After sending Katie home, Ariel headed to the detention center, only to be informed that no one else could see Benjamin other than his attorney.Ariel returned to her car dejectedly. Those videos were like a key to a drawer hidden deep in the crevices of her memory, revealing her darkest memories.Back then, she'd been troubled that her relationship with Stephen was going nowhere. She'd tried many ways to get closer to him. Unfortunately, Benjamin had gotten into bed with her instead due to an accident.After that, Benjamin had often used the video to tease her. "Ms. Clarke, do you want to see your most honest side?"Ariel had asked him to delete the video, but Benjamin had outright refused. He'd only promised her that he wouldn't leak it.Later on, after a series of incidents, Ariel had chosen to move abroad and completely cut ties with the Anderson family.After a long time, she'd forgotten about the video.Ariel had no clue how Stephen had gotten a hold of those videos. She a
After meeting with Katie, Xavier returned to his office. He thought about it for a while before calling Yvonne and telling her about the collaboration with Katie."Tell me, do you think Katie is conning me? Where could she possibly have a mine?""No, she really has a mine. The quality of the raw materials isn't bad either." Yvonne put the documents in her hand aside and said, "She really wants to work with you. You can consider it."Xavier was stunned. "How did you know she—""Because the mine was supposed to be mine."Xavier was speechless. He hadn't been to the border for a long time. Why did it seem like he'd missed out on a great deal of fun and interesting drama?On the other end of the line, Yvonne looked out at the sky and narrowed her eyes. Katie had just returned from the border and had immediately looked for Xavier to talk about a deal. It seemed like she was quite ambitious.Yvonne could understand why. Katie had just seen her father, who'd lost an arm, so she must su
Yvonne didn't pay much attention to Katie. From the way she saw it, with Katie's abilities at the moment, she wouldn't be able to do much damage.Besides, Yvonne knew all too well that her deadliest enemy at that moment was Mark, who was hiding somewhere.There hadn't been any news from Gwen. Yvonne guessed that with Gwen being in Emerald Group, trying to investigate one of the Principals wasn't going to be an easy feat.She couldn't rush this matter, so she could only wait.In the meantime, Andy got someone to send her an invitation to QT's latest jewelry show. Yvonne planned to use it as a learning experience and thought of taking Nicole along.When Lloyd heard Nicole was going, he nominated himself to be their bodyguard. Thus, on the day of the jewelry show, Yvonne took the two of them along with her.Yvonne was walking ahead of them, while they followed behind her. This was Lloyd's first time at such a high-class event. He kept asking Nicole questions, and Nicole patiently an
After the show ended, Yvonne, Lloyd, and Nicole were the last to leave the venue. Andy walked them to the door.Under the night breeze, everything was silent around them. Before getting into the car, Yvonne sensed that something was up. She looked at the row of cars parked in the distance.Andy was curious. "What are you looking at?"Yvonne didn't notice anything strange. She shook her head. "Nothing. We'll leave.""Alright."Andy stood there on the spot, watching Yvonne's car drive into the night. He was just about to turn around when he heard footsteps behind him.Before he could see who it was, he was thrown into a Cayenne by the side."You …" Andy looked up at a frosty gaze and instantly shut up."M—Mark? Why are you here? If I'd known, I would have invited you to the show so I could show you what I've been doing recently—""I saw the show," Mark coldly interrupted Andy. "You seem close to Yvonne."Andy gulped. "Hmm, you know, she was the one who made QT what it is …" H
Jodie opened the door to see a delighted Katie. Before Jodie could greet her, Katie walked right in and looked for Ariel."Ariel, I have good news to share with you!" Katie was excited. She sat down and held Ariel's hand, eagerly saying, "I've struck a deal with QT! It went much better than I expected!"Ariel was stunned. Only then did she recall Katie mentioning that she was going into the jewelry business when she'd gone to pick her up from the airport.Then, she remembered what she'd promised Katie. "I forgot to ask Xavier. I'll do it right now …""There's no need. I've already met him. His reply isn't important anymore. I've made a deal with QT. With how famous QT is right now, this will surely be a huge business!"Katie had just finished talking to Andy today and came to see Ariel immediately after. Her first reaction had been to look for Noah, but she'd decided against it at the thought of how cold he'd been to her the other day. Once things settled down, she was going to
Thus, Ariel found an excuse to send Jodie away. "It's almost mealtime. Go get some food. We have to treat Katie to a meal."Jodie happily agreed, "Yes, we should!"After she'd left, Ariel asked Katie, "Is there something you want to say to me?""Yes," Katie held Ariel's hand and said gently, "Ariel, I want to join forces with you to go up against Yvonne. She destroyed my family and wanted to snatch Stephen away from you. Are we going to just let her get away with it?"Ariel was stunned. She shook her head. "We can't fight her …"She'd tried to plot Linda's incident, but looked where she'd ended up. She could barely fend for herself now. How could she go up against Yvonne?"Katie, I won't be able to help you much now.""What are you talking about?" Katie grabbed Ariel by the shoulders and said seriously, "Ariel, you weren't like this before. Didn't you say that you would do anything for Stephen? Are you really planning to let Yvonne have him?"Let Yvonne have him?Ariel's heart
"Mr. Anderson, Mr. Turner's assistant, Blake, just called to cancel the meeting. He said that Mr. Turner was involved in a car crash on Anchorage Street. He's being sent to the hospital now."As soon as Julian said that, Stephen immediately stood up. "Which hospital?""Downtown Hospital."Seeing Stephen walking toward the door, Julian quickly followed.It happened too quickly. Ariel couldn't stop Stephen and was then left alone in the meeting room.As she sat down slowly, she carefully analyzed Stephen's reaction earlier.It seemed that … he had no idea about the video.If Stephen had seen the video, he would have mentioned it when she'd asked that question. He would have used it to threaten her into ending the engagement.Ariel gave it some thought, then suddenly burst out laughing.Yes! Stephen hadn't seen it!The video wasn't among the evidence!Since Benjamin was already in prison, nobody else could be a threat to her anymore!…As soon as Stephen arrived at the hospi
"Curtis is the one in the emergency room."Caleb walked closer, but he only saw Lloyd. He couldn't help but feel confused. "Where's Yvonne?""Ms. Yvonne wants to perform the surgery on Curtis herself."Lloyd was five feet and nine inches tall, but he was panicking like a child at that moment. Tears were streaming down his face."What happened, Mr. Turner? Why would you guys get into a car crash? Curtis is injured so badly …"Caleb was filled with guilt as he turned to glance at the emergency room. "It's my fault."He could have gone to the Anderson Group for a meeting without a hiccup today, but he'd suddenly wanted to get coffee while they'd been on their way.Caleb had ordered Curtis to wait in the car while he'd gone into the café alone. When he'd come out, he had been greeted by the sight of pedestrians running for their lives, screaming.Then, a van nearby had driven straight toward him.At that critical moment, a figure had rushed over and pushed him away.Caleb had avo
A light breeze blew by in the courtyard. Agatha slowly recounted the past.Back then, Daniel and his wife, Katherine, had just had Mark. The entire Carrington family had been celebrating.They had doted on Mark and taken him wherever they went.That day, they had headed out. Before they'd known it, Mark had been taken away.Just when Daniel and Katherine had been on the brink of losing it, they had received a call from the kidnapper to bring the ransom to a specific spot.They had gotten the money and driven there without any hesitation. No one had thought that they would ever return after that. Even Mark had disappeared.When Agatha finished recounting this, her cup of tea had already cooled.She wiped her tears away. She said through a catch in her throat, "Katherine was hugging the bag of money tightly until the moment she passed away, as though she were hugging you."Mark furrowed his brows. Now that he'd heard the truth about Daniel and Katherine, he should have felt pain
As Yvonne left the room, she could tell that Stephen's mood was much better.She looked at him. "Are you thinking of something nice?""No." Stephen looked at Yvonne with a rare twinkle in his eyes."Let me take you to breakfast." Before Yvonne could respond, he took her hand and led her to the elevator.Thinking about how he'd stood outside her room the entire night, Yvonne decided to let him hold her hand.Then, her thoughts drifted to Otto. Somehow, she had a bad feeling.…At the same time, Mark was in the courtyard of Carrington Mansion. He sat next to Agatha and poured some tea for her.He handed her a cup of hot tea. "Great-Grandma, try this."When he noticed that Agatha had no reaction, he called out to her once more. "Great-Grandma?""Huh?" Agatha came to her senses. She looked at Mark in confusion. "What is it?""You've been distracted since yesterday. Are you thinking of something?" Mark asked.Agatha shook her head. "Nothing." Then, she picked up her teacup and
Yvonne stood by the door of the bedroom and looked at Otto, who was looking out of the window in a daze on the bed.The sun shone on his face. He looked quite hungover and had a sickly pale face.Yvonne hesitated for a while before saying gently, "Mrs. Jenner called me last night. She's worried about you."Otto didn't respond.Yvonne went in closer and added, "She said that you called her and asked about your father. She found it strange."Mr. Carrington, why did you suddenly think about your father? Did Mrs. Carrington Senior bring him up yesterday?"All Yvonne got was silence.Luckily, she was patient. She sat on the couch and followed Otto's line of sight. Tiny dust particles were floating among the sunbeams. Yvonne also fell into a daze as she watched them float about.Suddenly, Otto asked, "Have you ever felt like your world was falling apart?""Hmm?" Yvonne was confused. "For example?""I mean, like the person that you trust turns out to be different from what you'd t
The next morning, Yvonne opened her door to see Stephen standing outside. She was caught off guard."What is wrong with you this morning? Why didn't you knock…"While talking, Yvonne noticed that Stephen was still wearing the same clothes as the night before. She furrowed her brows and asked, "Don't tell me you didn't leave last night? Have you been standing outside this door all this while?""Hmm." Stephen looked at Yvonne intently. "I thought you would've figured it out quickly."Yvonne was speechless, but she thought to herself that she'd slept like a baby the night before.She smiled at him. "Figure what out?" She noticed Stephen frowning as though he were on the brink of losing his temper.She quickly added, "I-I mean, you have to give me a hint, right? I've thought about it the entire night, but I still don't understand. My brain isn't functioning well."Stephen asked suspiciously, "You've been thinking about it the entire night?""Yes, which is why I didn't look for yo
"If I hadn't come to find you tonight, you probably wouldn't tell me anything about what happened tonight, would you?" Stephen asked in retort.It wasn't a big deal, as long as they returned safely. Yvonne wondered why she needed to report this to him.But she still smiled. "It's late. How could I disrupt your rest? It would've been the same if I told you about it tomorrow morning, right?"Stephen sniggered. "Yvonne, you still don't know where you've gone wrong."He suddenly went in closer to her. Yvonne instinctively retreated until her back was up against the wall. She glared at him."What on earth is wrong with you? I've already said that I would've told you tomorrow morning—"A punch went past Yvonne and landed brutally on the wall.Yvonne was a little stunned. She looked into Stephen's eyes and furrowed her brows. "Stephen, I don't want to quarrel with you for no reason. "Mrs. Carrington Senior went to look for Otto today. Calbert couldn't reach him the entire day, so he
Jane returned to the private room, distracted.She sat down next to Cory. She looked at him as he reached his hand out to her in confusion.Cory furrowed his brows and asked unhappily, "Where's the wine?""Wine… Yes! Wine!" Jane came to her senses. She was just about to get up when Cory pulled her back.He grabbed her by her chin and forced her to look at him. "What happened when you went out?""N-Nothing."Cory tightened his grip. Jane furrowed her brows in pain. "I-I… I saw Yvonne. She told me that she and Stephen got remarried.""What?" Cory relaxed his grip a little. "They got remarried?""Hmm.""So, what?" He had no intention of letting her go, and he looked at her sharply. "Does it bother you so much that Stephen got remarried?"Jane looked at Cory frantically. "Cory, what do you mean by that?""What do I mean? You know what I mean."Cory went in closer. His tone turned icy. "You used to pursue Stephen. Now that you know he's gotten married, you're in this shitty mood
Yvonne turned around to see Jane smiling at her ambiguously. She furrowed her brows. How were they always bumping into each other?Jane crossed her hands in front of her chest and leaned against the wall. She swept her gaze at Calbert and Otto. "Two guys and one woman. You sure know how to have fun!"Calbert instantly snapped, "What the hell are you talking about?""Why are you being so fierce? Did I hit the nail on the head?" Jane snickered. "Two guys and a woman came out of a private room in the middle of the night. Anyone would come to the same conclusion. We're all adults. There's no need to pretend to be innocent.""You—" Calbert was about to go up to Jane, but Yvonne stopped him."Since Ms. Ford is here, I'm guessing so is Cory?" Yvonne smiled, yet her smile didn't reach her eyes. "If you cause a scene here and this bar gets raided, guess who'll be the ones walking out here alive?"Jane's expression turned ugly. "Are you threatening me?""It's just a kind reminder." Yvon
Calbert and Yvonne managed to track Otto's car to a bar, thanks to the information they'd gotten from his staff. Otto's car was right outside the bar.Calbert looked at the neon sign and furrowed his brows. "Why is Otto here? Did what Mrs. Carrington Senior said really hit him so badly that he has to drown himself in alcohol?"Yvonne said nothing and headed directly inside the bar."Wait up for me!" Calbert went after her. He subconsciously protected her from all the drunk patrons.The lighting in the bar was dim. Many of the patrons were drunk and having fun.Yvonne and Calbert walked around the booth area, but Otto was nowhere to be found. They pulled a server over to ask if there was a patron by the name of Otto Carrington who had reserved a private room.Coincidentally, the server had just taken two bottles of wine to Otto's room. So, he led them to the private room.Calbert tipped the server before opening the door and entering. The entire room reeked of alcohol.He looked
After Agatha left, Otto stood in the same spot without moving.A long time later, Zac entered the office. He looked at Otto's back and asked quietly, "Mr. Carrington, will you still see the client?""No." Otto sounded heartbroken.Zac didn't dare ask further questions. He gently closed the door and reminded the secretary that no one was to disturb Otto.In the office, Otto was alone. He slowly walked over to the couch and slumped into it. His mind was in a mess."Alexander was the one who planned the kidnapping back then."Agatha's words rang in his mind for a long time.Alexander's young face appeared in Otto's mind, smiling at him affectionately."Otto! Amazing! Yes! Just like that!""You're amazing at badminton! You're going to make the country proud! I'm going to be so proud of you!""Otto, my son!"Memories of his interactions with Alexander flashed across his mind at that moment.Otto couldn't imagine that such a loving father would do such an absurd thing. Alexander