Once Bitten, Twice Shy

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

“I’ve been waiting for you to call, Ms. Larsson.” The man’s voice lacked the unusual calmness and warmth. Its hoarseness belied his exhaustion.

Samantha pursed her lips and had a bad feeling.

Sure enough, Selby said solemnly the very next second, “I’m sorry, Ms. Larsson.”

He hung up as soon as he said that.

All Samantha could hear was the dial tone. Her eyes widened slightly and she calmly dialed the professor’s number again. Unfortunately, she was greeted by a robotic notification that said, ‘The phone number you have dialed has been switched off!’

Samantha clenched her phone tightly and decided to call Selby’s secretary, only to receive the same notification…

She did not try to make any further calls and the light in her eyes dimmed suddenly.

Did he apologize because he had deceived her, or did he apologize because he regretted implicating her in all that?

Finding out the answer to that was the first order of business as only then could she figure out how to solve the issue. After all, the end results would be completely different.

However, Selby’s distinctly negative response more or less made her feel that a crisis was in the offing.

The general manager had enunciated the situation very clearly to her and the netizens were all attacking her too. She could already foresee just how terrible the consequences would be if she failed to handle it properly.

Samantha closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

Such things would not have happened for no reason. With the news going viral so quickly and information being revealed by coincidence, it was clear that someone was trying to push the public opinion in a certain direction. Not even a three-year-old child would believe the claim that there was no one orchestrating the incident from the shadows.

If her guess was right, then Harmony was probably the one behind it.

Harmony’s goal…might not just stop at destroying Samantha’s career.

Therefore, Samantha could not afford to yield, not even a single step!

Samantha took her cell phone out and called Rochelle. As soon as Rochelle picked up, Samantha asked bluntly, “Hey, Chelle, could you help me find Professor Cornell’s home?”

Since all the media companies were unable to find his address, Samantha could only hope that Rochelle would be able to lend her some assistance. After all, Rochelle was the one who managed to obtain Selby’s private email before, and the reason she succeeded was because she and Selby were from the same upper-class circle.

Rochelle agreed but expressed her concern, “I already heard what happened, Sammy. I’m not in the country right now, so I’ll take the first flight back.”

Samantha’s heart felt warm. “You should go ahead and do what you need to do. I just need you to find his address for me. Don’t worry, I can still handle everything for now.”

Ten minutes later, Samantha received the address from Rochelle.

Samantha returned to her workstation, put on her sunglasses and a mask then grabbed her bag and left.

After getting in a taxi, the driver drove her to the destination after she gave him the address.

Selby’s private house was located in a high-end villa area in the suburbs, a place known for its excellent security. The residential area was an extremely private one, and it was the preferred choice of villas for many rich and famous individuals.

The taxi stopped as soon as it got to the gate. Outsiders were barred from entering unless they had prior appointments or were given permission by the house owners.

Samantha had no choice but to get down there.

She called Selby once more but the phone was still turned off.

A row of security guards was guarding the entrance up ahead, in addition to the various barriers and cameras that were littered all over the place. Not even a fly could squeeze through such tight security, much less a grown human.

Time was of the essence and she could not afford to drag her feet because every second of every minute was vital.

Samantha quickly tried to think of a surefire way to get in.

Since she could no longer just barge in, her only recourse was to make sure that they had no reason to stop her, or better yet, they would welcome her with open arms.

Her eyes lit up slightly.

She walked to the security guard, raised her chin slightly, then said to what looked like their leader, “I’d like to visit the sales office please.”

The security guard was amused.

Many people had requested to come to the sales office, but the kind of customers who could afford to buy a house there dressed lavishly and drove luxury cars.

On the other hand, the security guard clearly saw her arriving in a taxi.

Worse still, none of her clothes seemed to be worth anything and she probably could not even afford to fork out the cost of a single tile in those houses.

Where did she get the confidence to request a visit to the sales office?

At a glance, she looked like the kind of person who came up with all sorts of excuses just to sneak in.

Her ploy was so much more outrageous than those who tried to impersonate as mailmen and pizza delivery guys.

“Alright, little miss. Go and play your little games elsewhere.” The security guard waved her off.

Samantha could not be bothered to waste her breath and opened her backpack to get her purse. From it, she took the black card that Timothy had given her before and waved it right in front of the security guard’s face.

The reason she kept that card with her, even though she never considered spending Timothy’s money, was because it was a ‘token of love’ from him.

It finally seemed to come in handy.

The security guard’s mocking smile froze as soon as he saw this card.

Since many of the house owners he interacted with on a daily basis were all powerful and wealthy people, he knew what that card was and could tell at a glance that the black card was not a fake.

It was the most premium version too.

The number of people who owned a card like that could be counted on one hand.

He stared wide-eyed at Samantha and finally got a closer look at her after not paying much attention to her earlier.

Was she not the famous Samantha Larsson, wife of Timothy Barker?

No wonder she spoke in such a haughty and overbearing manner.

The security guard’s attitude changed 180 degrees. He was all smiles as he bowed down slightly as a show of respect. “I’m sorry, Mrs. Barker. I erred in my judgement. I’ll bring you to the sales office right now.”

Samantha put on her ‘Mrs. Barker’ personality and raised her head slightly. “Please lead the way.”

The security guard walked while calling the manager of the sales office to inform him of the situation. By the time they had reached the sales office, the manager was already waiting at the door.

After leaving her in the manager’s hands, the security guard left respectfully.

The manager said very enthusiastically, “Mrs. Barker! Please come in. I’ve already gotten someone to prepare tea for you.”

“That won’t be necessary.” Samantha spoke in a calm and faint tone, “I’m interested to have a look at the environment here, if that’s alright?”

“Of course, of course.”

Customers were the manager’s top priority, more so when the customer came from such a distinguished background. The manager immediately said, “One moment, Mrs. Barker. I’ll get the car to bring you around.”

Samantha answered, “Sure.”

However, she was nowhere to be seen when the manager finally came back with the car.

…

Samantha had gone to the ninth villa, which was none other than Selby’s residence. She took a deep breath and pressed the doorbell.

She heard footsteps coming from behind the door about half a minute later and the door swung open after that.

Selby looked surprised when he saw Samantha standing at the door, as if he did not expect her to find him there. In spite of his shock, he managed to react quickly and immediately shut the door..