Chapter 49

Kathie thought she was just lucky, but it turned out Jonathan had been helping her behind the scenes.

Technically, he hadn't done anything wrong, just kept his identity a secret.

Kathie spoke up, "I get it. I can forgive you."

Jonathan frowned. "Then you wouldn't beso distant. I don't like your attitude right now."

Kathie shrugged. "I'm getting paid to treat you. I can't adjust my attitude based on your preferences. It depends on my mood."

Jonathan sighed. Kathie was quite stubborn; it seemed he would have to take it slow.

Around midnight, a cat's meow echoed outside the small courtyard.

Jonathan opened his eyes reluctantly. Ben, of all times, had to come now.

Jonathan got into his wheelchair, threw on a coat, and quietly went outside.

Under the big tree across the street, a light flickered.

"Mr. Berkeley," Ben said softly.

Jonathan yawned. "What brings you here in the middle of the night?Couldn't you just call?"

"Mr. Berkeley, I apologize. I found some important information and thought it best to report in person."

Knowing Ben's loyalty, Jonathan wasn't truly upset, just venting a bit.

"Alright, what did you find?" time we found him, the body was already decomposing. The person behind this is extremely ruthless,"Ben replied.

Jonathan had anticipated that anyone holding crucial information would be killed. They were just a step too late.

"What about the person who tampered with the car? Any leads?"

"We traced it to a mechanic at the car shop. I checked all his communications and relationships, and there's no connection to Mr. Gerald Berkeley's family."

This surprised Jonathan. The current leads pointed away from Gerald.Could someone else be trying to kill him?

"How's the company doing?" Jonathan asked.

"Besides our own people, the other shareholders are causing trouble. Even some major contracts were canceled recently. The situation is dire. You need to come back and take charge."

Jonathan frowned. "Isn't Gerald handling it?"

Ben explained, "He's trying, and Mr. Harold Berkeley is also stepping in,but no one is listening to them. It's complete chaos. Only you can bring order."

This was unexpected for Jonathan. Now should be the time for Gerald to win people over, so why wasn't it working?

Could someone be creating chaos to drag Gerald down too?

If that was the case, the person behind this was formidable.

"Mr. Berkeley, your father and the others can't hold on much longer.You need to come back and help." Ben's visit was to persuade him to return. Jonathan hesitated. He could go back immediately, but once he did, the distance between him and Kathie would grow.

"Give me a bit more time to figure things out," Jonathan said.

"Also, Mr. Stewart and his people have already found this place. It's only a matter of time before others do too."

Jonathan nodded. "I expected that. I know what I'm doing. You head back first."

Hearing this. Ben didn't press further. Alright, I'm at your service anytime."

Jonathan waved, and as Ben turned1, he shivered. Someone was standing behind the tree.

Kathie was staring at them intently.

Jonathan was startled too. "When did you get here?"

Ben looked at Jonathan, silently asking how to explain this to her.

Kathie smiled. "So that's why there's the occasional cat meow at night. It's your signal."

Kathie had found it odd before, thinking, 'Seven is so lazy, why would he go to the tree in the middle of the night, claiming to chase away wild cats?Turns out he was meeting his subordinate.'

"Dr. Cavendish, thank you for taking care of Mr. Jonathan Berkeley,"Ben said.

"No need to thank me. I'm not doing it for free."

Ben gave an awkward smile, "I'll head back now and not disturb you."

Kathie nodded. "Next time, come in openly. Don't sneak around." That wasn't the nicest way to put it.

"Got it." Ben left.

Kathie pushed the wheelchair back inside. "If I'm not mistaken,you have a phone on you."

She had checked Kyle's phone. Although the call records were deleted,she found a number Jonathan had called, but never again.

This meant he had his own communicationdevice.Otherwise,how could he stay in touch with others?

Jonathan said awkwardly, "I do. Don't be mad. I won't hide anything from you anymore."

"As long as it doesn't cause me trouble," she replied coldly.

Kathie took him back inside, slowly coming to terms with the recent events.She just hated being deceived, and it would take her a long time to get over it.

Jonathan lay down, unable to sleep for a long time.

With his company in such chaos, he needed to make plans quickly and couldn't waste time.

But he found it hard to leave Kathie.

Just as Jonathan was drifting off, he heard a noise outside.

At first, he thought it was the wind. If it were someone, the dogs in the yard would bark. But as the noise grew louder, he realized something was wrong.

Jonathan got back into his wheelchair and looked out the window. Several shadows were carrying firewood around the courtyard, and someone had a metal can.

His heart sank as he thought, 'Oh no! They're going to set the place on fire.'

Jonathan immediately called Ben to come back, then went to find Kathie.

Luckily, she had forgotten to lock her door tonight, sohe went straight in.

Kathie sensed someone approaching and opened her eyes to see Jonathan.

"You..."

Jonathan covered her mouth. "Keep it down. There are people outside."

Kathie pulled his hand away. "Are you sleepwalking? How could there be people? And don't you think the dogs in the yard would alert us?"

Jonathan gestured for her to see for herself. "Go check, and you'll know."

Kathie didn't believe him, but Jonathan's serious expression made her run to the window. Then she was shocked. "What's going on?"

They were in the suburbs. Even if they called the police now, it wouldn't help.

"Move the kids first, then come find me," Jonathan said.

Kathie nodded and ran to the children's room.

Jonathan went to the living room, found the slingshot he had made for the kids earlier, and quickly filled his pockets with marbles.

Outside, the men in black had already set up the firewood.

"Boss, the dogs are taken care of," one of the men said.

"Good. Get over the wall and pour more gasoline. Make sure the fire burns strong." kids inside. They won't be able to escape."

The leader nodded smugly. "This job is a sure win. Once they're dead,we get the remaining two hundred thousand dollars."

The men in black, following his orders, started climbing over the wall. Just as they were about to pour gasoline, a marble flew out, hitting one of them in the eye.

"Ah!" With a scream, another marble hit his leg, making him kneel in paín.

The leader immediately became alert. "Listen up, folks. The heat's on us.We gotta move quick and make sure nobody's left standing."