The Million-Dollar Heart (Percival and Vivienne)
Chapter 574

In the car, there was a brief silence between Percival and Vivienne before Percival broke it, his grip tightening on Vivienne's hand. "We need to split up. I'm heading over to Vanguard Agency to confront Vance. He's up to his neck in this heist, and I'm sure he's involved. You should visit your grandpa. With this mess involving the ancient warrior lineage, he might know how to help."

Vivienne suddenly remembered that Leopold's imprisonment was due to pressure from members of the ancient warrior lineage, which left the Vanguard Agency unable to intervene.

The Perez family might just have a solution.

With that thought, Vivienne's eyes narrowed imperceptibly.

She had spent ten years training at the Emerald Monastery, taking time each year to build her circle of influence.

She founded the Nine Mystics Society, strengthening the Monastery's influence, believing she had become strong enough to protect those she cared about. Yet, facing the ancient warrior lineage, her power seemed insignificant.

The Nine Mystics Society was like an ant in front of the ancient warrior lineage, easily crushed.

And her control over GTO, which she thought was firm, had slipped through her fingers.

It was time to act.

"Okay, I'm on it," Vivienne said, squeezing Percival's hand back. "Make it quick. We can't let anything happen to Leopold."

"Right. Our Husky? No one's going to pluck him without a fight."

They parted ways then and there, Percival driving straight to Vanguard Agency.

Thomas, Anna, and Soren were all waiting in the deputy director's office, trying to get a hold of Leopold.

When they saw Percival return, they all approached him eagerly. "Deputy!"

"Where's Vance?" Percival's voice was grim.

Understanding dawned on the others, "In his office, Soren's been keeping an eye on him. He hasn't left."

They were all elite members of Vanguard Agency, smart enough to guess Vance's involvement.

Something had gone wrong inside the agency, and there was no way the director could be oblivious.

Percival was the deputy director. To have kept such a secret from him until the trial was nigh meant no one but the director himself could have managed it.

Upon learning about this, Thomas and the others had been closely watching Vance's every move at Vanguard Agency.

Percival took off his watch and tossed his jacket on the sofa, storming out with fury in his eyes.

Soren moved to follow, but Percival shoved him back. "Stay put!"

With no other choice, Soren remained in the deputy director's office.

Percival did not even knock; he pushed open Vance's office door and overheard the chime of an incoming message.

It was Leopold's phone.

Percival had teased Leopold about that custom ringtone before.

Vance, seeing Percival enter, silently pocketed the phone. "What brings you here so late?"

"So late, and you're not home, sitting here with Leopold's phone, messaging Thomas. Amusing, is it?" Percival walked over and pulled open Vance's drawer without ceremony. There it was, Leopold's phone and tablet, right inside the drawer!

"Don't you ever put it on silent?" Percival grabbed Vance by the collar, pinning him against the cabinet.

It looked as if he might snap Vance's neck at any moment.

Vance did not resist, taking all of Percival's anger. "I wondered why Soren and Anna were hovering around the director's office today. Percival, sit down, let me explain." Percival punched Vance in the face. "Listen to you talk nonsense?"

Percival rarely cursed or got physical with his superiors, regardless of whether they deserved respect.

But this time, he could not hold back.

How could Vance expect him to sit down and listen so casually?

The commotion in the director's office soon drew everyone in the agency. Percival loosened his tie. "Get out, all of you!"

Naturally, nobody dared linger, and even the other agency heads did not try to intervene.

Percival was like a raging lion, a fierce warrior one dared not approach.

Soren and Thomas stood guard at the door, angry themselves, yet they had not expected Percival to explode with such fury, to strike the director!

Anna tried to reach Vivienne to no avail.

Little did she know that Vivienne encountering Vance now would be an even more terrifying prospect. Percival slammed the director's office door shut, lifting Vance off the floor. "Talk! What happened?" Vance wiped the blood from his lip. "I ordered Leopold to steal secrets from the Martinez family."

Percival's face darkened, his restraint barely keeping a second punch at bay.

Vance continued, "But Leopold's current predicament is his own doing. The Martinez family caught on to him because he deliberately exposed himself!" Percival's second punch, it turned out, could not be held back after all.

When faced with the choice between stealing state secrets and the trajectory of his own future, he chose to protect the nation's assets. The ironclad rule at Vanguard Agency was obedience; commands were to be followed without question, and he had not broken this rule. But he would never allow himself to engage in espionage, to betray Griffin.

Such actions would violate not only the code of a Vanguard Agency operative but also the pledge he made to the one he held dear.

He would rather face trial than actually commit theft against the state.

'The guy's a fool. He should have never taken on such a mission. If he'd told me sooner, I'd never have let things get this far," Percival thought to himself.

Sitting on the floor with his back against the couch, Vance said, "I was just following orders from above, Percival. Don't forget the first rule of Vanguard Agency."

Percival, too weary to raise a fist, demanded, "You gave the orders. Why are you off the hook?"

Vance took a breath. "Because my boss saved me. But Leopold, I could not do anything for him."

Percival's grip tightened, "You think you're fit to be the director?"

Vance did not deny it, recognizing the truth in Percival's words.

A director who could not save his men and kept secrets could hardly be convincing.

Still seated, Vance looked up at Percival. "I know you're upset, but you can't get involved in this. Even if Micah returns, he can't interfere. As the deputy director of Vanguard Agency, your job now is to calm your squad and stop the rumors."

"How I handle being deputy director doesn't need your direction!" Percival retorted as he strode over to Vance's desk, picked up the landline, and dialed the headquarters in Sea City.