Chapter 13
No matter how strong the feelings, there would always be a moment when it ends.
James had held Naomi’s ice–cold body in his arms throughout the entire night. By morning, his lips had turned purple from the cold, and his face was frighteningly pale.
After he quickly washed up, he made a call.
Throughout the night, his mind replayed everything, taking him back to where it all started–Jeanine Academy. He planned to investigate the truth
himself.
At the same time, he brought in forensic specialists. As he looked at Naomi lying motionless on the metal table, a trace of pain flashed across his face. “Please do your best to be thorough. I want to know about every scar, no matter how small it may be.”
The forensic team exchanged glances and nodded silently. As James stepped outside and felt the warm and comforting sunlight on him, his throat tightened.
“Nee, I’ll surely investigate this thoroughly. Every injury you suffered–I’ll return them a hundredfold.”
In her spirit form, Naomi followed James into the car. She watched as he opened his contacts list, tapped on the entry for the director of Jeanine Academy, and placed a call.
She also saw the name he had saved for her in his phone-“Princess Nae“. She had thought that he would’ve changed it long ago.
James was silent the whole drive until they reached Jeanine Academy.
Naomi looked at the all–too–familiar place and didn’t dare go further. However, she also wanted to know why James had come here.
So, she quietly turned her back to the academy and floated to sit on his shoulder.
James, completely unaware of her presence, strode inside. It was only as he entered and glanced around that he noticed something was off.
All the students had sallow faces, their eyes dull and lifeless. When they saw someone approach, they either pressed themselves against the walls or quickly darted away.
Back then, when he personally sent Naomi here, he had only looked at the facilities and met with the staff. He hadn’t paid any attention to the students. James recalled what Naomi looked like when she returned from this place. He couldn’t even remember how many times he had whipped her.
He only remembered her back, drenched in blood, with a pool of it collecting on the floor. There was so much of it that it had even seeped beneath his leather shoes.
Niomi kept her head lowered through the entire ordeal. She did not shed a single tear or utter a single plea
When he suddenly yanked her up, he saw her vacant, numb, and lifeless eyes. They were just like every other student’s here.
James was almost cortain of the truth at that point.
So when he walked into the office and saw the sycophantic smile on the face of the person in charge, Adam Hoffman, fury surged through him. James stormed forward and slapped the men hard across the face.
“What the hell did you do to Naomi? Speak!”
His roar shook the entire office. Adam averted his eyes, still trying to maintain composure. “Mr. Payne, we didn’t do anything, I swear.”
James knew that these people would never confess easily. So, he turned to the bodyguards he had brought along and instructed, “You two, stay here and keep an eye on him,”
That finally sent Adam into a panic. He grabbed James‘ arm in desperation, his eyes filled with fear.
“Didn’t you say back then that you wanted to break that young lady’s spirit? We only used a few… methods. But didn’t you say it was acceptable?
“And now you want to investigate the matter? What are we supposed to do, Mr. Payne?”
Naomi, now just a soul, trembled violently when she heard the man’s voice. A sudden gust of howling wind burst in through the window like a cry of anguish.
It slammed against the unsteady windowpanes, making them rattle and crash against the wall with deafening bangs. The wailing of the wind mirrored the trembling of Naomi’s ghostly form perfectly,
Naomi stared in disbelief at the window as the wind gradually died down.
James hadn’t expected the sudden gust either. It took him a while before he returned to his senses.
“Didn’t I say only to teach her enough to break her attachment to me? I told you not to make her suffer too much, and that I would come back for her!”
In truth, James hadn’t said those words at the beginning. He only remembered to make the request after Naomi had been here for five days
“When you called to say that… the lesson had already been delivered.” Adam’s voice grow weaker, barely a whisper.
However, James heard it all clearly.
Chapter 13. SCIE
He couldn’t wait another second. He stormed out the door and headed straight for the surveillance room.
Adam had no choice but to lead the way, head bowed in terror, not daring to meet the eyes of this man now consumed by fury. James was not someone anyone could afford to cross easily.
