Under the Veil of Night

The Nali Family's Main Residence

After the commotion at the party was over, Frank returned with Sakura back to his mansion, the one he owned personally. It was different from the mansion that he took from Kanae and Laura. One look and people would be able to see that this was truly a magnificent residence, much better than the one where Sakura had stayed all this time.

Frank looked towards the mess in front of him with despair written all over his face. His daughter was still within his embrace, but he knew that they might not have a way out anymore. The secret was out, and he wouldn't be able to hide it from the government.

"Master, are you alright?" one of his subordinates walked over.

Frank threw a mocking glance. "Prepare the room. She needs to rest."

"Yes, Master."

The servants quickly scurried away to carry out Frank's order. In their minds, they were cursing their bad luck to be working for this family during this time of misfortune. If Frank lashed out at them, there was nothing they could do.

"Miss, please follow us."

Sakura lifted her head ever so slowly. Her eyes were void of any emotion as she stared blankly at the servants in front of her. In her mind, she was thinking hard about what had just happened and what she should do now. Running away was clearly not an option as she and her father might be killed immediately.

With the female servants' help, she slowly made her way to her room. After a while, she got dressed in more comfortable clothes and wiped off her makeup. Without the makeup, her pale face looked far more plain and was rather unsightly to look at, yet no one dared to say that to her.

"I want to rest. Don't disturb me."

"Yes, Miss."

At the same time, Frank was trying his best to take care of the repercussions to the family businesses. Because of the sudden incident, the Nali Family's companies' stocks fell. This had already happened twice before, and his heart bled from the thought of losing billions again just because of a single incident.

It was at this time that he got a call from his secretary informing him of some rich man who was interested in buying the destroyed mansion and its land.

"Why did he only call now?" Frank frowned in displeasure.

"I think he was waiting for an opportunity to fetch a better price for the mansion. After all, lately, the price of land in the eastern area has been increasing," his secretary answered carefully in fear of invoking Frank's wrath again.

Frank contemplated the offer. It was tempting. "Will selling the mansion help us financially?"

"Of course, Master. If we negotiate carefully, we can get a decent price. At that time, the losses from this matter won't be as great as we expected."

"Take care of this matter."

"Yes, Master."

Frank continued to work in his study for hours until the servant announced that there were several people looking for him.

"Have you asked for their identification?" Frank frowned. He was too busy to take care of normal guests.

The servant hesitatingly took out a badge. "They said that if I show this to Master, Master will understand who they are and why they came here."

When Frank's eyes landed on the badge, his heart fell. Internally, he was screaming loudly, yet he kept on a cool face. They came so fast. He was not ready to face them yet. He couldn't let the servants know his real feelings.

"Call Sakura here, tell her that it's time."

"Yes, Master.

Although the servants didn't understand anything, they did as their master said. When they told Sakura what Frank said, the girl's body shook badly. It was clear that she was extremely terrified.

Her eyes were unfocused as she made her way to the living room. Her feet were struggling hard to keep her body upright. She was afraid. Afraid of what might happen to her because of her foolish decision in the past. Facing the government, she might even lose her life right there and right now.

Tears fell down from the corner of her eyes. She didn't want to die. Not yet. She was too young to die.

"Sakura, it's fine. I'm here for you," Frank pulled his daughter into his embrace. Seeing how terrible she looked, he felt that his heart was crushed. Although he didn't care about those from the branch families, he cared for his daughter more than anything else in the entire world.

Whatever she wanted, he always gave it to her. Even when she made an absurd request to take the Aida Family as their in-laws, he agreed. No matter what, he would let his daughter do whatever she wanted.

Sakura nodded her head lifelessly. Her limp body seemed to not have any strength left in it. She dragged her body alongside her father, who held her tenderly. They walked out and saw those men already ready near a car. From their gesture, it was not hard to say that they wanted them to get into the car.

Inside the car, Frank caressed Sakura's head over and over. He tried his best to reassure Sakura that everything was going to be alright. Nothing would happen to them.

By the time they arrived, Sakura felt calmer. However, the girl still didn't show any intention of standing up straight, so Frank had to help her out. Seeing the group of men in front of him, he gulped and tried his best to stay calm.

"Frank, we meet again."

Hearing this voice, chills went down his spine. Frank knew that the owner of this voice was not feeling as calm as his voice suggested. He turned his head and forced a smile out as he greeted the other party.

"Hello, Sir Ferdinand. I believe we already met a few times in the past."

Ferdinand smiled. "This time the situation is a bit different. I believe you should know what I want."

He was giving an amiable smile, but Frank knew better than anyone that this man was nothing more than a devil in disguise. He had a large body and an upright appearance, which was typical of an ex-soldier. He also sported a smile that could make others trust him. But Frank could never trust this man.

The gaze Ferdinand gave him caused him to feel chills all over his body. He felt as if he were facing the great demon in hell rather than a minister.

Pushing down his unease, Frank nodded his head. "Yes."

"Let's get inside."

They walked into the building and Frank pulled Sakura to follow after Ferdinand without making a sound. When they stopped at their destination, Sakura clutched Frank's clothes harder. She didn't want to get separated from her father.

"I'll be right back, Sakura," Frank soothed the girl and walked into the room.

Ferdinand stood on the other side of the small room with his arms crossed. His eyes stared towards Frank sharply. "I believe there shouldn't be anyone who knows about your daughter getting the letter. Why did the news get out so suddenly?"

"I don't know," Frank answered.

"How many people from your side know about the letter?"

Hearing his cold voice, Frank shuddered unconsciously. "I never told anyone about the letter. The only ones who know are my daughter and my deceased wife."

Ferdinand laughed coldly. "If the news didn't come out from you, it means that the one who spread it is your daughter, right?"

Frank's face fell. "She never tells anyone about it anymore."

"Anymore?"

"I… that… In the past, she bragged about it to her classmates."

"Give me their names."

"I don't know."

Ferdinand's eyes turned sharper. "Call the girl in."

Dragged into the room by one of the bulky men, Sakura staggered lifelessly. Her eyes were unfocused as she looked towards the big man in front of her. She hoped from the bottom of her heart that she would be fine.

"Give me the names of the people who know about the letter," Ferdinand demanded immediately.

Sakura was startled. She reflexively turned her head towards her father. Seeing Frank urge her to answer, she opened her mouth hesitatingly and uttered out several names one by one.

"…, Kanae also knows…"

As she listed them out, the man who had dragged her in noted their names one by one.. On the other hand, Ferdinand's eyes grew colder.