Their eyes met, and a wave of panic rushed through Leon. He tried his best to keep his face neutral, showing no signs of unease. As Elijah’s assistant, Leon’s living arrangements had been personally arranged by him, and he was well aware of the door code.
“Mr. Freeman, is there something you need from me?” Leon tried to maintain his composure as he put down his bag. “You could have just informed me over the phone. It’s still early. Have you had breakfast? Would you like me to prepare something for you?”
“Where were you?” Elijah ignored the string of questions and extinguished the cigarette, looking at Leon with a piercing cold gaze.
Trying to sound nonchalant, Leon replied, “I thought it wouldn’t be healthy to stay cooped up in the office all the time, and I wanted to exercise a bit… But I usually don’t have the time, so I went for a run in the morning.
“Is that so?” Elijah’s piercing gaze remained on him. Then, he crossed his legs, and his fingers lightly tapped the lacquered wooden decoration on the back of the couch.
Just this simple action exerted intense pressure on Leon, and he bit the bullet, saying, “That’s right, Mr. Freeman. I was just doing some morning exercise. Please don’t read too much into it.
A hint of weariness flashed across Elijah’s face. “Leon, you disappoint me. Did you really think I’m oblivious to everything?”
Leon shook his head, replying, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“You used my name to lift Jennifer’s phone monitoring. Why did you leave Farlem last night? What were you up to?” Elijah stopped beating around the bush.
Leon was stunned to hear Elijah’s words and stuttered, “D–Did you already suspect me?!”
Thump!
Then, he knelt before Elijah, adding, “Mr. Freeman, it’s my fault. I shouldn’t have crossed the line. Please, punish me!”
“You left Farlem last night. Where did you go? What did you do? Answer truthfully.”
Elijah suppressed his boiling anger as he approached Leon, looking down on him and commanded in a warning tone, “This is your last chance. You know the consequences of defying me.”
Leon fell into silence.
After a moment, he gritted his teeth and mustered the courage to meet Elijah’s gaze, saying, ” Mr. Freeman, don’t you think you’re being unreasonable? Ms. Moore is your fiancee, yet you show no concern for her. You’ve lavished attention on Sheena, transferred Ocean Avenue to her, and made Ms. Moore stay in a separate apartment. Is this how a responsible fiance behaves? Ms. Moore was framed by Sheena, and she was severely injured. Yet, you didn’t even seek justice for her.”
Leon continued staring at Elijah’s stern face.
Elijah frowned at Leon’s sudden accusation. However, he just touched his wristwatch as his words did not mean much to him. “Are you done? I’ll ask you one last time. Why did you leave Farlem? Was it related to Sheena?”
Having worked by Elijah’s side for years, Leon was well aware of his habitual actions, and he knew Elijah was reigning in his anger.
Even if he remained tight–lipped, Elijah would eventually uncover the truth. In that case, Leon decided to take full responsibility.
“Sheena is dead! Last night, I hijacked the plane she was on with several men, and she jumped out mid–flight. You might be able to forgive her for hurting Ms. Moore, but I couldn’t!”
