Chapter 1312 There’s a Spy in the House
Make the best of a bad situation, I guess, Sonia thought with a wry smile. When Toby saw her sitting down, he didn’t hesitate to follow suit. Though he was a bit of a germaphobe and would’ve never done something like sitting on the floor in the past, they were now in a desperate situation. Naturally, some of his principles needed not to be adhered to.
After taking a seat, he answered Sonia’s question, “I’m not sure. I have too many enemies, from business rivals to family feuds. But if I had to narrow it down, there are only a few people who strike me as most suspicious. One of them is Connor, and the other is the Lore Family.” “Connor and the Lore Family.” Sonia lowered her eyes, repeating his words.
Toby turned the cloth around and continued, “It’s not very likely that it’s the Lore Family. They’re now in a difficult position and they can barely save themselves, so they won’t have much energy to deal with me. That leaves us with Connor. Although he’s still in the hospital, he can order someone else to do his dirty work, so he’s the most suspicious.”
Sonia nodded, thinking that his words made sense. “Actually, I think that it might be my enemies, like the Gray Family for example.”
“I don’t think it’s the Gray Family.” Toby shook his head in disagreement.
Hearing that, she looked at him dubiously. “Why would you think so?”
“The investigation team has been investigating Triforce Enterprise. At first, they were ready to leave, but I created some trouble for the Gray Family by telling the investigation team about the collapse of the mine under Triforce Enterprise many years ago. Although they haven’t found any decisive clues and evidence yet, Titus collapsed after days of panic and fear, and he was admitted to the hospital a few days ago. According to Tim, Titus may not be discharged this time and can only wait for a kidney donation. Unless he finds one, he can only await his death in the hospital. Now that Titus is rarely conscious every day, he doesn’t have the energy to deal with you. Julia and Rina are all focused on him, so they don’t have the time or the brains for it either.”
“So, that’s the case.” Sonia nodded. “I really didn’t know that.”
For some reason, her heart inexplicably tightened a little in discomfort when she heard that Titus would most likely only be able to lie in a hospital bed until he died. However, this feeling left as quickly as it came, and it barely affected her.
“Even if it’s not the Grays, what about that one person? Tina, who’s been hiding without showing herself.” Sonia clenched her fist.
She had a hunch that it was highly likely to be Tina.
Upon hearing the name, Toby narrowed his eyes. “It’s not impossible, but here’s the problem: Our decision to come to this factory was a sudden one. These people can’t know where we’re going before we leave, so they can’t start a fire to harm us. After all, gasoline is something that must be transported here in advance and hidden away. With the size of the factory, they’d definitely need a considerable amount of gasoline, and they’d require a car to transport it. If the person who started the fire had followed us, it’s unlikely that we didn’t hear the car coming. And even if we did hear the car, we’d go outside to take a look. By then, wouldn’t their plan fail?”
His words caused Sonia to jolt in surprise. “Are you saying that we didn’t hear any cars that were transporting the gasoline because the gasoline had been transported here long before we arrived and that the reason why they did that is that the person who started the fire knew a long time ago that we were coming here?”
“Not bad.” Toby nodded in approval. “That’s why the person who started the fire may be someone around you. They knew beforehand that you planned on coming here, and they set everything up.”
“The people around me…” Her eyes turned red as she spoke. “Quite a lot of people around me knew that I would be coming here. Besides my current secretary, the manager of the factory knew as well.”
“Then, that means that one of these two people leaked your whereabouts.” Toby pursed his lips.
Hearing that, Sonia clenched her fist even harder, her nails digging into her palm as she said, “They… betrayed me.”
“It’s not necessarily a betrayal; it’s also possible that someone might have overheard it and passed it on. Either way, we’ll know exactly what happened when we get out.” Toby relaxed her palm, reassuring her, “Don’t pinch yourself anymore. There’s no medicine here; you’ll get infected if you hurt yourself.”
“I’m sorry.” Sonia bit her lower lip and once again descended into self-loathing. “Looks like I’m still the one who dragged you into this mess. The person who started the fire was aware of my itinerary and was coming for me.”
“As I said, that’s not necessarily true.” Toby shook his head and continued, “Everybody knows that I go to your company almost every day to send you to and from work. So, to take revenge against me, someone can place a spy by your side. The person behind this knows that you’ll come here in the afternoon; it’s possible that they prepared the gasoline earlier just to see if I’ll come with you, and if I do, then it means that their plan would be successful. If I don’t show up, they can always remove the stuff. The probability is fifty-fifty, and there is no reason for them not to give it a try, just in case they hit the jackpot and succeed.”
“But…” Sonia pursed her red lips.
Although she felt that he had a point, she still had a gut feeling in her heart that told her she was the reason this was happening. However, she chose not to say it aloud. She knew very well that if she did, he would find a way to take the blame on himself to cheer her up so that she would not feel guilty and blame herself.
What can I say about this man…
Just as Sonia was feeling both touched and guilty, Toby’s expression suddenly turned pale as he broke into a coughing fit.
She hurriedly stopped her frantic train of thought and checked on him. “What’s wrong, Toby?” she asked hastily.
He coughed a little more before turning around to look at her. His face had turned deathly pale, but he still sent her a reassuring smile. “I’m fine. The smoke is just suffocating me.”
“The smoke is suffocating you?” Sonia looked around their surroundings.
Indeed, the fire had not spread inside, and it might not necessarily be able to. After all, the entire factory was essentially a metal structure, and the fire couldn’t incinerate metal as the burning point could not be reached. Hence, she no longer had to worry that she and Toby would be burned alive.
This was something that she just realized. Otherwise, the fire would have gotten in long ago, and it would not have taken so long either. However, even if they would not be burned to death, if they could not get out soon enough, they would still be roasted alive by the sheer heat of the flames through the metal walls of the factory, or they would suffocate from the smoke. In short, no matter which one it was, if nobody came to save them, death was the only thing that awaited them.
Hence, Sonia had been in constant panic throughout this time. Even though the heat wasn’t enough to roast them alive still, and the smoke wasn’t thick enough to smolder and choke them to death yet, she was unable to put her mind at ease. She also knew that even the handkerchief in her hand would not last long, and she had to constantly soak it in water from time to time.
However, it was not time for that yet, and the handkerchief could still be used, so she was not much affected by the smoke. If so, why was Toby coughing so much from the smoke? Was it the difference in the materials of the handkerchief and his shirt? Did the shirt dry too quickly, or was it too breathable?
