Under the silver glow of the moon, the chill of the night air was pierced by howling winds.

Yet inside the bar, it was as warm as a midsummer night—

Cliff had organized a poker night, and the atmosphere was electric with excitement.

"Pair of twos, I win! Ha, your Ferrari is now mine!"

"No fair, you're cheating! Let's go another round!"

"Come on, don't be a sore loser! Alright, I'll give you another chance. But if I win again, your house in Cedar Grove Estates is mine too."

"You're on!"

It was just a car and a house, not like they couldn't afford to lose them!

Cliff wasn't betting; he was just enjoying the show. As one round ended, he glanced back and noticed Murray sitting alone on the couch, nursing a drink.

"Hey, why the long face? They're betting big tonight. Don't you want to join in?"

Murray looked disinterested: "You guys go ahead."

As he reached for the bottle again, he treated a fine vintage of Lafite like it was nothing special, quickly downing half the bottle.

Cliff winced at the sight but decided to leave him be and returned to the lively group.

With an expressionless face, Murray continued to pour himself another drink when suddenly his phone rang.

It was Grace.

He didn't want to answer, but remembering the times she had gone out of her way to help, he finally picked up.

"Hello."

His breathing was heavy, his voice cold, and the background music was loud and chaotic. The woman paused for a moment, likely guessing he was at a bar. She didn't pry, only wanting to talk about dinner plans for the next day.noveldrama

Murray's response was lethargic, as if nothing could catch his interest: "Sorry, I've got a client meeting tomorrow night."

Grace knew she should hang up, to show she was unfazed, which is exactly what Murray expected from a "partner."

Yet, she couldn't help wanting to say something more.

Before she could, Murray asked: "Didn't you say you had a final exam today?"

"Yeah, and it was quite a unique format."

"How so?" he asked, not really interested.

Grace explained about their visit to the botanical garden and the exam rules.

"...And we have to stay overnight at the base. Pretty unique, right?"

"Mm. Did you collect all the specimens?"

A shadow passed through Grace's eyes, but her tone remained steady: "Yes, all ten basic plant specimens were found."

Murray had reached his limit of interest and didn't continue the conversation.

Grace quickly said "goodbye" before he could hang up, surprising him with her briskness.

He put away his phone and continued drinking, filling his glass to the brim.

Suddenly, his phone rang again.

This time it was Beverley, worried

because Hertha wasn't answeringe her phone and fearing something might have happened.

After trying to calm Beverley down, Murray, irritated, hung up.

But as it was his sister, he couldn't just ignore it. He dialed Hertha's number.

The first attempt failed, but he patiently tried again.

This time the call connected, but before he could speak, Hertha blurted out, "Bro, why are you calling at this hour? Don't tell me you heard about Roseanne going missing and are checking on me?"

1.ne

It was baffling how Roseanne's disappearance had stirred the entire botanical garden staff in just half an hour, leading to an emergency broadcast, organizing a search party, and even mobilizing police forces from two local stations!