Chapter 234
On his way back, Gavin had already heard about Mrs. Young’s death.
He was an orphan, and over the years, Mrs. Young had looked after him like a mother figure. If he came home late, she would make him a late–night snack. When the men under his command were punished for making mistakes, she would quietly bring over ointment and tend to their wounds. But she never crossed the line or interfered with how he managed his people.
She had been a genuinely kind person.
And he had always respected her.
If that drunk really was just a scapegoat, then who could possibly have hated Mrs. Young enough to kill her in such a brutal way?
“Pull every bit of security footage you can find from around the market,” Chris said, crushing out his cigarette. Then he turned and looked at Gavin. “Have your men handle it. You need to get some rest p>
When Gavin slipped away after trying to kill Fabian in the middle of the night, dirt and bits of grass had stuck to his pant leg. The second he got back, he had gone straight upstairs to report to Chris without even showering or changing.
“Yes, sir p>
After Mrs. Young’s family had been sent off, Winter remained standing there. The three o’clock sun fell across her, but there was no warmth in it at all.
She still remembered how just the evening before, she had run outside to find Chris, and Mrs. Young had hurried after her with a coat, worried she would catch cold.
And now, less than twenty–four hours later, Mrs. Young was gone.
In just a few short days, two people close to her had been taken from her.
Winter felt her chest tightening again and again, and her eyes burned.
Just then, a black sedan pulled into Blackwood Manor and slowed to a stop in the wide front courtyard.
The car door had barely opened before a large black German shepherd jumped out. Tongue hanging out, his glossy coat shining in the sunlight, he came racing straight toward her.
“General! ”
For the first time all day, surprise and happiness lit up Winter’s face.
When he was still a few steps away, General leaped at her. Winter instinctively wrapped her arms around him, but the force of it drove her backward.
Then her back hit a solid chest behind her, steadying her before the dog’s momentum could knock her over.
Chris reached out with one hand to support the panting, grinning dog in her arms. His face stayed cool and unreadable. “Do you have any idea how much he weighs now p>
He was so tall that, to accommodate the way Winter was holding the dog, he had to bend slightly. As he spoke, his breath brushed against her ear.
She turned her head away at once, her expression suddenly a little unnatural.
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Winter hitched General higher in her arms and rubbed her cheek against his warm fur. “I missed you so much, General. You sweet boy p>
General was a full–grown male German shepherd, strong, powerfully built, and always hungry.
Mr. White got out of the car, and a bodyguard stepped out behind him carrying a suitcase.
He walked over and lifted General out of Winter’s arms. “He is a little heavy. We weighed him recently. He’s up to eighty–six pounds now. That’s unusually big even for a shepherd p>
That was almost as much as Winter herself weighed.
“Mr. White, what are you doing here p>
Winter bent down and rubbed General’s head, silently mouthing, “You’re not heavy. You’re just a very healthy baby p>
Mr. White looked at her. “Mrs. Xander… Miss p>
He seemed to remember that day when Chris had said in front of all the mourners that there was no Mrs. Xander. Unsure what to call her, he looked over at Chris. “Sir, what should I call her p>
Chris answered flatly, “Whatever you want.
He turned and walked toward the house, only to hear Winter say softly behind him, “Mr. White, just call me what you used to call me when I was little p>
“All right,” Mr. White said. “Miss Winter p>
A few steps away, the man’s hand slowly clenched at his side.
“I heard about Mrs. Young. A house this big can’t be left without someone running things. I called to ask whether there was anything I could do to help, and Mr. Xander told me to come over
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Florence
A passionate storyteller who brings emotions to life through her words. When she’s not writing, she finds peace nurturing her garden.