"Please, have a seat and wait here," Sylvia smiled. "I won’t be long, just need to change my clothes real quick."

Unfortunately, my gut told me something was off. I quickly gave Toni a signal to keep watch outside. Toni, who had been standing beside the sofa, immediately picked up on the cue. In one swift motion, he left the living room.

With Toni gone, my inner detective kicked in. Just as quickly, I began to search the room.

I found a few new clues—pieces of evidence that helped confirm my suspicions. Sean really *was* Sylvia’s lover!

Hmm, maybe she married that old geezer just for Sean’s sake! While I kept searching for more proof, my mind raced with all kinds of possibilities.

Suddenly, a loud bang echoed from outside, followed by the sound of a heated argument.

What the hell is going on out there? I rushed toward the door, but before I could step out, Toni burst back into the room—dragging someone with him.

Sylvia?! Her hands were tied up with a necktie?

I stared at Toni, silently demanding an explanation.

"She tried to escape, sir! I had no choice but to tie her up. Who knows what she would've done if she got away!" Toni looked at me, his eyes filled with frustration.

"What?! Escape? Seriously, Sylvia? Is that true, what my assistant just said?"

Sylvia didn’t say a word.

"The more you stay silent like that, the more I believe you actually *did* try to run!" I raised my voice.

"Yes! I *did* try to escape! So what?! Two shady guys barged into my house out of nowhere—it’s only natural I’d want to get the hell out!" Sylvia snapped back, clearly furious.

"Shady? Excuse me? We busted our asses tracking you down! You’re a fugitive, Sylvia! You’re the root of all the mess happening in Wonderland!" I shouted, just as angry.

Toni quickly stepped forward, gently patting my shoulder and whispered, “Easy, Mr. Sebastian. Don’t let your emotions get the best of you. Remember, we’re here to gather evidence.”

I took a deep breath and tried to calm myself.

"Wonderland? Did you just say Wonderland? Who *are* you guys, huh? Did Madam send you?" Sylvia’s eyes narrowed in suspicion.

Then it hit me—only El knew the real name of the owner of Wonderland. Sylvia shouldn’t even know that “Madam” is actually Sarah.

“Whether we’re hired or not doesn’t matter. What matters is, *you* are wanted by a lot of people,” I said firmly.

Sylvia smirked, glaring at both me and Toni. “Ah, so it *is* true. You guys are working for Madam.”

“We are *not* her lackeys. We have our *own* reasons for looking for you.”

Sylvia raised an eyebrow, her face clearly puzzled. “Other reasons?” she glanced at Toni, probably hoping he’d confirm it.

“Don’t bother. My assistant doesn’t speak unless I tell him to,” I said with a grin, watching her confusion deepen.

“All you need to know is, my mission is to bring you back to Wonderland.”

“No way! I’m *not* going back there!” Sylvia suddenly screamed.

“Why? Because you’re scared of facing the consequences of what you did?”

“I *know* I screwed up! But I’m not going back. Just take me to the police instead!”

I took another breath. She knew. If this went to the authorities, it would be a disaster. Wonderland would be in serious trouble. And so would Sarah.

“Smart move trying to deflect. You clearly understand why Madam wants to keep the police out of this.”

Sylvia scoffed and shrugged. “Not my problem. Why should I care about someone else’s mess?”

My jaw clenched. God, this woman was unbelievably selfish. No remorse. Not even a hint of guilt.

“You *are* the one who caused this mess! And now other people are paying the price!” I nearly shouted. Toni touched my shoulder again, trying to keep me in check.

“Oh yeah? And who exactly is paying the price? Just Madam, right? She’s smart, she’ll figure it out. Why are *you* even helping her? She’s got plenty of connections. She’ll be fine,” Sylvia said nonchalantly, making my blood boil even more.

“Unbelievable. You really are heartless and selfish. You lied to your boss—someone who genuinely cared about you. You betrayed a friend who trusted you! I was even thinking of helping you get away from that old bastard—"

“…Old bastard?” Sylvia suddenly interrupted me. “Wait—don’t tell me you’re working for *him*?” Her face turned pale in an instant, panic spreading across her features.

“What about him? Aren’t you *his* wife? Why do you look so scared all of a sudden?”

Sylvia laughed bitterly, “Oh come on. Drop the act. You *know* I scammed that old fart! That’s *why* you came all the way here, isn’t it?” She yanked at her bound hands. “Can you at least untie me? This is seriously uncomfortable!”

Toni leaned in again and whispered, “Don’t, sir. Don’t fall for her tricks. She might try to run again. We should just head out before it gets too late.”

He was right. It was getting late, and we still had a long drive back to the city. If we didn’t leave soon, we might have to spend the night.

“Grab the files I found earlier,” I told Toni, pointing at the documents I’d uncovered during the search. He moved quickly and gathered everything.

“Hello? Seriously? You’re not going to untie me? So cruel!” Sylvia whined behind us.

I ignored her. Let her keep complaining. It was better than having to chase her through the streets again.

"Hello? Can you hear .... Are you seriously not going to untie me? Unbelievable!" Sylvia started whining again.

She struggled in Toni's grip, frowning and tossing her head like a spoiled actress mid-rehearsal. "My wrists hurt, you know! Do you want me to get bruises? These ropes—ugh—so rough! I could sue you both for assault!"

I rolled my eyes but said nothing.

"You guys are ridiculous! What do you think I’m gonna do, fly away? I just wanted to change clothes! What kind of gentleman barges into a lady’s house and ties her up like this?"

Toni stood still, his expression blank. He didn’t even blink.

"Oh, come on! You're both acting like I’m some criminal mastermind or something. I already told you—I’m not going back to Wonderland!" she snapped again, yanking her tied wrists up. "I’d rather go to jail! At least they let you use your hands there!"

"Keep whining like that, and we might just consider that option," I muttered, mostly to myself.

"Excuse me? Did you just—" Sylvia gasped, clearly offended. "You know what? I have rights too! And basic human decency is one of them! Just untie me already, I’m not gonna run. Pinky promise!"

"Yeah, like we haven't heard *that* one before," Toni said flatly without looking at her.

Sylvia scoffed dramatically, flipping her hair. "Unreal. Two grown men ganging up on one helpless woman. Classy. Really classy."

"And yet somehow that 'helpless woman' managed to steal sensitive documents, vanish for weeks, and manipulate a powerful old man into marrying her," I shot back.

Sylvia blinked, her lips parting, but no snappy comeback came. Instead, she groaned, turned away, and muttered, “Ugh, you guys are exhausting…”

Toni smirked slightly, then leaned in and whispered to me, "She’s gonna keep yapping until we’re back in the car. Better get moving."

"Agreed," I sighed. "Let’s wrap this up before she gets loud enough to wake the neighborhood."

***