Chapter 91
Janet stayed at the makeshift market and helped out.
They were short of some medicines. So Angelina sent Harper to the warehouse to
fetch it.
The warehouse was not very far away. Yet Harper was gone longer than necessary.
And Janet noticed it.
She quietly stood up and left the makeshift market, going for Harper outside.
Her gut told her that Harper was hiding something.
Given Harper’s record, Janet felt it necessary to keep an extra eye on her, until she was a hundred percent sure that Harper had changed.
Janet headed down the street.
She wanted to check if Harper was at the warehouse. Yet before she got there, she saw a familiar figure disappearing around the corner.
She immediately followed that figure around the corner. But Harper was gone from her sight again. And there was only one shop on this street.
The Smith shop.
Janet walked up to the door and knocked.
Moments later, a woman came to answer it. It was Lance’s wife, Layla.
“Gamma Janet!” she looked pleasantly surprised, “Do you need help with anything?”
Janet smiled, “Is Lance here?”
“Of course. Come in, please,” Layla stepped aside and invited her in.
It was a small, dingy room, with rows of tools, each with a unique purpose, adorned the soot-stained wall. The fiery heart of the forge roars, its orange glow
illuminating the dark workshop, making this place extra hot.
Layla wiped her hands on the apron and fetched a stool for Janet.
“Please have a seat. Lance will be out in just a second,” she said.
Janet looked at her.
Her fingers were covered in flour.
“Did I come at a bad time?” Janet asked, “Are you cooking for lunch?”
“Oh, it is nothing. I was just baking some rye bread. It is my little pup’s favorite. He can’t go for a day without having a piece of my rye bread.”
Janet sensed something wrong with it.
“Your child…” she frowned, “…is only a few months old right? You feed him bread already? Does he have teeth?”
Layla froze.
Light from the fiery forge danced on her face.
Layla froze.
Light from the fiery forge danced on her face.
Janet caught a hint of panic fleeting across her eyes.
“As a mom, you should at least know about this stuff, right?” Janet pursued.
“I..”
Layla licked her dry bottom lip nervously, searching for an answer.
Just then, the door to the back room opened up. Lance walked out.
“Oh hey, Gamma Janet. I thought I heard your voice outside,” he nodded at Janet with a smile. “To what do I owe the pleasure? Do you need to fix a weapon or something?”
“Oh, I was just chatting with Layla.”
Janet glanced at Layla, who looked very uneasy right now.
“About how your son can eat bread at a few months old?”
Lance grinned, “Oh well, that pup is an early bloomer. Got a full set of teeth when he was barely 2 months old. Even I was surprised. Layla still got a bite mark on her arm when she tried to give a bath to my son. Don’t you, Layla?”
Layla nodded hastily, “Yes, I do. A feisty little biter, that pup.”
Janet studied Lance’s expression closely.
She couldn’t replace anything that looked suspicious on his face.
Lance was either telling the truth.
Or he was a hell of a brilliant liar.
5
“So, are you here to discuss our parenting skills? Or are you here to buy a piece of weaponry? I have quite a wide range of selections for you. I bet that I can help you to replace something you like,” Lance said.
Janet shook her head, “Thank you. But not today. I just saw Harper going into your shop earlier. So I was wondering if she is here.”
“Harper?” Lance raised an eyebrow.
“That girl you met at the makeshift market.”
“Oh, right. Sorry, but she didn’t come by. It is just me and Layla here.”
“You are our first customer today, Gamma Janet,” Layla added. “Did you see her walking in here? Was it possible that you saw it wrong?”
The furrow between Janet’s brows grew deeper.
She did see Harper going into this street.
But she didn’t see her walking into this house.
‘Are you sure that she is not here?” Janet asked again.
“A hundred percent sure. Unless she has a magical invisible cloak or something,”
Lance smiled. “And you are welcome to search this place, Gamma Janet. Just be careful when you go into that back room. My pup is sleeping in there.”
Janet shook her head.
It was not appropriate to search a civilian’s house without a warrant.
“There is no need for that. Anyway, let me know if you see her again,” she said. Janet walked toward the door.
Lance hurried to get the door for her, “And please remember what I said before about wanting to be a part of your army. I really meant that.”
“Normally, we don’t recruit civilians. But I will see what I can do,” Janet gave him a polite smile. “Good day.”
Lance stood on the doorstep and watched Janet walk away. He waited for her to disappear into the distance before finally closing the door.
The daylight was shut out. And the room was dark again.
So was the look on Lance’s face.
He cast a dark glance at Layla, who had lowered her head nervously.
“Feeding an infant breed? What were you thinking?”
His cold voice echoed in the room, sending a chill down Layla’s spine.
She gulped, “S-Sorry…master. Won’t happen again.”
“Better not. If you are to fake as a mom, at least try a little harder.”
“Yes, master.”
Lance walked past by her and headed toward the back room.
There was a closet in the back room. Lance went straight at it and wrenched the door
open.
Harper was hiding inside. Her face was pale and there was cold sweat on her forehead.
“Is she gone?” Harper breathed.
“Yes.”
Lance crossed his arms in front of his chest with a playful smile on his lips.
“So why did you come into my home and demand to talk to me? If I recall correctly, we just met today,” he said with a raised eyebrow.
Harper clenched her jaw. She looked furious.
“You should f ucking know why I want to see you!” she growled lowly.
“Do I?” Lance smiled idly.
His offhand attitude infuriated Harper. Her eyes flared with rage.
“You want me to f ucking say it? Fine! I come to see you because…at the market earlier…the moment that I saw you…I sensed that-”
She gritted frustratedly.
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