Chapter 4
Dorothy took the letter and unfolded it.
[I love your eyes, so clear, so pure, untouched by anything ordinary. All I see in them is raw, primal desire.]
Dorothy's heart skipped a beat. She was on the verge of tears.
[I love your simple, headstrong nature, your stubbornness, your fierce determination. I love how you blaze with passion, like lightning cutting through the night.]
Dorothy felt her heart hang in her chest, uncertainty creeping in. Scott had never described her like this before.
[I love you, June.]
A few tears fell onto the name June. Dorothy looked up, forcing a crooked, uneasy smile. "Sorry, I think you've given me the wrong letter."
She tried to keep her voice steady, but even she was surprised at how shaky it came out. By now, she couldn't hold back her tears any longer.
The staff member, startled, quickly apologized and brought over another document, handing it to her.
Dorothy opened it. There were two simple pages.
One page stated the trust amount, a hundred billion dollars.
The other page was an open letter. It simply said: [To Dorothy.]
Dorothy couldn't figure out whether Scott's feelings were meant for her or for June. Or maybe he liked June because her eyes reminded him of Dorothy's. But at this point, none of it mattered anymore.
As she wrote the word "waive" on the paper, her phone suddenly rang.
"Dorothy! Emergency. The Southgate kidnapping might be connected to the Bennett family. Get to headquarters right now.
"According to the suspects in the kidnapping case, BrightStar Entertainment invested in real estate.
"But due to mismanagement and unpaid wages, the workers were pushed to the edge and ended up kidnapping the company supervisor together.
"After further investigation, we've found that BrightStar Entertainment's operations go well beyond real estate, even reaching overseas.
"Judging by their financial records, we strongly suspect they're involved in money laundering, fraudulent transactions, stock market manipulation, and other illegal activities.
"Oddly enough, the only artist signed to BrightStar Entertainment is June Hart. And the only irregular activity in June's account involves Scott Bennett."
Dorothy sat in the conference room, watching her colleague present slide after slide. Finally, the pointer landed on Scott's photo, and the atmosphere turned serious.
"Dorothy, what do you think?"
Dorothy's fingertips felt numb. Her thoughts were all over the place. She couldn't piece anything together.
She hadn't expected Scott to be tangled up in all these criminal activities, hiding it so well, so far out of reach. "I—"
"Dorothy! Someone's here to see you." A colleague burst in, cutting her off. "Someone from BrightStar Capital. They heard you were innocently implicated and want to invite you to their company for a meeting."
The executives in the meeting all looked grim.
As Dorothy settled into the Rolls-Royce sent to pick her up, the chief's words echoed in her ears. "They probably don't mean well, but this is a chance to get a closer look at BrightStar."
*****
Half an hour later, the bodyguard escorted Dorothy to the entrance of BrightStar's lavish suite. She opened the door and found June waiting for her.
"Detective Reed, we meet again," June said.
Dorothy's gaze shifted to the table beside them, where stacks of cash and a box of gold bars were piled up.
June pushed the money and gold bars toward June. "Let's cut to the chase. I already know about you and Scott.
"Since we're all in the same boat now, there's no point in secrets. Trust me, you'll come in handy plenty of times."
"BrightStar still has a few open cases with the police. That's your problem now. Take care of them for us."
June gave Dorothy a smug, sideways glance, her voice dripping with sarcasm. Every word was a reminder that she and Scott were together, and Dorothy was clearly on the outside.
Dorothy clenched her fists, letting the pain in her palm steady her. "I can't accept this. I'm reporting everything that happened today to my boss."
June's lips curled into a smirk. "You really want to do that? We're talking about Scott's business here."