Chapter 603 Don't Drink That!
Oliver stood with his arms crossed, his gaze lowered, a smirk trying to break through but not quite making it. That was Natalie – as gentle and kind as they come, but when push came to shove, she could make the hardest decisions against him.
"The eggs are ready." Natalie took a plate from the cupboard, rinsed it with water, wiped it dry, and served the eggs onto it for Oliver to carry out.
Oliver took a bite with his fork, and his face lit up with satisfaction.
Clearly, even Natalie's improvised fried eggs met his discerning tastes.
Natalie turned off the stove, her actions slowing down as she fell into thought.
"What's up?" Oliver asked, balancing the plate in his left hand and eating with a fork in his right, looking entirely composed and nothing less than a gentleman.
"Just thinking about today's events," Natalie replied.
Oliver, intrigued, asked, "What about them?"
Natalie could tell he probably had his theories, so she shared her thoughts – "If Casey's deduction is correct and someone tampered with Lucas and Lilian's car, then what was their aim? Clearly, it wasn't to kill Lucas or Lilian directly through an accident; otherwise, they wouldn't rely on such minimal sabotage."
"And the timing of that boulder falling was too perfect, cutting off just the last car. If that wasn't natural, maybe they wanted Lucas and Lilian buried under it or sent off the mountainside with their car. A car wreck with no survivors leaves no witnesses."
Oliver chewed thoughtfully on a piece of food, then frowned and complained, "Natalie, this egg has a fishy taste."
"...Seriously? I'm talking business, and you're complaining about the egg tasting fishy?"
Be grateful there's food at all!
"Then don't eat it!" Natalie replied, annoyed.
He looked at her, seemingly a little aggravated at having been scolded for no apparent reason, then coolly picked it out and pushed it aside.
Natalie thought he was the epitome of someone who'd never had to struggle with poverty.
Even kids know better than to be picky eaters these days!
Sensing that the mood was off, Oliver decided to play it safe and said to Natalie, "You keep going."
Natalie let out a sigh, continuing good-naturedly, "But I can't figure out why they would do this. If it's about money, shouldn’t they have kidnapped someone? And if it's about taking a life, what's the motive?"
Natalie couldn't find a reason why anyone would want to target Lucas and Lilian.
She went on, "I thought about Leonard being the one to take action, but he has no reason to harm Lucas or Lilian. Lucas isn't valuable enough to exploit, and going after Lilian would be a huge risk—leaving even the slightest clue would invite serious trouble."
Lilian was still a foreign national, an important one at that.
Oliver nodded, indicating his agreement.
"Why have you gone silent?" Natalie asked, expecting his insight. He was smarter than her, more profound in thought and better connected; he surely knew more.
Oliver replied, "Miss Watson has said it all."
Natalie eyed Oliver skeptically, not quite believing him.
Oliver simply continued eating.
What he hadn't told Natalie was his suspicion that their true target might actually be Lucas.
The farmer's wife quickly prepared the rooms and then went downstairs, leaving Oliver and his companions to figure out the sleeping arrangements.
Assigning the rooms proved to be a challenge.
Natalie's original plan was for her, Lilian, and Casey—three women—to share a small room, while the men could sort themselves out.
"What do you think?" she asked Oliver.
Oliver, arms crossed, gazed down at her and said, "I have no objections".
"Ma'am, perhaps you and your husband should take one room, and Miss Lilian can room with Mr. Watson. The rest of us can split up," the lead bodyguard suggested.
It was clear to anyone with eyes that the husband only wanted to share a room with his wife.
"But Casey..."
"I don't mind," Casey interjected. "I can bunk with the others."
"But..."
Clearly seeing what Natalie was concerned about, Casey said, "Miss Watson, I see no difference between men and women, except when it comes to what happens in bed."
The others were taken aback by her outspokenness, thinking it was a bit too bold.
In the end, Natalie and Lilian each settled into one of the two small rooms available, while the rest of the team made do with the remaining spaces. They didn't have much need for beds – anything was comfortable compared to the harsh conditions they had endured before. Having a place that protected them from wind and rain was already a luxury.
The farmhouse didn't boast fresh bedding; instead, the auntie provided them with old, washed blankets that held the musty scent of dampness. Oliver glanced at one and immediately scrapped the notion of using it.
Natalie wasn't too keen on using the blanket either, figuring she wouldn't get much sleep tonight under these circumstances. She decided it might be better just to rest her head on the table.
After dinner, the downpour ceased briefly – a short respite.
But as they prepared for bed, the rainfall resumed, filling the woods with the sound of its persistent pattering.
With no extra cups available, the auntie brought over a kettle of water and set down two clean bowls for Natalie and her companions.
With a nonchalant expression, Oliver tapped on his smartphone in the dim glow of the light, deep in conversation with his subordinates.
"Need a power bank?" Natalie offered, pulling out a mini charger a wealthy acquaintance had given her earlier that day.
Thanking her, Oliver nodded and took it, about to plug it in when suddenly, he stood up.
"What's..." Natalie began, but before she could finish her question, Oliver had dashed outside.
-
Evening meals were often heavy with oil and salt, leaving Lilian's mouth dry.
She filled a bowl with water and asked Lucas if he wanted some. He nodded his agreement.
"Here you go." Curiously inspecting the rough texture of the earthenware bowl she had never seen before, Lilian handed it to him.
With a word of thanks, Lucas was about to take a drink when—
"Stop!"
Oliver burst in and knocked the bowl out of Lucas's hands. The sharp sound of shattering ceramic echoed as the bowl broke and water splashed across the floor.
"Cousin, have you lost your mind?" Lilian stood frozen.
Lucas's mind raced, shifting from initial shock to wariness and vigilance, his brow furrowing as he eyed the spill on the floor.
"Is there something wrong with the water?" he quickly deduced.
"Yes." Oliver showed his phone to Lucas.
It displayed a cryptic text message, just five words:
"Water, save Mr. Watson ASAP."
Signal was notoriously poor in their rural location, making standard communication unreliable. However, Oliver was using a private satellite link – and the sender had clearly hacked in.
Only a few organizations had the means to pull that off, "The Wells" being one of them.
"What happened?" Natalie arrived, sensing that trouble was brewing.
Just then, Oliver received a second text from The Wells, clarifying the urgency of the first message.
Oliver's expression turned icy.
Catching a glimpse of Oliver and then her brother, Natalie sensed something was off. She stepped forward, snatched Oliver's phone, and after reading the message, her complexion paled.
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