Chapter 96

Megan felt a chill run down her spine after listening.She burrowed a little closer into Tristan's comforting arms. "Including the staff, how many died?"

Tristan sighed, voice low and heavy. "Thirty-six. Even the one-year-old heir of the Richmond family didn't make it."

"That's... horrible," Megan frowned, heart tightening."They didn't even spare a baby. Was it the Channing Family and the Bennette Family behind it?"

Tristan tightened his hold on her. "There's no solid lead. No one knows how the sorcery worm was planted. The suspicions all point to the Channing and Bennette families, yeah, but there's no real proof.And the Reid and Lewis families aren't off the hook either. We promised the Richmond family protection,and in the end, it was all just empty talk." "So... the Richmond family got sacrificed by all four?""Judging from the outcome, that's basically it."

"Ryan said someone powerful's involved. Who is it?"

Tristan let out a cold laugh. "The President's younger brother-Nathaniel Cooper."

Megan blinked. "Wait. did he try to compete with his own brother for the presidency?"

"Yeah," Tristan's fingers gently glided over her soft skin. "In politics, family ties don't mean much. The Reid and Lewis families have backed Charles Cooper for five elections now. Next January, there's another tough one coming."

Megan raised an eyebrow. "So Nathaniel still won't quit? That guy just doesn't give up."

Tristan's eyes flickered with a strange light. "Guess this sorcery worm thing isn't just a random case.It's probably a warning, or maybe-"

"Maybe what?" she looked up, curiosity in her eyes. He raised a hand to ruffle her hair, but winced as pain shot through his wound. "Damn, that hurts."

His whiny tone made her purse her lips. He didn't say a word back in the bathtub when he was so energetic. Now suddenly he's acting fragile?

"You know, they say kissing triggers endorphins.Works like a natural painkiller. A good one can equal a pill. Plus, during a kiss, your body releases dopamine-it makes you happy and reduces pain.The more intense, the higher the dose."

"Then just let it hurt," she poked around his wound deliberately. "What were you gonna say? Maybe what?"

"Maybe it's a death warning," he said, pinching her chin."Scared?"

Megan shook her head, cool as always. "Nope."

Suddenly something clicked in her mind. She slipped out of his arms, jumped off the bed, and grabbed her laptop, phone, and data cable from the table. Back under the covers, sitting up against the headboard, she got right to work. She connected the phone and started transferring the distorted audio file.

Her fingers flew across the keyboard, code lines running across the black screen in white.

An audio clip began loading and processing.

Tristan watched her, intrigued by how focused she was. With a side glance, he chuckled softly."Seriously, what else are you hiding from me, huh?"

"That's it," Megan grinned, mischief dancing behind her sly, fox-like eyes, full of hidden secrets just waiting to be uncovered.

"That so? Just remember, lying to me doesn't end well."Megan tilted her head, brow arched. "How bad are we talking?"

Tristan slid a warm hand around her waist. "Bad enough your back's gonna remember it."

Leaning in close, he grazed her earlobe with his teeth, his voice low and teasing. "I've got no chill tonight."

Megan's lips twitched. The guy had been all about self-control before-and she'd been the one always poking the bear. But now that he was ready to stop holding back, she suddenly felt like running.

Just then, a damp breath brushed her ear and sent tiny shivers down her spine. A deep, slightly distorted male voice broke the tension-the converted audio from the voice changer had finished processing.

The voice was smooth with a faint softness, almost charming.

"Sounds like someone around our age," Tristan muttered, frowning. "Still doesn't tell us much. Just keep your ears open-see if anyone you run into talks like that."

Megan closed her laptop with a sigh. "The clip's t00short to trace him. Even if we did figure out the source, odds are he's long gone." Tristan just hummed in response, brushing a kiss against her forehead. "Get some sleep. I'm hitting the study to dig into some files."

He grabbed his phone, threw on a robe, and walked out.

Once inside the study, Tristan went straight to a bookshelf and pulled out a brown envelope. He sank into the leather chair, flipping slowly through copied pages and black-and-white photo prints. The air practically reeked of death.

He reached for his phone and called Ryan. "Got the autopsy report yet?"

"I was just about to call you."

Tristan opened the drawer of the red mahogany desk, pulled out a pack of Zhonghua cigarettes,flicked open a silver lighter, and lit one up. The flame lit the tip while smoke curled from the end.

He wasn't a regular smoker-only when things got seriously messed up. Taking a deep drag, he exhaled sharply. "Hit me."

"Molly's heart was full of holes. Eaten away, like by worms. The tissue sample you gave me came straight from her heart. Exact same cause of death as the Richmond family twenty-five years ago."

Tristan tapped off the ash with a flick. "So you think the same person's behind both?"

Ryan didn't answer right away. "It's possible. But look, boss. that case from back then? Big names were involved. People way above my pay grade.The guy they say pulled the strings is the Minister of Defense now. If I dig too deep, I could drop dead tomorrow without knowing what hit me."

Tristan's eyes narrowed a bit. "My wife once got a call from someone using a voice changer. Once we reversed it, it turned out to be a young man. If Nathaniel Cooper really had something to say, l doubt he'd just send a cryptic warning."

"You're thinking someone else is pulling the strings?" Tristan crushed the cigarette into the ashtray. "Yeah.This isn't over. The guy will make another move.What's the latest on those suit-wearing guys?"

"Oh,right-meant to tell you. Those bodies we found?Exploded in transit. Turns out they had miniature bombs implanted. And the two outside the warehouse-you know, one didn't make it, the other's barely hanging on. Took a bullet straight through the cheek, legs and arms are toast. But. he's threatening to sue your wife."

Tristan let out a cold laugh. "Guess he's tired of living."

He hung up and lit another cigarette, frowning deeply.

Could Nathaniel Cooper really be behindit?

Trying to clear the competition before the election,scare them first, then take them out?

Didn't feel right.

The power behind the Reid and Lewis families still dwarfed the Bennette and Channing families.Nathaniel would know drawing this much attention would only burn him in the end.So, bottom line is-someone's trying to use the Reid family to get rid of Nathaniel Cooper.