Chapter 356
Chapter 356:
Kristine always insisted she and Asher were just friends, but Danica had a feeling his feelings ran far deeper. Given how serious the situation was, involving him made sense. Even though Asher no longer headed the Edwards Group, he still had access to the family’s considerable resources — which could only help in the search.
“That won’t be necessary,” Colton responded sharply.
A jolt of apprehension shot through Danica. She glanced up and saw that every trace of warmth had vanished from his face. Her hands tightened into fists. “But p>
“Do you doubt I can handle this myself?” Colton cut her off, his head tilting just slightly, his eyes locking onto her with frosty intensity.
Her throat tightened. “No — that’s not what I meant at all p>
“Good. Then don’t involve Asher.” His attention shifted away from her as he addressed the technicians working on the surveillance footage.
S𝘩𝗮𝗿𝘦 𝘺𝗼𝘂𝗋 𝘁ho𝘂𝗀h𝘁𝘀 оո
A moment later, one of them spoke up. “Mr. Yates, we’ve managed to recover the footage p>
Without missing a beat, Colton crossed the room in swift, purposeful strides and approached the screen.
Watching him, Danica realized there was no point in arguing further. She let go of her plan to contact Asher.
The minutes dragged.
Elsewhere, in the abandoned factory, two men dumped a sack overflowing with cash onto the filthy floor. The damp, rotting smell in the air didn’t bother them at all.
“We’re finally getting out of this mess,” the younger one said, barely containing his excitement.
A look of quiet satisfaction settled on the older man’s face.
The two were brothers, orphaned at an early age. By the time the elder turned ten, he had already taken his little brother under his wing, and together they had learned to survive on their own. Survival pushed them through countless hardships, and as the years passed, the older brother came to realize that every quick route to money seemed to run straight through criminal territory.
They followed that path — starting with petty theft, escalating to robbery, and eventually crossing the line into murder. He had once believed that taking a life would guarantee a comfortable retirement. Reality proved far harsher. Their cut from contract killings amounted to a mere two hundred thousand, barely enough to scrape by while constantly looking over their shoulders. Resentment simmered the longer they dwelled on it.
In time, they devised a more efficient approach — taking work directly from clients through the black market and cutting out the intermediaries entirely. When Kristine’s case came up, they seized the opportunity with high hopes.
To their amazement, everything had gone off without a hitch.
For a family of relatively little standing, five million had come easily. They couldn’t begin to imagine what Colton might be willing to pay to get the woman he loved back. Dreams of sudden fortune made them giddy, laughter bubbling out as they pictured the future.
A sudden thought struck the elder brother. He nudged his sibling quickly. “Kristine’s our ticket. Go give her the bread and water we brought — don’t keep her waiting p>
“Okay.” The younger brother grabbed the supplies and hurried to the warehouse next door. When he spotted Kristine, a proud grin lit up his face. “Five million, just like that. You’re something else. What should we do now p>