Tessa scrunched her brows as she swept her gaze over the groveling Jacqueline. Then, she turned to look at Stephen, who was sporting an austere expression. “What do you mean she’s had others killed?”

Stephen didn’t want to tell Tessa that Jacqueline had helped James in silencing people permanently.

Tessa was already worried sick over the Granger siblings, Lucas and Anne, despite barely knowing them. She couldn’t sleep or eat well because of those two. So, he had a feeling that she would feel greatly distressed if she learned that innocents had met their demise at James’ hands.

Thus, he replied steadily, “I was talking about Susan.”

“Alright.” Tessa lowered her gaze. She had a feeling that things weren’t as simple as they seemed.

Jacqueline was expelled from the Jacobson family that very day.

Stephen then handed her over to the authorities, and Jacqueline was officially arrested.

Meanwhile, James and his men were at Arcton.

Liam, James’ subordinate, had a grim look on his face when he ended the call.

“James, Stephen has handed Jacqueline over to the cops. She has sent word that she wishes to be rescued,” Liam reported.

James chuckled nonchalantly and answered Liam with a question, “Would you waste your resources to save a useless pawn?”

Liam lowered his head and replied, “I understand, James.”

James asked, “How are things progressing with Conrad?”

Liam replied, “I’ve given him what Jacqueline handed us.”

“Good.” James swirled the red wine in his glass gently as a smile played on his lips. “Let’s get the show on the road.”

Lyanna gave Tessa a call to remind her about their dinner date on Saturday morning.

“Ms. Yates, I hope you don’t mind that I’ve asked Lester for your number. Do you still remember our plans for this evening?” Lyanna asked gently.

“Of course,” Tessa promptly replied.

Lyanna let out a sigh of relief before saying with a smile, “I’ve booked a private room for us at Fortuna for 7:00 pm. I’ll have Lester pick you up.”

“It’s alright. I can drive there myself,” Tessa hastily answered.

“Alright, then. I’ll see you tonight. Bye, Ms. Yates,” said Lyanna. “Bye.”

Tessa changed her outfit and got ready to head out at 6:00 pm.

She didn’t bother dolling herself up and only applied some light makeup.

She wore a cream-colored dress and paired it with a beige coat. Her wavy hair fell loosely over her shoulders, making her look elegant and gentle.

She parked her car in the outdoor parking lot when she arrived at her destination. She had just made it to the entrance when she bumped into Lyanna, who was coming out of the restaurant.

Lyanna was holding Cassandra’s hand, and a smile immediately appeared on her face when she caught sight of Tessa.

She wasted no time greeting Tessa enthusiastically, saying with great cheer, “Ms. Yates, you’re here! I figured you’d be arriving soon, so I came out to take a look. And would you look at that? Perfect timing, if I do say so myself!”

Then, she said to Cassandra, “Cassie, say hi to Ms. Yates.”

Cassandra tilted her head up high and beamed at Tessa before saying sweetly, “Good evening, Ms. Yates.”

Tessa curled her lips into a gentle smile and handed Cassandra a pastel pink bag with a pretty bow. “Good evening, Cassie. Here’s a gift from me to you.”

Lyanna was slightly surprised and rushed to wave her hands. “Oh, you really shouldn’t have. I invited you to dinner to thank you for your help. Your presence alone is more than enough. You didn’t need to bring a gift.”

Tessa’s smile deepened. “It’s just a little something for Cassie. She’s just too adorable. My sister’s around her age, so I can’t help but think about her when I look at Cassie. Besides, it’s just a little trinket.”

Lyanna glanced at the bag in Cassandra’s hand.

There was a very obvious Prada logo stamped on it. Before she could say

anything else, the curious Cassandra had already opened the bag.

Cassandra pulled a pair of beautiful pink hair clips from the bag. The clips were adorned with sparkling pink rhinestones.

Cassandra’s eyes practically lit up with joy as she exclaimed merrily, “Wow! Thanks, Ms. Yates. They’re so pretty! I love them.”

Lyanna couldn’t help but smile at the sight. “You really shouldn’t have, Ms. Yates. It must’ve cost you a pretty penny.”

Tessa said happily, “The only thing that matters is that Cassie likes them.”