The man who was about to go upstairs stopped, crouched down, and picked up the medicine bottle. Looking at it, his face changed dramatically, and the veins in his hand holding the bottle were exposed.
He was all too familiar with this medicine.
On his wedding night with Forsythia Brown, it was this medicine that the old man used to trap her.
Yigol Foster clearly coveted Phoenix Ivy, but his ulterior motives couldn't be more obvious.
Could it be...
At this thought, Gem Atkinson's eyes narrowed as he gazed at the second floor, then rushed upstairs, leaping two or three steps at a time.
He kicked open the first door, which was to a martial arts chamber. The room was extremely simple and unoccupied.
He hurriedly kicked open the second door, which was clearly a bedroom.
He stepped in and began searching.
The bed was a mess, but no one was discovered. However, there were humming noises coming from the bathroom.
Gem Atkinson ran to the bathroom in two strides, immediately seeing Yigol Foster lying on the floor, still showering.
The bathroom was very small, with nowhere for Forsythia's figure to hide.
As a child, Forsythia Brown liked to play hide and seek. When faced with danger or when she caused trouble, she would hide and wait for him to rescue her.
Now she was hiding because she was in danger.
With this in mind, Gem Atkinson raced back to the bedroom and opened each closet door one by one.
No one was there.
"Viola, come out quickly, I'm here, don't be afraid."
It was as if he was back five years ago, when he always worried about her.
Gem Atkinson searched the entire second floor and was sure Forsythia wasn't hiding there. So, he returned to the first floor.
He searched the living room, kitchen, and bathroom one by one, but still found nothing.
He then went into the yard and searched every corner, even overturning the cleaning car: still nothing!
His body, which never knew fear as he held sway over the world, trembled without realizing it.
"Gem Atkinson, calm down, calm down, you need to be calm now."
Gem Atkinson forced himself to calm down.
He carefully thought about the scene when he came in earlier.
The courtyard door was tightly closed and bolted from the inside, so no one could get out.
But now, he was sure that Forsythia was not in the entire house.
The bodyguards and subordinates were all on the first floor.
Yigol Foster was on the second floor.
That is to say, Forsythia should be on the second floor.
The bathroom.
Gem Atkinson's eyes lit up as he hurriedly ran back upstairs.
Sure enough, the bathroom window was open.
He went to the window and leaned out to look: a pond!
Most likely, Forsythia jumped into the pond from here and managed to escape.
Thinking of this, Gem Atkinson glanced at Yigol Foster and angrily kicked him, saying, "Damn it."
After speaking, he quickly went downstairs and climbed over the courtyard wall.
There was no one in the pond.
After a round of searching near the pond, he found a very obvious trail of water. Following the water trail, he arrived at the entrance of this self-built house.
A motorcycle, a Santana, and a Pagani were all parked there.
Gem Atkinson's mind flashed suddenly, remembering the sound of a motorcycle driving away when he had just arrived.
That must have been Forsythia.
She fled on a motorcycle.
Why did she run away?
It must be because she consumed the medicine.
She must be finding a way to counteract the drug's effects now.
The drug, the drug...
He clearly remembered the frenzied state she was in after taking that medicine.
With a sudden realization, Gem Atkinson hurriedly got into the car and chased in the direction where the motorcycle sound had vanished.
It was late at night, and the roads became more and more desolate. Gem chased for quite some time but could not see the silhouette of the motorcycle. He was even more anxious and cursed himself for having wasted too much time in Urban Villages. Judging by her speeding, he might not be able to catch up with her.
But he was still worried, worried that she would encounter an accident on the road, or meet bad people. Therefore, he continued to speed along this road.
Along the way, he occasionally looked for ponds or hotels, but he found none.
She had chosen a very quiet and desolate direction, presumably to avoid people and the possible dangers they could bring.
He chased all the way to a fork in the road—no Forsythia Brown, no ponds, no rivers or lakes, no hotels.
Gem was annoyed and stopped the car.
What should he do now? Which road should he continue chasing on?
If he chose the wrong road and had to return, it might be too late...
He took out a cigarette, lit it, and began to smoke, one after another.
The night was dark, as was the man in black clothes and the black car. From time to time, only a few glimpses of blood-red could be seen outside the car window.
When his hand reached for the cigarette pack again, it was empty.
Out of cigarettes?!
But he still had no clue.
"Damn it!"
He angrily punched the steering wheel.
The sudden honking sound was particularly harsh in the quiet night.
Perhaps the harsh sound of the horn awakened Gem's chaotic thoughts, and the two words "West Suburb" flashed through his mind.
River State was divided into East City, West City, South City, and North City. West City was the most desolate, and West Suburb was located to the west of West City.
West Suburb was not known for much, but its villas were very famous. Because the mountains and waters there maintained the best original ecology, many wealthy families liked to buy villas there.
After their wedding, his father-in-law had bought a villa there as a wedding gift for them, and that villa was located in West Suburb.
And now, the road to the left led to West Suburb Villa.
Upon realizing this, Gem Atkinson immediately started the car and hurried to West Suburb Villa.
Gem's guess was correct.
Forsythia Brown drove the motorcycle at full speed, rushing all the way, and soon began to feel dazed. However, her subconscious kept reminding her that she must stay awake and alert.
But she still couldn't resist the effect of the drug.
When people are in a daze, they often act on instinct. So, at the fork in the road, she went straight to the left path.
Perhaps even the heavens were helping her. When she was at her most confused, a cold autumn rain suddenly started to fall. It stimulated her senses and made her slightly more alert, allowing her to drive the motorcycle all the way to the West Suburb Villa at top speed.
Having no energy left to control the motorcycle, she and the motorcycle fell to the ground. Fortunately, her self-preservation instincts were still intact, and her protective action during the fall kept her from getting hurt. The pain from landing on the ground also helped her regain some consciousness and energy.
Stumbling, she made her way to the villa entrance.
At first glance, the villa was pitch black, and there wasn't even a guard in the security room at the entrance.
She figured that no one was living here anymore.
Thankfully, she still remembered the password. She wondered if Gem had changed the password for this place?
Without further thought, Forsythia found the electronic lock and pressed the code.
With a clang, the long-unused and slightly rusty gate slowly opened. Forsythia was overjoyed, and without even looking at the villa, she quickly ran through the courtyard while still having some strength left.
There was also an electronic lock on the main house of the villa.
The password...
She didn't hesitate to press a few numbers, and the door opened in response.
A mustiness from the long-unoccupied villa hit her as she entered.
Despite being away for five years, Forsythia still relied on her familiarity with the place, quickly navigating through the darkened hall and running into the bathroom. She turned on the tap, and cold water showered down.
Finally safe.
She took a deep breath, sat down softly, and leaned against the cold wall, falling asleep from exhaustion.
Only ten minutes passed before her body overheated and she woke up, realizing that she was still sitting on the floor.
Taking a shower wasn't enough; she needed to soak. This drug was too powerful.
After resting for ten minutes, she had recovered some energy. So, she stood up and turned on the light.
Only then did she notice that the bathtub was covered with a white cloth?!