Ch. 1921..1930

Spoiled by mr. russell chapter 1921 -Lily stepped out from the secret room with Edward in tow.

Then she turned to him and said, "You should leave this place."

Edward was puzzled.

"whatever your goal is, you can’t help much by staying here, not to mention the danger you'll put yourself in,"

Lily added, "Just go! “

"I can’t!"

Edward said, "This place is dangerous!"

"all the more reason for you to leave."

Lily put her hand on his shoulder and said solemnly, "They forced me and Mike to stay, but not you! Just leave.There are people outside this place who need you more!"

After a pause, she said meaningfully, "Someone is waiting for you back home!"

Edward became misty-eyed.He knew who Lily referred to but could not leave the place, knowing how dangerous it was.

"Mrs.Russell, I want to stay here and protect you," he said.

"I disrupted your plan, and if anyone finds out what happened, you two will be in grave danger!"

Lily noticed his sincerity and smiled.

"Edward, when it comes to fighting, do you honestly think I need your protection?"

Edward pondered for a moment.

‘She is a better fighter than me, but—’ "But, you’re pregnant, Mrs.Russell!"

He paused and lowered his gaze.

Lily’s smile froze, and she followed his gaze to her bulging tummy.

The twins inside seemed to have sensed something and gently stirred, causing her to fall silent.

She would have no problems protecting herself if it were in the past.

However, since she was pregnant, she might be unable to defend herself if she was outnumbered or attacked with firearms.

"Ma’am, let me stay here and protect you.That’s my job!"

Edward stressed.

He knew he should stay to protect her, even if he had a virus within him.

"All right, stop arguing!"

Lily took a deep breath and put her hand on his shoulder, saying, "I know you're a responsible man and are loyal to Alex, but now’s not the time to be rash.They’ll start to suspect something very soon and discover you sooner or later if you stay."

She paused momentarily and added, "Mike and I are different since they consider us one of them.We—"

"So am I!" Edward interjected.

Lily was astonished by what he said.

"What do you mean?"

"Don’t forget that I’m R16."

Edward sounded agonized.

The code name was what haunted him most.

It showed they treated him as a guinea pig and that he had become part of the evil experiment with an unknown virus inside him that could turn deadly at any moment.

Although he felt fine and could willingly move around independently, no one knew how long he could remain so.

Spoiled by mr. russell chapter 1922-Lily understood Edward’s pain and was shocked.She stopped persuading him but raised her hand, paused, and lightly placed it on his shoulder.

With a sigh, she said, "All right! But you must be careful and remember to stay under the radar."

Edward nodded and was about to leave when she stopped him again.

"Edward!"

When he turned around, he saw Lily stepping forward to look at him.

"There may be a solution for the virus in your body.Don't give up just yet! You must know that there are still people waiting for you!"

Edward was stunned, probably because he did not quite believe there was a solution to the virus in his body.

However, after seeing the sincerity in Lily’s eyes, he knew she meant well, even if it was just to comfort and give him hope.

Edward nodded with a light smile.

"I know." novelebook.com Several people left the office, one after another.

Within half an hour, the news had already spread like wildfire.

Few people knew about the masked man’s existence, especially the ground staff.

Moreover, the vaccine development base did not fully disclose this laboratory's project.

In addition to the "vaccine," there were other ongoing projects where laboratories and teams had different responsibilities.

Only some of this laboratory’s personnel knew about the masked man.

Those who knew him were Mike, Rhea, Lily, his bodyguards, and a few more individuals involved with the organization.

This news began to spread among smaller groups, and they were anxious to find the "boss’s" whereabouts.

However, they could not make it too obvious lest they alert the vaccine development base.

The impromptu emergency meeting occurred in the laboratory’s small room.

Since Mike had always given orders, he sat in the main seat with Rhea on the opposite end.

The dissatisfaction was apparent on her face.

On the other hand, Lily was unbothered as she randomly pulled a chair and sat down.

Then she noticed an unfamiliar man sitting across from Rhea.

The man had a muscular figure.

Lily knew he was a seasoned practitioner at a glance.

Under his suit and leather shoes, every slight movement from him showcased the muscles under his clothes.

Although he looked strong, he was just quietly sitting there.

He observed the room with a sharp gaze and straight back.

‘This man is a master!' novelebook.com Lily concluded.

She lowered her eyes, with a notebook and pen in her hand, writing and drawing occasionally.She had the most indifferent attitude among everyone in the room.

"People like us seldom get a chance to gather like this.Today’s a special case.We simply had to gather everyone here," novelebook.com Mike said after clearing his throat.He looked around, continuing in a deep voice, The boss is missing!"

The room fell silent.

However, everyone already knew this, so no one was surprised.

Rhea snorted softly.

"Get to the point!"

Mike glared at her and continued, ''We must keep the boss's identity a secret so this matter can’t go public.

The most important thing right now is to find him as soon as possible while remaining under the radar."

"That's simple."

Rhea crossed her legs while gently stroking her delicate nails and smiled sarcastically.

"Do you have a clue?"

Mike raised his eyebrows and looked at her.

Rhea's sarcastic smile remained as she looked at Mike and said with a sneer, "I'll have to ask you about that!"

At this moment, the atmosphere turned tense.

Spoiled by mr. russell chapter 1923-Mike's expression darkened.

"What do you mean?"

"Nothing much," Rhea replied leisurely and unhurriedly.

Her gaze scrutinized Mike as she continued, "You should be the one most aware of the boss's disappearance.After all, you were the only one there, weren't you?"

As she said this, she turned to look at the man sitting across from her.

Mike put his hands on the table and retaliated, What are you implying here? Are you saying I kidnapped the boss? Why would I do that? What good would it do for me?"

"That's a question I'll have to ask you," Rhea replied with a shrug and a meaningful smile.

'Maybe you want to kidnap the boss to force him to tell you about your son's whereabouts.After all, your grudge against the boss isn't something new."

"Rhea Moore, don't talk out of your *ss! The boss's disappearance puts everyone here in hot water! Do you think anyone can get away with it? Besides, I got injured trying to save him.Everyone saw it.If you want to throw dirt on me, at least have some evidence!" novelebook.com Mike exclaimed confidently.

A bandage was still around his leg, and when he pushed his chair back, it exposed his injuries.

Then he turned to look at the man on his side, "Rick, you saw that too, didn't you?!"

The sullen- faced man raised his eyelids and glanced at Mike lazily when the latter called him out.

Although it was just a simple glance, it was enough to make the people around him feel his fierce aura.

‘He is no ordinary man" Lily thought as she held her pen.

"When we arrived, you were alone."

This sentence alone did not sound like Rick was taking any sides.It was a completely objective statement of fact.However, it did feel like he was pointing a finger at Mike.

Rhea was startled for a while before a smile crept onto her face as if she was watching a show.

Mike was not stunned for long before he quickly became annoyed.

"What are you trying to say here?! Are you suspecting me as well?!" He pointed to himself and argued with gritted teeth. He put his leg on his chair, and due to his significant movement, the white bandage slowly turned red. He gritted his teeth again and spat, "I got injured to save the boss. Now, you're standing here and doubting my motive, one after another. Let me ask you something, then, what were you all doing at that time?!"

He immediately changed the subject and threw the question directly back at them.

There was an instant silence.

Mike was dissatisfied.He turned to look at Rhea and said, "Rhea, you've been by the boss's side recently.You don't have any projects, nor did the boss let you work outside.So tell me, where were you, and what were you doing?"

With the situation suddenly reversed, she frowned.

"I was sleeping! "Who can prove that?"

"I..." Her complexion changed.

"Everyone here works alone, so I was sleeping alone.Who else can prove my alibi?! Since you want proof, I'd like to ask what she was doing at that time?!"

In a blink of an eye, she threw the question to Lily.

Lily stopped spinning her pen and slowly raised her head.

She seemed a little dazed when everyone looked at her before returning to her senses.

She looked at them innocently and said, "Me? I was experimenting."

"Heh, who can prove that?!"

Rhea sneered and continued, "I've already asked around.No one was in the lab at that time."

Spoiled by mr. russell chapter 1925 -"Someone has wronged you, Mr.Corden!"

Rick raised his hand and lightly patted Mike’s shoulder.

Then he glanced meaningfully at Mike’s injury before sitting down again.

Mike sucked in a breath, obviously in much pain.

As he put his leg away, he tied up the torn bandage again and said, "Rick, what were you trying to do? Did you think my injury was fake?"

Rick's voice was cold as a smile crept onto his stoic face.

"Well, not really.I just wanted to see what weapon the other party used."

His excuse was superficial, and no one bought it.

Mike snorted and said, "If you wanted to know what weapon they used, you could've just asked me.Also, don't change the topic! The most urgent thing right now is to find the boss quickly!"

After a pause, he continued, "Do the higher-ups know about the boss’s disappearance?"

Everyone was downplaying the situation before this.

Now that Mike had mentioned the higher-ups, Rhea's face froze.Even Rick raised his brows.

Only Lily did not react much to it.She did not know which 'higher-up' Mike referred to.

Although she had a rough idea and knew people were working behind the scenes, she had never been in contact with them.

"W-We’ve yet to inform them," Rhea hesitantly said as she glanced at Rick with uncertainty.

"It's something recent, and the incident was so sudden.That’s why we haven’t reported it yet."

It was evident these two dared not report the incident. However, the boss’s disappearance could not stay hidden for long, even if they did not report it.

The boss must have had his way of contacting the higher-ups, and they should be in regular contact.

On top of that, he would have to report the experiment’s progress.

No one dared even to imagine what the consequences would be if the higher-ups knew about this.

"So, we must find the boss before the higher-ups learn of his disappearance!" novelebook.com Mike said anxiously.

His face was pale from the pain as large beads of sweat rolled down his cheeks.

He looked anxious and troubled.

Rick looked deeply at him before slowly turning to face Lily, who had hardly spoken.

"What do you think, Ms.Christian?" He asked.

Lily raised her eyes and glanced at him lightly.

"Sorry, I..have no opinions."

She opened her hands up, making her look helpless.

Rhea suddenly became angry and slammed the table before leaning forward.

"Stop pretending! You must have something to do with the boss's disappearance! You came here with bad intentions from the very beginning!"

"As I said, I was in the lab at that time,"

Lily was not angry as she lightly answered, ''There is evidence of that."

She glanced at Rick; he was the one that brought this proof to the table.

"What evidence?! Anyone can falsify evidence! From what I see, you're the biggest suspect here! You should be apprehended and tortured for answers!"

It was Rhea's chance to get Lily detained, so she quickly jumped on it.She would never let such an opportunity go.

Spoiled by mr. russell chapter 1924-Faced with Rhea’s doubts, Lily was neither angry nor nervous.Instead, she raised her pen upward and pointed to the ceiling.

"Oh, but there are CCTVs."

Rhea immediately fell silent but still did not believe Lily.

"No one checks the surveillance footage, so you can run your mouth! Who knows if you were really at the lab?!"

"I did."

Lily initially wanted to defend herself by saying Rhea could check the footage if she did not believe her, but before Lily could open her mouth, the man at the side spoke.

Lily was startled and quickly swallowed her words.

"What?!"

Rhea did not expect him to defend Lily and was momentarily stunned.

"I've checked all the monitoring systems, and she’s not lying," novelebook.com the man said in a deep voice.

The 'she' he mentioned naturally referred to Lily.

Rhea's lips moved as if he wanted to say something.

Instead, she stared at Lily fiercely and leaned back, somewhat unconvinced.

"All right, it's useless to discuss this now.Our priority is to get the boss back as soon as possible.Rick, you've been with the boss for the longest time and know the most.Do you have any suspicions about who it is; who has such ability to take the boss away?"

Mike diverted the conversation back to the main topic slowly.

Rick looked at him with deep brown eyes and lightly said, "As for who it is, I have no idea yet.But I want to ask if you should know best what you were doing then."

As soon as Mike changed the topic, Rick suddenly threw the arrow of suspicion back at Mike. Mike sneered.

"So, are you suspicious of me as well?!"

He nodded and continued, "Indeed! I was indeed the only one there at that time.The boss was looking for me, saying he had something to tell me, so I went over immediately.However, someone suddenly attacked him, and even your people were no match for the attacker.What else could I do?! I'm lucky I managed to get away with my life!"

He patted his injured leg with his hand to confirm his statement, even though the pain made him sweat profusely.

"Is your injury severe?" Rick asked suddenly.

Lily sensed something was wrong, glanced over, and saw that Rick was already by Mike's side.

Rick pressed one hand against Mike's shoulders and held a sharp knife in his other.

A flash of the cold steel— "What are you doing?!" Mike exclaimed in surprise.

Lily's eyes darkened.

She clenched her pen tightly and noticed Rick had slashed the bandage wrapped around Mike's leg.

Even his trousers tore, revealing a hideous wound.

The wound was long and thin and looked like a deep cut with the skin torn apart.

Although these people had witnessed many bloody scenes, they could not help but frown.

Rhea subconsciously turned away and complained unhappily, "What are you doing, Rick?!"

"A knife wound?" Rick asked, raising his eyebrows.

Mike huffed and cursed angrily, "Nonsense! Of course, it's a knife wound.

Did you think it was a gunshot wound? If it was a gun, how could no one notice? Sometimes, I question how you guys have been around the boss for so long!"

Spoiled by mr. russell chapter 1926-Lily laughed mockingly.

"So, you're saying we don't need evidence at all? As long as you want to do it, you can, right? The boss has only disappeared briefly, and you're already here, showcasing your power.Are you saying everything will be your call if the boss is gone? If that's the case, you're the prime suspect!"

Lily downplayed herself and shifted the blame back unto Rhea in just a few sentences.

"I..."

Shocked momentarily, Rhea immediately retorted, "I didn't say that!"

She swallowed her words angrily, feeling Rick's calm eyes on her.

The back of her spine felt a little chilly.She had met Rick several times, but not enough.

However, she knew he often appeared by the boss's side.

He was a man of very few words and always seemed indifferent.

His actions were always cruel and vicious.

Rhea accidentally ran into him once while he was punishing someone.

Even though she had grown accustomed to various experiments and bloodshed, she still felt sick at that scene.

Later, an inexplicable fear of Rick formed in her, the kind she could not control as it hit her heart’s core.

"Have you searched everywhere?" Rick asked Mike again.

Mike nodded affirmatively.

"I've searched everywhere, even under the carpets.We've searched all the secret rooms we know of here."

Hearing this, Rick fell silent.

Lily, who had been trying to stay out of this matter, spoke up.

"I have a question."

Everyone looked at her.

Rhea was about to come up with a sarcastic answer before quickly swallowing her words.

Rick nodded slightly, motioning for Lily to speak.

"As you all have said, I'm not loyal to the boss, and I'm not affected by his disappearance.Whether he disappears or not has nothing to do with me."

She shrugged indifferently before continuing, "What I care more about is, are we continuing this experiment as usual? "My experiment is almost complete, and I know the boss valued this project a lot.I know the higher-ups probably think very highly of it as well.However, now that something like this has happened, do we focus on—"

She paused momentarily as her eyes darted from Rick to Mike and finally to Rhea.

"Looking for the boss or continuing the experiment?"

"Of course, we—"

Just as Mike was about to say, ‘Look for the boss, ’ he caught himself and looked at Rick.

Lily saw the power dynamic here.

On the surface, the trio were equal.

However, both seemed more afraid of Rick and would always turn to him.

Meanwhile, Lily remained objective and indifferent, without a hint of anxiety.

It was usual for her.Everyone here knew she came here unwillingly and got forced to work.

Now that the boss had gone missing, it would be suspicious if she suddenly became worried or anxious.

Rick pondered momentarily before slowly saying, "We'll have to look for the boss and continue the experiment simultaneously.We’ll handle the search while you..."

He paused before continuing, "You and Miss Moore continue the experiment.You two must complete the experiment according to plan! Mr.Corden and I will look for the boss."

Lily raised her eyebrows.

"Do your words count?"

Rick probably did not realize the underlying meaning of Lily’s question and replied in a daze, '"My words always count, and I will always do what I say."

"No, I'm saying, since the boss isn't here now, are you the second in command?"

Lily smiled while looking at Rick meaningfully.

Spoiled by mr. russell chapter 1927-Rick only understood what Lily meant after a moment.He shook his head and said, "No.Before the boss returns, four of us can express our opinions and doubts.Anyone who has an opinion can speak up as well.Certainly..."

After a pause, his eyes gradually turned cold and sullen.

"If anyone is a traitor, they will not be let go!"

Once the meeting adjourned, Rhea stood before Lily solemnly.

"Is it you?"

"What do you think?"

Lily looked at her leisurely, neither admitting nor denying it.

"It seems you are competent.I didn't expect you to be able to kidnap the boss.However, don't assume your plan is seamless.You have no idea how scary the people behind the boss are!"

Rhea retorted.

Fear quickly flashed across her eyes as she mentioned those working behind the scenes.

Lily laughed lightly.

"Why? Do you understand fear as well? Here I was, thinking you were a fearless psychopath!"

"You—!"

Rhea was furious upon being ridiculed.

"Also, you said I can't assume the plan to be seamless, right? So, Rhea, you should know what consequences await you!"

Lily glanced at her lightly before walking away.

Rhea immediately turned around and raised her voice.

"Drop the act! If it wasn't you, why don't you deny it?! So, it was you! I know you're skilled in kickboxing.You must’ve taken advantage of the boss's downtime—"

Before she could even finish speaking, she felt something grabbing her collar.

Her eyes widened, feeling a little dazed.

She knew Lily was skilled, so she deliberately distanced herself before speaking to the latter.

Yet, even with such a big gap, she could not see Lily’s actions.

She had caught Rhea off guard, and the latter was terrified.

Rhea did not know Lily was inwardly lamenting that her belly was too big, making it inconvenient for her to move.

Initially, she wanted to grab Rhea by her neck.

However, since Lily was pregnant, her movement inevitably slowed down.

She could only barely grab Rhea by her collar.

Despite this, it was enough to frighten Rhea.

"Rhea, since you know I'm skilled, you should stop provoking me repeatedly,"

Lily pulled Rhea closer and whispered.

Lily's voice was soft, only audible to the two of them.

Still, Lily sneered as she inched closer to the helpless Rhea.

The hair on Rhea's body stood on end.

'This woman—' "Also, I don't need to deny it.You've already decided, so what's the difference if 1 admit or deny it?"

Lily said unhurriedly, "It's no wonder your experiments always fail.Your mind is all over the place.You should spend more time doing your experiments than speculating and talking.

"Trust me.You can't succeed without me.You’re nothing compared to the world’s top talents!"

After saying that, Lily unclasped her hand and pushed Rhea back.

Rhea only felt a strong force pushing her back, causing her to stumble a few steps and almost fall to the ground.

"You—!"

She dared not continue.

Meanwhile, Lily returned to her room to rest.

After all, it was exhausting to do what she just did.She plopped down on the sofa and breathed before taking a few slow sips from the glass of water she had poured.

Spoiled by mr. russell chapter 1928-Just as Lily gulped down half the glass of water, a knock on the door sounded from outside.

"It's not locked," Lily called out, not bothering to get up.

She predicted for a knock to come around this time.

The door opened, and it was Mike outside.

When he entered, he looked back and was about to close the door when Lily said, "Don't close it."

"Huhu"

"If there were two pairs of eyes on you and me in the past, now it'll double.Whether or not you close the door doesn’t affect anything.It just makes you look more guilty," Lily explained lazily with an indifferent expression.

"It's so messy now; there's nothing to avoid."

Thinking about this, Mike quickly reopened the door widely.

That way, he could observe the situation outside of her room.

Lily seemed a little irritable.

She put a cushion behind her and leaned back lazily with her brows furrowed.

Mike could not tell what she was thinking about.

"The surveillance Rick saw..."

"The wound on your leg..."

The two spoke almost simultaneously, but they both paused.

If there were any doubts, it would be evident after asking.

No one was a fool since they were surviving in this place.

Lily could have thought of how to falsify her evidence the same way he might naturally want others to suspect his leg injury.

Although he might be injured, if someone discovered his scar was from a bite mark instead of a knife wound, an observant man like Rick would have suspected something was amiss.

It was just that Mike had injured himself again and dealt a ruthless hand.

"That Rick isn't a simple man," Lily said lightly, changing the subject.

"That's normal,"

Mike sounded quite reflective, "He has been by the boss's side the longest and is the most mysterious person I know.To be honest, I've only met him a few times, but I know that he’s highly influential.I think he may be even more powerful than the boss."

"More powerful than the bess?"

Lily did not expect this and looked at Mike in surprise.

Mike smiled, albeit somewhat bitter.

"We all know the boss is just a clown dancing on stage.Taking him down isn't too difficult, even if it weren't for today's incident.It's just that we fear what's behind him."

Lily did not interrupt since he was right.

It was not hard to take down the performer on stage.

With his size, strength, and lack of self-defensive skills, it was not challenging to take him down, even with a few guards around.

No one took action for such a long time because they knew he was not the key to the organization.

Instead, the mysterious and powerful organization behind him was the terrifying force.

"Besides the boss, we have no idea who the higher-ups are, but Rick does,"

Mike paused before continuing, "I've considered getting an answer from him, but..."

He sighed faintly and just shook his head.

‘It’s difficult.Way too difficult!’ Rick was as cold as ice and as hard as a rock.He was rarely around as well.It was too difficult of a task to get in touch with the higher- ups through him.

"He's a difficult person to deal with."

Lily rubbed her hands together as she pondered.She lowered her gaze, and after a momentary silence, she said, "However, it doesn't mean there's absolutely no way."

"Huh?"

Spoiled by mr. russell chapter 1929 -"Since the boss is ‘missing" I guess Rick's also under pressure?" Lily asked lazily.

"That's inevitable.After all, we're not in direct contact with the higher-ups.Even if they wanted to pressure or punish us, they would do it through..."

Mike stopped and looked at her.

"So, what are you trying to say here?"

She shook her head and said, "I think Edward’s reckless attack this time may not be entirely wrong.

Before, we were fearful and hesitant, not daring to make a move on the boss because we had our reservations.

"Edward doesn't know much, nor does he think things through.He’s highly straightforward, but sometimes, the simplest ideas and actions result in the biggest breakthroughs."

Mike was deep in thought after listening to her words.

‘She’s right.I didn’t dare to take action because I was worried about Nick.Meanwhile, Lily wanted to catch the bigger fish behind the boss, so she didn’t take action either.However, Edward knew nothing"

He only thought about blowing up and destroying the hellish base, even if he died with it.

Now that the boss had gone missing and everything was in shambles, Lilt saw a new opportunity amidst the mess.

She had no contact with Rick before this, let alone talk to him.

Nonetheless, she thought maybe it was time to follow the clues and uncover the mastermind behind everything.

"But Rick would never let us talk to the higher-ups," Mike said.

He knew a thing or two about Rick.

Also, the reason why this organization was so hidden was due to the countless layers between them.

Only Mike, Rhea, and a few others knew about the boss's existence.

Among them, only a few knew someone else was behind the boss.

Most below them had no idea.

Mike had been with the boss for so long, yet he still had no idea how vicious or twisted the man who contacted the boss was.

He had tried snooping around many times but found nothing.

As for Rick, he came and went without a trace.

If Rick had not shown up on his own initiative, no one would have known of his existence.

"Whether or not he wants to isn't equivalent to whether we can or can't," Lily replied with a slight smile.

She sounded relaxed, as if she already had a solution.

After a pause, she looked at Mike.

"However, we have an urgent matter to resolve right now."

"You mean..."

Mike dragged on and glanced toward the door.

The corridor was quiet, and there was no one outside.

The conversation stopped there, and neither of them spoke again.

After a few seconds of silence, Mike said, "Leave it to me."

"Are you sure?" Lily asked, looking at him with raised eyebrows.

He nodded slightly and stood up.

Just as he turned to leave, he seemed to remember something and turned back to look at Lily.

His gaze slowly dropped and finally stopped at her swollen belly.

Lily found it unsettling for him to stare at her like that and subconsciously raised her hand to cover her belly with a frown.

"Is there anything else?"Mike stayed quiet for a while before he could no longer hold back and asked, "Are you expecting soon?"

Lily fell quiet.

After a while, she finally said, "In less than two months.I'll be fine."

Spoiled by mr. russell chapter 1930-Mike nodded and said nothing more.

However, he stopped again and turned to look at her when he reached the door.

"What?"

He hesitated to speak.

After a while, he finally said, "I know it's your body, so you should know best, but I've experienced this and know highly risky childbirth is.Nick's birth almost cost his mother’s life, and because of this, she spiraled out of control.I couldn't just disregard her.

"You're six months pregnant and live in such a tense environment.You shouldn't be stubborn and try to do everything yourself."

Lily did not like the word "stubborn" because it made her sound like she was trying too hard.

However, she knew Mike said these things out of concern.She did not refute and instead nodded.

"I understand.Thank you, Mike."

She found it tough to thank him.

Since he confessed to his deception, they could no longer return to how they were before.

Although they had joined forces and faced various difficulties and dangers together, they still were not friends.

Lily being able to thank him showed that she at least did not hate him that much.

Mike's lips twitched.

Just as he wanted to leave, Lily called him back.

"There must be a way to solve Nicky's matter.He is a good boy and will come home safely."

Mike suspected she had said that to comfort him, or she might have believed it.

Still, he was grateful and smiled.

"I think so too."

Just as he walked to the elevator and was about to press the button, he noticed the elevator was stopping on the same floor.

Frowning, he stepped back subconsciously and turned his head to glance toward Lily.

Her door remained open, and he could see Lily from his perspective.

The duo’s eyes met as the elevator arrived with a crisp ding.

The elevator door opened slowly, and the person inside raised their head.

When the person saw who stood before them, their face remained calm.

Instead, the person in the elevator just slightly raised their eyebrows.

"What a coincidence, Mr.Corden."

"Yeah, what a coincidence!"

Mike smiled as usual.

Then he turned and gestured to the room at the end of the corridor.

"Are you coincidentally here to look for Ms.Christian as well?"

Rick stepped out of the elevator.

"Why, is there anyone else living on this floor?"

"Then I won't bother you two."

Mike shrugged and was about to enter the elevator when Rick held Mike's shoulders.

With a little brute force, Rick pulled Mike back.

"Don't rush to leave.It's a coincidence we're all here."

Mike appeared to be walking with Rick's arm around his shoulders, but only he knew he could not struggle to escape.

Rick had his hand around Mike's shoulders lightly as he strolled casually.

Yet, it felt like Mike was carrying a heavy boulder around his shoulders that he could not get rid of.

No matter how reluctant he was, he could only follow Rick's steps.

Mike said with a smile, "That's true.I looked for Ms.Christian to discuss the experiment's progress.Now that we’re done, I must return to the lab immediately.We can't delay any longer!"

Rick gripped his shoulders and had already walked them into Lily's living room.He said coldly, "No rush."

With a slight movement of his foot, the door slammed shut behind then: as a gust of wind blew past Mike’s ears.