Gilbert had told Jenny he'd brought her a surprise, but the man wondered if it would truly be a welcome surprise for her."Better a surprise than shock. That way, it'll mean you still have a place in her heart." Gilbert scowled. In truth, he didn't like that man much either. Though compared to Alec, he was pretty much a saint. At least he'd grown up with this man and seen several facets of his persona.The man shrugged and teased, "You better be surprised to see me, Jenny, or else I'll be kicked out of Bardoff City."Their flight landed in Bardoff City the next morning on a Saturday, with Jenny on the way to fetch them for breakfast.When Jenny went downstairs, Rowena was sitting at the table having breakfast, much to her surprise. Though she stayed silent, entirely ignoring her. Jenny found this weird because Rowena didn't usually wake up this early. Plus, she shouldn't be so calm right now. Still, Jenny didn't give it much thought. Instead, she left straight for the airport.
Jenny quickly dodged the shot, though, in truth, the situation had just begun to escalate. She knew that if she didn't come up with an escape plan soon, she might actually die there.But what could she do? She didn't dare seek help from the drivers driving by in their cars. They'd also be subjected to the mercenaries' mercy, which Jenny was strongly against.The only way out right now was to literally get out of this situation, she decided.Jenny dove headfirst for the nearby trees. The foliage would help lower her chances of being shot."Ow, fuck!" she yelped as sudden pain blossomed in her shoulder, nearly making her knees buckle. A bullet had hit her shoulder. Blood was already gushing out from the wound.Yet behind her, the mercenaries were closing in on her, so she bit back the pain and ran into the woods.Meanwhile, Gilbert was calling Jenny's number after landing at Bardoff Airport. Minutes went on, and still, no one picked up, making him frown."What is it? She's not ans
As the sky darkened, Jenny grew more aware of how the odds were stacked against her. There was no way she could run out of this patch of the forest now.But she didn't give up just yet. Gilbert would've been on the search for her by now. So she had to stay strong and hold on until she was rescued.She gritted her teeth and dragged herself onward. It didn't matter where she ended up as long as it wasn't in those mercenaries' hands.Yet it seemed she overestimated her luck. It took less than half an hour for the men to catch up to her. They surrounded her by the tens, creating a dark black shroud in her vision. Only now did Jenny see just how many mercs had been hired to cut her down."You have admirable strength, pretty woman," one of the mercs, with a head full of platinum blonde hair, said.Jenny noted down his appearance. This must be the mercs' leader. "How much did the Glasses pay you?"Mercenaries only do work when they're paid, after all. As for how she knew it was the Glas
The bullet flew past Jenny as she dodged the shot, leaping off the cliff behind her. There was a river she would land into if she fell; she had noticed it before she was caught.Still, it was her last resort. That's why she'd tried to negotiate with the mercenaries.The blonde merc went to the edge of the cliff, unable to spot Jenny anywhere from this height. One of his men went up to him and asked in a foreign language, "What now, boss?""Find her, dead or alive!" the man barked out an order.He had not once failed a single mission undertaken since he started working as a mercenary. He couldn't fail now. He'd find this woman whether she was dead or still breathing.The men swiftly separated into groups, all in search of Jenny.Meanwhile, Graham was on his way with his men after getting Gilbert's call. Being unable to locate Jenny anywhere in the city led him to conclude that she was in danger. Luckily he had a vast network of eyes and ears in the city, which quickly reported tha
Alec instantly tried to dial Jenny's phone number again, but his attempts were all left unanswered no matter how many times he called. He could only send his men out to locate Jenny as well as try to figure out what had happened.In the Bardoff countryside, Jenny was awoken by the chills racking her body. She was half-submerged in a bubbling river in the middle of the forest.How lucky she must've been to not crack her skull open falling down, but also to have been swept to shore by the river's current and not drown to death.She climbed up the river bank to pull herself out of the water. The gunshot wound on her thigh was still bleeding. If this went on without something to stop it, she'd probably die of shock before those mercs found her.Nearby was a large boulder that she climbed up onto. Jenny then tore her clothes into strips and tied an emergency tourniquet around her thigh to slow the bleeding.Now that she'd resolved this temporary issue, time to turn to the serious on
Jenny wanted to answer in the affirmative, but she really wasn't in the mood to embrace her pain right now. "Wh-what are you doing here?"She'd imagine seeing Gilbert or even Alec on the search for her, not Evan, who she'd not seen in ages.Evan gently set her down, then crouched again. "We'll get to that later. C'mon, hop on."Piggybacking her out would be easier than a princess carry. "It's…it's fine. You just need to help me walk." Though they'd grown up together, she still maintained some distance considering the actual distance between them over the years."Just climb on up, Jen. We can't linger here a minute longer. You don't want to die out here, do you?"He was right. The mercenaries were most likely still looking for her, so sticking around was a death sentence to both of them. Ultimately, she climbed onto his back so he could carry her out of the woods.Jenny could smell a faint pine scent on the man's clothes, something she'd familiarized with him since long ago. It
Only when Gilbert's men had dispersed did he finally turn back to Alec. "Thank you for the ambulance, Mr. Faust. On behalf of both Jenny and me.""No need." Alec knew who this man was now and also knew just how much he disliked him. But that didn't bother him. All that mattered was that Jenny was safe."Heh." Gilbert scowled. "I heard you found someone new. I don't think you need to be so concerned about Jenny now, then, or your lover might misunderstand."He then got into his car and left, not bothering to hear Alec's explanation.Alec's brow didn't relax even as the car left. He never imagined his memory loss to have such a grave impact. Thanks to the memory loss, he had no idea why Jenny's brother was so hostile toward him. "Best to regain memory as soon as possible," he thought.Gilbert arrived at Bardoff Hospital, where Evan waited outside the emergency room while Jenny was being tended to inside.He sat down beside Evan. "How is she?""Doctor hasn't come out yet." Evan a
Jenny's ward was quickly crowded with visitors.Graham's eyes were wet with tears as he gazed at his daughter still passed out on the hospital bed. "Is Jenny…""She'll be alright, sir," Gilbert reassured him. He still respected Jenny's father even though they'd barely met.Stephanie and Jade were visiting, too, as news of Jenny being hospitalized had spread far and wide. Sadly, they couldn't do much before when she was in trouble.Everyone was glad to hear that Jenny would be fine."Why don't you all head home first? I'll stay back to keep her safe. She'll be fine, I promise," Gilbert spoke up.The visitors soon dispersed. As much as they'd like to stick around, they couldn't protect Jenny or be of use to her in this state. However, Graham was reluctant to leave. "Why don't you leave first, too? I'll stay watch here.""I think it's best if you let me do this, sir. Jenny would only get upset at me if she knew you stayed up for her," Gilbert insisted.Graham was about to respon
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