Chapter 94
Chapter 94
Compared to how withdrawn and quiet Chris had been at first, his expression now looked much more
relaxed.
Zina, watching from the side, felt a bit more at ease, but she still couldn’t help reminding him, “You’ve always been by my side. You should know by now that I’m used to having you around. There’s really no need to worry about all that.”
Chris pressed his lips together, as if he wanted to say something, but in the end, he never managed to get the words out.
The midday sun was always blazing hot. As soon as Lydia stepped out of the car, she hurried inside the mall.
Glancing at the time on her phone, Lydia frowned again.
That person always talked a good game, claiming it was for her own good, but none of their so–called solutions ever did any good.
But right now, she couldn’t find a better way either. Watching that bitch Zina actually get accepted back into the Sinclair family. There was no way Lydia could swallow her anger.
Just when she was at her most frustrated, the woman still hadn’t shown up at the agreed time, and her anger spiked in an instant.
A few minutes later, when that familiar figure finally appeared, Lydia’s face turned even colder. She just glared straight ahead, lips pressed tight, not saying a word.
I’m sorry, something came up on the way and I got delayed,” Rosie said.
Rosie looked really uneasy and just kept apologizing over and over.
But Lydia was already fuming inside, and now she didn’t want to say another word. She just turned away, refusing to even look at Rosie.
Rosie had just been put in her place by Kyle, and she knew all too well that if she couldn’t keep Lydia from blowing up, she’d be in for it when she got back to the Sinclair family.
There was nothing else she could do. Even though Lydia was throwing attitude at her, Rosie could only put on a smile and try to explain herself.
“Even though I got held up on the way, I’ve been keeping tabs on your situation. I actually have a few ideas that might help, so don’t be upset, please?” Rosie said.
When Lydia heard there were solutions, she whipped her head around. “Really? Out with it.”
Realizing she might have come off a bit too eager, Lydia quickly covered her mouth and faked a cough twice, then turned away with a huff. “But don’t get the wrong idea. I’m just giving you a chance. That’s all. You’ve stuck around for quite a while, after all.”
Even though she said that. Lydia’s eves were fixed firmly on Rosie her impatience practically blazing in her
11:25 Sun, Sep 7
Chapter 94
gaze.
Rosie blinked, clearly not wanting to keep Lydia waiting any longer.
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55 vouchers
“Aren’t you just trying to kick that adopted daughter out? Right now, your parents just haven’t seen her true colors. Why not try to dig up some dirt on her?” Rosie suggested.
“Yes!” Lydia blurted out, her eyes lighting up at Rosie’s words.
She remembered that bitch Zina was definitely hiding something from the family.
That damn notebook!
Yeah, the last time she went to see Zina, she’d seen with her own eyes just how much Zina treasured that notebook. She’d even wanted to take a peek, but Zina had immediately hidden it away.
Now that she thought about it, who knew what kind of secrets might be stashed in that notebook.
With that thought, Lydia’s smile became much more genuine as she nodded at Rosie.
“I’ll give it a shot,” Lydia said.
“I’ve got a few more ideas you could try if you’re interested,” Rosie added.
As she spoke, Rosie leaned in and bent down to whisper something in Lydia’s ear. Lydia couldn’t help but break into a happy grin.
After leaving the mall, the two went their separate ways. Lydia went off to grab some food with her friends, while Rosie headed straight back to the Sinclair family.
At the Sinclair residence, the air in the living room was thick with tension. The moment Rosie stepped inside, someone hurled a teacup straight at her, smashing to pieces at her feet.
Rosie’s heart jolted in fright, and she instinctively stumbled back two steps, looking up, stunned, at the person standing there.
“Dad, why are you so mad?” Rosie said, her voice trembling as she tried to sound as sweet as possible.
Having witnessed Kevin’s vicious temper before, Rosie was extra careful to be on her best behavior.
She inched forward, trying to step inside from the doorway, but the moment she moved, Kevin shot her a fierce glare. Rosie instantly froze, her face full of helplessness. All she could do was stand there and call out softly, “Dad…”
“Come here.” Kevin’s face was so dark it looked like a storm was brewing, his eyes fixed coldly on Rosie.
“Why didn’t you follow my instructions? I told you to accompany Mr. Lynch. What were you doing instead?”
Kevin demanded.
Rosie’s body stiffened in fear, tears brimming in her eyes.
gaze.
:
Rosie blinked, clearly not wanting to keep Lydia waiting any longer.
“Aren’t you just trying to kick that adopted daughter out? Right now, your parents just haven’t seen her true colors. Why not try to dig up some dirt on her?” Rosie suggested.
“Yes!” Lydia blurted out, her eyes lighting up at Rosie’s words.
She remembered that bitch Zina was definitely hiding something from the family.
That damn notebook!
Yeah, the last time she went to see Zina, she’d seen with her own eyes just how much Zina treasured that notebook. She’d even wanted to take a peek, but Zina had immediately hidden it away.
Now that she thought about it, who knew what kind of secrets might be stashed in that notebook.
With that thought, Lydia’s smile became much more genuine as she nodded at Rosie.
“I’ll give it a shot,” Lydia said.
“I’ve got a few more ideas you could try if you’re interested,” Rosie added.
As she spoke, Rosie leaned in and bent down to whisper something in Lydia’s ear. Lydia couldn’t help but break into a happy grin.
After leaving the mall, the two went their separate ways. Lydia went off to grab some food with her friends, while Rosie headed straight back to the Sinclair family.
At the Sinclair residence, the air in the living room was thick with tension. The moment Rosie stepped inside, someone hurled a teacup straight at her, smashing to pieces at her feet.
Rosie’s heart jolted in fright, and she instinctively stumbled back two steps, looking up, stunned, at the person standing there.
“Dad, why are you so mad?” Rosie said, her voice trembling as she tried to sound as sweet as possible.
Having witnessed Kevin’s vicious temper before, Rosie was extra careful to be on her best behavior,
She inched forward, trying to step inside from the doorway, but the moment she moved, Kevin shot her a fierce glare. Rosie instantly froze, her face full of helplessness. All she could do was stand there and call out softly, “Dad…”
“Come here.” Kevin’s face was so dark it looked like a storm was brewing, his eyes fixed coldly on Rosie.
“Why didn’t you follow my instructions? I told you to accompany Mr. Lynch. What were you doing instead?”
Kevin demanded.
Rosie’s body stiffened in fear, tears brimming in her eyes.
happens when people mess with me! The people from SR Alliance really are efficient, killing someone in Tobias’s territory without anyone knowing.”
Kaia sent a message. [You should pay me the remaining 1.5 billion.]
Gideon was in a good mood, so he didn’t care about the three billion and immediately transferred it to Kaia.
He ordered his subordinate, “Send someone to the Moreno family to investigate the situation. I want to know how heartbroken Tobias is.”
The subordinate replied, “Yes, Mr. Fowler.”
Before long, his subordinate ran in, flustered.
“M–Mr. Fowler, Kaia is not dead!”
Gideon was stunned. “Not dead? How is that possible? I clearly received photos of her death. Are you mistaken?”
The subordinate took out the video he had taken earlier and showed it to Gideon.
In the video, Kaia was standing in the yard, moving around.
“What? How is this possible?” Gideon snatched the phone from his subordinate’s hand and looked closely. The person in the video was indeed Kaia without a doubt.
He asked through gritted teeth, “What exactly is going on?”
“Mr. Fowler, could it be that SR Alliance deliberately cheated you out of your money?” the subordinate asked tentatively.
Gideon denied it almost immediately, “That’s unlikely! SR Alliance enjoys a great reputation internationally. How could they ruin their brand for a mere three billion?”
The subordinate stammered, “But, but the fact is that Kaia is still alive!”
“Yes, Kaia is still alive! In that case, were the photos and videos I’d received before all fake? Was I fooled?‘ Gideon thought.
Gideon was so anxious that he immediately took out his phone and sent a message to Kaia.
[Kaia is not dead! I demand an explanation.]
Kaia edited a text message and replied, [You found out so quickly?|
Gideon replied, [You! Damn it! Aren’t you afraid that I will publicize this matter and affect the reputation of the SR Alliance? Who gave you the guts to do this? I think this should be your own idea. If the higher–ups of SR find out, do you know what your end will be?]
Kaia ignored Gideon’s questioning and anger and instead asked, [Do you know why no one in the entire SR Alliance is willing to take on this task?]
“I… I went to meet with the Lambert family…” she stammered.
“The Lambert family?” Kevin frowned, as if something had just clicked in his mind. His expression eased up a bit. “Oh, so that’s what it was. Alright, then. Just take care of your business. Once you’re done, you’ll still be my good girl.”
“You know things haven’t been easy for our family lately. I’m racking my brains trying to turn things around. As my daughter, you get why I’m doing all this, don’t you?” Kevin said.
Kevin’s palm landed heavily on Rosie’s shoulder, making her whole shoulder go numb. She could only grit her teeth and endure it, forcing a sweet smile as she looked up at him, trying her best to appear obedient.
“Dad, you’re right to scold me. I’m your daughter, so of course everything I do is for our family,” Rosie said.
“Good. You’re much better than that ingrate. Go back and get some rest. For the next few days, you can do things your way, but you’d better make sure I see some results,” Kevin said, his voice laced with a subtle threat.
Rosie nodded hurriedly, then all but ran out of the room.
Once she was back in her room, Rosie collapsed onto her bed, gasping for breath.
‘This is all Zina’s fault. Why am I the one who has to suffer through all this?‘ Rosie thought bitterly.
‘If Zina were still living here, she’d be the one getting sent off like some present, not me,’ she grumbled to herself.
‘Mom and Dad doted on her so much. There’s no way they’d ever let her go through something like this. That’s right. It’s all her fault,‘ Rosie thought, jealousy burning in her chest.
The hatred in Rosie’s eyes could no longer be concealed. It was now plain for all to see, burning with real intensity.
Meanwhile, over at the Lambert residence, Zina suddenly sneezed. She reached up to rub her nose and muttered under her breath.
“Seriously, am I catching a cold these days or what? Why do I keep sneezing?”
After muttering to herself, Zina fell silent again, her brow furrowing as she stared at her phone.
On the screen was the info Chris had dug up about Springvale. Everything looked normal at first, but then something caught her eye. Andy had just shown up in Springvale ten years ago, and somehow, in only a decade, he’d turned into the local kingpin. How did he pull that off?
None of this made sense, unless someone powerful was pulling strings for him.
But how did Kevin and Andy even know each other?
Zina thought about it for ages, but she just couldn’t figure it out. She rubbed her aching temples and just went quiet again.
If none of this made sense, then she’d have to prepare for the worst.
Gideon was stunned for a moment. [What do you mean by asking that?]
[Wait!] Gideon’s heart skipped a beat. [Are you saying that Kaia has another identity?]
He thought, ‘Is this identity more important than Tobias’s fiancée and the person protected by Joel and
Conrad?‘
[That’s right.] Kaia smiled faintly and continued to edit the text message.
[Let me tell you a secret.]
Gideon waited, holding his breath.
Kaia: [Because she’s also Dr. Bennett.]
What the hell?
Gideon’s face turned pale instantly, and sweat streamed down his forehead.
Before that, if someone had said that the Bennett family’s country daughter was Dr. Bennett, he would have scoffed at it.
But after so many things had happened, if he still scoffed at it, then he could give up the position of head of the Fowler family.
Gideon thought, ‘No wonder! No wonder no one in the entire SR Alliance dared to take this task!‘
But then, Gideon suddenly realized something else.
Gideon: [Then why did you dare to take on this mission?]
Kaia smiled and replied, [Because I am Kaia.]
“Pfft…” Gideon spat out a mouthful of blood, his eyes rolled back, and he fainted.
Kaia was in a good mood, eating peaches freshly picked from the garden, her mouth was sweet, and her mood was even better.
“Looking at you, did you swindle all the money?” Tobias was picking peaches for Kaia.
Kaia glared unhappily, “What do you mean by ‘swindle‘? It’s clear that I used my intelligence to crush Gideon.”
At that moment, it was a good thing that Gideon didn’t hear Kaia’s words. Otherwise, he would have woken up and been so pissed that he would have vomited blood and fainted again.
Tobias curled his lips. “Yes, yes, you’re the most intelligent girl ever, my love. How could Gideon be your opponent?”
Taia rolled her eyes. “Your love? You and I aren’t that much in love yet. Is it appropriate for you to call me that?”
Even though she really didn’t want to link those shady businesses to what was happening now, there was just no other explanation left.
With that thought, Zina pressed her lips together. After thinking it over for a bit, she finally grabbed her phone and made a call.
Tobias washed the peaches he picked and handed them to Kaia.
“Then what should I call you?”
Kaia said softly, “Call me Kaia, like before.”
Tobias smirked, “Okay, Kaia, my love.”
Kaia was left speechless.
Tobias was curious. “How on earth did you manage to trick–ahem, intellectually crush Gideon, so that he willingly gave you three billion dollars and didn’t even ask you to settle the score?”
“Want to know?” Kaia raised an eyebrow.
Tobias nodded eagerly, “Of course, tell me quickly. I’m so curious.”
Kaia pointed to her shoulder.
Tobias understood instantly, “Alright.”
After replying, he skillfully started to rub and massage Kaia.
Feeling the large hands on her shoulders getting hotter and hotter like burning iron, Kaia began to regret it.
Also, Tobias’s fingers seemed a little restless, always playing around the edges.
She said impatiently, “Enough.”
Tobias pretended not to understand. “Don’t you want me to massage your shoulders anymore? Then I’ll massage your legs.”
As he spoke, Tobias’s hands suddenly moved down and grabbed Kaia’s thigh.
