Reborn with Nothing but My Farm and Vengeance in the Apocalypse novel Chapter 187

Chapter 187: Chapter 187: One Stone, Three Birds

Once the door was closed, the friendly smile on Zoe Kane’s face slowly faded.

Her eyes darted around. With a hint of displeasure, she said to Nina Summers, who had just walked into the living room, "Nina, you’re a grown woman now. Why are you still pulling this ’running away from home’ stunt? Do you have any idea how angry your father is? I may not be your birth mother, but I have to say, you’re being far too thoughtless!"

With that, she looked Nina up and down, her displeasure growing as she took in her filthy state. "How did you get so dirty? Your father gets a government water subsidy every month, but even that can’t handle this kind of waste."

"Your little brother needs a bath every day, so our water consumption is already high. Even if you can’t help out around the house, at least don’t be a burden!"

Normally, Nina Summers would have gotten into a huge fight with Zoe Kane, but the Nina of today had no energy to deal with her.

After surviving a near-death experience at The Crestview Hotel, she had finally made it home. Nina felt like she was in a dream and just wanted to lie down and be alone for a while.

Nina Summers walked back to her room without a word, locked the door, and collapsed on the floor. In the most familiar and safest of environments, she could finally close her eyes in peace.

******

After dropping off Nina Summers, Melody Summers and the other two saw that it was getting late and quickly drove home.

On the way back, Winnie Summers sighed. "I can’t believe their family has been through such a huge change in just one short year. The last time I saw Mindy Walsh was during the heatwave last year. I never thought she’d just be... gone."

Human life was so fragile in the face of these cataclysms. Winnie knew that people were dying every day for all sorts of reasons, but when it happened to an acquaintance, someone she knew personally, she couldn’t help but feel a pang of sadness.

Colin Summers added, "Yeah, and come to think of it, didn’t we last see Mindy Walsh last July or August? It’s been a year at most since she passed away. It takes ten months for a baby to be born, so Caleb Summers must have married his new wife almost immediately after Mindy died..."

Caleb Summers had gotten to his current position thanks, in no small part, to the connections of Mindy Walsh’s father.

To think that Caleb would remarry at lightning speed right after Mindy’s death. They probably hooked up while Mindy was still alive!

At this thought, Colin’s expression darkened. He was losing whatever respect he had left for Caleb Summers.

Winnie Summers, however, recalled Zoe Kane saying that Caleb Summers had taken their son to the hospital. She couldn’t help but frown.

If their son had a serious illness, Zoe, as his mother, would never have stayed home. She definitely would have gone to the hospital with them.

Since Zoe didn’t go to the hospital, it meant the child’s illness wasn’t serious—probably just something minor.

This was the second year of the cataclysm, and private hospitals were astronomically expensive. Rushing to the hospital for a minor ailment showed just how much Caleb Summers doted on his young son.

Recalling Zoe Kane’s attitude toward Nina Summers, Winnie sighed and said, "Sigh... They say that when there’s a stepmother, the father becomes a step-father too. I can’t believe Caleb didn’t even go pick Nina up after what happened to her. And from the way his new wife spoke to Nina, I don’t think things are going to be easy for her from now on..."

Colin Summers nodded in deep agreement.

He thought, ’If Caleb Summers could rush into a new marriage before Mindy’s body was even cold, how could he possibly care about Nina’s feelings?’

Although they felt sorry for Nina, they knew that everyone has their own fate. They had always stayed out of Caleb Summers’s family affairs and couldn’t really help Nina anyway.

Besides, with the cataclysm ongoing, they didn’t want to get involved in other people’s business.

Melody Summers was sprawled on the back seat, listening drowsily with half-closed eyes to the conversation between her mother and uncle, not saying a word.

She had spent the entire afternoon in a tense and thrilling atmosphere. Now that she was out of danger, the quiet, peaceful mood in the car was making her drowsy. She really couldn’t stay awake; her eyelids felt like they were fighting a losing battle.

Just as she was drifting in and out of sleep, a familiar notification sound echoed in her mind—

[Peach Blossom Value +20. Current Peach Blossom Value: 42.]

Melody Summers jolted and her eyes flew open!

Her Peach Blossom Value, which hadn’t budged in ages, had just shot up by twenty points!

Melody suppressed her excitement! ’What caused the increase in Peach Blossom Value this time?’ she wondered.

’Was it because I helped the police deal with Flynn Adler and his crew? Or because I rescued Nina Summers?’

Melody wasn’t sure, but she felt more and more that her risky trip to The Crestview Hotel hadn’t been in vain!

Not only had she acquired two handguns and dealt with Flynn Adler, her enemy from her past life, but she had also increased her Peach Blossom Value!

’Talk about killing three birds with one stone!’

Melody was delighted. She wasn’t even sleepy anymore. She decided she would eat an extra bowl of rice for dinner!

******

He was being sincere. Right now, no one wanted anything to happen to Kenneth Adler more than Austin Hale did.

Kenneth nodded in satisfaction and mused, "Very good. You’re very loyal, and I suppose we were fated to cross paths. Now that my only son has been murdered, how about I adopt you as my godson? From now on, you will be the heir to Adler Enterprises."

Austin was stunned at first, but the shock quickly gave way to utter ecstasy. He rubbed his bald head and shouted excitedly, "Godfather! Dad! From now on, I’m your real son! I’ll be sure to serve you well!"

Seeing Austin’s ecstatic expression, Kenneth Adler nodded in satisfaction. Then he asked, "You were with Flynn before the incident today. Did you notice anything unusual?"

Kenneth couldn’t figure it out. Ever since the "business" at The Crestview Hotel had started, he had roped in plenty of protectors. Those sanctimonious figures were frequent visitors.

He’d been reported before, but his protectors would always cover for him. The higher-ups could never get solid evidence, so they couldn’t touch him.

Who on earth provided Roman Rhodes with the evidence this time?

When did this person even start their investigation?

How did they bypass the moles and protectors I have inside the police force during their investigation? Why didn’t I receive even a whisper of a warning?

And... how exactly did my son, Flynn Adler, die? All those wounds on his body—that wasn’t the police’s handiwork!

Austin Hale watched Kenneth Adler’s expression carefully as he tried his best to recall the events before he left The Crestview Hotel that day, reporting them one by one.

"...Dad, the last time I saw the Young Master, he was with Yates. They were in Room 1108, getting ready to... have their way with a woman..."

Kenneth’s pupils contracted at his words. ’Room 1108!’

His subordinate had mentioned in the message that Flynn Adler had died in Room 1108!

Kenneth immediately pressed, "What woman?! Where did they get this woman?"

Austin Hale replied, "All I know is that her name is Melody Summers and she lives at The Metropolis Residences. The Young Master probably saw her somewhere and had her abducted."

As Kenneth listened to Austin’s words, his face grew so dark it seemed like it could drip water. His murky eyes filled with hatred.

Gritting his teeth, Kenneth Adler pulled out his phone and ordered one of his surviving subordinates, "Go to The Metropolis Residences and investigate a woman named Melody Summers. Find out what her relationship is with Roman Rhodes!"