Just then, my phone rang. I quickly answered when I saw it was Ivanna. "Hey.""How are you?" Ivanna exclaimed, "You scared me!""How did you know?""How could I not know? It's all over TikTok!" She exclaimed, "What happened? Where are you now?""I’m fine now. I'm at home," I said calmly. "I ran into Kimberly, then Atlas came.""Oh my goodness. The Terrell family should all be locked up. They’re all so full of themselves!" Ivanna rambled on the phone, and I heard Lauren’s voice faintly in the background."It's alright. Don't worry," I reassured her. "I'm fine now, thanks to Charlie’s dad. He saved me before Atlas arrived."As I spoke, I glanced at Atlas. He was holding me and gently touching my face.After I hung up, Atlas called Dylan to remove some things from the internet. It seemed that someone had taken the opportunity to leak some information about what had happened.My phone kept on buzzing. I could tell everyone was concerned about my safety.The next day, I bought a f
After I bade them farewell, Arton saw me out. I thanked him once again.He looked at me and asked, "Who was that girl?""She’s from the Terrell family in Bourdamun. When trouble struck her family, she pinned the blame on me." I said. "She was no one important, so I didn't investigate her and just let her be.”"Well..." Arton hesitated and looked at me.I was sure he wanted to ask about Melanie.I waited for him to speak.“About Melanie… Do you have any news from her?" He couldn't hold back."No." I shook my head. "They haven’t caught her. She probably won't dare show her face so easily."He nodded, smiling awkwardly. "Is she in prison because of the Thompson family?”I pondered for a moment before speaking, "It was because of the death of Matthew’s mother. I was the one who sent her in."Arton raised his brows.I smiled at him and asked, "Are you surprised?”I recounted what happened to Arton without leaving anything out. Then, I went over the current situation, detailing h
I scrutinized her carefully. Honestly, she was beautiful, but there was a hint of naivety about her. She had a subtle lack of sharpness that I couldn't quite put my finger on.Her answer was affirmative. I gestured and said, "Let's go to my office."Carol quickly brought us another glass of water when she saw us return.I gestured for the girl to sit while I took a seat on the sofa.I looked at her and asked, "Why are you here to see me?""Ms. Chloe, Ms. Trinity asked me to tell you that she and Ms. Stella are visiting the Avila family," she informed me."The Avila family? What else did she say?" I asked urgently. "When did she tell you that, and why didn't she call me directly?""She didn't say anything else, and she couldn't call you directly," the girl replied calmly. "If there's any new information, I'll come see you. Also, she gave you this as evidence for the trial."As she finished speaking, she handed me a tiny USB flash drive.I quickly took it, laying it in my palm t
I stepped into the elevator and immediately dialed Atlas, asking if he was in the office."Yeah, just finished a meeting," he replied.I instructed him to wait for me in the office, assuring him I'd be there soon.Skipping the lobby, I headed straight to the underground parking lot. I hopped in my car and drove straight to ATL Empire.Since my relationship with Atlas was confirmed, I rarely visited ATL Empire to avoid unwanted attention. The probing gazes were something I hadn't quite gotten used to.Today, as I entered the building in a hurry, I paid no attention to how others looked at me. I greeted the receptionist and headed upstairs right away.Atlas was indeed waiting in his office. When he saw me, he walked out with a smile, pulling me into a warm embrace.Looking down at me, he asked, "What's got you rushing over here like a fire's lit under you? Are you coming to me for comfort?"Without hesitation, I nestled against him. Looking up, I recounted the incident with Lola,
His kiss left me all flustered and disoriented. Playfully, I slapped him and said, "Be serious. You’re always like this."He spoke with deep affection, "I haven't seen you for half a day.""You're getting clingier." I scoffed, giving him a stern look."Is that a bad thing?" He shrugged.I scolded him, "Quick, call Adrian. It'll take some time for him to get here. Can you focus on some real work?"Unabashed, he continued pecking my lips. "You are my real work."I sighed in resignation, giggling as I dodged him. "Were you like this, clinging to me when we were kids?"He immediately retorted, "Nonsense. Back then, it was you clinging to me."This time, I dismissively said, "Sure, I can't remember anything now. Feel free to make up whatever, and I'll believe you."The mention of this topic weighed heavily on my heart. I appeared sad, saying, "If I can't remember anything, it's a terrible situation. Whether it's something beautiful or sorrowful, I wouldn't know."I couldn't accept
I promptly ended the call and dialed Noah's number, instructing him to send someone to drive Lauren back to Foswood.With that sorted out, I called Ivanna, but her phone was switched off.A sense of unease crept over me, and I turned to Atlas, asking, "Are you really not aware of Jared's whereabouts lately? What's going on with him? This is so irresponsible of him! I used to have a good impression of him, but now he seems so unreliable."At this point, I was furious.Atlas became serious too. "I really haven't heard from him. Don't worry, I'll find him."Hearing his assurance, I spoke with a commanding tone, "Don't just placate me. You must find him quickly. If anything goes wrong, I won't take responsibility. Tell him that he’s going to lose his son if he doesn’t straighten things out as soon as possible. Got it?"Atlas raised an eyebrow and nodded while maintaining a serious expression.Seeing his attempt to act earnestly, I couldn't contain my anger. "Stop pretending to be al
I felt like I had been struck by lightning, freezing in place as a chill enveloped me.Ivanna was too impulsive! At this age, couldn't she think more empathetically? Couldn’t she consider what she could do to fight for herself?I sensed an unprecedented sense of helplessness.Seeing me standing there like a statue, the medical assistant seemed a bit startled. She looked at me and asked, "Are you okay? Do you feel unwell? Do you need help?"I collected myself, shook my head numbly, and weakly asked, "How long ago did she leave?"She seemed a bit perplexed by my question. "Are you talking about Ivanna?"I nodded.She responded indifferently, "She left quite a while ago."I thanked her in a soft voice. She just raised an eyebrow and continued with her work, paying no further attention to me.As I turned around in a daze, I pondered. She must have gone home by now. At this moment, she must be feeling lonely and helpless, needing care more than ever.With these thoughts, I ran out
Suddenly, she burst into laughter, an unrestrained laugh that it sent shivers down my spine.I was utterly bewildered. "Ivanna, don't do this!"She laughed even more sinisterly, making me feel uneasy. I grabbed her and said, "Ivanna, stop laughing. Wake up, don't be like this, listen to me..."She abruptly shook off my hand and looked at me. "What's wrong? What should I listen to? I... I'm fine, I didn't do anything..."I stared at her in confusion, not understanding what she was saying.After a while, I finally processed her last few words.She didn’t do anything?I got angry and yelled, "Stop laughing and talk to me properly!"Seeing my expression, she realized I was genuinely upset. She suppressed her laughter and looked at me."I... I didn't do it. The baby is still here. I couldn't bear to do it. Chloe... I couldn't bear it." Her voice grew quieter as she spoke.Listening to her words, I stared at her dumbfounded before questioning, "Explain. What happened? Did you reall