Cross My Tigress Face the Wrath (Stella)

Yvonne was getting a bit anxious.

She dreaded Ronald's silence because when he clammed up, it meant he was plotting something big.

"You know, I miss Star too," she said.

Hearing this stirred a wave of unexpected emotion within Stella.

Ronald snorted. "You were in cahoots with Skye, and now you claim you can't reach her?"

Yvonne replied, "I really don't know. She gave me a number, but now she's unreachable."

Yvonne was on the brink of losing it.

What on earth was Skye up to? It was bad enough if others couldn't get hold of her, but Yvonne was her boss, for crying out loud.

Skye had taken so much from her, and now, when Yvonne had instructions, Skye was nowhere to be found. What was she playing at?

"Hey, maybe you could have Idris intercept her or something? Umm... where is he?"

Yvonne asked the last question with a note of trepidation. For years, she had avoided speaking of him, and no one had dared to touch the scar on her heart.

In her mind, she had even accepted his death, holding a solemn vigil for him in the corners of her memory.

Yet, now Ronald was saying he'd seen him.

The long-buried emotions in Yvonne's heart seemed to spring to life, sudden and overwhelming, like a desert blooming after an unexpected rain. Ronald furrowed his brow, "This is your mess..."

"Come on, I'm your sister. Can you really bear to see me live like a widow forever?"

That had been Yvonne's plan. The person who mattered most to her was gone, and she had decided to live her life in mourning for him. Ronald's breath hitched.

Stella, hearing Ronald's words, didn't fully grasp the conversation between him and Yvonne, but she caught the careful tone in Yvonne's voice. Stella cautiously tugged on Ronald's sweater.

He glanced down at her, meeting her wide, watery eyes, and instantly understood what she was asking.

He spoke into the phone, "You really can't get in touch with Skye?"

"I really can't. Believe me. I wouldn't joke about him."

By "him," Yvonne meant that man.

Ronald considered this. Yvonne wasn't the type to joke about something like that.

Finally, meeting Stella's pleading gaze, Ronald reached out and gently pinch her cheek, then spoke into the phone, "Sands City." "What?"

Sands City? That isolated place in the middle of a desert, two hundred miles from any other city?

"Why would he be there?"

Yvonne had visited once but hadn't、

been impressed with the place.

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Ronald continued, "It might not be him. You know that."

Silence fell over the call.

When Yvonne didn't respond, Ronald added, "Idris saw him. But he didn't recognize Idris."

From the records, the man resembled him.

Yvonne said, "I'll go see for myself."

"He died right in front of you back then."

"Well, I didn't see him burned to ashes, did I?"

Both Ronald and Stella were left speechless.

Stella suddenly realized who they were talking about.

That was five years ago, the man who had made Yvonne swap her androgynous wardrobe for dresses.

He had left a deep mark on her, disappearing just when Yvonne had fallen for him the hardest.

Ronald sighed. "I'll send a few people with you. That place is dangerous."

Sands City, isolated and remote, had become a haven for all sorts of shady characters.

Yvonne replied, "No need."

"Yvonne," Ronald's tone was firm.

Ever since the Schultz family

incident, he had been cautious- overly so- with those closest to him. Especially the ones who mattered most.

Yvonne insisted, "I have someone."

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She wasn't foolish enough to go to Sands City alone, fully aware of the dangers lurking there.

Hearing her assurance, Ronald simply grunted in agreement.

The call ended in silence.

Stella looked at Ronald. "Is Mr. Murray still alive?"

Dan Murray, the name conjured a vivid memory. Stella could still recall

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