Chapter 2

Sage collected herself before turning on the laptop. Her fingers swiftly moved across the keyboard as she hacked into the surveillance system, erasing all traces of her. Like the day she arrived at Jace's place, she left without a trace. "Sir, madam is gone!" Early the next morning, Jace, who had heard the news, returned from the hospital to the mansion. The moment he entered the room, his nose was filled with the fresh scent of roses. It was Sage's scent. After three years, he had grown used to her scent. Rarely did he enter the master bedroom which Sage had decorated. The room bore a different style and atmosphere to the other rooms in the mansion. With its pale yellow bedding, the room was warm and calm. It was neat and tidy just like her. Jace did not stay to admire the room but walked straight to the bedside table. Sage had signed the divorce papers, but the ten million dollar cheque was left untouched. He noticed the refined rose engraved seal on the bedside table. His name had been carved into its face. Jace was astounded by the technique it took to carve the rose. He couldn’t help running his fingers across the seal. The seal was made out of the finest jade. It was pure and translucent and felt cool when it was placed on the palm of the hand. What was even more amazing was that when the red ink from the stamp pad touched the face of the seal, it trickled into the rose, giving the impression that the rose was blooming. Jace found this piece of seal exquisite and fascinating. He was aware that she loved roses and had planted a bed of roses in the garden. Yet, he had never gifted her any roses. Beneath the seal was a card. He picked it up, opened it, and read it. 'Happy third-year anniversary. Goodbye, Jace.' Staring at the words, Jace glanced toward the calendar on the bedside table. Only then did he realize that today was the day they had officiated their marriage. Three years and had quickly flown by. Holding the seal made out of valuable jade, Jace suddenly thought to himself, "Where did she get the money?" Jace had given her a monthly allowance, but Sage had rarely utilized it. She said that she was already eating and living well at home, hence she did not have anything to spend the money on. Listening to his assistant's report on Sage, Jace looked pensive. "Track her recent and past movements. If she is indeed a spy planted by our rivals, make sure you bring her back by whatever means." Sage Luz claimed to be an orphan from a farming village, but was she really who she said she was? … Three days later at Salem City. It was chaos at the headquarters of the Norah Group which was located in the central business district. All the employees were moving around frantically, and the directors of the upper management had all gathered on the first floor to welcome the new CEO. Yesterday, Norah Group, whose stock had plummeted and had been on the verge of bankruptcy, had suddenly rebounded. A mysterious bigwig had purchased all their stocks. While the employees' jobs were secure, they were undergoing a different type of crisis. "Who exactly is this new CEO? A man or a woman? What's his or her background? Do none of you know anything?" "Not only do we not know, but management does not have a clue as to who the new CEO is! Isn't it mysterious? Well, I sure hope it’s a handsome guy. Hurry and send a haughty CEO to our rescue!" "You and your darn dreams! What if our CEO is a lady?" "What! You know it's impossible, right? You might as well hope that the eldest daughter of the Norah family comes back alive…" "They're here! Quiet now!" Feeling nervous, everyone held their breath while their eyes were fixed on the entrance. A black Wrolls-Royse pulled up at the main entrance. Their vice CEO opened the door, and someone got out of the car. It was a woman! Clad in a pair of four-inch black heels and a white suit, a woman with short, neat hair alighted the vehicle. She had a perfectly sculpted face. The upper management — especially those who had been working at the Norah Group for more than ten years— gasped in shock. The woman had a face they were all familiar with. They cried out involuntarily in shock, "Miss… Miss Norah." Actually, Sage Luz’s real name was Sage Norah. She stood tall and firm in front of the Norah Group's building. She curved up the corner of her lips slightly and said, "Hello, it's been such a long time."