After saying all that, Abby quickly said goodbye to Stella and hung up before she could respond.
Stella stared at her phone, listening to the dial tone for a moment. In the end, she didn’t call back.
Joshua noticed the troubled look on her face and asked, “Is something wrong?”
Stella explained everything Abby had told her.
Frowning, she said, “Abby said she has to leave for a while—she might be going undercover in the Lerman family.”
She sighed, worry etched on her brow. “I have no idea where Abby got her intel, but this is way too dangerous.”
“We need to figure out a way to get her out of there.”
Joshua’s gaze was fixed on Stella, his eyes dark and inscrutable, like the surface of a deep well hiding dangerous undercurrents.
“You’re... worried about this?” he asked quietly.
Lost in her thoughts, Stella didn’t notice the shift in Joshua’s tone.
“I don’t dare contact Abby directly. If I reach out and she gets exposed, it could be even more dangerous for her.”
She looked up at him, her eyes searching for reassurance. “Joshua, is there any way we can get Abby out safely?”
She raised her head, instinctively seeking his advice—only to meet those fathomless eyes, so intensely focused on her that she felt a strange weight in the air.
Stella’s eyelid twitched. “What is it? Why are you looking at me like that?”
Joshua lowered his gaze. “I thought you might worry that the news was fake.”
He hadn’t expected her first instinct would be to worry about Abby’s safety.
Stella paused, then realized why Joshua was reacting this way.
“Abby’s been my friend since childhood,” she said softly, gazing at the green plant sitting on the windowsill. “No matter how reckless she is or how much trouble she gets into, I’ll never give up on her.”
She smiled faintly. “I know—if you can’t be ruthless, it’s hard to achieve anything big.”
A hint of self-mockery crept into her voice. “Maybe I’m just not cut out for greatness.”
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