Chapter 177
All right, let’s do our own thing. Halley is a real pain in the ass, but he’s his mom’s only kid. His mom was crying her eyes out in front of me, and I just couldn’t say no. Stella sighed and hung up the phone.
I was sitting by the roadside, making phone calls to a few of my buddies in Rosemont, asking them to help me find Halley.
They were more than willing to lend a hand, and now I just had to wait for the results.
By the time I hung up the last call, it was getting late. I was about to hail a cab when Bailey pulled up in his car.
“Ms. Finch, are you done with your business? I can give you a ride home.” Bailey always had a serious look on his face.
He was really attentive, which made me pretty happy.
I got into his car and said, “Let’s hit the road.”
I felt a bit worn out on the way home, so I closed my eyes to catch a few winks.
By the time we got home, I was already snoozing. Bailey had to wake me up.
It was really late by then. I told him to be careful on the way home, and then I headed inside.
Just before I hit the sack, Stella asked me in the group chat, “Rena, did you know? Bonnie’s friend is actually dating Louis. I was totally blindsided. Louis is Neil and the guys‘ buddy. What on earth does he see in her?”
I had known about this for a while. I replied, “Well, to each their own, let’s not meddle in their business.”
Barbara asked Stella, “How did you find out that?”
Stella replied, “They’re going back to their homeland and asked Mitch out for a meal. Going out this late, I didn’t let him go, so they postponed, but I bet they’ll ask again tomorrow”
I was beaten. I told them to continue their discussion in the group chat, and I was off to sleep.
I
The next morning, I was roused by a call from Stella. She sounded really excited. “Rena, Neil sent me a photo. Halley’s hand has been broken, but he said he didn’t do it. It was his people who found out.”
I was a bit confused, “What’s he trying to say?”
Stella said, “I don’t know, is he aware of Halley’s whereabouts, then deliberately not telling us, and then… Stella said somewhat helplessly, “he’s waiting for you to come to him.”
I frowned. Is Neil still playing this card?
If I had more time, I would be able to find Halley. But given Halley’s current situation, by the time we find him, it might be too late.
“All right, I’ll go to him!” I said as I got up. This was my way of repaying Halley for his past help.
Stella hesitated a bit, “Rena, are you really going to go find Neil? This could bring a lot of trouble to you. How about we look for him ourselves?”
I was changing my clothes as I said, “I’ve asked Halley for help before. Even though he helped me because of you, he was always willing to help me and didn’t want anything in return. I can’t stand by and watch him get hurt. I don’t know who’s so badass to beat him up like this.”
Stella made up her mind right away, “All right, go find Neil. Mitch is about to go have a meal with Neil, and I’ll send you the address”
Mitch must have already asked Neil, but Neil didn’t tell him. So it was pretty safe to say he was waiting for me to come to him for answers.
As soon as I got the address, I dashed out the door, heading straight for the destination.
Before I left, I had a hunch that Malinda and Louis were going back to their homeland today to treat everyone to a meal. There would be quite a crowd. but that was fine I wouldn’t have to be alone with Neil.
As soon as I pushed the door open, I saw Neil sitting right across from the entrance, with Mitch and Louis next to him and Russel a few seats away.
“Rena, you’re here” Stella was waiting for me, and she called me over right away. “Come over here, let’s eat together”
Everyone’s faces were a mixed bag, especially Bonnie, Malinda, and Kate. They had ‘not welcome‘ written all over their faces.
Russel was squinting at me, sizing me up.
I walked straight over to Stella and sat down next to her, with Cooper on the other side. She arranged this seat to make me feel comfortable.
Neil’s eyes were fixed on me the whole time; I could feel it clearly, and I’m sure everyone else could too.
Among them, Bonnie was probably the most upset.
I glanced at Neil, he didn’t avoid my gaze. Instead, he gave a slight smile.
I looked away, trying to figure out how to bring up Halley with Neil. If he could tell me where Halley was right away, there would be hope.
“Ms. Finch, long time no see!” Louis spoke up, and he warmly greeted me.
Malinda, who was sitting next to him, immediately scowled and made a loud noise with her cutlery
Bonnie quickly whispered something to her, apparently trying to calm her down.
I didn’t care about their attitudes. I just took out my phone and texted Neil, “Do you know where Halley is? Could you do me a favor and tell me where he
Neil’s phone beeped. He read the message but didn’t reply. He just gave me a deep look.
“Irene, how come you’re here?” Bonnie suddenly asked, pretending to be puzzled. She asked Malinda, “Malinda, did you invite Irene?”
“Why would I invite her? I’m not close with her.” Malinda replied with displeasure
Louis timely lightened the mood, “Doesn’t matter, we’re all friends, just having a meal together, invitation or not, it doesn’t matter”
Cooper rolled her eyes, I’m not close with you either. Why did you invite me?”
He now had a very poor impression of Bonnie, including Malinda and Kate. He wouldn’t be nice to them.
Malinda’s face froze, and she turned to Louis, her eyes filled with grievance.
Louis put his arm around her shoulders and soothingly said, “All right, let’s just enjoy the meal, no need for squabbles.”
When Malinda heard Louis didn’t immediately have her back, her face turned beet red.
Bonnie hopped in to defend her, “Cooper, you’re tight with Neil and Russel, and naturally, you’re cool with Louis too. He came back home and wanted to gather everyone. It’s not like Malinda invited everyone out for dinner all by herself.”
Cooper didn’t utter a word, a cloud of gloom hanging over him.
Listening to their heated exchange, I didn’t really have the mental space to dig deeper into it. Instead, I shot a text to Neil: Halley did me a solid once, and I want to return the favor. If you know where he’s at and you’re willing to spill, I’d owe you one.
Neil texted back: There are many ways to return a favor. Are you sure?
His response gave me the heebie–jeebies.
After mulling it over for a bit, I replied. Never mind then, I can find him myself, slowly but surely.
Neil didn’t text back, but his face took on a sour look.
After putting my phone away, I could feel another pair of eyes on me. It was Russel.
It was pretty darn obvious that I was texting Neil, and he could probably guess what we were talking about.
Russel pulled his gaze back and kept his lips
zipped.
