Unveiled: The Survivor's Triumph
Chapter 126 Don't Move

Faris slapped his hands on either side of my shoulders, boxing me in like it was nothing.

He stared at me with this blank look, making it impossible to figure out what he was thinking. But I bet Yanis sticking to the original verdict had him in a foul mood.

"Faris, don't." Sophie, clutching Abby, stood off to the side, tears still streaming down her face, too freaked out to say much.

Faris turned to her and said, "You go on ahead; wait outside. I'll get you home later."

Sophie glanced at him, then at me, hesitated for what felt like forever, and when she finally turned to leave, she kept looking back, clearly worried.

Once Sophie was out of sight, I said, "Legal stuff is out of our hands."

Even though I didn't know Faris that well, he seemed pretty chill, so I figured I could reason with him.

Hearing this, Faris suddenly grinned, tilted his head like he was thinking it over, and then smiled. "Good verdict. Yanis is a reckless idiot; he needs a few more years in there to learn his lesson." I was floored; I did not see that coming.

Maybe Faris's real reason for getting Ethan to bail out Yanis wasn't what I thought. What was his real game? Fifteen grand?

Faris was way too close; even if I turned my head, his breath still hit my ear, making me super uncomfortable.

I swallowed and said, "So this isn't Ethan's fault. It's Richard's. Even now, there's no result. He's done his best. The fifteen grand contract you made him sign is a rip-off."

"Fifteen grand?" Faris sneered, curling one side of his lip. "That's chump change to me."

My heart sank. Was he planning to squeeze even more out of Ethan?

Seeing his gaze suddenly freeze and his face turn cold, I turned to look too.

Standing not far away were Victor and Linda.

Victor's face looked even worse now. I figured even if he didn't like me, he wouldn't want to see his daughter-in-law tangled up with another guy.

I shoved Faris hard, but his arms were like iron bars nailed to the wall, not budging an inch.

"If you move again, I'll kiss you," Faris suddenly lowered his head and whispered.

I froze instantly.

He stared at me deeply, his determined gaze telling me he was capable of anything.

Seeing me stay still, he smiled in satisfaction, even reaching out to straighten my clothes.

I didn't dare to look at Victor's expression. I already had a bad rep with him, and now I was probably on his blacklist forever.

Hearing footsteps, I finally got the guts to turn my head again. Victor walked off without a glance back. But Linda, as she turned, shot me a look of pure disdain, like I was trash. After they left, I shoved hard. Faris stepped back, then stood straight with a casual smile.

"What do you want?" I clenched my fists.

Faris just stared at me, soaking in my frustration.

I was breathing heavily, gritting my teeth.

His hand suddenly reached out and lightly tapped my forehead.

"Silly girl, don't frown. You'll get wrinkles."

I slapped his hand away and stormed off.

This time, he didn't stop me; just trailed behind.

I picked up the pace, trying to shake him, but his long legs kept him right on my tail, his footsteps always just a beat away.

Sophie was waiting for me outside. When I reached her, Faris was right there too.

He reached into his coat pocket, pulled out his keys, and unlocked the car, the headlights flashing twice.

"Get in. I'll take you," he said.

I grabbed Sophie, stopping her from getting in his car.

Who knew what Faris was planning?

Faris was already in the driver's seat, the window down, patiently watching us.

"Not getting in?"

"We'll take a cab ourselves; we don't need you," I said firmly.

"Really?" Faris smirked.

"Well, Faris means well. Why don't we just take his car?" Sophie said softly.

I looked at Sophie in disbelief. She had already opened the car door and whispered, "It's okay. Let's go."

I didn't get why Sophie wanted to take his car. She was already in, and I didn't feel right letting her and Abby ride with Faris alone, so I got in too. His car looked expensive, and I felt super uneasy.

Since Faris dared to drive openly, he must have gotten his license back.

At the entrance of Sophie's apartment complex, Faris took out his wallet, pulled out a stack of cash without counting, and handed it to Sophie. Sophie waved her hand, refusing, but Faris placed it on Abby.

"Consider it a gift for Abby."

Sophie couldn't refuse anymore and accepted the money. "Thank you, Faris."

I was even more confused about him.

What kind of person was he? Maybe he wasn't really that bad after all.

By the time I snapped out of it, Sophie had already closed the car door and said goodbye.

"No, let me walk you up." I quickly reopened the car door and got out.

"No need," Sophie said.

"Yes, you do. You're carrying Abby and the bags, and there's no elevator. How can you manage? I'll help you." I took the bags from her and led her inside. Abby had dozed off in the car. After I walked Sophie home and she put Abby to bed, I got straight to the point.

"Sophie, how do you know Faris?"

Sophie poured me a glass of water, and we settled on the couch.

"Back then, Richard was tight with Faris and Yanis. I was always tagging along with Richard, so I got to know them." "What kind of guy is he?" I asked.

Sophie thought for a moment. "Faris can be a hardass sometimes, but he's super loyal. That's why Richard respects him a lot. Back then, Richard didn't know how to drive but really wanted to, so he skipped driving school and had Faris teach him. He ended up crashing Faris's car. Driving without a license had big consequences. Faris was in the car and had been drinking. When the cops showed up, Faris took the blame, saying he was driving. The police tested him for alcohol, found he was over the limit, and took away his license."

So that's how Faris lost his license.

Listening to Sophie and recalling how he treated Sophie and Abby earlier, I figured he must have had a good relationship with Richard. But I remembered him saying he had a grudge against the Windsor family. Was his interaction with Richard really that simple?

Leaving Sophie's house, I was surprised to see Faris's car still parked at the entrance.

He had a cigarette between his fingers, hanging out the car window, looking at me. "Why haven't you left?"

"I'm waiting for you," he said with a smile.

I ignored him and walked past his car, intending to hail a cab.

He started the car and slowly followed me.

"Do you know why Ethan didn't come today?" His lazy voice came from behind.

I stopped and turned around abruptly.

"If you want to know where he is, get in the car."

Faris's face wore a confident smile, not in a hurry, as if certain I would get in.

Indeed, after only a few seconds of hesitation, I opened the car door and got in.

In the rearview mirror, my eyes met Faris's smiling ones.

He ran his long fingers over his lips before starting the car.

From Faris's tone, there must be a reason Ethan didn't come. What could it be?

As the city lights came on, it was already rush hour, and traffic was crawling. The car moved at a snail's pace.

My heart was pounding erratically. I wanted to see him quickly but was also a bit scared. Why did I always feel that Faris's smile was so sinister?

The car finally stopped, and I looked out the window to find we were parked in front of a restaurant.

Could Ethan be in the restaurant?

Eager to find out, I jumped out of the car, barely containing my impatience.

Following Faris to the second floor of the restaurant, he found a window seat and plopped down. The waiter quickly came over with the menu. Faris lit a cigarette, looked at me, and asked, "What do you want to eat?"

Was he messing with me?

I was about to turn and leave when he took two steps forward, placed his hands on my shoulders, and pressed me into a chair.

He leaned down, his low voice and warm breath in my ear.

"Cut me some slack. You don't want people to think we're a quarreling couple, do you?"

I thought, 'Of course not.'

So I scooted further in, refusing to be too close to him.

He straightened up, satisfied, and took the electronic menu from the waiter, randomly ordering a few dishes.

"Please wait a moment." The waiter left with the menu, and Faris returned to his seat.

I glared at him coldly and hostilely, but he responded with a smile. I felt like I was hitting a soft spot.

I felt extremely annoyed!

"You don't even know where he is. You're playing me," I said through gritted teeth.

Faris suddenly coughed several times, laughing as he did, as if the smoke had choked him.

After drinking some water, he finally calmed down and suddenly extended his hand in front of me, his watch facing me.

"Look, it's dinner time. No matter what happens, people need to eat."

"Skipping one meal won't kill anyone," I said irritably.

"Of course it will." Faris responded quickly, his tone exaggerated.

"If Ethan sees me bringing you over, he'll definitely want to fight me. If I don't eat and get some strength, I'll be a sitting duck." Hearing Faris say this made me even more uneasy.

Where exactly was Ethan? Why was his phone off? And why was he hiding it from me?

The food arrived, and Faris started eating. His eating manner wasn't very elegant; he seemed genuinely hungry. I, however, didn't eat.

Faris put some food on my plate and said, "Eat up. You'll need the energy if you're gonna fight, swear, or make a run for it."

In the end, I didn't eat much, holding back my questions and anger as I watched him eat.

It wasn't until my patience was about to run out and I was on the verge of exploding that he finally put down his fork and took out a napkin to wipe his mouth. When we left the restaurant, it was already dark.

The car drove for about twenty minutes before pulling into an underground parking lot.