Debra glanced at Marion, and in that instant, she realized what was going on.She quickly addressed Ben."Got it. I'll call him back later.""Okay."After ending the call, Debra turned toward Marion, raising an eyebrow."Did you mess with my phone?""I didn't touch it."Marion's expression was as innocent as a puppy's, and Debra remembered that her phone had been with her the whole time. Still, her gut told her that Marion was involved."You'd better come clean," she warned with a half-smile.Faced with her ultimatum, Marion sighed and confessed, "Randy and Erica installed a chip in your phone. It automatically blocks all calls and messages from Juan.""And you weren't going to tell me?" she asked, folding her arms."I forgot," Marion said innocently.Debra pressed her fingers to her temples, frustrated but not surprised. This was exactly the kind of thing Randy and Erica would pull.After their last run-in, it seemed they were determined to use any means necessary to stop
By the time Debra arrived at the Nichols family's residence, it was already afternoon.She took out her keys, but just as she was about to open the door, she remembered that the locks had been changed long ago.Right then, Sophie opened the door. When she saw Debra, her face lit up with uncontrollable joy."Madam, you're back. Come on in." Sophie ushered Debra inside, beaming as she spoke. "I heard you were coming back today, so I made a table full of dishes. Mr. Nichols said you would be staying. Is it true?"Debra shook her head lightly. "Not quite. I still have to leave for work."Sophie nodded understandingly. "That makes sense. Work matters."Juan descended from the second floor. His expression, usually cold and distant, finally softened a bit when he saw Debra.Melody emerged from her room and cast a glance at Juan, clearly displeased, but she eventually reined in her temper and said, "Sophie, you really don't know how to follow proper etiquette. How could you not inform m
"Half a million a month. You wouldn't even need to leave the house, and that should be enough.""I don't think so."Debra rested her chin in her hand, gazing at Juan with a tender expression."Juan gives me a million every month and allows me to work.""What?" Melody shot a stern look at Juan. Her tone turned serious as she asked, "Juan, is this true?"Juan knew Debra was saying this on purpose, but he calmly replied, "Debra can do whatever she likes. Grandma, you don't need to worry about it.""How can I not worry? At my age, I expect to see the next generation being born. You're Juan. How could you keep such things from me?" Melody sulked.Debra chimed in, "Don't be upset, grandma. This is a private matter between us as a couple. Juan and I have already signed an agreement. We agreed that after remarrying, we'd be child-free."Juan choked on his soup, while Melody was stunned."Child-free? Juan, how could you agree to such a thing?"Debra contentedly continued her meal wh
In Debra's memory, the Nichols family's true rise began during the generation of Juan's grandfather, who then passed on the reins to Juan's father.Debra had never heard Juan mention much about his grandfather's era, and in this house, there wasn't even much left to remind anyone of him."Yes," Juan confirmed."So, does that mean the Nichols family business has been around for a century?" Debra asked. Outwardly, the Nichols Group always boasted about being a century-old enterprise. But truthfully, the family's wealth and success had only been built up over a few decades.In those early days, they were more like nouveau riche, which was why Melody always hoped her son and grandson would marry well-educated, upper-class women from esteemed families."Probably," Juan replied. "My grandparents didn't build their fortune in Seamar City. I don't know much about their past."Debra fell into silent thought while Juan lit three sticks of incense. Handing them to her, he seemed to invite
"You think I'd be foolish enough to make the same mistake twice?"Juan's cold, sharp words hit Hester like a slap, leaving her stunned."I didn't drink that wine. And the person who came to your room that night wasn't me. Do you need me to spell it out for you before you'll stop this?"For the past few days, Melody had arranged for Hester to stay at the Nichols family's ancestral home, hoping she'd familiarize herself with the household.A few days ago, Hester had drugged a glass of wine and sent it to Juan's study, thinking she'd trap him. But Juan had known all along that it was a scheme orchestrated by Melody.To save Melody from embarrassment, he had Joe switch the wine ahead of time and send Hester away before anything could happen.As for what happened next, Juan had no idea, but one thing was certain. The person who went into Hester's room that night wasn't him."That's impossible! Melody told me that..." Hester stammered in disbelief."Melody told you that Juan came to
Juan's gaze turned sharp. Debra couldn't pinpoint which question had triggered his defenses, but from the look in his eyes, she could tell that Juan knew something.Before she could push further, a maid came running up, breathless. "Sir, Miss Vargas just took off with your car."Debra said, "I only wanted her to find Melody for clarification. Now she's all worked up. Let's hope nothing serious happens.""Let's go," Juan said, leading her to leave.He quickly started up his spare car, speeding toward the new home.Meanwhile, Hester was pounding on the front gate. Sophie opened the door with a look of confusion, only to be even more puzzled when she saw Hester, looking wild and almost hysterical. "Miss Vargas?""Where is Mrs. Nichols Sr.? Where is she?""She..."Before Sophie could even finish her sentence, Hester pulled out a knife, the blade catching the light. Sophie's face drained of color, her voice shaking."What are you doing with that?""I need to see Mrs. Nichols Sr.
Debra ripped off the fragile veil of Melody's pretense.Melody fell silent, and Hester was enraged."Is what she said true? You did all of this? You knew from the start that the person who entered my room wasn't Juan. You set me up," she shouted.Melody responded only with cold impatience, "You lack skills and have only yourself to blame."The words pierced Hester's heart like a knife. She had trusted Melody, believing that winning Juan's affection would eventually lead to a future by his side. But now, it has become clear. Melody had seen her as nothing more than a pawn, discarding her when she was no longer useful."It's all because of you!"In a surge of fury, Hester lunged forward. Melody took a fearful step back, her usual composure slipping.Hester had the knife at Melody's throat, trembling with the intensity of her emotions. For the first time, genuine fear flickered across Melody's face."What do you think you're doing? Have you lost your mind?""Yes. I have lost my m
"What nonsense are you talking about?" Melody shot Debra a sharp glare, displeased with what she had just said.Unfazed, Debra continued, "How about one billion dollars? I've heard that Melody has quite a personal fortune. That should be enough to compensate for your emotional damages."Hester wavered further. Her family business was only a mid-sized enterprise, and one billion dollars was a massive amount of money.If she could bring that sum back to her family, maybe they'd overlook the fact that she had lost her chastity. Perhaps they wouldn't see her as a useless daughter."I disagree!" Melody snapped.She didn't have nearly that much set aside for herself, and the mere thought of handing it over to someone who used to bring her foot-washing water made her blood boil.Hester barked, "Shut up!"Melody, held at knifepoint, didn't dare to move.Hester glared at her before adding, "I don't just want one billion dollars. I want a villa in the city center, too. And I demand tha
Debra felt dizzy. "Why are you telling me this?""Because you and I are alike," Theda replied. "Despite our differences, I envy your life. I know Robert can't beat Marion. If Robert fails tonight, I beg you to show mercy and spare his life.""He didn't show any mercy when he hit me. Why should I spare him?""We're all businesspeople. Name your price. If it's within my power, I'll do it. Just spare his life.""Fine, remember your promise. I'll spare his life, but I need to hit back.""Deal. Just don't kill him."In the courtyard, Robert opened a can of cat food and fed the stray kittens. They seemed familiar with him, purring and rubbing against his hand.Robert smiled, but his expression changed as he heard a noise outside. The kittens arched their backs, hissing at the disturbance.Robert patted their heads. "Go on. Don't get hurt."But the kittens refused to leave, licking their paws and sitting behind him.Robert didn't chase them away. He waited until Marion and his men a
"She can't take your call right now," Marion replied.Drake shot up from the sofa. "What do you mean by that?""Robert took her.""Robert?"Marion hung up the phone and headed straight to the courtyard where Robert used to live.Kale came into the hotel suite with a cup. "Boss, what would you like for dinner?"Drake muttered with a heavy tone, "Debra is taken by Robert."Kale froze, wondering about Robert's motives.Drake took a deep breath. He had warned Debra before, but she wouldn't listen. Now the situation was grave.He knew Robert all too well. The man was a cold-blooded killing machine, dealing with anyone who posed threats to Theda."Get the car. Search the entire city. Find Robert.""But this is not Orkgate. Our people operate in the shadows here. If Marion's men discover them, all our efforts over the years will be wasted.""I said, find him. No excuses. Get moving."Drake was irritated. He had always known Debra would cause trouble for him, but he hadn't expecte
"Kidnapped? Really?" Erica muttered."It's got to be fake," Randy replied. "This is Seamar City. Who would dare kidnap Debra right under Marion's nose? Unless they have a death wish."Erica nodded thoughtfully. "You're right."But then she realized something was off. "Wait. You left out Robert, that desperado who doesn't care about consequences. Debra went out to meet Theda.""Damn! How could I forget him?" Randy panicked. "What do we do? I'll gather people and head to Buchan Mansion.""We're running out of time," Erica said urgently. "Hurry up and call Marion."She whipped out her phone and started making calls. Randy started rallying people too....Meanwhile, Garland and Liza had just landed and were eagerly entering the Potter Mansion with their luggage in tow."Guys, I am back!" Garland laughed, hands on his hips.Liza tilted her head. "Where is everyone? Why isn't anyone here to welcome us?""Yeah. Why is the living room empty?" Garland wondered.Suddenly, two figures
"I don't care. I'll make them return everything to you," Robert said.Theda was at a loss for words. She stepped forward and propped up the unconscious Debra.She said, "The shares don't matter to me at all. You didn't have to go this far. The situation in Seamar City is treacherous. I overestimated myself. We should take Debra back to them and end everything."She reached for her phone to call Andrew, but Robert grabbed her wrist."What are you doing?" she sulked. "I've decided to stop fighting them. What you're doing is pointless and dangerous.""It's not pointless," Robert said firmly. "I don't want to see you lose. To me, you'll never lose to anyone."Without waiting for her response, he carried her over his shoulder and pocketed her phone."This is all my idea," he said. "Even if I fail, it has nothing to do with you. I've cut the phone lines in the house and locked the front door. Without the password, you can't leave. Just stay here and wait for my good news. I'll get the
"It's simple. The Nichols Group's shareholders aren't clean either. Drake has dirt on them, so they have to do what he says."Theda laughed, understanding the whole thing. That explained why the mention of Drake's name alone had influenced those shareholders' decisions during the last meeting. It was because Drake had their secrets."Alright, I lost fair and square. Actually, I hold no personal grudge against you. That's why I warned you that getting those shares wouldn't be good for you. The person behind this wouldn't let you go.""You know who's behind this, don't you?""Even if I do, we're destined to be enemies. I lost to you, but next time, someone even more formidable will come after you. You won't be so lucky then."Theda poured Debra a cup of tea and continued, "We're alike. We've both been through things others can't understand. You're lucky, with so many people around you, helping you, but the path ahead is harder for you. Not something enviable."Debra didn't get it.
In the afternoon, Debra showed up at the Buchan Mansion.Sitting across from Theda, she sipped on her tea. "The tea has been ready for a while. You knew I would come.""Let's just cut to the chase," Theda said. "It's your setup, isn't it? The termination of the partnership and the sale of Buchan Entertainment at a low price. Now everyone knows that the Buchan family and the Nichols family have severed ties. Since it's my mistake, people will force me to step down."She observed Debra's expression and continued, "You're even sharper than I expected. I mean, who would have thought a pampered lady like you could orchestrate such a complex scheme and predict the outcome so accurately?""You flatter me," Debra replied. "Your solitary nature must have been formed when you were sent to the countryside as a child, and your strained relations with your family were easy to deduce. People act out of self-interest. You cause them financial losses, and they demand paybacks. Now here we are, sit
Theda sneered in response.Everything she had done for the Buchan family had earned them enough money to last generations, but now, they were biting the hand that fed them.Robert stood up, and the sight of him made everyone visibly afraid.Theda noticed his stern expression and grabbed his arm. "Sit down."Robert frowned, unwilling to back down. These people had no right to treat Theda this way."I said, sit down," Theda repeated, stressing her tone.Robert finally withdrew his murderous gaze.Joanne scoffed, "Seriously, Theda, you should find a normal secretary. We don't know where you picked him up, but he's a time bomb. You don't want him to bring trouble to our family.""That's my business. Stay out of it," Theda countered. "As for the lost money, I will figure out a way to make it up. You don't need to worry. Now you can leave. My dogs don't like outsiders here."Joanne was annoyed, but since Theda promised to pay back the money, she relented a bit."If you're going to
Theda frowned at the news. "What's the panic? I'm busy here. Tell them I won't see them."But then, a voice came from the doorway."We came all the way from Wrastow City to see you. It's a bit disrespectful to dismiss us like this, don't you think?"The voice carried a tone of arrogance and provocation. Theda turned to see a well-dressed woman in her thirties, adorned with jewelry.Her expression remained calm as she said, "Oh, it's you, Joanne. But you're not even part of the Buchan family. What brings you here?""It's not her who wants to see you. It's us," said the major shareholder of the Buchan Group, emerging from behind Joanne Tarrant.Following him were other core family members, all wearing expressions of anger."You said you wanted to expand into Seamar City and have used a massive amount of our resources. But now, not only have you failed, you've lost the Nichols Group as a partner. How can we not be upset?""Exactly. We came all this way to demand an explanation."
Debra took the medicine and band-aids, but the atmosphere in the living room suddenly felt awkward."I'm going upstairs.""Can you put it on by yourself?""Yes.""Let me see you do it."Debra cleared her throat, determined to prove she could do it. She sat down on the sofa, opened the medicine, and sprinkled it on her wound. But since her right hand was injured, using her left hand was tricky, and some of the powder spilled.With the medicine on her wound, she couldn't move her right hand at all. The band-aid lay untouched on the table. Opening a band-aid one-handed was harder than she thought."I rushed it," Debra said, trying to save face. "If I had opened the band-aid first..."Before she could finish, Andrew had already opened the band-aid and carefully applied it to her finger. His movements were gentle and precise."Do you know where Marion went?""Probably went to find someone who knows the identity of the mastermind.""Robert?" Debra was surprised.She wondered if h