Chapter 178: Slow poison

Hannah suddenly punched Thomas in the stomach, making sure he understood that she was not someone to be taken lightly.

"See? I told you so," she said, shaking her fist as though proving a point.

Thomas doubled over, struggling to breathe.

I’ve messed with the wrong people.

All he had wanted was to earn some quick money and leave the place as soon as possible. But now, escaping seemed like nothing more than a distant dream. With two dangerous women standing before him, even staying alive felt like an impossible task.

Clara stepped closer, her expression turning cold.

"Now, Thomas, we’ll ask you one last time. And trust me, if you try to lie again, you won’t be able to walk away from here in one piece."

Her voice had dropped to a dangerously quiet tone. The darkness in her eyes made Thomas gulp.

He knew he might not survive this situation either way. Still, if he told them the truth, perhaps they would spare him a few broken bones—or, if he was lucky, all of them.

"I-I’ll tell you," he finally stammered, surrendering.

Clara and Hannah exchanged a glance.

Thomas took a shaky breath before speaking.

"It’s a slow poison. That’s what she asked me to bring. Whoever takes it... might suffer a slow and painful death."

The moment the words left his mouth, both women went still.

The statement echoed in their minds.

Clara was the first to react. She grabbed Thomas by the collar and pulled him toward her.

"Who is she planning to use it on?" she demanded, her voice trembling with restrained fear.

Thomas choked as Clara’s forearm pressed against his throat, making it difficult for him to speak.

"Clara, ease up," Hannah warned from the side. "You’ll choke him before he can answer."

As shocked as she was by his confession, Hannah knew they needed to remain calm. They had to gather every detail before confronting Julianna.

Clara stared at Thomas for another moment before tightening her grip once more, then abruptly shoved him away.

Thomas stumbled back, coughing violently as he struggled to catch his breath.

"I-I don’t know anything," he pleaded. "Please, you have to believe me!"

Tears began to gather in his eyes. All he wanted was to survive.

"We don’t believe you," Hannah replied bluntly.

Thomas’s legs gave way, and he dropped to his knees.

"I’m telling the truth!" he cried. "Please believe me! She only paid me to bring the poison. I don’t know what she plans to do with it!"

Clara looked away, Thomas’s words fading into the background. She could tell he wasn’t lying. If he had known more, he would have told them everything by now—especially after realizing that she was the same woman he had encountered that night.

There was no way Thomas could have forgotten her. But then another thought crossed her mind.

"Gen... what was she doing at the Crimson Crest bar that day?" Clara asked.

She had never found out what had brought Gen to that place or why she had been there in the first place. But after thinking it through, Clara began to suspect that it had something to do with Thomas.

Thomas lifted his head.

"I don’t know why she came there," he replied. "I only found out about her when Marco tried to force himself on her. Then, in an attempt to save herself, she dragged me into the mess too. It was all her fault. If she hadn’t been so determined to get us killed, I could have left that place without any trouble."

His expression twisted with resentment.

"That ungrateful brat put me through all of this!"

Clara’s eyes turned cold.

Even now, when his life was at risk, Thomas was still blaming Gen for what had happened. She couldn’t help but wonder what Gen must have gone through after witnessing her mother’s death right before her eyes—only to have her father place the entire blame on her.

Still, one thing was becoming clear to Clara.

Gen must have somehow discovered Thomas’s intentions. And if that was true, then she hadn’t gone to the Crimson Crest bar by accident.

She had entered that place with only two possible outcomes in mind: either she would escape alive, or she would take her father down with her.

"Clara, I think we need to get back to the venue. We don’t know what Julianna is planning," Hannah said, pulling Clara’s attention back to the present.

Hannah was right. Now that they knew Julianna was planning something deadly, they couldn’t afford to waste any more time. They had to return to the venue and find a way to stop her before she could make her move.

"What should we do with him?" Hannah asked, glancing at Thomas. "There’s no way I can handle him alone."

Thomas looked between the two women, his eyes filled with growing suspicion. But when he noticed a dangerous flicker in Clara’s eyes, his breathing grew hurried.

"W-What are you planning to do with me?"

Before he could say anything else, Clara’s fist struck him squarely in the face.

"Ah—!"

Thomas collapsed onto the ground, knocked unconscious by the swift blow.

For a moment, Hannah simply stared at him.

Clara calmly brushed her hands together as though she had merely finished a minor chore.

"Don’t worry. He’s not dead. He’s just passed out. I doubt he’ll be waking up anytime soon."

Hannah looked at her in disbelief.

"Are you sure? My brother doesn’t get knocked out this easily, does he?"

Clara’s expression darkened.

If only Hannah knew what had happened in the bedroom the previous night.

However, that was the last thing Clara intended to tell her.

She turned her attention back to Thomas.

"Anyway, tie him up. I need to get back to the venue."

Hannah sighed as she looked at the unconscious man sprawled on the ground.

"Of course you can’t leave him here like this," she muttered. "What if someone finds him?"

"Then make sure no one does," Clara replied, already turning toward the path leading back to the venue.

Hannah stared at her. "That’s your solution?"

Clara glanced over her shoulder. "You wanted to know what to do with him. Tie him up, hide him somewhere secure, and make sure he doesn’t cause any more trouble."

"And what if he wakes up?"

"Then he’ll have plenty of time to think about his life choices."

Clara did not linger for long, but as soon as she arrived at the venue, she was met with a shocking scene.