After Mandy Snow went upstairs, Eva Snow, who had found her cousin’s recent behavior strange, decided to follow her up.
To her shock, Eva Snow overheard a conversation between Mandy Snow and Mo Fan. She instinctively covered her mouth in disbelief. Just as she was turning to leave, her phone suddenly rang.
The ringtone startled Eva Snow so much that she nearly dropped her phone.
“Who’s there?” Mo Fan’s voice was edged with menace.
Without thinking, Eva Snow turned and ran.
But Mo Fan appeared in front of her almost instantly. “It’s you?”
Eva Snow stared at him in terror, trembling uncontrollably. She shrank back, but the icy cold wall pressed against her back—she had nowhere to run.
Mo Fan’s eyes grew harsher as he glared at Eva Snow.
He turned to Mandy Snow, his tone chilling. “See? This is your precious niece.”
Mandy Snow had never expected to see Eva Snow here. She looked at her in disbelief. “Yueyue, what are you doing here?”
Clutching her phone tightly, Eva Snow glared at Mandy Snow with resentment.
“If I hadn’t been here, I wouldn’t have known you were plotting against my father behind his back.”
“What nonsense are you talking about?”
“Nonsense? I heard every word you two said just now.”
Mandy Snow suddenly fell silent, at a loss for how to explain herself.
Mo Fan let out a cold snort. “So what if you heard? Without me, the Snow family would have gone bankrupt long ago. You wouldn’t even have a chance to make a scene here.”
“Ha, you just want to use Wanrui for your own ends. Don’t make yourself sound noble. If my dad knew what you were planning, he’d never accept your help.”
Even in a crisis, Eva Snow knew right from wrong. Smuggling was no small matter—if any member of the family got involved, the entire Snow family would be ruined.
As Mo Fan’s face darkened further, Mandy Snow tried to stop Eva Snow from continuing. “Eva Snow, that’s enough. Things aren’t what you think.”
“Stop lying to me. I heard everything clear as day.”
Mo Fan’s voice turned grim. “If you heard everything, then I can’t let you walk away.” His words made Mandy Snow’s heart sink with dread.
“Wh-what are you going to do?” Eva Snow stammered in terror, her legs trembling so much she could barely stand.
Mandy Snow stepped in front of Eva Snow. “Mo Fan, she’s my second brother’s only child. Please, let her go.”
“She heard every word we said. Can you honestly think she can keep this secret?” Mo Fan’s ice-cold gaze betrayed no hint of mercy.
“But…”
“But what? After everything she just said, you really trust her to keep quiet?”
Mandy Snow hesitated, staring at him in turmoil.
…
In the banquet hall, Lauren Shaw sat in a quiet corner, bored with the festivities.
Yancy Shaw’s video call came through. She took her phone over to the window to answer.
“Baby.” Yancy Shaw’s voice was a bit hoarse, and his side of the call was shrouded in darkness—he was probably in his car.
“Did you drink?” His eyes were deep and tender.
“Mm, just a little,” Lauren Shaw replied, demonstrating with her fingers, looking adorably coy.
A doting, gentle smile tugged at Yancy Shaw’s lips. He gazed at her as if he could never get enough, making Lauren Shaw feel a bit self-conscious.
“Why aren’t you home yet?” Lauren Shaw checked the time—almost 9 p.m. The banquet was nearly over.
“I don’t want to go home if you’re not there.” His words sounded almost pitiful, like a lonely wife left behind.
Lauren Shaw smiled, her eyes curving into crescents. “Mr. Shen, since when were you so clingy? That doesn’t sound like you at all.”
“I like clinging to you—because you’re my wife.”
This man, she thought, really has a way with words these days.
Her own face was reflected in the banquet hall’s window glass—her expression soft and beautiful, gentle beyond words when talking to Yancy Shaw. No wonder Claire Xu always teased her, saying she became a different person around Yancy Shaw.
“You’re really getting bolder with your sweet talk,” Lauren Shaw replied with a shy smile.
Suddenly, a dark shadow flashed outside the window. She gasped, and her phone nearly slipped from her hand.
“What’s wrong?” On the other end, Yancy Shaw instantly sensed her alarm.
Lauren Shaw felt as if her soul had left her body. Yancy Shaw called her several times before she finally came to.
“Shengsheng, what did you see?” His urgency was clear. He was so worried he knitted his brows, wishing he could fly to her side.
“I—I…” Lauren Shaw faltered, frightened. She closed her eyes for a moment to steady herself. “I saw someone fall from the building.”
…
Fifteen minutes later, a crowd had gathered at the foot of the hotel.
An ambulance wailed in the distance and drew near. The person on the ground was already covered by a white sheet. Lauren Shaw stood among the crowd, watching as the medics lifted the person onto a stretcher.
Mandy Snow forced her way through the people, tears streaming down her face as she pleaded with the medics, “I beg you, please save her…”
No one could have predicted that the person who fell would be Eva Snow—not even Lauren Shaw, who had witnessed it herself.
While Mandy Snow broke down, Yvonne Sung remained eerily calm, not shedding a single tear.
Lauren Shaw’s heart was still pounding with fear. She’d watched someone fall while on a video call with Yancy Shaw, never thinking it would be Eva Snow.
With Eva Snow’s character, she would never have jumped of her own accord. Something was definitely off about her death.
She lifted her gaze to the hotel’s tower above. The banquet hall was on the tenth floor—logically, Eva Snow should have been there. So why had she gone upstairs? Had she stumbled upon something she wasn’t supposed to see?
Lauren Shaw glanced at Mandy Snow, whose face was streaked with tears, quietly noting her reaction.
Mandy Snow sobbed hopelessly. Everyone knew she was Eva Snow’s aunt. With a tragedy like this, of course she was more devastated than anyone, so people offered her comfort.
Upstairs, Mo Fan looked down on the scene below, a sneer tugging at the corner of his lips.
Eva Snow’s fall had been arranged by him.
Just fifteen minutes earlier, after Eva Snow overheard his conversation with Mandy Snow, he’d made up his mind. Rather than let her become a liability, it was better to dispose of her quickly.
Now, Mandy Snow was in the same boat as him—she would have no choice but to obey.
That night, Lauren Shaw, who had witnessed Eva Snow’s fall first-hand, couldn’t sleep at all. Every time she closed her eyes, she saw Eva Snow’s bloodied face, jolting her awake in terror.
When she woke, she was drenched in cold sweat.
In the middle of the night, the media released a breaking story:
[Heiress Eva Snow of the Ancheng Snow family fatally fell from a building and died after being hospitalized.]
Seeing this news, Lauren Shaw felt an inescapable unease. She couldn’t shake the feeling that Eva Snow’s death was anything but straightforward.
The doorbell suddenly rang. She jumped and checked the time—it was already 1:00 a.m. Who could possibly be coming to her at this hour?