"Yes! Jessie got a hard slap across the face! She left with her mom, all red and swollen!"

She went on, "Jessie's dad's really sick, so no one's handling the business. Marcus mentioned her dad's not great with that stuff. Mr. Watson, Jessie's in over her head with all this."

Albert's heart twinged at her words.

In a low tone, he said, "Got it.”

Melissa couldn't gauge Albert's thoughts.

But he ended the call right after.

Afterward, Albert stared at the stub of his cigarette for a while.

All he could picture was Jessie's swollen face.

She was so pampered, probably couldn't handle the pain...

Just the thought of it tore him up inside!

Albert wasted no time in deciding to head back to Duefron.

Sure, things here in Heron were still shaky, and he needed to stick around the head office. But right now, all he could think about was getting back to Duefron pronto.

The problem was that there were no flights at this hour. So he opted to drive, an eight-hour journey that would get him there by morning.

As he descended the stairs, Daisy happened to stroll in.

With her flawless makeup, she looked like a vision of grace.

She was in high spirits. Seeing Albert grab his coat, she couldn't resist asking, “Off somewhere, Albert? It's late."

Albert paused, casting a glance her way.

That was when he noticed a faint love bite on Daisy's neck.

And the expression on her face.

Albert put two and two together.