Juon never let Debra know about the picture. When he pressed the shutter, he remembered being surprised by the warmth in her eyes. At that time, he didn’t even like her, always maintaining a cold demeanor. He rubbed his forehead, leaning back in his office chair. "Debra, you’re not dead, right? Why won’t you come back?"
The sky outside was dark, and the TV in a nearby room aired a report about Debra’s kidnapping. The subject of the news, however, was not missing, but sitting comfortably on the sofa, quietly watching.
Marion placed a steaming cup of medicine on the coffee table. “You haven’t fully recovered from your cold. Why did you get out of bed?” Debra looked up at him, her hands wrapping around the warm cup. “It’s been three days. I guess I shouldn’t have chosen the sea escape method. It would have been better to take a video to fool Juan.”
She and the kidnappers had concocted a plan: she would fake her death, and they would receive a billion dollars. The lure of extra money had made them readily agree. After falling into the water, Debra was supposed to use a lifeboat to return to shore. But Marion and Randy had suddenly appeared, altering her plans. She had followed them to avoid the approaching rescue teams and ended up back at Marion’s house. The situation had been sudden, and Debra hadn’t expected Marion to find her location so accurately.
Calmly, Marion said, “Juan has issued several bounty notices. Anyone who finds you will get ten million dollars. He clearly doesn’t believe you’re dead.”
Debra downed the medicine in one gulp, her expression pensive. Juan’s thoughts were deep, and she couldn’t fathom what he was thinking. But now that she had faked her death, her relationship with Juan was effectively over. She just needed more time to sort things out.
Marion added, “Think it through. Faking death is just a temporary solution. Sooner or later, you’ll have to return to the Nichols family and settle things with him.”
“I’m well aware. Being Juan’s wife is too troublesome and always delays things. There are too many eyes watching me. To keep him from finding out, I had to do this,” Debra said with a smile. “The kidnappers indirectly helped me, though I haven’t figured out who hired them.”
Those three kidnappers had looked professional, clearly experienced in their nefarious trade. Few people had access to such individuals, and they weren’t the type Hester would associate with.
As Debra pondered the mystery, Marion reached out and touched her forehead, startling her. “You’re still burning. Go take a rest. Randy will look into the rest.”
After a moment of silence, Debra asked, “What did you do abroad for so many days?” She knew Marion’s businesses were overseas. According to the timeline of her past life, Marion hadn’t yet dominated Hexagon City and contested with Juan. But since her rebirth, everything had changed rapidly. She wasn’t sure if the future would follow the old path. For now, it seemed Marion hadn’t made any significant moves in Hexagon City.
Marion saw her serious expression and tapped her head with a smile. “I… Chapter 262… went to arrange gifts for marrying you…”