CHAPTER 323: CHAPTER 323: WHO’S LAUGHING AT ME?

Ashton noticed Daniel still hadn’t hung up. Figuring he wanted to listen to their conversation, Ashton secretly flipped his phone back so Daniel could hear everything clearly.

"Pfft!" Daniel let out a loud laugh over the phone.

"Who’s that? Who’s laughing at me?" Even though Chantelle was drunk, her ears were still sharp.

Thea quickly tried to pull her back, and Ashton used the moment to tuck his phone away.

Before Ashton could speak to Daniel, he suddenly gasped for air. Chantelle had grabbed his collar and yanked him back. As he struggled to breathe, she snatched his phone from his hand.

"Was that you laughing at me?" she shouted into the phone. "Who are you? Come and fight me if you dare!"

Daniel could instantly picture Chantelle’s face. Her cheeks would turn a little pink when she got mad. The thought made him smile, and his voice softened, comforting, and smooth.

"Okay, where are we fighting?"

Chantelle’s heart skipped a beat at the sound of his distinct tone. She laughed and said, "You’ve got a nice voice, bro."

"Thanks. Want to hear more?" Daniel’s desire was aroused the moment he heard her slow, teasing voice.

Chantelle nodded fervently. He didn’t catch her response, so he leaned closer to the phone with a low, tempting murmur, "Hm?"

"Yes, I want to hear more! How much do you charge per hour? You’re mine tonight!"

Chantelle tossed the phone aside and rummaged through her handbag for her wallet.

Thea and Ashton exchanged a glance. Thea quickly tried to calm Chantelle down while Ashton carefully picked up the phone to keep the call going.

"She’s... she’s drunk, Mr. Daniel."

"We don’t need that kind of business in this town."

"Yes, of course, Mr. Daniel. I’ll make sure the bar’s shut down by tomorrow."

As soon as the call ended, Ashton let out a sigh of relief.

In the backseat, Chantelle finally found her purse and handed Ashton a wad of cash.

He hesitated, clearly not planning to accept it, and gave Thea a helpless look.

"Hey, Chantie, the cute boy’s gone," Thea said softly and tried to coax her.

"Doesn’t he like me?" Chantelle’s eyes were brimming with tears.

"No, he just had an emergency. His... his house is on fire."

"You’re lying! He doesn’t like me at all! Not even if I pay him!" Chantelle cried, collapsing onto Thea’s shoulder.

Thea could tell Chantelle wasn’t acting like herself tonight. She carefully patted her back, "Who doesn’t like you?"

Chantelle pouted deeply. "Everyone. No one likes me."

"Who are they?" Thea asked again. She had never seen Chantelle like this since she came back from Carcosa.

Chantelle was drunk, but she still refused to admit what she was feeling. Her lips pressed into a thin line. She didn’t say a word.

"Is it Mr. Wilson?" Thea guessed. Maybe this was about the engagement rumors between Daniel and Camille.

That didn’t make sense. Daniel would never fall for a brainless woman like Camille!

Still, Chantelle went silent, and she kept reaching for the bottle.

Thea quickly held her hands down.

"I think there must be some sort of misunderstanding, Chantie. Mr. Wilson gave you everything he had just so you wouldn’t leave him. There’s no way he doesn’t care about you."

Ashton nodded quickly. He knew just how much Daniel loved his wife.

"Daniel? Hah, that scumbag!" Chantelle rolled her eyes.

Thea quickly covered her mouth. "Alright, alright. We’ll talk more once we get home. Be a good girl, okay?"

"No! I want to talk now! So what if he’s rich and handsome? Why does every woman throw themselves at him? Am I not pretty enough? Not cute enough?" The more she talked, the more upset she became. She pounded the seat with her fists, fuming.

Ashton’s heart started pounding after seeing Chantelle’s drunken behavior.

Well, at least now we knew, she was jealous.

Thea let out a soft sigh. "You’re the cutest girl ever. No one in the world is cuter than you. They’re just blind if they can’t see it."

"They’re not blind! They wouldn’t lie to me. If they choose Daniel over me, then... it must be true." Chantelle complained miserably.

Her body felt more and more uncomfortable. She wanted to cry. More than that, she just wanted to sleep.

Thea’s heart skipped a beat when she saw Chantelle close her eyes mid-sentence.

"Ashton! Her illness is acting up again!"

She quickly dug through Chantelle’s handbag, searching for her medicine. But it wasn’t there.

Damn it, woman! Why would you risk your health over a man? Is he really worth more than your life?

Ashton quickly called Philip. After the call, Philip arrived with Russell and Alexander.

Every time Chantelle’s illness flared up, it got worse than the last.

They had the antidote, but it hadn’t been studied enough to be reproduced.

While Ashton was on the phone with Daniel, explaining Chantelle’s condition, something suddenly slammed into the car.

The impact was so strong, the car nearly flipped if not for the driver’s quick reflexes.

"What’s going on?" Ashton asked, alarmed.

The driver broke into a cold sweat. "Another vehicle just hit us."

"Watch out! On the right!" Thea shouted.

The driver turned his head. Sure enough, a large truck was picking up speed, dangerously close to their car.

Ashton grabbed the steering wheel and slammed his foot on the gas. The car swerved just in time.

But before they could catch a breath, the truck kept coming after them.

"They’re trying to kill us! Could Camille be behind this?" Thea felt nervous. She remembered how her words had upset Camille earlier. It wouldn’t shock her if Camille hired someone to get back at them.

"Drive faster," Ashton said, handing the steering wheel back to the driver. He immediately called Rowan.

"Mr. Nelsen? A truck is trying to ram us off the road on Helver Road. I need to know if Ms. Nelsen has anything to do with this."

Rowan’s face darkened. "I’ll look into it and get back to you."

The truck chasing them had clearly been modified for this kind of job. It continued chasing behind the Lincoln and nearly slammed into it several times.

A few minutes later, Rowan called back. "It’s not Camille. My men will be at Cypress Road in two minutes. Hang in there."

Ashton looked at Chantelle, who was still unconscious, then at the truck speeding after them. He was anxious and powerless.

Two minutes felt too long.

"The brakes have failed, sir," the driver informed him nervously.

"Ashton crawled into the backseat and opened the door next to Thea. "Ms. Powell, we’ll have to jump."

Whoever was after them had clearly planned everything. There wasn’t a patch of grass in sight, only bare concrete. If they jumped, they’d be landing straight on the sidewalk.