The Sway and Slide of Love

Meanwhile, on the other side of the city, Dylan hadn't slept a wink.

He didn't even step foot into his bedroom. Instead, he'd spent the entire night in his study, staring at streams of data on his computer.

He had expected Hendrix to make a move. After all, how could he possibly do nothing now that he was back?

And yet, there was nothing. Or was it that Dylan couldn't see it yet?

No. That wasn't right. A sudden thought struck Dylan Hendrix had told everyone that he had been on a vacation.

And earlier today, Dylan had seen for himself that aside from the injury on Hendrix's arm, there wasn't a single mark on him. Which meant Hendrix had been conscious this entire time. But if he had been conscious, why had he taken no precautions against Dylan's moves?

Unless this was all a trap. A hole was dug in advance, just waiting for Dylan to step right in.

A cold sweat broke across his back at the thought of that. He immediately began tearing through the files, cross-referencing data with frenzied urgency.

By the time daylight crept in, he finally found something. It was just as he thought.

He tossed the papers aside and laughed. Of course, he should've known better than to underestimate Hendrix.

These past few months, everything had gone unnervingly smoothly for him-so much so it was as if someone had cleared the path for him in advance.

At first, he had thought it was just luck and that fate had finally tipped the scales in his favor. But now, he knew it had all been Hendrix's doing.

Using the same financial tactics hedge funds played with overseas but applying them to the domestic stock market was truly brilliant. So, what came next? A short-selling trap to lock their funds in place? That had to be it.

But Hendrix seemed to have forgotten one thing-that money wasn't Dylan's. So even if the funds were locked up, that was the Swift family's problem.

Though as the middleman and executor, Dylan wouldn't escape liability, either. Which meant...

He immediately made a call, instructing someone to book him a flight ticket to Novaterra. The departure date, of course, couldn't be too soon. Given how things were unfolding...

"Book it for next Monday," Dylan ordered.

After hanging up, he grabbed his suit jacket and stood up. He had originally planned to head to the company. After all, he couldn't flee outright.

Before leaving, he needed to muddy the situation further. And right now, he didn't have much cash on hand. Thus, he'd have to liquidate all his shares discreetly. fo noveldrama

The plan crystallized in his mind, then his phone rang again. He didn't even

glance at the screen before answering.

"Yes?"

"Mr. Pritchett, we found something."

After a sleepless night and mental overload, Dylan's brain

short-circuited for a moment. He had no idea what the person on the other end of the phone was referring to What?"

"Didn't you ask us to find out who Hendrix came back with?"

Dylan immediately stopped in his tracks when he heard that. "Well, who was it?" he asked in a tense voice.

"It was Noelle."

Even though he had already suspected it, actually hearing the confirmation made his expression freeze over.

He slowly pressed his lips into a thin line, his grip on the phone tightening to the point of almost crushing it.

"Mr. Pritchett? Are you still there?" the person on the other end asked.

It was only then Dylan finally found his voice again. "He found Noelle? So, she's really alive? Then, what the hell have you all been doing this entire time?"