Trafford's Trading Club

Chapter 817: Chapter 61: Friday Without the Lord (3)

“… At 7:30 tonight, a memorial service will be held at the Municipal Theater.”

The radio in the taxi played some sounds, but the people in the car seemed not to care much—Big Cousin and Second Cousin had Caroline sandwiched between them, while Lawyer Carlo sat in the front passenger seat.

Originally, Lawyer Carlo’s plan was that it would be fine to just take the bus.

But Big Cousin said they could just take the taxi, and if worse comes to worst, they’d cover the fare themselves, so Lawyer Carlo readily agreed.

“Caroline, you and your Second Cousin seem to get along well?” The car was somewhat silent, and Lawyer Carlo tried to find a topic—he noticed Caroline and Second Cousin were always holding hands, though it seemed a bit odd, covered by clothing.

But who doesn’t have a bit of a peculiar hobby?

Second Cousin just gave Lawyer Carlo a cold glance, which made the lawyer shrug. Out of boredom, he simply put on headphones and played on his phone.

Seeing this, Caroline leaned down and whispered in her ‘Second Cousin’s’ ear, “Can you take off my handcuffs? It’s easy to get spotted in the hospital and cause trouble.”

‘Second Cousin’ just gave Caroline a familial smile, then looked out the window, having no intentions of complying.

Caroline deflated directly back into the seat, growing increasingly uneasy. In fact, ever since she left the shabby workshop in Boston, she had been looking for a way to escape.

Everything, including her mentioning spending money to buy a life back at the workshop, was just to stall for time and find a chance to escape.

She just didn’t expect that this ‘Big Cousin and Second Cousin’ would be watching her so closely, without the slightest bit of relaxation, not even allowing her to touch anything.

She was just a bottom-rung sex worker, not some special elite. Almost all the methods she could think of had been tried, and now it seemed she could only resign herself to fate.

Right, ‘Second Cousin’ also carried a gun.

“Oh! We’ve arrived at the hospital!” Lawyer Carlo suddenly turned back, smiling happily, his eyes revealing anticipation for a good show.

To Caroline’s surprise, as she got out of the car, she suddenly realized her handcuffs were gone. ‘Second Cousin’ acted as if he knew nothing but directly put his hand on her shoulder, practically pushing her along. ‘Big Cousin’ followed closely from behind, leaving no room for Caroline.

…

When Caroline saw Nia again, she seemed even weaker, with a worse complexion. The ward was bright, yet there was a palpable gloom.

The entire ward seemed dimmed by Nia’s sallow aura.

Caroline felt complex emotions.

Nia was extremely fatigued, probably due to the side effects of the anti-cancer drugs she was taking.

Lawyer Carlo directly took hold of Nia’s dry hand, softly explaining his purpose by her ear.

Perhaps, in the last stretch of her life, having someone whisper gently in her ear was a blessing to Nia, Caroline thought.

Caroline knew she would likely never learn more about what happened to Nia, but undoubtedly, once the last of Nia’s wealth used to fight against the disease was conned by her and Lawyer Carlo, what awaited Nia would be a night without dawn.

I’m sorry, Nia…

With Nia conscious and under the witness of a licensed lawyer, Carlo, Caroline personally signed the power of attorney and several other documents.

“Can I say a few words to Caroline?” Nia slowly said, her voice weary.

Lawyer Carlo nodded, courteously stepping aside.

Caroline instinctively glanced at ‘Second Cousin,’ who nodded as well. They knew better than Caroline that, in acting, one must fully commit to the role.

“Come closer…” Nia tried to lift her hand, but could only raise it halfway before giving up.

Caroline quickly replaced Lawyer Carlo’s position, sitting by Nia’s side, almost leaning on Nia’s pillow.

“Nia, go ahead, I can hear you.” Caroline practically pressed her ear to Nia’s lips.

“I… I actually drafted another will…” Nia lightly held Caroline’s hand, “for you…”

Caroline’s eyes suddenly widened, “Nia…”

“Regardless of… whether the surgery succeeds or fails, Lawyer Carlo… he will give you the things…”

“Nia, I…”

“It’s not much…” Nia shook her head, “After deducting treatment costs… not much…”

“Why?” Caroline remained silent for a moment, “Because… because only I came to visit you?”

“That’s one reason.” Nia weakly said, “Thank you for accompanying me when I was most lonely… Although… although you’ve been coming less frequently, yet… over this past half year, what I look forward to most, is your visit…”

“Nia…”

“In our line of work… most of us have no other choice, but since we’ve taken this path… we can only continue down it, trying to find… trying to find another way out.”

Caroline looked at Nia, and Nia’s gaze also rested on her, yet Caroline sensed that Nia’s eyes were focused somewhere else.

She said, “I think, I thought… I once thought I found it…”

Memories are a tormenting thing. They are like a flood about to breach its banks, a specific point suddenly weakens, breaking out with a force akin to thousands of soldiers and horses.

Nia… was once a ‘Senior’ who took great care of her.

She aged prematurely, time had ravaged her beauty. She dressed gaudily every day, sitting in the streets, sometimes smoking a cigarette, sitting still until the ash burned out before she moved.

— You know how to make a man happy, make him finish quicker, right? There’s a little trick to it…

— You can let a man kiss anywhere on your body, except your lips.

— Living alone for so long, one learns to cook a little; eating out every day is a waste of money, you know? Actually, I think I’m quite a decent cook.

— Learn to protect yourself, carry this, spray it in the eyes of those who try to not pay you, then kick them in the crotch.

— I started doing this when I was fifteen.

— Someone you loved? Have you ever loved someone?

— Actually, opening a café by the sea wouldn’t be bad. If a guy who can play the guitar comes every day to sing me love songs, it would be even better.

— Caroline, I think I’m sick…

— Caroline, will I die?

“Nia!” Caroline suddenly reversed her hold on Nia’s hand, “You’ll get better, the surgery will be successful… it will be successful!”

Nia smiled faintly; perhaps she felt relieved, “The money from the will isn’t much… but… after you get it, maybe you can try going back to school… You’re much younger than me… there’s a way out… there should be…”

“You will get better… it must get better!” Caroline said sorrowfully.

“Lastly…” Nia slowly closed her eyes, as if she was exhausted, reaching her limit, “A man’s words… if you can not believe them, then don’t. They are… creatures adept at deceit…”

“Nia… Nia?” Looking at the suddenly closed-eyed Nia, Caroline suddenly panicked, “Doctor! Get a doctor! Doctor…”

She attempted to shake Nia’s shoulders, but Lawyer Carlo stopped her, reminding, “She’s just asleep, the medication makes her drowsy, don’t wake her, she’s still very weak.”

Caroline could only nod.

Outside the ward, ‘Big Cousin’ suddenly struck up a conversation with Lawyer Carlo, while ‘Second Cousin’ quickly handcuffed Caroline’s hands again and covered them with clothes.

Lawyer Carlo saw the two ‘holding hands’ and seemed unsurprised, still warmly saying, “Alright, everyone, happy cooperation. I believe in a few days, we’ll get a nice little bonus.”

“Lawyer Carlo?” ‘Big Cousin’ suddenly smiled, “Do you have a card? Maybe we’ll have a chance to deal with each other in the future.”

“Oh! It would be an honor.” Lawyer Carlo handed over his card with a smile.

It’s common for things like this to happen, those in the underworld and lawyers who consider professional ethics nonsense get along like a house on fire. Caroline had no interest in the sudden mutual affection between the two.

Nearby, a nurse was pushing a cart filled with various medications and medical tools. She quickly took something from it when ‘Big Cousin’ and ‘Second Cousin’ weren’t paying attention, and stuffed it into her pocket.

Lawyer Carlo, Caroline, and the others bid farewell at the hospital entrance.

After that, ‘Big Cousin’ asked ‘Second Cousin’ what to do next, and ‘Second Cousin’ said, “Take this woman back, wait a few days until the lawyer gets the money… you follow the lawyer and see where he lives.”

They were still cautious in their actions.

‘Big Cousin’ nodded and quietly followed Lawyer Carlo.

‘Second Cousin’ suddenly grabbed Caroline’s arm, saying coldly, “Let’s go, stay with us for another day, we’ll take good care of you, Ms. Caroline.”

“Wait… I want to go to the bathroom,” Caroline suddenly stopped, clutching her stomach, “Really!”

‘Second Cousin’ frowned, then silently pulled Caroline back toward the hospital.

He took Caroline to the First Floor’s ladies’ restroom, looked around to ensure no one was nearby, and quickly pulled Caroline inside—the stall chosen was the one for the disabled.

‘Second Cousin’ unlocked one side of the handcuffs on his hand, and then locked it to the handrail next to the toilet, saying nonchalantly, “I’ll give you ten minutes.”

‘Second Cousin’ quickly closed the door, checked the doors and windows of the ladies’ room, and then went to lean against the wall outside.

…

…

“Three days ago, we encountered a moment of despair here. Some of us have unfortunately perished in this disaster…”

In front of the theater, people wore black clothes and held white candles in their hands, quietly lined up in rows.

All around were many white roses, their color subtly changed to yellowish-white by the candlelight.

Apart from the host’s tribute speech, the sound of quiet sobbing could be vaguely heard, perhaps from family or friends who lost loved ones in the disaster.

In the distance, a black private car was parked. The back window was slightly rolled down, and an indifferent gaze swept over the crowd at the theater entrance.

“Why not let these people have the memorial inside the theater?” A voice suddenly asked.

It was Cosini, also seated in the back of the car. Naturally, accompanying her was Doflamingo, now transformed into Dr. Saint Fran.

The question arose because Dr. Saint Fran had secretly operated to have the request for the memorial space inside the theater rejected, allowing only the front of the theater to be used.

In fact, since the day the hostage incident ended and security and police searched the scene, the theater has been closed—after all, there were gunfights inside, and many things were damaged.

“Didn’t I tell you before?” Saint Fran said.

“A nuclear bomb?” Cosini was stunned, then frowned—earlier that day, she was still in Sao Paulo connecting with Vita from the ‘LK Brotherhood’ and rushed back non-stop by noon.

To her, the reason Saint Fran gave for sponsoring the theater’s renovation was just a harmless joke.

“Of course, I was joking,” Saint Fran chuckled strangely, “Actually, Roger hid something very important to me before he died. Nothing was found on his body, and the police probably didn’t discover anything either. So I suspect the item is still hidden inside this theater.”

“What is it?” Cosini asked with a frown.

Saint Fran replied calmly, “If we find it, you’ll know… For now, have people keep a close watch, and don’t let any suspicious people enter. I suspect Roger’s people aren’t all dead. Roger may have been a madman, but he wasn’t an idiot. He likely still has remnants of his men not directly involved in the hostage-taking, supporting from outside…”

“Then I’ll stay here.” Cosini nodded.

“No need, accompany me to the banquet later,” Saint Fran shook his head, “Just instruct the subordinates to handle it. Also, speed up finding Bucky, there’s something I need to ask him seriously.”

“Understood, father.”

“Drive,” Saint Fran instructed the driver in a deep voice.

The car slowly drove away, and almost simultaneously, two figures emerged from the side where the car was parked, also observing the memorial before the theater.

One of them spoke in a low voice, “Ms. You Ye, you brought me here, surely you don’t mean to have me participate in this memorial, do you?”

The newcomers were… Bucky and the maid, Ms. You Ye, from the club.

The maid’s gaze casually swept over the recently departed black private car, then looked at Bucky and said calmly, “Not participate, but perform.”

“Perform?” Bucky blinked.

The maid said, “These people are in a very interesting state right now, a perfect time for you. Listen, developing your faith can be cumbersome. Under normal circumstances, it might take ages, slowing down the results. But due to the hostage incident, you’ve got a great opportunity.”

“I still don’t quite understand…” Bucky shook his head.

The maid said calmly, “They’ve heard some news. And they’re also curious about one thing…”

“What is it?”

You Ye replied calmly, “My master once made a collective transaction with these people. The master didn’t hide anything…”

“This…” Bucky was startled, vaguely starting to grasp the situation.

“Go, use your Miracle Force. Take a night, and let’s see how many followers you can gain,” You Ye smiled slightly, “Show me your potential.”

“But I…” Bucky wanted to say something more.

Yet in an instant, the maid had vanished into thin air, and Bucky knew she had probably hidden and was observing him from the shadows.

With no prior plan and no clear instructions on what to do, he was thrust directly onto the stage? Bucky smiled wryly, gritting his teeth as he boldly headed towards the crowd.

…

On the rooftop opposite the theater building, the maid held a piece of street food, Pastel.

It was bought from the stall of a guy peddling on the street corner.

Last time, it was Boss Luo who bought it, purchasing two. Tonight, it was the maid who bought it, purchasing only one.

She quietly ate as the night breeze lifted her hair.

“This is, the taste of loneliness…”