Hanson remained silent. He understood Sandy’s fury. He felt the same indignation. The verdict was unfair for Ivanka.Sandy took a deep breath and closed her eyes to control her emotions.Knowing they were in a public place, she refrained from saying anything further.Everyone shifted their attention to Ivanka, who remained unusually calm. She showed no inclination to say anything.“Ms. Iris, are you satisfied with this outcome?”“It’s acceptable,” Ivanka responded smoothly without the slightest hesitation.This left Theodore and the others puzzled. Lyla’s heart skipped a beat as she scrutinized Ivanka, but she could not read anything from her expression. An uneasy feeling crept in.Was Ivanka holding back for a big move later?How could she be content with just a three-year sentence?Even Chiara sensed something amiss. She watched Ivanka warily but could not confront her directly, as they were seated far apart.Chiara glared at Ivanka. Her eyes filled with an almost malevolen
She was too heartbroken to speak. She could not form any words.Theodore could not help but sigh. “You need to take care of yourself too.”Lyla nodded. She wiped away her tears. “I know. And you have to keep an eye on Chiara, make sure her temper doesn’t get the best…”She trailed off as she could not continue.Theodore quickly nodded. “I got it, I got it.”Chiara clutched Lyla’s hand. Her voice trembled as she said, “Mom...”She could only manage that one word as her sobs had become uncontrollable.“Honey, I’m still here. You don’t need to worry. Everything will be alright, okay?”Chiara nodded, but her tears kept rolling down her face.Lyla could not say much more. She could only let out a sigh.The staff member approached with a hint of resignation. “Can we go now?”Lyla took a deep breath and nodded, then turned to Theodore and Chiara again.“You both take care of yourselves. Don’t worry about me, I’ll be fine.”She had said all that could be said and left the rest uns
No, Chiara must exercise restraint!She could not lose it in this place. She wanted to be as dignified as she used to be.She also needed to maintain the image she had presented earlier on.Besides, Lyla had given her reason behind Fernando’s murder. It was to fulfill his wish. Therefore, Chiara needed to keep up the lie!She would play along with her mother!With that in mind, Chiara hid all her negative emotions. The look in her eyes as she gazed at Ivanka was tinted with resignation and remorse.“Iv, I know you’re upset. But sometimes, we can’t do anything about our elders’ wishes. Your father was very sick. You can’t possibly tell me that you wanted him to die in pain.”Sandy immediately furrowed her eyebrows tightly. She was already holding back her anger the entire time. When she heard what Chiara said, she was so pissed that she instantly scoffed. “What a joke! Was it up to you to decide what to do with someone’s life? Did you and your family discuss this matter with Ivan
Ivanka did not care about the gazes from the bystanders all around. She merely stared at the person before her and said with a faint smile, “If you’re really grateful, why didn’t you return my shares sooner until I brought you to court? You still held onto the shares despite the embarrassment?”Chiara’s expression changed. In the next moment, a hint of helplessness flashed in her eyes, and she sighed in feigned resignation. “Iv, I know… I know you’re still upset with me. But this is the situation we end up in, and my mother… has gotten her punishment. Iv, back then we owed you an apology. Now, I think you’ve settled the score.”That was all she said. Chiara no longer wanted to keep up her act. She was genuinely angry!Ivanka’s lips curled slightly into a faint smile. Ignoring the bystanders’ reaction, she said, “Any pretense will slowly fall apart sooner or later. I hope you and your family really tell the truth, or else you’ll be exposed, and everyone will see your true colors.”C
The sad, empty look in Chiara’s eyes was immediately filled with rage!Michael?How could it be?What was he doing here?Ivanka had already become such a wicked woman. Why did he still like her?Why?!Chiara was screaming internally.In the meantime, Ivanka and her company stood in front of Michael. To be precise, he was the one who suddenly showed up and blocked their path.His expression was cold, with a hint of anger in his eyes.But he still controlled his emotions when he looked at Ivanka and said coldly, “A word, please.”Ivanka furrowed her brows. Out of instinct, she intended to ask what was there for them to talk about.But there were bystanders around, and her friends were still there. She did not want them to worry.If she refused to talk to Michael, he would be pissed, and Hanson would defend her to stop her from interacting with Michael.By then, the situation would get out of hand. She worried that conflicts would arise between Michael’s and Hanson’s companie
“Alright, let’s go. I’m still hungry! You have to pay for the meal today!”With that, she dragged Hanson away despite his protest.Hanson frowned. He was still worried about Ivanka, but Sandy had given him an ultimatum. Besides, Ivanka had chosen to leave with Michael. There was nothing Hanson could do about it, apart from letting Sandy drag him away.Seeing that, Anna finally gave a sigh of relief.…Meanwhile, Ivanka had already followed Michael into the car.Michael said nothing and started the engine right away.Ivanka silently waited for him to speak first.After all, he had come to the court for her, which was surprising.However, after driving for twenty minutes, Michael still did not say anything. Ivanka frowned. It seemed that she was getting uneasy. She turned to look at the man next to her.From her angle, all she could see was his handsome side profile. Staring ahead, he appeared to be focusing on driving.Ivanka eventually said, “What do you want to say to me? Y
Ivanka was shocked.For a moment, she did not know what to say.True. Ever since she and Michael got a divorce, things might have changed.Rosie defended her, but Samuel had always looked down on her. This prompted the couple to argue more frequently as time passed.Ivanka pursed her lips silently.But she felt the need to explain herself in front of Rosie. She did not want Rosie to spend time worrying about her at an old age.When they almost reached their destination, Michael no longer planned to stay silent as he did before. Before turning at the next junction, he suddenly stopped the car.Ivanka froze and looked at him.Michael placed a hand on the steering wheel and turned to face Ivanka. There was a hint of rage in his cold stare. Ivanka frowned slightly. She said nothing and waited for him to speak.Michael stared at her and said icily, “Are you Papaver?”It was a brief sentence. It sounded like a question, but there seemed to be unquenchable anger in his voice.“Wh
“Ivanka, you’re truly heartless.”That was all Micheal said. With that, he stopped questioning her with his bossy attitude.Confusion flashed in Ivanka’s eyes. She was a little baffled. What was he up to?Michael said nothing and started driving again.He did not spare her a glance for the rest of the drive, even as they arrived at the Barkworth family’s mansion. After pulling over, he did not say anything and simply remained in the driver’s seat. It was as if he was waiting for something to happen.Ivanka was confused again, but she no longer planned to talk to him. She got out of the car and walked toward the mansion. When the house staff opened the door and she went in, Michael drove off right away.Obviously, he did not intend to get into the house. He simply wanted to drive her here.Ivanka turned around in surprise and watched his car vanish before her eyes. There was a wry smile on her lips.She knew Michael never liked her. Naturally, he would not wish to spend more tim