Once Bitten, Twice Shy

When Samantha strode forward, Harmony seemed to have sensed Samantha's presence and turned around abruptly to make eye contact with Samantha.

Harmony's eyes widened and she was somewhat stunned to see Samantha's presence. It was almost as if she did not expect Samantha to show up there and walk over so blatantly.

Her first reaction was to whisper to the man. "Sir, please leave. I'll stop her."

She knew that he did not want to reveal his identity.

Harmony then immediately walked over to Samantha and spread her arms before her while scolding, "What are you doing here, Samantha?"

From the moment Samantha stepped into the garden, her eyes were fixed on the man Harmony addressed as 'Sir'. From Samantha's angle, all that could be seen was his back.

His figure suggested that he was a tall and thin man. He was wearing a large black trench coat that covered nearly his entire body. In addition, there was only a faint light in the garden, making it difficult to see clearly, especially when it came to his face.

Harmony's act of blocking her way made it abundantly clear that Harmony did not want her to pass, but the man in front had already started walking toward the other side of the garden.

Was he leaving?

Samantha was determined to see that man's true face!

She gritted her teeth, grabbed Harmony's arm with both hands, and pushed her aside forcefully. "Get the hell out of my way!"

Harmony's strength was inherently inferior to Samantha's and was immediately thrown to one side. However, Samantha only managed to take two steps forward before Harmony hugged Samantha's waist with both hands and gave everything to try and stop her.

Samantha was already thoroughly incensed and that anger surged much more when Harmony tried to stall her.

She no longer treated Harmony kindly and immediately reached back to grab Harmony's hair.

Harmony cried out in pain, "Let go of me, you b*tch!"

"Sure!"

Samantha pulled harder, forcing Harmony to stand up straight. She then gave Harmony a resounding kick on the knee.

The high heels Samantha wore that day were rather tall and slender. The stabbing pain made Harmony's knees go weak and she knelt in front of Samantha.

Harmony wailed in pain and could no longer stand up again.

Samantha gazed down icily at Harmony.

She would have ridiculed Harmony a couple of times in the past, but on that occasion, she had no time to be paying attention to Harmony because the priority was to find out who that man was.

Samantha strode past Harmony and immediately chased after the man.

The garden had winding paths and there were plenty of plants blocking the view at every turn. Samantha could not catch up for a moment, so she could only try her best to follow him and refrain from getting lost.

After all, she had already startled the man, and if she could not out find out who that man was that day, it would be even more difficult for her to know his identity in the future!

She was at a severe disadvantage if her enemy was always in the dark while she was in plain view!

The man in the trench coat walked faster and faster, perhaps because Samantha was chasing him, and he took a big detour around the garden before finally walking back into the building along the porch.

Samantha frowned.

He would have reached the banquet venue if he walked back in, and the place was so full of guests that it would be very difficult for her to locate him once he was in.

Moreover, she could not just accuse him recklessly if she went in and chased after him. If any trouble was caused, Timothy would not let her off the hook!

Samantha quickened her pace and ran towards him as fast as she could.

As soon as the man stepped into the venue, Samantha ran up to his rear. She did not give him any chance to escape at all and grabbed his shoulders with one hand while using all her strength to push his body over.

Her pupils looked right at the man's face as soon as she turned him around.

During the key moment that Samantha was about to get a good look at him, her vision immediately turned black.

She was left stunned.

The lights had gone out at that exact moment and the entire place was pitch-black.

The man's face was hidden by the darkness and she could not see a single thing.

Seizing her absent-minded moment, the man removed her hand suddenly and walked off.

Samantha reacted quickly enough and reached out to grab him, but all she managed to grasp was thin air.

The lights suddenly came on again and Samantha narrowed her eyes because she was unaccustomed to the sudden change in brightness.

The emcee apologized from the stage. "I'm sorry, everyone. There was a little power trip due to the hotel's unstable current. No need to panic, everything's back to normal now."

Samantha scanned her surroundings but could not find anyone tall and thin wearing a black trench coat.

She walked grudgingly back into the crowd while keeping her eyes peeled for anyone suspicious.

Samantha then saw the man standing beside Michael. The man was talking to Timothy while holding a glass of champagne. Her footsteps stopped and she looked at the man in surprise.

Why was he here?

Timothy seemed aware of her gaze and his black pupils glanced at her. As soon as he saw her standing there in a daze, he frowned as if he was dissatisfied.

Samantha felt the pressure coming from him and regained her senses. She immediately adjusted her emotions and smiled before walking towards Timothy.

She consciously walked back to Timothy's side and stood there.

Timothy gazed at her tender and doting look that was unlike any other. He curled his long fingers to tuck a lock of hair behind her ears and said, "You're back."

Samantha smiled back, "Mmhmm."

She then glanced over at the man standing beside Michael and pretended not to know him as she asked, "And who might this be?"

Michael introduced the man to her very enthusiastically. "Mrs. Barker, this is Theodore McKinnon, my good friend, and business partner."

It turned out that her master's name was Theodore McKinnon.

Although he mentioned the other day that he would come back to meet Samantha, she did not expect him to know Michael and even show up to the dinner without notifying her in advance.

Michael and Theodore seemed to have a very good relationship.

Theodore smiled gently and stretched out his hand toward Samantha. "It's nice meeting you, Mrs. Barker."

Although Samantha had lots of questions, she understood tacitly and pretended as if they just met for the first time. She reached out and shook hands with him, saying politely, "The pleasure's mine as well, Mr. McKinnon."

Samantha's eyes looked on Theodore.

When he was in the 'underworld', his appearance was much more casual, donning his signature oversized T-shirt with washed-out jeans. His hair was very messy as well and he always looked very nonchalant.

Years had passed since she last saw him, and although his appearance had not changed, his fashion sense had changed completely.

On that day, he was dressed in a light-colored suit with his shiny hair slicked back in a dashing manner. He very much looked the part and had an air befitting his status as her master.

Samantha was very happy that he was doing well.

She had no opportunity to speak with him alone after the party because Theodore had left along with Michael and Lilian.

Samantha then figured that she could always meet him again some other time since he was already in the city anyway. Besides, she had more important things to tend to that night!

She raised her eyes and quickly scanned the four walls of the venue. Surveillance cameras were present all around.

Her vision came into focus, and when no one was paying attention to her, she untied the diamond necklace around her neck and hid it in her sleeve.

Under the cover of the table, she threw it to the ground and use her feet to kick it under a large ornamental vase, away from the cameras' field of vision.

After doing that, she secretly let out a sigh of relief.

Her anger would not ease that easily if she did not find that man!

If one of her valuable items were 'lost', she could ask the hotel to check the surveillance, and if that man came out of that venue, the surveillance footage might be able to capture his identity.

After completing her thought process, Samantha raised her head and turned around.

Her eyes met Timothy's gloomy eyes all of a sudden and she did not know how long he had been standing behind her. He was just staring at her with an inquisitive look in his eyes.

Samantha's heart began throbbing wildly all of a sudden.