The Million-Dollar Heart by Rebecca Ryan

After splitting up with Dracon, Diana once again sought out the enigmatic F-Poison. This time, the rendezvous was in a downtown apartment, a far cry from the labyrinthine alleys of their last meeting.

“That's all Flynn said, nothing else,” Diana grumbled reluctantly. “When are you going to deal with Vivienne? If she doesn’t bite the dust soon, our partnership is over!” F-Poison replied nonchalantly, “Ms. Perez, who exactly are you losing your temper with?” Diana clamped her mouth shut, though the annoyance simmering within her refused to subside, making her incredibly uncomfortable.

Suddenly, F-Poison’s eyes narrowed, her gaze turning icy. She lunged forward like a bolt of lightning, grasping Diana's throat, “You brought a tail with you?” “A tail? | have no idea what you're talking about!” Diana gasped for air, her eyes wide with terror.

F-Poison squinted and tapped her earpiece, “Quincy, take them out. No mercy.” “Roger that!” Quincy’s resounding reply cthrough the earpiece.

With her orders in hand, Quincy checked her phone for the location sent to her.

Following the directions, she soon spotted Willa attempting to slip away.

Given she was young, Quincy perfectly played the part of an innocent child as she brushed past Willa.

But in her hand was a poison deadly enough to end Willa right on the spot.

Expressionless, Willa crossed paths with the child opposite her, but having grown up in the notorious Perez family, she was no stranger to danger.

As Quincy brushed by her, Willa’s right hand snapped out like a blade, targeting Quincy in a swift motion.

Quincy had not released her poison yet. To save her ownBhn, she had to change course! However, the moment she saw Willa’s face, her counterattack hesitated.

Willa sensed the girl’s restraint and realized she did not strike a lethal blow.

“Who are you?” Willa demanded.

Quincy whispered with a lowered voice, “Play dead, now!” Willa’s brow furrowed as countless thoughts raced through her mind.

She was uncertain whether to trust the girl before her, but she could sense the absence of murderous intent.

Since she had been spotted, playing dead seemed the best move to avoid drawing more assassins. Plus, she had Sasha's antidote to any poison this child could wield.

So, Willa complied with Quincy's request.

Feigning a strike at Quincy, she pretended to collapse after Quincy coughed up blood.

Quincy took the hit, feigning injury to avoid suspicion.

After Willa collapsed, Quincy connected to her earpiece to report, “Boss, the target is down,” and snapped a photo of the unconscious Willa with the ring that doubled as a hidden camera.

F-Poison cut the connection after confirming the hit, oblivious to Diana’s shock at recognizing Willa in the photo.

Diana was relieved her own secret dealings with F-Poison had not been exposed.

F-Poison looked up at Diana's stunned expression and asked, “What are you thinking, Ms. Perez?” “I'm wondering if the Perez family already suspects me. That's why they sent someone to tail me.” Diana clenched her fists in genuine anxiety.

F-Poison snorted. “Don’t worry. These are all members of the Nine Mystics Society. Whenever you cto meet with me, you always had a tail. Only this one was comparatively talented, so she managed to keep a closer distance.” Diana was secretly relieved. Clearly, F-Poison had no idea that the person she had just ordered killed was the person she had been looking for, the daughter of the previous F-Poison, Willa herself.

Diana felt it was for the better. What was the point of keeping Willa alive when the previous F-Poison was already dead? “Well, that's a relief. | should get going; it's getting late,” Diana said, thinking it was tto return to the Perez family’s party.

F-Poison watched Diana leave. The next moment, two henchmen cout from the other room.

“Boss, should we follow her and cut her tail?” F-Poison turned to her henchmen. “No need; those tails can be useful.” Meanwhile, Quincy whisked Willa to a safe place. Willa, suddenly alert, grabbed Quincy by the throat and demanded, “Spill it. Who are you?” Quincy, caught off guard by Willa’s prowess, realized that if they had fought for real earlier, she would be dead in seconds.

She tapped Willa’s hand and said with difficulty, “Vi... Vivienne, Percival!” Willa’s eyes narrowed, trying to piece together why Vivienne and Percival’s names were brought up.

Those who had previously cto search for her were all diverted away by Sasha, and they only wanted to find her. However, this girl had clearly cto kill her.

“What do you want?” Willa did not let go but started sizing up Quincy.

Left with no choice, Quincy presented her phone, showing a coded message from Vivienne: Find Willa, accompanied by Willa’s photo.

The coded phrase was unique to the Vanguard Agency, and Willa was well aware of it.Books Chapters Are Daily Updated Join & Stay Updated for All Books Updates...

Finally, she relaxed her grip. Since Quincy knew the Vanguard Agency's secret language, his identity was clear— he was one of their own.

“Who exactly are you?” Willa asked, even though she knew Quincy was an ally. Her tone was icy, making her seem somewhat standoffish.

Quincy took a moment to collect himself. Willa was even fiercer than Vivienne! Vivienne was like a velvet knife, while Willa was a sharp steel blade! “You're the one Nine Mystics Society has a bounty on, and I'm one of Vivienne’s people, just carrying out a mission,” Quincy said, taking a seat. “But I'm also Vivienne’s plant within the GTO, responsible for passing along inside information. F-Poison just orderedto kill you; she’s onto your trail.” Willa’s expression turned steely, a flash of murderous intent crossing her eyes. “F-Poison was actually nearby just now?” Quincy was taken aback by her gaze, feeling for a moment as if he had stepped through the gates of hell.

“I'm not sure. Even though she’s my boss, | don’t know her whereabouts. | found you based on the location she sent me; otherwise, I'd have no clue where you were.” Quincy had been recalled by F-Poison from Sea City just half a month ago, but she had never shown herself or given any direct orders, just instructions to stay undercover.

This was Quincy's first assignment since returning to Rivenwood.