"Why were you late?" Qingyue asked as soon as she approached the group of boys, interrupting their conversation.
"I slept in." Keith smiled at her and then pulled her by her hand to stand by his side. "How did your exam go?"
"Usual." She smiled and said, trying her best to suppress the heat on her cheeks. "Yours?"
"Usual." He said and chuckled, which made her smile in relief. However, she soon realised that almost all the boys in the group were wearing very solemn expressions, and even Julian seemed like he had not slept at all for the last day or two. "How did it go?" She curiously asked as she caught James anxiously waiting to say something.
"What?" He was taken aback by her question but then realised what she was talking about. "Oh... It was fine. I guess..." He half-heartedly said and lowered his head.
"Keith..." Julian impatiently said, and the grey-eyed girl finally understood that she had interrupted something important.
"I am sorry..."
"Stay." Keith did not let go of her hand when she tried to excuse herself away and gently smiled at her. "What happened after?" He turned to Julian and asked him to continue their earlier conversation.
All the boys felt uneasy at Qingyue's presence, but Julian only hesitated for a moment before he informed Keith about what had transpired in the morning.
"The guy in the 720s confessed that Christian had asked him to keep you engaged."
His words surprised Keith and he furrowed his brows.
"However, the driver was adamant on his stand that there was no ploy to harm your life. He denied any association with the guy in the black Lotus and confirmed that only he and the one who died in the crash were working for Christian. Their goal was to keep you from making it into the top five positions in the race."
"Interesting." Keith smiled at those words. Even if Rebecca had not made that call to him before the race, he would have never believed that the guy in the black Lotus was not colluding with the rest.
"The driver of the Black Lotus made his confession too after Tristan's men ruffled him up..." Julian frowned as he said that. "According to his confession, he was following the orders of Adrian Francis."
"Is that so?" He could not help the smile that crept on his lips. "I don't think that boy would have dared to make such a move."
The boys frowned when they heard his words, and Julian too curiously looked at Keith.
"What?"
"Adrian and his team that was present at the Circuit last night were found dead early in the morning, an hour after the man's confession." The blonde boy kept his eyes on him, trying to read through him. "The video of your accident, as well as the video of your confrontation with Adrian are all over the Internet. There are rumours in the upper circle that you and your family had Adrian killed after he tried to take your life."
"How convenient." Keith could not help but chuckle, but the girl by his side was stiff after what she had just heard.
"Did you really..." James spoke in a whisper as if scared that someone around them would overhear them.
"Well, if I did want to take his life, it would have been done in a very different manner. Besides, I don't believe that Adrian was behind the trap that was laid for me." Keith clearly told them.
"My father said the same thing." Julian nodded his head. "Someone's trying to frame you..." He said, and already had a hunch about who was behind everything.
"Did Tristan hand him over to my men?" He asked, referring to the driver of the Black Lotus.
"He's dead." Eric suddenly said.
"What?" Keith surprisedly looked at him. From what he had seen last night, that man was not a normal person. He was an Auror in the Great Profound Realm, otherwise, there was no way he would have come out of that accident without any serious harm. The safety features of his car were not enough to protect him.
"Yes," Julian confirmed it for him. "The man died as soon as he was handed over, right in front of the eyes of everyone. It was some sort of poison."
"Where's the body?" Keith immediately asked.
"Your men have it."
He nodded to his words and immediately made a call to Sol.
"Have they found anything?" He straightforwardly asked.
"No, Heir Demiliore," Sol answered. "The forensics are still at it, and they are trying their best."
"Where's the body?"
"Military District."
"Ask Uncle Damien to arrange for me to take a look at it in the evening."
"As you say, Heir Demiliore."
He walked back to his friends after he ended the call and smiled at them.
"Alright. Cheer up." He said as he patted James' shoulder. "No need to fret over something this minor."
"Keith..." The plump boy seemed worried for him. "Don Francis is..."
"Let's not talk about it anymore." Keith cut him off. "Go home and get some rest. We have a day off tomorrow, so sit in and prepare for the next exam. Don't move around." He seriously said to all of them. "The matter will be over by tomorrow."
His words relieved his friends, who were worried about him and their safety as well.
Qingyue silently followed him to the parking lot, and after everyone left, only Julian and Keith remained with her.
"You don't plan on going to the Delvon tonight, do you?" The blonde boy curiously asked.
"I need to talk with Tristan. So, I will go with you to attend the party."
"Alright." Julian nodded to him. "I will see you later." He said and then politely nodded to Qingyue before taking his leave.
"Come, I will drop you home." He smiled and said, and Qingyue simply nodded her head.
However, before they could get into their car, a horn sounded out, and their attention turned to the red La Ferrari that was approaching them.
"What is she doing here?" Qingyue narrowed her eyes and asked when Rebecca and Marianne exited the car.
"Aww... You remembered!" For some reason, Rebecca excitedly called out and rushed up to him, hugging him tightly. And then she let him go and started inspecting his red and black Limited Edition Mercedes-AMG One. "I love it!" She happily declared.
"Don't even think about it." Keith immediately shook his head.
"Oh, you have no choice, Mister!" She scoffed and then drew her hand forward, waiting for him to hand the keys over. "You wrecked my car last night, remember?"
"I almost lost my life, remember that?"
"Yeah, right." She scoffed again. "Like that would have killed you. Also, if you wanted to, you could have managed to get out of that trap. But you deliberately played along with their plan. Others might not see through you, but I know you!" She confidently said.
Keith narrowed his eyes at her.
"This car is worth five times your car."
"So?"
"There are only seven of these in the world. I can't get another one."
"I know."
"It's one of my favourites." He seriously said.
"All the more reason for me to take it." She smirked at him. "Now hand it over!" She demanded.
"And what will I drive back home?" He narrowed his eyes at her.
"You can take Qingyue's car!" She unhesitatingly said.
"Give me your La Ferrari!"
"Hell no!"
...
...
Qingyue silently watched the two of them heckle over it, and she felt her heart constricting with every passing second.
The two of them behaved as if they had known each other for years, and by the looks of it, they seemed awfully close to each other.
If she had not known better, she would have mistaken them as Cousins turned Lovers. That was how carefree and close they seemed around each other.
"Thanks!" Keith smirked when Rebecca grudgingly handed her La Ferrari over to him.
"Hmph!"
"What?" He smirked. "My car is worth way more."
"It's mine now." She smirked back at him and then finally turned to look at Qingyue, who was angrily glaring at her. "Good Afternoon, Miss Lin!"
"You are shameless!" Qingyue bluntly said.
"That's rude, Miss Lin." Rebecca narrowed her eyes at her but then smiled brightly. "Are you by any chance jealous of how close we are to each other?" She locked her arms around his arm and rested her head against his shoulder.
"Get away!" The grey-eyed girl stepped forward and pulled Keith away from her. "Do you not see that so many people are looking in our direction?"
"And why should that bother me?" She confusedly asked.
"You..." Qingyue wanted to shout something unsavoury at her but refrained from doing such. "Let's go, Keith!"
"Okay." He playfully smiled and let her lead him towards her car. "We are not taking my new car?"
"No." She said and then pushed him into the passenger seat of her Aston Martin Valhalla.
Keith could not help himself and burst out laughing when she started driving.
"What?!" She glared at him.
"Nothing." He shook his head and then leaned over to plant a kiss on her cheek. "You are cute."
His action caused her to slam the brakes hard, bringing the car to an immediate halt.
"Watch it!" He sighed in relief when he found that there was no car right behind them.
"Sorry." She meekly said, burning in a scarlet blush, and then started driving again.
Keith decided not to tease her again, and stayed silent for a while until she managed to compose herself.
"Where were you last night?" She asked.
Keith knew that she wanted to know what happened last night, and so he proceeded to tell her all about it.
"It's Christian," Qingyue said after she learned about everything. "He's the one who's framing you."
"I know." Keith chuckled. "But as long as there is no evidence of it, it's a safe game for him."
"He's a devious man." Qingyue distastefully said, and Keith lightly smiled at her words.
Yes, Christian was a devious person, but he was far worse than him. Now that the Heir of Falken Family had made his move, it was his turn to respond.
They reached the Demiliore Estate an hour later, and to their surprise, they had a couple of guests waiting for them.
"What is she doing here?" Qingyue angrily asked as she stared at the blonde girl who was standing next to the two red cars parked near the fountain.
"You are too slow, Miss Lin." Rebecca smugly said and walked over with her arms folded on her chest. "Be careful, or next time, you might miss on something very precious to you."
