C56 The Target Was Me

Chris stared at the private message on his phone for a long time. His thumb hovered over the keyboard, but he couldn't bring himself to type. If I tell Mike the truth... He'll think I betrayed him. He closed his eyes and sighed. But if I don't tell him... He'll eventually discover it himself. And if he learns the truth from someone else... He may never trust me again.

That thought frightened him more than anything else. After several minutes of hesitation, Chris finally made up his mind. He would answer Mike's question... But nothing more. No details. Just the truth. But the secret of what happened inside the hotel room will remain his secret.

His fingers moved across the screen. "It was Director Kelvin's daughter, Sarah Wood." The message was sent. A few seconds later,my phone rang with the notification. I picked it up and read the message twice. Sarah Wood? The beautiful young woman I had noticed during the celebration? The same one Chris seemed to recognize? Soon another message arrived. "Brother. She helped me that night." Almost immediately, another notification followed. "Brother, can you help me get her Weibo account? I want to thank her properly."

I stared at the message in confusion. That was unlike Chris. Normally he wasn't shy about approaching people. Still... Remembering how Sarah had struggled to support his unconscious body, dragging him toward his room, I couldn't refuse. "No problem."

After a short pause, I added another message. "But you're disturbing me. I'm still reviewing the party footage." Chris replied with a laughing emoji before going offline. I smiled faintly before opening another browser window. Instead of using my personal account, I logged into an old anonymous profile I had created months ago. M-Hacker. Hardly anyone knew it belonged to me.

Since Samantha and Sarah were now a family, I decided to begin there. I opened Samantha's friends list. One by one... I searched every profile. No Sarah. Strange... I continued scrolling until another familiar name appeared. Ben. I clicked on his profile. Unlike Samantha, Ben's friends list was public.

Within seconds... There she was. Sarah Wood. "So that's it..." I copied her profile link and immediately forwarded it to Chris. Task completed. Now... Back to the investigation. I reopened the surveillance footage. Fast-forward. Pause. Zoom. Frame by frame. Eventually... The camera captured exactly what I had been looking for.

Ben casually walked away from the crowd before stopping near one of the hallways. He pulled out his phone. Almost simultaneously... Several tables away... A male waiter felt his own phone vibrate. The waiter answered. As he listened, his eyes slowly searched the room until they landed directly on Ben.

My expression became serious. "So..." "They really knew each other." That alone wasn't enough. I kept watching. A few moments later, both of them quietly met near an empty corner outside the main hall. No one seemed to notice them. Ben reached into his pocket and handed the waiter a tiny bottle. The waiter quickly hid it before walking away as though nothing had happened. My eyes narrowed.

The footage continued. The waiter entered the preparation area. He picked up a tray carrying three glasses. Then... He uncapped the bottle. Without hesitation... He poured its contents into one glass. I leaned closer to the screen. "That's it..." My heartbeat quickened.

The waiter walked directly toward our table. I carefully followed every movement. To my surprise... The glass containing the mysterious liquid... Was handed to me. I frowned. "But..." "How did Chris end up drinking it?" Then I finally saw it. Just as we were about to take our first sip... Three department managers approached us to congratulate our team.

Naturally... All three of us placed our glasses back on the table. We stood talking with them for several minutes. When the conversation ended... Chris returned first. Without paying attention... He picked up my glass instead of his own. He casually took a sip. The rest... I had already witnessed.

I slowly leaned back in my chair. "So..." "I was the target." Chris had simply become an innocent victim. My expression darkened. Ben... Why are you still targeting me? I switched to another camera. The corridor outside the guest rooms. Chris staggered down the hallway before collapsing in front of his room.

Moments later... Sarah appeared. She rushed toward him without hesitation. After struggling for a while, she somehow managed to pull him inside. I continued watching. Five minutes. Ten minutes. Thirty minutes. Nothing. Sarah never came out. I increased the playback speed.

An hour. Two hours. Still nothing. Finally... The room door opened. Sarah hurried outside. I instinctively looked at the timestamp. 5:42 A.M. I froze. "So..." "She stayed the entire night?" Countless possibilities rushed through my mind. Did Chris's condition become worse? Did she stay awake looking after him? Or... Did she become too exhausted and accidentally fall asleep?

I rubbed my forehead. Whatever had happened inside that room... Pnly those two knew. I shut down the computer. There was nothing more I could discover tonight. As I climbed into bed, another thought crossed my mind. Laura. Smiling, I picked up my phone again. "I'm back. Have a good night." Almost instantly, she replied. "When did you get back?" "This afternoon."

A typing indicator appeared almost immediately. "Then... when do I get to see you again?" Without thinking, I smiled. "Tomorrow after work. The same restaurant where we first met." Several seconds later... "It's a date." A smiling emoji appeared before her status changed to offline. I placed my phone beside the bed and finally closed my eyes.

Meanwhile... Across the city... Chris had already received Sarah's Weibo profile. Taking a deep breath, he pressed the friend request button. To his surprise... Only a few minutes later... She accepted. His heart beat a little faster. He immediately sent the first message. "Hello, Sarah. I just wanted to check on you. Are you feeling alright?"

Sarah, who had just finished changing into her pajamas, looked at the message in confusion. How did he get my profile name. I clearly refused when he asked. Anyway she responded. "Hi, Chris. Why wouldn't I be alright? It should be me asking how you're feeling." Chris blinked. "...Right." He had worded it badly.

He quickly corrected himself. "I'm fine now. Just a slight headache." Sarah felt relieved. "Do you know why you fainted?" Chris hesitated. Then he answered honestly. "Someone spiked my drink. Thank you again for saving me. If you hadn't helped me... I probably wouldn't be here chatting with you."

Sarah unconsciously smiled. She remembered the business meeting. Chris confidently presenting his proposal. The foreign partners immediately agreeing. The admiration on everyone's faces. Without realizing it... She began smiling even more.

Then another memory surfaced.Chris waking up... Their faces only inches apart. Her heartbeat became slightly faster. Trying to distract herself, she typed another question. "Who would do something like that? It was your first time there. Do you have enemies?"

Chris almost typed Ben's name. His fingers even formed the first letter. Then he deleted it. He didn't want conflict between Sarah and her own family. Instead, he replied, "It's someone you know... but let's leave it there."

After a brief silence, Chris gathered his courage. "By the way... You still don't want any compensation?" Sarah smiled helplessly. "I'm not selling. Why would I accept compensation? I'm just glad you're alright. What happened that night happened. Next time, be more careful about what you drink."

Chris read the message over and over. Then, before thinking it through, he typed another question. "Then... does that mean I'm not that bad?" A few seconds later, another message followed. "Did you... enjoy it?" Sarah's eyes widened. "Enjoy it?" Her face instantly turned crimson.

What exactly is he asking? My company? The conversation? Or... That night? She buried her face in her pillow. "I was dizzy... How would I even know?" Chris excitedly asked "But still it was good right?" Sarah read the message. Too embarrassed to answer, she locked her phone and switched off the bedside lamp. Within minutes, she had fallen asleep.

On the other side of the city... Chris continued staring at the chat window. One minute passed. Then five. Then ten. No reply. He sighed heavily. "...Does that mean she didn't enjoy it?" He covered his face with a pillow. "Does it mean..." "I'm really that bad?" "My First time was bad." "That means i also made her first time bad?"