Chapter 418 Unexpected Discovery
Hope was about to say something when she heard him speak with a serious tone, "It's dangerous out there. Coming home with me is the safest option."
She knew he couldn't be serious for even a day.
Hope shot him a playful glare.
Jerry raised his hand and patted her head. "I'm not kidding. When people get desperate, they can do crazy things. Just stay home for a few days, even if it's a bit inconvenient."
Hope glanced towards the living room and asked, "What about Francis?"
Jerry understood immediately. "He's fine."
Hope nodded. "Thanks again. You can go now; we're about to eat."
Jerry raised an eyebrow, a mischievous smile playing on his lips. "Just a verbal thank you? We haven't..."
Hope quickly covered his mouth and pushed him towards the door.
She was about to close the door when Jerry blocked it with his foot and quickly kissed her on the lips.
He grinned, "Thanks received."
Before Hope could react, Jerry closed the door.
Hope turned around to see two heads peeking out from behind the screen, looking at her teasingly.
She walked over and gave each of them a light tap, then called them to eat.
Anne, biting her fork, sighed enviously, "Hope, you and Jerry have such a great relationship."
Hope served her some food. "You'll find your happiness too."
Anne sighed deeply. "I can't even get a divorce. How can I find happiness?"
Elissa and Hope had only heard bits and pieces about what happened between her and Willard. Relationships are complex, and they hadn't been monitoring them like surveillance cameras.
They couldn't really offer any advice.
"You are so kind and lovely. God will surely bless you with the happiness you deserve," Elissa said, serving her more food. "Trust me."
Anne, biting into a chicken leg, responded weakly.
Elissa and Hope exchanged a glance. Hope said, "No matter what happens, don't overthink. Just enjoy each day. We'll deal with other things when the time comes."
Anne swallowed her food and suddenly perked up. "Hope, tell me about you and Jerry."
Hope chuckled. "Alright, after dinner."
Aiden saw the shift in online sentiment as soon as he landed.
Luckily, he had briefed his father before coming and had a backup plan.
He posted another video, spending money to steer public opinion.
He had his team keep an eye on things while he dealt with the mining accident.
Francis was watching the video when Simon called.
Simon reported, "Mr. Peterson, progress is slow. Those people have been bribed and threatened. They just want to live peacefully and won't say a word about the mining accident."
Francis looked out at the blue sky and white clouds through the floor-to-ceiling window, his gaze heavy with a brewing storm.
"Alright, hold off for now."
"Yes, sir."
Francis hung up and instructed Arthur to visit the Hamilton family.
He continued watching the video, which was now trending at number one.
Elissa had probably seen it too.
Elissa had indeed seen it.
Hope had promised Anne to tell her past stories after dinner.
But now, the topic had shifted to Elissa.
"This is disgusting!" Anne was furious. "Elissa, for your sake, I'll call Willard. He has a lot of power; we should use it."
"No need," Elissa said, pulling her to sit down. "Francis will handle it."
"But it's trending number one!"
"The Wright family manipulated public opinion. If we take the video down, people will think we're guilty." Elissa analyzed, "Let it simmer for a bit. Then we'll clarify. It'll be more convincing."
Anne's eyes widened. "Do you have another video to clarify?"
Elissa had given all her evidence to Francis. The video he posted yesterday was almost everything. She didn't know how he would handle it next.
"I trust Francis. He won't let me get hurt."
Anne burped. "Your love is so enviable."
Elissa and Hope exchanged a smile.
Aiden's video remained hot throughout the evening.
Willard watched Francis standing by the window, smoking one cigarette after another.
"Need help?"
"No."
Willard was puzzled. The video was very damaging to Elissa. The issue of how parents disciplined their children was not always clearly defined in the law. However, even if parents made mistakes, some people still believed that children should support and care for their parents.
Ollie was online, crying that he only sought ways to make money for Elissa's education, not to gamble and owe money. He drank because life was tough. But he didn't intend to hit Elissa after drinking. He painted himself as a struggling single father. This weakened Elissa's previous evidence of domestic violence. Public opinion was starting to shift, with some people defending Ollie.
"Is the paternity test ready?" Willard asked.
"Yes." Francis stubbed out his cigarette, his voice hoarse.
Willard sensed something was off. "Is he the biological father?"
After a moment of silence, Francis spoke. "No."
Willard had known Francis for years. He thought Francis would never find true love. He also thought Francis would eventually marry for business. Both assumptions were wrong. He used to understand Francis's methods and intentions. But with Elissa, he was clueless.
"Isn't that good? Announce it. Elissa has no obligation to support him. It'll be easier to handle."
Francis let out a short laugh. The living room was dark, lit only by moonlight through the window. Half-hidden in the shadows, his laugh sent chills down Willard's spine.
Francis lit another cigarette. "No rush. Let's wait for the mining accident results."
Willard thought it over and understood his plan. "I don't like the Wright family's methods either, but they're deeply rooted. Uprooting them will be messy. You might not come out unscathed. They'll definitely retaliate. Elissa's situation isn't favorable for you."
Francis was unfazed. "I have more than one path. But Elissa must be on my path."
Arthur spent some time at the Hamilton family. Sylvia's parents had complaints because Francis had detained Sylvia. Now that they were in touch with Aiden, they weren't afraid of the Peterson family. If the Wright family did something with Elissa, the Peterson family would pay the price. Sylvia would naturally come back when the time was right.
Sylvia's parents said, "We will never cooperate with Francis."
Arthur had been briefed by Francis before coming. The Hamilton family's reaction was expected.
So he simply delivered the message and left without saying anything more.
Sylvia's parents followed him out, not to reconsider, but to make a point. "We had a chance to cooperate, a perfect match. Our Hamilton family has no blemishes and wouldn't affect Mr. Peterson's career. But unfortunately, Mr. Peterson chose a woman like that. Not only that, he hurt Sylvia. Now it's too late to seek our cooperation."
Arthur left without a word, feeling that talking to fools was pointless.
Back at home, with nothing to do, Elissa suggested playing cards.
But Anne was too concerned, saying it was inappropriate to entertain themselves during such a crisis.
So the three of them sat there, staring at each other.
Hope tried to lighten the mood. "How about I tell you about me and Jerry?"
Anne shook her head. "Now's not the time for happy love stories."
Elissa and Hope exchanged a helpless smile.
"Anne, if we don't play cards, we can do something else. Just sitting here isn't helping."
Anne stared at her phone. "Why hasn't Francis dealt with the online situation yet?"
Elissa glanced at the clock. "It's only been a short while. He'll probably wait until late at night."
Francis waited until the issue reached its peak before stepping in to resolve it.
Anne rested her face in her hands. "But everyone is cursing you!"
Elissa shrugged indifferently. "Compared to my past, this is nothing."
Suddenly, Anne got up and hugged Elissa tightly. "Elissa, I'll protect you from now on."
Elissa laughed. "Come on, you should protect yourself first."
"If we're not playing cards, let's watch some TV," Anne suddenly said.
She then turned on the TV and chose a war movie. "We need to fight, get passionate!"
Elissa and Hope were speechless.
Aiden went straight to the village leader's house.
The village leader stood by, rubbing his hands and smiling apologetically. "We chased away the person who came to inquire. Don't worry, we didn't say anything."
Aiden glanced at the coffee cup nearby but didn't drink. "I remember there was a family that didn't want compensation, just justice, right?"
The village leader replied, "That was dealt with long ago. No survivors, no one to talk."
Aiden always made sure to leave no loose ends, especially with high-risk matters that could affect him and the Wright family.
But during the mining accident, he was too busy. Although he had someone handle it for his father, he didn't oversee it personally.
Francis was much sharper than other opponents. If there was any oversight, Francis would find it.
"Who handled it?"
The village leader, even in his own home, was cautious. He looked around, stepped closer, and lowered his voice. "Your father and I. We watched them get buried. Besides, I guarantee, no one in the village will speak about it. After all, you made sure they lived well despite losing their breadwinners."
Aiden felt uneasy. "Where are they buried?"
"Behind the mountain."
"Let's go see."
A drone flew overhead.
Simon, on the phone with Francis, reported, "Mr. Peterson, Aiden is heading to the back mountain with the village leader."
Francis checked his watch. "Any witnesses?"
Simon replied, "From my investigation, all witnesses are dead, even newborns didn't survive. However, if we can confirm an unnatural death through an autopsy, we can initiate an investigation. Aiden can't cover everything."
Francis responded, "Handle it. Find your own people."
"Understood."
Willard, overhearing, commented, "The Wright family is ruthless, and Aiden, as the leader, is even more so. But his father is incompetent. Aiden has cleaned up many of his messes. During the mining accident, Aiden was busy. If he's rushing there, he must have missed something."
Francis just responded and sat on the couch, texting on his phone.
Willard thought he was handling business, but when he went to get water, he saw Francis was chatting with Elissa.
Francis: [What are you doing?]
Elissa sent a picture: [Watching TV]
Francis opened it, smiling slightly: [You still have the mood for TV?]
Elissa: [Anne says we can't entertain ourselves now, so we're watching a war movie. If you don't handle it soon, she'll go crazy.]
"How's Anne?" Willard sat on the armrest of Francis's couch. "You and Elissa are just pretending. Anne has nothing to do with it. Let her go."
Francis replied to Elissa: [Whatever happens, don't take it to heart. If it gets too much, talk to Hope or call me.]
Then he turned to Willard. "Elissa is heartbroken. If Anne leaves now, Aiden will get suspicious. "Besides, even if Anne leaves Elissa's house, she won't come to you."
Willard wanted to curse Francis but held back. Instead, he asked, "I heard you chased Elissa for a long time. Any tips?"
Francis didn't hold back. "I didn't get married and then neglect someone for three years."
Aiden initially wanted to dig up that family.
But the area was overgrown with weeds, and no one would notice it.
If he disturbed it, he would leave traces.
After a few seconds, he turned and left.
He instructed the village leader, "Make sure no one gets near here."
The village leader, confused and scared, said, "Even if they dig it up, they won't find anything. We made it look like a suicide..."
Aiden's cold gaze made the village leader shiver.
He quickly nodded. "I'll follow your orders. Don't worry, there won't be any problems here."
Aiden didn't trust such assurances.
He had heard them too many times.
Plans often couldn't keep up with changes.
He left some trusted people to guard the area.
Then he returned to Maple Valley.
Although he had briefed his father, he knew what kind of person his father was.
If he didn't oversee things, any misstep under Francis's scrutiny would be hard to fix.
Francis received news of Aiden's arrival in Maple Valley but took no action.
Online discussions continued.
To be precise, Aiden paid to keep them going.
As midnight approached, Aiden checked his phone, curious about what evidence Francis might release next.
Time ticked by.
Many people were sleepless that night.
The next morning, Francis received a message from Simon.
Simon: [Mr. Peterson, we found something unexpected.]
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