute the amount, Alan reluctantly processed the transfer, his mind still wrestling with the numbers as he sent the funds to Kristian’s account.
What he didn’t realize was that Kristian had spent the day industriously replacing the damaged items and had even managed to seamlessly repair a slightly scuffed floor tile.
“Done,” Alan declared, presenting the transaction record to Freya with a flourish.
Upon confirming that Kristian had indeed received the payment, Freya sensed it was their cue to depart, the air thick with unspoken tension. “If you think of any other damages later, don’t hesitate to reach out to Alan,” she suggested with a polite, distant tone.
“Alright,” Kristian concurred, his voice tinged with a touch of resignation.
He couldn’t pinpoint exactly what had soured Freya’s mood again, but it was palpable that she still didn’t want to meet him.
Wisely, he refrained from asking them to linger, not wanting to push his luck or make things any more awkward than they already were. Freya responded with a noncommittal grunt and signaled to Alan that it was time to go.
Alan shot her a sideways glance, his brow furrowing slightly—his eyes practically asking, “Wait, aren’t we forgetting my apology?”
Freya’s eyes shot back a silent message. “I’ve already taken care of the apology for you.”
Stunned, Alan struggled to process her cryptic response.
But then a cold thought struck him—what about the security footage?
“Hey Mina, I’ll be right back—I need to hit the restroom,” Alan announced abruptly, stalling for a moment to figure out how to convince Kristian to erase the footage.
Freya’s eyes lingered on Alan for a beat longer than necessary. She couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off with him today. Kristian had picked up on it too, though he kept his thoughts to himself and simply gestured toward the restroom.
.
.
.