However, the woman did not elaborate on that information. Instead, she glanced at Jenny in anticipation. Speechless, Jenny asked Mr. Ortiz to furnish a second check. "Tell me, what's the info?""The person who called me to take care of this man is a woman," she answered.A woman? That was indeed an important clue.Soon, Jenny left with Mr. Ortiz, Graham, and the other men they brought along. Graham woke up in the middle of the trip, but she didn't notice it."Jenny? Why are you here?" He rubbed his temples and thought Jenny was merely an illusion. At that time, the car had arrived at the entrance to the villa. Jenny didn't answer, but she opened the car door for him. "Let's talk when we are in the house."Graham agreed, and he was helped into the villa by Mr. Ortiz.Once they were in the villa, she reminded Mr. Ortiz to increase the security of the compound by hiring more guards. Somehow, she felt that the case had not come to a close. After she made all the necessary arrangeme
Graham had no answer to Jenny's question. "I don't know, but I have a feeling that she isn't acting with malice."She could have jumped on all the opportunities to take his life when he was unconscious if she had bad intentions."That aside, may I know when exactly you plan to leave Bayside City?" Jenny started entertaining the idea of leaving Bayside City with Graham. After all, the city was too dangerous, and she agreed that Graham shouldn't hang around for too long.He fell silent. A long pause later, he insisted, "Jenny, I dont' want to leave just yet. I have a feeling that your mom's around. If I leave, I might never find her again.""I went to check with the Bells. She has left home for decades. Are you sure she's still in Bayside City?" Jenny countered. Graham was shocked to hear that Jenny had visited the Bells. "You went to meet them? What were you doing there?""They were prime suspects in your disappearance. Of course, I had to question them," she answered, confident
"What are you doing in there?" She heard a man's voice from above her head. Her heart sank, but she acted normal by looking into his eyes. "What else can I do in the bathroom?"He gave her a doubtful look as if he wanted to find the truth in her eyes. Too bad she was no longer the naive young lady she used to be. Now in her forties, she was no longer youthful and had long shed her innocence from her younger times."Why are you here?" She looked away and went around him. Eric Dafoe stared at her but did not ask more questions. "There's a dinner tonight. You'll go with me."That was not a question; it was an announcement.Lynette wasn't surprised at his attitude. He had always been like that. "Me again? You have an endless supply of women around you. Why do you always want me to go with you? Aren't you worried that I'd stir trouble?""Lynette Bell, you are my wife!" Eric looked furious. He hated when Lynette put on an uninterested look. She always seemed unbothered by the number o
Knowing what Mr. Ortiz was thinking, she smiled and said, "We don't have clues now. If we attend dinners like this, we could at least get something. Go, Mr. Ortiz. Tell my dad everything I've said. He will go."She knew Graham would agree to anything as long as he could find Lynette.And she was right. After hearing the message conveyed by Mr. Ortiz, Graham agreed to the idea without hesitation. Mr. Ortiz was visibly worried, but all he could do was arrange for more bodyguards.When night descended on Bayside City, crowds were swelling in its grandest five-star luxury hotel. Those who attended the charity dinner were famous names in the city. They mingled around with wine glasses in their hands. Those who watched from the outside might mistakenly think of it as a meetup among close acquaintances.The dinner was about to start when Jenny and Graham showed up. They located their seats and sat down. Since they were at the event searching for clues, she kept a low profile and picked a
Graham collected himself, his eyes still on Eric and Lynette in the front row with a bitter smile on his face. "Looks like your mom has found love again after all these years. That's good."He had no plan to disturb Lynette. If she was truly happy, he would not interfere in her life.At that time, Jenny looked away from her phone after reading the information sent by Zack. The sight of Eric and Lynette seemed the more ironic to her. "Dad, you're overthinking. Don't you think Lynette doesn't like Eric Dafoe?" Jenny still squirmed at the thought of addressing Lynette as "Mom". After all, they'd never met in person. It took her a long time to address Graham as "Dad." At this moment, Lynette was nothing more than a stranger to her. Had it not been for Graham's insistence to search for Lynette, Jenny was prepared to live a life without her mom.However, her mindset shifted after she read the details about Eric.Graham turned to her with a confused look. "What do you mean? Is your mom
In a second, multiple thoughts rushed through Lynette's mind. Eric clearly spotted the change in her expression and cast a different look at Jenny.The auction started. Someone bid for the ruby pendant, but not for much. There was no reason to keep the pendant in the auction since Jenny had intended to look for Lynette with the pendant, but Lynette was right there in front of her. So, she decided to take back the ruby pendant by bidding for it."Five million." Jenny raised her auction paddle. The people around her understood her intention and let her have her way. They did not want to get on the wrong side of a Bardoff City family.Just when Jenny was expecting to retrieve the ruby pendant, Eric raised his auction paddle from the front row. "Ten million."There was a collective gasp because no one had expected Eric to express interest in the pendant. He spun around and looked at Jenny. "I'm sorry, Miss Walter. My wife loves the ruby pendant.""Is that so? That's an honor, but it's
Eric shot a glance at her and smiled. "Miss Walter, you are being humble. Everyone here knows that the Walters is one of the Ten Elites in Bardoff City."The guests were speechless. Right, the Dafoes and the Walters were influential families everyone had to defer to."If that's the case, I wonder if you're interested in a partnership?" she inquired. Eric was astonished at her comments because he could not figure out what she was up to."I'll discuss further with you after the auction." Since the auction was ongoing, she didn't want to discuss more under the watchful gazes of the others.The conversation ended there, and the auction took off again. Still, Jenny and Eric were not in the mood to watch anymore.Eric whispered in Lynette's ear, "Your daughter is way more clever than you." Lynette did not say a word. He added, "What do you think the father and daughter are up to? Are they here to bring you with them?" Upon closer look, the smile on his face appeared murderous.She bi
Silence hung over them after Jenny's remark. It was so quiet that the only sounds heard were their breathing. Eric and Lynette were shocked at how casually Jenny dropped the information, which was different from what they had anticipated."Mrs. Dafoe, you look shocked. Do you need to take a breather in the bathroom?" Jenny stared at Lynette. Lynette wanted to say that was unnecessary, but she noticed the look in Jenny's eyes and guessed that her daughter had other plans. "You're right. I need to leave for a moment to calm down."She looked at Eric. He caught the back-and-forth between Lynette and Jenny but was not too bothered because he knew they could not do much in his territory."Go. Call me if you need anything," he said to her. She nodded with a wry smile and headed for the bathroom. When she was far away, Eric's expression changed. He wiped the fake smile off his face. "Miss Walter, what are you up to?""Mr. Dafoe, you're overthinking things. I really want to work with you
That afternoon, Gilbert called off his engagement to the Silveras. He did not pick up a single one of Lottie's calls. When he found Marigold, she was taking Caleb on a stroll around the neighborhood. It had been a while since she'd taken notice of anything related to Gilbert. She suddenly felt how nice it was to have her mental energy spent somewhere else, no longer being so hung up on that man. However, when Gilbert appeared before her, her heartbeat quickened. "Why are you here?" Marigold said, snapping out of her reverie. Gilbert smiled lightly. Without saying much else, he pulled her into an embrace. "Didn't you say that I could come to see you once everything is settled?" Marigold was stunned. She was in disbelief. "So, what you're saying is it's all over?" "Didn't you read the news?" Gilbert was speechless. "No. I didn't want to care." Every time she saw anything about Gilbert and Lottie, she felt miserable. She'd rather save herself the pain and block out anything
In the end, Esther went with Gilbert's suggestion. However, she did not trade Bradshaw Operation's projects with Jenny. She went with the Silveras. For one, she did not trust the Walters. On the other hand, the Silveras and the Bradshaws were going to be united through marriage. They deserved to be trusted more. Gilbert didn't mind. After all, if anything happened to the Bradshaws, the Silveras would not help. With those projects in hand, they would only fall further into debt. The plan was going smoothly. Gilbert had not gone to see Marigold once. He knew that before subduing the Bradshaws, going to visit Marigold would only endanger her. After all, Marigold was safe. Nothing had happened, and Caleb was growing up healthily. One month later, things began to feel off in Bradshaw Operations. After Faust Group received their money, they did not start the project. No one knew what they were doing. Esther was feeling antsy. She prodded Gilbert to ask if there was anything wro
That very afternoon, Esther and Gilbert rushed to Faust Group to sign the deal. Gilbert said he was worried that Alec would change his mind, so he urged Esther to sign it. Only through a written contract would they be able to relax. Esther thought it made sense and agreed to rush to Faust Group with Gilbert.In the meeting room, Alec looked at the two people before him, expressionless. "You have a good son, Mrs. Bradshaw." "I'm flattered. My son had Bradshaw Operations' interests at heart. He'll inevitably be a little insensitive. Please don't hold that against him, Mr. Faust." Esther smiled. She didn't mind Alec's sarcasm because it didn't matter. As long as Bradshaw Operations could truly benefit from this, she didn't care how much Alec mocked her. Alec smiled coldly and slid the contract over to her. "You may flip through it." Esther took it and read through it seriously.If this project succeeded, they would reap massive rewards. However, it required a massive upfront inv
In the following days, Gilbert headed over to Faust Group infrequently during the day. To others, he was there to talk business with Alec. But in reality, it was a different scenario altogether. Vincent brought Gilbert a cup of coffee in Alec's office. Because of all the times he'd been there, Vincent knew what he wanted without having to ask. Alec had a cup of coffee placed before him, too. Everyone thought that Gilbert was trying to convince Alec to give him one of the shares, which was why he always came there, but that was not the case. The collaboration was a set-up. As long as the Bradshaws signed the deal on the project, they would not escape unscathed. Gilbert had planned this for a long time just to trick the Bradshaws into accepting the project. However, the scheme had to be executed perfectly. Since Gilbert buttered up the project in front of the Bradshaws, Alec had to feign disinterest in his collaboration. Otherwise, it would seem suspicious if Alec, a smart ma
After the engagement party, Gilbert officially had a stronghold in Bradshaw operations. Because he was already very capable, he had a lot of supporters. No one challenged him in the company. Most of them sucked up to him because they knew that if things went well, he would be the heir of the company.Gilbert didn't really care about that. He didn't even want to be there for long. He knocked on Esther's door and walked into her office."Come, sit." Esther was all smiles when she saw him. It was more sincere than before.She used to doubt him a lot, but now, although she still had her reservations, she mostly believed in him. In her eyes, no one would reject the chance to inherit Bradshaw Operations. This was basically manna from Heaven. Gilbert just didn't know it back then, and now he did. Gilbert sat down in front of Esther and began reporting the information he had gathered, as well as his thoughts on Bradshaw Operations and his plans for the future.When he presented the inf
Gilbert and Lottie's engagement party was held at Bardoff Grand Hotel on Saturday.A ton of people showed up to their engagement party. After all, the Bradshaws and the Silveras were pretty big names in Bardoff City, and plenty of the other families knew of their true wealth. They all came to attend the party. Jenny and Alec had both received invites. Jenny was Gilbert's sister, and on top of that, they represented the Walters and the Fausts. It was to be expected. At first, Jenny didn't want to go. The party held no meaning to it. It was just a show put on for Esther. It would be a complete waste of her time. However, she was talked into it by Alec. It would be weird if she didn't go. Zack brought Janet to the party. He found Jenny and was in a daze. "Wasn't Gilbert courting Marigold? Why is he engaged to Lottie?" Jenny rolled her eyes. "What have you been doing, Zack? You're really bad at keeping up." Gilbert had been courting Lottie for a while now. If Zack paid attention
Gilbert drove to Jenny's villa, but he was in no rush to get down. He didn't unlock the doors, either. He obviously wanted to talk to Marigold. But Marigold evidently didn't want to. "I want to take my child and leave." She was afraid. What if Gilbert and Lottie married and took her child away? She no longer believed in love. The only thing she believed in was her child. Gilbert tightened his grip when he heard that. "Marigold, the engagement is only for Esther to see. I have no feelings for Lottie." "Who knows? People change. You said you didn't have feelings for me, too." Marigold found this all very amusing. Perhaps this was fate. Gilbert wanted to keep explaining, but Marigold did not give him the chance to. "Just let me and Caleb leave. If what you say is true, you can come to find us once everything is over." And if Gilbert didn't come looking for her, the truth would unfold itself, and she would give up all hope. Gilbert understood that Marigold had already made
Marigold was miserable throughout dinner, but she persevered till the end without being too dramatic. After dinner, they walked to the entrance of the shopping mall.Gilbert went to get the car. Lottie stood with Jenny and Marigold. Watching Gilbert leave, she turned toward Marigold. "I heard that you used to like Gilbert very much." "It's all in the past. It's not worth mentioning." Marigold didn't want to talk about it. She was afraid that Lottie would see that she still liked Gilbert. Most importantly, she was afraid that Gilbert's plan would be ruined. Lottie smiled. "That's true. The past is the past. You're such a nice person. You'll definitely be able to find someone better suited for you in the future." Marigold pursed her lips. Gilbert soon brought the car over. Lottie was about to get into the car, but before she did, she suddenly turned to Marigold and said, "Gilbert and my engagement party will be in a few days' time. If you have the time, you're more than welcom
Everyone was shocked to hear her speak so suddenly. Lottie was stunned, and she explained, "You've misunderstood. That's not what I meant. I just think that if the child follows his father, it'll help him develop better, and you'll be less stressed." "I don't need your concern. I can raise my child alone," Marigold snorted. She did not hold back at all. Lottie looked unpleasant. Gilbert had no choice but to step in. "We'll have our own child together. And whoever likes it the most will get to keep it." Although they knew that Gilbert had meant this for Lottie to hear, Marigold found it extremely upsetting. She looked at Gilbert, and for a moment, she was unable to tell if he was being genuine. She thought of all that Gilbert had said to her last night, saying that he didn't like Lottie and had no intention of marrying her. But he looked to be truly in love. Marigold didn't think she could tell if he was faking it. "I'm sorry. I need to go to the restroom." Marigold didn't w