Chapter 142: Chapter 129: Injured

Annabelle Leighton couldn’t stop her mind from conjuring images of Morgan Hayes getting injured while chasing a suspect. The more she thought about it, the more terrified she became. Finally, unable to bear it any longer, she opened her door again and went to knock on Levi Quinn’s.

Levi Quinn was already asleep. Hearing the urgent knocking, he shot up in bed.

“Who is it?”

“It’s me, Annabelle Leighton.”

Levi Quinn came to the door, his hair a bird’s nest.

“Miss Leighton, is something wrong? It’s so late.”

“Morgan Hayes just left. It looked like he saw someone and chased after them. You two came together, so shouldn’t you go look for him?”

Levi Quinn instantly understood what she meant. “Which way did he go?”

“The back alley.”

“Got it.”

Levi Quinn ducked back into his room to grab his gear, then headed downstairs.

Watching Levi Quinn’s retreating back, Annabelle Leighton’s heart relaxed a little.

At least Morgan Hayes wouldn’t be fighting alone. He had backup now.

Levi Quinn had just run out of the hotel and hadn’t even reached the back alley when he saw Morgan Hayes returning.

“Miles!” He ran toward Morgan Hayes and asked in a low voice, “Did you find a lead?”

“I just saw Black Rat’s cousin, but I lost him.”

“Black Rat’s cousin is in Brieridge? That means our informant’s tip was solid.”

“Yeah. I suspect they’re staying in one of the private residences in the back alley. First thing tomorrow, we’ll contact the local police station to run a check.”

“Okay.”

The two returned to the hotel. Starving, they asked the owner to cook them two bowls of noodles.

While they were eating, Morgan Hayes suddenly remembered something. “Weren’t you asleep? Why did you come out?”

Morgan Hayes knew what a heavy sleeper Levi Quinn was. Once he was out, he was like a log, snoring like thunder. If no one had disturbed him, he absolutely would have slept soundly through the night without waking up.

“Miss Leighton came knocking and told me to go find you.”

When Morgan Hayes heard it was Annabelle Leighton who had woken Levi, the hand holding his chopsticks paused slightly, but he showed no change in expression.

“Miles, be honest, what’s the deal between you and Miss Leighton?” Levi Quinn was extremely curious.

“No relationship.”

“No relationship? Then how did she know you went out in the middle of the night?” Levi Quinn gave a suggestive wink. “For her to know your whereabouts, doesn’t that mean you were with her right before you left?”

Morgan Hayes nearly choked on his noodles. “If only you could apply those deductive skills to solving cases.”

“Heh heh, looks like I guessed right. You two used to date, didn’t you?”

“No. Stop talking nonsense.”

“Is it a one-sided thing, then? She likes you? I got the feeling she was really worried about you. A minute ago, she was practically pounding my door down.”

Morgan Hayes was getting annoyed with the questions. “Are you going to eat your noodles or not? If not, get lost and go to sleep.”

“Eating, I’m eating! I’m starving.”

After they finished their noodles, they each went back to their own rooms.

Just as Morgan Hayes entered his room, he received a text from Annabelle Leighton.

Annabelle Leighton: “I heard a door close next door. Are you back?”

’It’s already past midnight, and she’s still awake?’ Morgan Hayes glanced at the time.

He remembered what Levi had said about Annabelle being so worried. ’Could she have been waiting for me to get back this whole time?’

A warm feeling spread through Morgan Hayes’s heart.

He quickly replied with an “Mm,” then thought for a moment and added, “Go to sleep.”

Annabelle Leighton: “Okay, good night.”

Morgan Hayes typed out “Annie,” hesitated for a few seconds, then deleted it without replying.

—

Annabelle Leighton slept soundly for the rest of the night.

The next morning, Abigail Warren took her and Wyatt Ford for a walk around Brieridge Village. The scenery was beautiful and the air was fresh. Annabelle Leighton was in a good mood, finding novelty in everything—she even greeted a random dog they encountered with a “Hi.”

Abigail Warren was very fond of Annabelle Leighton.

This Miss Leighton, despite being from a big city, showed no trace of arrogance or superiority. Instead, it was as if having seen the vastness of the world had bestowed upon her a pure kindness, a good upbringing, and a deeper respect for others.

The group eventually arrived at the outdoor playground of Brieridge Elementary.

The village children were already waiting there. When they saw Abigail Warren and Annabelle Leighton, they all crowded around.

“Hi, everyone!” Seeing the children, Annabelle Leighton’s voice unconsciously shifted to a softer, higher pitch.

“Hello, miss!” The children were all very well-behaved.

“I heard from Director Warren that you all love to dance, is that right?”

“Yes!”

“So, would any of you like to dance a little for me?”

“Me!”

“Me, me, me!”

“Let me, let me!”

The children were more confident than Annabelle Leighton had expected.

They gathered around Annabelle Leighton and began to dance freely and without inhibition.

Annabelle Leighton was very supportive. Besides showering them with praise like “Great job, great job!”, she also raised her hands and started dancing along with the children.

Under the sun, a radiant, beautiful woman danced with a group of elf-like children. It was a scene that would soften anyone’s heart.

“Miles, Miss Leighton is so beautiful.”

Under a jujube tree not far away, Morgan Hayes and Levi Quinn happened to be passing by.

Levi Quinn was at a loss for words. After thinking for a good while, he blurted out, “Like a fairy.”

Morgan Hayes said nothing. He just watched the woman laughing, playing, and dancing with the children in the sunlight for a long, long time.

“Hey, you two!” Wyatt Ford spotted Morgan Hayes and Levi Quinn, recognizing them as the men from the SUV the other day. He immediately raised his hand to greet them.

Hearing the voice, Annabelle Leighton turned and her gaze met Morgan Hayes’s.

She waved at him openly, a brilliant smile on her face.

Morgan Hayes gave a slightly unnatural cough and quickly looked away.

Levi Quinn started laughing. “Miles, Miss Leighton was just saying hello. Why are you blushing?”

“I’m not.”

“Still denying it? Your ears are so red they look like they were just fished out of boiling water.”

“Enough nonsense. When are the guys from the Brieridge Police Station getting here?”

“They’re on their way.”

Hearing this, Morgan Hayes quickened his pace and walked on.

After finishing her visit with the children, Annabelle Leighton went to chat with Abigail Warren in her office for a while. Although she hadn’t cleared it with Isla Prescott yet, she had already made the final decision to establish the charity dance class in Brieridge Village.

She really liked this place. The scenery was pleasant, the children were cheerful and adorable, and the person in charge, Abigail Warren, was earnest and responsible.

“Director Warren, we’ll probably be documenting the entire process of setting up the dance class and posting it online. I was wondering if Brieridge would have any issue with that?”

“Of course not. Brieridge may be a small place, but we hope more people will see us so we can try to find other opportunities for development.” Abigail Warren was enthusiastic about bringing in the charity dance class project. Besides creating an opportunity for the children, it was also an opportunity for this scenic little town.

“That’s wonderful. I hope this brings great things for all of us.”

It was already afternoon by the time Annabelle Leighton said goodbye to Abigail Warren and returned to the hotel. Just as she and Wyatt Ford reached the entrance, they saw a large crowd gathered by the back alley, watching some commotion.

“What happened?” Wyatt Ford asked, flagging down a hotel employee.

“There were two murderers hiding in the back alley. The police just came to arrest them. They even used guns! It was terrifying.”

“Were they caught?” Annabelle Leighton asked.

“They caught them, but an officer was injured.”

An officer was injured…

’It couldn’t be Morgan Hayes, could it?’

A wave of panic washed over Annabelle Leighton, and she immediately ran toward the crowd.

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