Chapter 9 The plane soared across the sky, vanishing into the clouds. Camila stared out the window at the white clouds and blue sky, biting her lower lip hard to distract herself. Her wound was still bleeding, and the intense pain swept through her entire body. Just hold on a little longer-once the plane lands, she will be free. When she left the airport, it felt as if she had spent a lifetime, moving forward with great difficulty. However, as soon as she reached the street, the piercing sound of a sports car's sudden brakes rang in her ears. The car stopped steadily right in front of her, but before she could even look up, her strength gave out completely and she collapsed to the ground. Great, she thought, just arrived in a foreign country and already looks like she's faking an accident for money. She wanted to laugh, but the pain was too much for her to even manage a smile. Just before she lost consciousness, she caught a clear glimpse of the sports car's logo-a red Ferrari, the prancing horse on its hood exuding a wild, unpredictable energy. A strong arm quickly scooped her up, and the sharp, amber-tinged scent from the man enveloped her. The smell of Ferrari cologne. So he was a loyal man, even devoted to his choice of brand. "Mr. Treyton, if you don't leave now, your family will catch up. Let me handle this accident." "I'm the one who hit her. I can't leave. I have to take her to the hospital." Who would have thought that someone so flamboyant could also be responsible. Treyton- That name sounded oddly familiar. A final flicker of thought flashed through her mind before she slipped into darkness. 444 Sitting in the car, Zachary suddenly frowned. For some reason, his heart skipped a beat, as if something was slipping away from his fingertips. He instinctively tried to grasp it, but caught nothing. 0.0 % 09:04 "Mr. Madderford, is something wrong?" "It's nothing." Zachary's expression remained unchanged. It must have been his imagination. Three days later, the meeting finally ended. The Madderford Group completed the final transfer of power. All the uncles and relatives who had been scheming for power over the years, both openly and in secret, were com- pletely purged. The entire Madderford Group, including the head of the Madderford family, was now under Zachary's control. "Congratulations, Mr. Madderford. Truly impressive for someone so young!" Zachary raised his wine glass, a faint smile appearing on his otherwise cool face. He had spent six years planning and lying low, and now, at this moment, he had finally closed the net and achieved a sweeping victory. oment of celebration, but amid the clinking of glasses, he suddenly thought of Camila. red wine looked just like a beautiful woman in a bright red dress. and unrestrained, with a hint of a smile on her red lips and a captivating look in her eyes. But he couldn't help but recall the way Camila looked when she was released from the detention center. Covered in wounds, her face as pale as paper, yet stubbornly refusing to say a single word to him. Zachary's expression darkened as he gri He took out his phone. Over the past th He isn e wine glass tightly. ad received many messages, some from Mollina, others about work. ed on Camila's chat window. in these three days, she hadn't sent him a single message. message was from half a month ago. Towned. il sulking? He called Camila directly. "Sorry, the number you have dialed is powered off..." The mechanical female voice came through, 33.3 % 09:04 Zachary was momentarily stunned, but after glancing at the time, he figured she was probably still asleep. Camila was like a feisty yet lazy little kitten, always burrowing into his arms when she slept, her cheek rubbing against his chest, making it impossible not to hold her slender waist, again and again... Before he could lose control of himself, Zachary cleared his throat, snapped back to reality, and took a sip of wine. Soon, his assistant came forward to report, "Mr. Madderford, as you instructed, Howard and Maria have been proper- ly taught a lesson." "Good." Zachary took a sip of red wine, his eyes and brows seeming to be covered in frost. "Let them know that anyone who touches my people will pay the price." In fact, after they locked Camila in the cold storage as punishment, he had already sent someone anonymously to teach Howard a lesson, telling him to treat his daughter well. At the time, Howard had sworn he would never do it agam. But unexpectedly, they still dared to lay hands on Camila in the hospital, beating her back until it was a bloody mess. And they even dared, when he had Camila locked up in jail as a minor punishment, to bribe people inside to torment her. Zachary's fingers tightened, veins bulging on the back of his hand. "When did it become their turn to bully my people?" "Mr. Madderford, I don't quite understand..." The assistant asked cautiously, "Wasn't the person you liked always Ms. Mollina? Why are you standing up for Ms. Camila?" Zachary paused, his eyes narrowing slightly: "When did I ever say the person I liked was Molly?" "Huh?" A trace of surprise flashed in the assistant's eyes. "But, but didn't you lower yourself to join the Ackley Group just to protect Ms. Mollina and repay her for her kindness to you back then?" "Why, does repaying a favor have to mean you like someone?" 66.6 % 09:04