Although Summer hadn't succeeded in finding a suitable husband for Kelly, she had helped the latter secure a great job. As a result, Kelly owed much of her current success to Summer. Determined to show her appreciation, Kelly decided to treat Summer to a shopping spree, even if it meant maxing out a few credit cards. Empowered by Kelly's generosity, Summer eagerly agreed to it. They strolled toward the commercial street in the city center, hand in hand. …Meanwhile, in Rosseera City, Keith sat in his office, lightly tapping the desk. The office was quiet and deserted, with only the faint sound of breathing audible. While Keith typically immersed himself in work, he had set aside his tasks for the day in anticipation of someone's arrival. He glanced at his watch, looking forward to the person's imminent arrival. Suddenly, a knock on the door interrupted the silence. Keith stood up, assuming that the person he awaited had arrived. However, it was his secretary, Luna
Since Monica had initiated the conversation, Keith decided to engage with her. "What's on your mind?" Keith inquired. "James is on his way, isn't he? He's the one you're waiting for," Monica stated. As anticipated, Monica had indeed come to talk about James. Keith had foreseen this, so he didn't want to waste time talking with her. In the course of their discussion, he predicted that she would likely argue about marrying James. Therefore, before she could voice her thoughts, he interjected, "It's impossible for James and you to be together. Our family and the Quigley family have always been rivals. There's no possibility of an alliance." "Rivals? You're mistaken, Keith!" Monica exclaimed, her tone unusually forceful as she heavily emphasized his name. Keith was intrigued by Monica's conviction. He glanced at her and asked, "Tell me, where am I mistaken?" "Our family and the Quigley family aren't rivals; they're partners, and you're well aware of that," Monica retorted.
"Keith, you certainly have a way with words, but you must admit that your venture has failed. "Ritter Corporation has been losing to Quigley Group in real estate for years, and that's an undeniable fact," Monica stated, her face adorned with a charming smile. Despite her pretty and cute appearance, no one could deny her deep understanding of business. Keith realized that Monica had uncovered his vulnerabilities. No matter how much he argued, once she presented the evidence she had gathered, he would be defenseless. He remained silent, his expression turning icy as he turned away. Observing this, Monica understood that Keith had conceded. This was advantageous, as it allowed her to proceed with her next plan. "Keith, you're ambitious, so you wanted to defeat James in the business world. I understand, but what you did was wrong. You shouldn't sacrifice the family's interests to fulfill your own desires." Monica paused, then offered a warm and friendly smile. "But don't worr
James was Monica's ideal romantic partner, which explained her desire to win him over. "Keith, if you refuse to help me, I will expose your clandestine dealings to the family," Monica threatened. "Then, go ahead." Keith's voice remained cold, displaying no fear of Monica's threat. In fact, he had no reason to be afraid. Even though he hadn't yet taken on the role of family head, his authority was considerable since he was the heir of the family. Even if Monica exposed his actions, the most he would face was criticism from the board of directors and family members. "Monica, I won't be intimidated by anyone. You can leave now." Keith gestured for Monica to leave. In reality, it would have been feasible for him to assist her. If the Ritter and Quigley families could truly unite, it would be highly advantageous for both families. However, Keith didn't desire that. He wanted to have no association with James. His goal was to surpass the latter. James had been like his shadow
"James, something significant has occurred!" Bradly exclaimed nervously over the phone. Maintaining his composure, James inquired calmly, "What's the matter?" Bradly paused briefly before continuing, "The Quigley family is caught up in a scandal. It has been revealed that years ago, after your fall, your family allegedly kidnapped a girl and used her blood. "Is there any truth to these allegations?" Upon hearing this news, James fell into a prolonged silence. Then, he abruptly ended the call without saying a word. On the other end, Bradly stood bewildered, clutching his phone. He murmured to himself, "What's going on? Why did James end the call so suddenly?" Meanwhile, outside the Ritter Corporation, James tightly gripped his phone, exerting enough force to distort its shape. Despite battling his anger and frustration, he maintained a facade of calmness as he rode the elevator to Keith's office. Inside, Keith sat at his desk. Upon hearing of James' arrival, he approach
Keith had never seen James get so angry before. It seemed that the latter really cared about Summer. Otherwise, he wouldn't have reacted like that. However, he lamented that he could no longer expose James' secret. Keith wasn't a fool. He needed to use the secret to threaten James. If he had been the one who had leaked the news, wouldn't he be unable to blackmail James after that?"I wanted to make a business deal with you today, James. If I had exposed your secret, it wouldn't benefit the deal."After that, James came to a realization. He controlled his anger and asked lowly, "If you didn't do it, do you know who the culprit is?""Find that out yourself. I don't have to help you." Keith knew that Monica was the one who must have leaked the secret. Why would she do that? Of course, she wanted to create a rift between Summer and James. Back then, the Quigleys had kidnapped Summer. Apparently, she had developed a deep trauma after they had taken her blood. Because they took
It had been a bright afternoon. Back then, Summer had been supposed to return home after attending preschool. However, Amelia, who had been supposed to fetch her, had been late that day. Summer had sat at the school's entrance and leaned against a wall. As her classmates had left one by one, she had decided not to wait anymore and return home herself. The preschool she had attended had been near her house. She could walk back home within ten minutes. Then, Summer had started walking back home using the route she had remembered. After five minutes, she had turned the corner of an alley. Suddenly, someone had placed a sack over her head. She hadn't even been able to see anything before that person had kidnapped her. According to what she recalled, she had been trapped in an enclosed place with barely any oxygen. When she had been able to see again, she had realized that she was in a dark clinic. An ugly old man with rosacea on his nose had been about to inject her arm with a
Summer had had a long dream. She had dreamt that she was in hell. Lava had bubbled around her, and mist had been everywhere. There had been many needles on the ground that stabbed her. Every inch of her body had been covered in blood, and she had been in immense pain. In her dream, she had kept crying. However, no matter how hard she had cried, no one had cared about her. The dream hadn't been very long. When Summer had woken up again, her head had felt heavy, and her vision had been blurry. She had felt extremely dizzy.Yet, she had still managed to wake up. Summer had opened her eyes and peeked at her surroundings. She had discovered a huge rubber tube had been injected into her. A needle had been at one end of the rubber tube, drawing blood from her body. There had been a large glass jar on the other end of the tube. It had been placed on the ground and had been filled to the brim with crimson blood. Even though Summer had been just a child, she had known that the bloo