Chapter 338 - My Favorite

Jackson's eyes opened wide in surprise. He then picked up his phone and dialed a number.

"Emerson, you said you guys identified Avaleigh's father via the tattoo on his arm, but you never actually got a clear photo of his face when he was entering Mimi's room and when he was in the taxi. Can you take a look at the dragon tattoo that the murderer had and tell me if the dragon is holding a pearl?" he asked over the phone.

Emerson was confused by this sudden request but quickly looked through his phone at the photos he had collated.

A moment later, he replied, "Yes, you're right the dragon is holding a pearl."

"What color is the pearl?" Jackson asked urgently. 

"Errr..." Emerson looked carefully, "It's black."

Jackson held onto his phone and glanced at Herman Song. He was telling the truth. He was not the murderer. Even if he was to tattoo over the black pearl with white ink as soon as he got back to Korea, the tattoo would not have healed so quickly. In that case...

The murderer was still out there and Mrs. Song was in danger!

"Avaleigh's father isn't the murderer. His dragon is holding a white pearl... Tell the authorities in Hong Kong to put everything on hold. I think I know where the real murderer might be," Jackson said hurriedly before he hung up and turned back to the restrained man.

"Does Ewan have the same tattoo as you?" Jackson asked.

Herman had heard bits and pieces of Jackson's conversation so he quickly understood the importance of the tattoo, "Yes, but his dragon has a black pearl!"

"You understand what a black pearl means. Someone hired you to come after my wife, didn't they? Why did you take the job when you knew it would put your ex-wife in danger?" he frowned with disappointment. 

"I simply wanted to do this one last job. The offer was too good to resist. I've never been offered this much money in my life! Besides, this person was even harder to offend than Ewan," Herman explained guiltily.

"Who hired you?" Jackson asked straightforwardly.

Herman looked down and did not say a word. It was against his professional ethics to reveal his client.

"Was it someone from The Organization," Jackson tested. It was the only link he could think of. Otherwise, there was no reason why someone in Korea would want to kidnap his wife.

Herman's eyes immediately opened wide in fear. Clearly, it was a yes. In a panic, he suddenly stood up with the chair still tied to him and tried to barge his way out. The mention of The Organization obviously triggered him.

Jackson and Sean immediately held the man back down, "Who was it? Give us a name. Do you know why they were after Halia?"

The man stuttered, "If I tell you what I know, please don't hand me over to the police... The police can't be trusted."

"Why do you say that?" Jackson asked with suspicion.

"I suspect my client is in the Korean police..." Herman whispered.

"I only know him by the code name, Eagle. Obviously, he has an identity to hide. But, before I started working for him, I had already heard rumors about his identity. That's why I was too scared to turn him down," he explained.

Jackson furrowed his brows. "Do you know what he wanted with Halia?"

"I'm not sure. He didn't even give me any details about her. He simply said to bring her to him alive," Herman explained.

At that moment, Halia suddenly stepped forward and said, "Since he doesn't want me dead, let's lure him out!"

Sean immediately objected, "No, that's too dangerous!"

"It's more dangerous if he continues to come after me," Halia responded.

Jackson nodded his head. Even though he didn't want his wife to take a risk, he trusted her abilities and agreed with her reasoning. The Organization had people all around the world. If they had their eyes set on Halia, they weren't giving up easily. They needed to send them a warning not to go after her. But, they needed back up and they still needed to protect Mrs. Song from the murderer that was on the loose.

"Sean, I'll give you Mrs. Song's phone number. Let her know what's happening and go keep an eye on her. I'll go with Halia to lure out Eagle. I have some friends in Korea that can back us up..." Jackson said.

Jackson previously headed the Hong Kong/Macau branch of Interpol, so he naturally took command and Sean listened.

"Stay here and get some rest," he said to Natalie before he left the hotel room.

Natalie nodded obediently, "Stay safe."

After Sean left, Jackson picked up his phone again and made another phone call, "Kwon, I need your help..."

Since the police couldn't be trusted, he needed to recruit another form of help...

...

Over in Hong Kong, Emerson rushed excitedly home to have dinner with Avaleigh. A moment ago, he had received a phone call from Jackson, telling him that Avaleigh's father wasn't the murderer and he immediately passed the information on to both Officer Liang and Trisha. Now, it was time to tell Avaleigh about it. Although Avaleigh had lost contact with her father, he was still her father and she cared about him, so Emerson knew this piece of news would give her some relief.

As he opened the apartment door, Avaleigh was standing in the kitchen like she normally did, humming a song and waving her h.i.p.s.

When she heard the door, she turned around and smiled shyly, "Just in time. Come eat."

Emerson looked at the woman as he approached. Probably, due to their conversation earlier, there was a slight sense of ambiguity in the air.

A moment later, Avaleigh gently placed a platter on the dining table and blushed, "It's my first time making sushi. I hope you like it..."

Emerson's heart raced when he saw the beautifully arranged platter in front of him. Sushi was his favorite food but he never had it at home. Not even the chef at his family mansion ever made it for him. He looked at the individually handmade pieces and was surprised to find that there was a good variety of ingredients. There was salmon, tuna, kingfish, egg, tofu skin, and even eel! He glanced over at the kitchen and saw it was a bit of a mess. How long did it take her to prepare all this?

Avaleigh quickly blushed, "I'll clean up the kitchen later. Eat first while it's fresh. Marissa said sushi was your favorite..."

Emerson looked at the woman in front of him and his heart melted. Without a second thought, he walked around the table and hooked his arm around her waist. Ever since he hugged her earlier, he had been dreaming about hugging her again.

Avaleigh gasped in surprise as she felt the man's body against hers.

As he held Avaleigh close to his body, Emerson whispered beside her ear, "Sushi's not my favorite..."

"Huh?" Avaleigh asked in surprise. Did she hear wrong? Or did Marissa make a mistake?

However, her heart almost jumped out of her chest when she heard what the man said next. "...you're my favorite," he chuckled.