"Aunt Celeste? Aunt Celeste!" Amelia called out twice, but only heard a busy signal. She put down her phone, her face a little grim.
Alex Stone asked expectantly, "Ms. Quinn, how is it? Did Ms. Monroe agree?"
Liam Reed's eyes were deep; he had already guessed the outcome. Amelia's voice was a bit muffled. "Aunt Celeste is a bit busy right now. She might not have time to help us find Aaron Yuan."
"Oh? What do we do then?" Alex Stone was a bit confused. He had thought that with Amelia and Celeste Monroe's close family relationship, such a small favor would be effortless. Who knew Ms. Monroe would directly refuse Ms. Quinn? Could it be that Ms. Quinn and her aunt don't have a good relationship?
Amelia's face grew even uglier, feeling that Celeste Monroe was not giving her any respect, making her lose face in front of her studio artists. Liam Reed comforted her: "Amelia, it's alright. We'll go to other recording studios. The effect might be a bit worse, but it should be enough for the show."
Amelia shook her head: "No, we're going to Evergreen Recording Studio!"
"But Diva Celeste isn't willing to help. Amelia, how will we get in?" Liam Reed was puzzled.
Amelia snorted, "My aunt is a Diva Queen; I'm a Pop Princess, after all. I've met that Aaron Yuan before; he'll definitely give me this much respect!" Evergreen Recording Studio was so big; it was impossible for it to be entirely rented out. They would just use the innermost recording room. Because the equipment in that recording room was the best, she would just pay more rent if necessary.
"That's great! As expected of Ms. Quinn!" Alex Stone was very happy, and Liam Reed also smiled: "Of course. Amelia is a candidate for the future top Diva Queen; she's loved by everyone wherever she goes!"
Amelia's mood brightened again. She told her assistant, Sarah Wong, who was in the driver's seat, the location of Evergreen Recording Studio: "Sarah, drive."
"Okay, Ms. Quinn." Sarah Wong agreed, started the business van, turned on the navigation, and looked back: "Ms. Quinn, this location is quite far. It might take an hour to get there."
Amelia frowned: "Then drive faster. We don't have much time to waste."
Just then, a crosswalk appeared ahead. A car in front of the business van stopped, and Sarah Wong followed suit. Amelia urged: "Why are you stopping? Overtake it! Didn't I say we're in a hurry?"
"Alright!" Sarah Wong quickly agreed, turned the steering wheel left to overtake the car stopped at the crosswalk, and pressed the accelerator. Suddenly, a little girl with a backpack walked out in front of the car. The car had clearly stopped to let her cross the road.
"Ah!"
Sarah Wong gasped, hastily slamming on the brakes, but the business van had already picked up speed. It was too late to brake suddenly, and the car headed towards the terrified little girl! Amelia, Liam Reed, and Alex Stone also cried out in alarm.
In the nick of time, a figure rushed over, pulling the little girl back two steps. The business van brushed past the two of them and sped across the crosswalk!
Screech, screech, screech!
A harsh braking sound pierced the air as the business van skidded for over ten meters before stopping. The surrounding passersby were stunned by the scene. Only the man remained calm, gently supporting the little girl, and said gently: "Little one, are you alright?"
The little girl's face was pale with fright. She said weakly: "No... no, I'm fine. Thank you, sir. I'm sorry..." She thought she had caused the danger by crossing the road carelessly. The man smiled: "Little one, you did nothing wrong. That car didn't yield to pedestrians at the crosswalk. There are always many bad people in this world. Even though we follow the rules, we must always be careful not to be harmed by bad people." The little girl looked at the man's handsome and gentle smiling face, and a smile appeared on her own face: "I understand, sir!"
The man's words also made the passersby react, and they all pointed and criticized the business van: "They clearly saw someone crossing the crosswalk and still drove so fast! How rude!" "People like that should be arrested!" A young man holding a camera saw this scene and immediately started filming.
Meanwhile, the four people in the car were still in shock. Sarah Wong was almost in tears. That moment had been too dangerous; if she had really hit someone, her life would have been over! Alex Stone was also scared stiff. He subconsciously rolled down the window and said to the little girl in the distance: "Little one, are you hurt?" He suddenly froze. "Frank Castle?" Alex Stone then realized that the man who had just saved the little girl was Frank!
They were over ten meters apart, and the car window was only halfway down, but Frank still saw the people in the car. His gaze was indifferent, with a hint of disdain. Amelia met Frank's gaze, and a wave of discomfort immediately washed over her. Just as she was about to speak, Liam Reed suddenly snarled at Alex Stone: "Roll up the window quickly! Someone over there is filming!" Alex Stone jolted, then saw someone on the other side holding a camera. He quickly rolled up the window.
Amelia's face was grim as she yelled at Sarah Wong: "Aren't you going to drive?!"
"Yes, yes!" Sarah Wong quickly started the car, hastily driving away amidst the curses of the passersby. After driving for a distance, Alex Stone timidly spoke up: "Ms. Quinn, Liam, was that person a paparazzo just now?"
Liam Reed's face was somewhat gloomy, and he slowly shook his head: "Probably not. It might have been a passerby. It was far away, so they probably didn't film us." Although a real car accident hadn't occurred, news like "Amelia Quinn, Liam Reed Illegally Run Through Crosswalk, Nearly Hit Child" would definitely affect their image if it were posted online.
Amelia suddenly cursed at Sarah Wong: "How do you drive?! If you do that again, you're fired!" Sarah Wong felt a bit wronged. She wanted to say, Ms. Quinn, you were the one who told me to run the crosswalk! But she ultimately swallowed those words: "Ms. Quinn, I'm sorry. I'll be careful next time."
After scolding her assistant, Amelia frowned: "How did Frank suddenly appear?"
Liam Reed said ominously: "Amelia, do you think Frank might be stalking you?"
Alex Stone immediately felt a chill down his spine: "So Frank really didn't plan to let Ms. Quinn go? And he's even stalking her? This person is truly disgusting!"
Amelia's chest heaved with anger: "Why didn't I realize he was this kind of clingy man before?" Liam Reed took Amelia's hand and said softly: "Amelia, don't be afraid. I'll protect you." Amelia's body stiffened, and she instinctively pulled her hand away, saying gratefully: "Thank you." Liam Reed looked at his empty palm, and the hint of coldness in his eyes quickly dissipated. He smiled: "Amelia, don't be so polite with me."
An hour later, the car arrived in front of Evergreen Recording Studio. The converted factory door was tightly shut, and it was unclear if anyone was inside. The four got out of the car. Amelia was about to step forward and knock on the door when a taxi drove from a distance and stopped in front of them. The car door opened, and a man stepped out. Amelia's expression turned cold, her eyes filled with disdain:
"Frank Castle, are you really stalking me?"