Chapter 341: Bribe or burst.

Lita raised a hand, stopping his small talk instantly. "Cut the crap. Get straight to the point. This place smells like a sweaty cat’s ass." She fanned herself, holding back the urge to scream at the manager to turn up the air conditioner. She looked around nervously, hoping nobody would see her with the fat greasy man who thought having one gold tooth was something to be proud about. Fucking loser, she thought.

"Alright, alright! No need to blow a fuse," the PI chuckled. He reached into his coat, slid a thick manila envelope across the sticky table, and tapped it with two fingers. "Here’s the goods."

Lita quickly unsealed the envelope and pulled out a stack of high-resolution photos. Her eyebrows knitted together in deep confusion. "Photographs of my mother? Entering_ The Three Boulevards?"

"Bingo," the PI grinned, leaning back. "As you know, The Three Boulevards isn’t just any place. It’s the ultimate luxury spa and entertainment haven for top-tier nobles and wealthy old folks in Concordia. A single cup of tea there costs three high grade-grade energy stones! The guards at the gate beat up low-borns just for breathing the same air."

Lita stared at the image of her mother, dressed sharply, stepping past the grand formation gates. "What does this even mean? My mother cannot afford a single brick in that place and she is a low-born!"

"That’s the kicker!" The investigator tapped the table again, leaning in with a sly grin. "A woman like her could only get through those gates under two conditions. One, she works there in the laundry room. Or as a janitor. Option two is that someone very powerful and very rich gave her a VIP pass."

Lita’s eyes widened slightly as the pieces began falling into place. "My mother is too proud to scrub floors or wash other people’s sweaty bathrobes."

"I guessed as much. She was sneaking around the VIP parking area for a while." the PI whispered. "Someone picked her up and she was taken inside. I am sure she went in there to meet someone."

Lita finished his sentence, her voice dropping to a harsh whisper. "My biological father."

"I don’t know, I have no proof. But it is likely, considering that she sent you that message after a visit to that spa." The PI nodded enthusiastically.

Lita’s mind raced. Her mother went to the luxury spa in the middle of the afternoon, and then sent that cold text message late at night. It all connects! She actually met the bastard face-to-face!

The private investigator tapped the photos again, leaning in closer until Lita could smell the garlic on his breath. "And here’s the best part, Madam. I stayed outside and took pictures of every single luxury car that drove out after your mother left. One of the rich guys in these cars could be your biological father."

A slow, vicious smile spread across Lita’s face. She nodded approvingly. "Good work. Keep going down that angle. I feel like we’re close to striking gold here." She pulled out her phone. "I’ll transfer a bonus to your account right now to keep you motivated."

The investigator’s eyes practically turned into currency signs. "Ah, Madam, you are too generous! May your luck be as vast as the Ocean! If you want to speed things up, increase your offer and I will find someone with a lose tongue who works in the spa. Maybe they will give us a name directly."

Two tables away, Teddy stretched her neck like a giraffe, snapping a quick series of secret photos with her phone before quietly slipping out the back door. I have to tell my husband right now! Lita is up to something big!

Ten minutes later, Lita slipped out of the café and slid into the back seat of her private car. The moment she sat down, she noticed the driver, Jimmy. He had been unusually quiet and gloomy ever since she met up with him this morning, but right now, his face looked darker than the bottom of a charcoal kettle.

Before Lita could even settle in, Jimmy turned around in his seat, looking her dead in the eye.

"I know," Jimmy said, his voice cold and devoid of any respect. "I know you’re pregnant. And I know that baby isn’t Master Elliot’s."

Lita felt as if the literal heavens had collapsed right on top of her head. Her heart leaped into her throat, beating so fast she thought it would burst out of her ribs. Blood rushed to her ears, making them ring violently.

"W-What are you talking about?!" Lita stammered, her voice cracking as she tried to force a defensive laugh. "Are you insane, Jimmy? Have you been drinking alcohol this early? What baby?! What nonsense are you throwing at me?!"

Jimmy didn’t even flinch at her act. He just smiled a nasty, crooked smile and held out his hand. "Save your breath, Lita" Jimmy sneered. "I have proof. And if you don’t want Master Elliot to see it, it’s going to cost you. One million high-grade energy stones. Right now."

Lita gasped, completely frozen in shock. "O-One million?! High-grade?!" Is this guy out of his mind?! One million high-grade stones could buy a small town in the southern border! Where on earth am I supposed to get that kind of money?!

Sure, Elliot had suddenly turned surprisingly sweet and gentle with her this morning. He had even handed her a Black Card with unlimited credit!

But I can’t just swipe a Black Card for a million high-grade stones! Lita thought frantically, her brain spinning at top speed. Elliot’s accountants will flag a transaction like that in two seconds! He will ask questions! He will find out everything!

Lita squeezed her hands into tight fists, her eyes darting toward Jimmy. She might be panicked, but she wasn’t stupid. She had read enough stories and seen enough dramas recently to know how this worked. If I pay this greedy rat a million stones today, he won’t just walk away, Lita realized with a chilling certainty. He’ll just come back tomorrow asking for two million. Blackmail is a hole you can never fill!

She stared at Jimmy’s smug face, her fear slowly twisting into cold, calculated anger.

"One million stones, huh?" Lita said quietly, forcing her panicked stammer to vanish. "You really have big appetites for a humble driver, Jimmy."

Jimmy smirked, tapping his fingers against the steering wheel. "Hey, secrecy isn’t cheap, Young mistress. So_ do we have a deal, or should I drop a nice little folder onto Master Elliot’s desk before dinner?"