Chapter 37 The Little Cakes Made by Mom Herself
Aurora was still kinda hesitant.
Just thinking about Lila's ways gave her the creeps.
"Chill, Aurora. Marcus is at Bright Heal Hospital too. I'll check on him as well."
"Hey, Catherine, you got this! I don't need to go! I'll bake you a cake tomorrow!"
'Not like I expected Aurora to tag along anyway,' Catherine thought.
Esme was floored.
'That mystery lump Catherine was munching on is actually a cake Aurora made herself!'
Her face twisted with envy.
Thinking about Catherine heading to the hospital tomorrow and getting grilled by Lila, Esme felt a bit better!
'If this keeps up, Catherine's gonna take everything from me!'
---
The Howard Mansion, Imperia City.
Annie knocked on Alexander's study door, holding a newspaper, and plopped it on his desk.
"Read it. I don't remember having a habit of reading newspapers by myself."
"You said it, so I'll read it! Oliver and Celeste from the Smith family in Serenitia City have cut ties with their adopted daughter Catherine. The Smith family has nothing to do with Catherine anymore and hopes she won't bother them."
She cleared her throat and read the announcement with flair, but Alexander snatched the newspaper from her before she could finish.
"The Smith family published this?" Alexander asked.
"Yep, they cut ties with Catherine. I checked, and Catherine is their adopted daughter. Now that their real daughter is back, Catherine's been kicked out."
'Kicked out?! How dare they!'
As Alexander read the words, the image of that gentle yet stubborn face popped into his mind. 'She cares so much about her family, yet they treat her like this.'
His heart ached uncontrollably!
'I need to see her, right now!'
Annie said indignantly, "Catherine is so good. They're being way too harsh!"
Alexander pinched the bridge of his nose, stood up, grabbed his coat and car keys from the desk. This old car had recently become his personal ride, even the chef responsible for groceries had a new car.
"Sir, are you going to find Catherine? How about we switch cars? This one is too shabby!"
Every time Annie saw Alexander in a custom-made suit driving a car cheaper than one of his cufflinks, she felt heartbroken.
Alexander, who had topped the world's young billionaire list for six years straight, had been reduced to driving such a cheap manual car.
'No one would believe it if they heard!'
Annie sighed and said, "I'm afraid the Howard Group's partners will think the Howard Group has gone bankrupt."
"She likes this car," Alexander said.
"Sir, trust me! No girl likes a shabby car. Catherine must be in a bad mood after seeing the newspaper. You should switch cars to pick her up!"
Alexander frowned slightly, unsure, "Won't I scare her away?"
"Absolutely not! Switching cars now to show your strength is super important!" Annie answered.
"Alright, I got it."
---
Quinn Couture store backstage, Evergreen Mall.
Catherine's slender fingers were tapping on the keyboard, a series of garbled characters appeared before her eyes.
Catherine paid no attention to the data, quickly pulling up info from a website she had developed.
An encrypted call came through the website.
"Miss, Ethan has been looking for Phantom Doctor 'Moon' recently and has posted a recruitment notice on the dark web, hoping Moon will join their organization."
"Ignore it."
Ethan's recruitment message for Moon had also been sent to her dark web account for Moon.
"Yes, and we had a business deal that went south recently. We were supposed to lose some money, but someone helped us. I found out it was the Shadow Syndicate's IP. Do we have any recent collaborations with them?"
"A few."
"The Smith family published an announcement severing ties with you. Should we also cut off all cooperation with the Smith family?"
Jared was fuming as he spoke. 'If it weren't for Catherine's secret help, Oliver wouldn't have gotten this far. Does he really think he's some business genius? With his limited smarts, he'd be lucky not to lose everything, let alone make money!'
'Catherine's done so much for the Smith family, yet Oliver still cut her off, scared she wouldn't let go of their tiny bit of wealth and glory. Just thinking about it makes me wanna puke!'
Catherine was quiet for a moment, her slender fingers lightly tapping on the table as if she were thinking.
She spoke calmly, "No, follow the market cooperation agreement and claim compensation from the Smith family."
Jared was stunned.
'As a partner of the Smith Group, we have the right to claim compensation from the Smith family for the business losses caused by Oliver!'
The more Jared thought about it, the more pumped he got!
"Alright, I'll get the contract ready right away! Let Oliver feel what bankruptcy tastes like!"
Catherine responded faintly, ignoring the complex info on the dark web and closing the webpage.
---
Clara was pushing the recently recovered Lucas along the luxury street outside Evergreen Mall.
"Lucas, you're so good to me. As soon as you got a little better, you came to buy me a bag in Imperia City. I'm so happy!"
Lucas waved his cast-covered hand a few times, showing what he thought was a charming smile.
'If Clara hadn't brought me out, I wouldn't have the chance to leave Serenitia City and come to Imperia City for the latest bar opening.'
Thinking about the new models coming tonight made Lucas feel all tingly inside.
Buying a few bags for Clara was also to keep her from following him tonight.
"Clara, it's good that you brought me the documents and solved the Johnson family's urgent problem. Don't worry, I'll treat you well!" Lucas said.
Clara's face was full of happiness, her shyness evident.
"Isn't that Catherine? Why is she still in Imperia City?" Clara asked.
Clara frowned, looking at Catherine at the entrance of Evergreen Mall, who wore a plain dress and was getting into a black Bentley.
"It must be those men Catherine is hooking up with. I don't know what they see in her!"
A dark glint flashed in Lucas's eyes.
'Damn Catherine, if it weren't for her, I wouldn't be in this state now.'
"Ignore her. She's fallen from grace. Clara, you are my destined bride." Lucas said.
Clara shyly nodded, but her eyes didn't leave the car Catherine got into.
'The man driving looks middle-aged, older than Oliver, and bald. He must be Catherine's current sugar daddy.' Clara thought.
Lucas thought the same.
'When she's abandoned by these men, there will be plenty of times for her to cry! By then, she will definitely come begging to me.'
Inside the Bentley, Alexander handed Catherine a stack of documents.
"These are the info about Ethan from Shadow Syndicate," he said.
"Thanks. The Faceless Ones' files will also be shared with you."
Alexander's face carried a gentle smile, as if he didn't care whether the files were shared or not.
"Interpol has sent words that Eli plans to sell the newly developed Snowflake II in the Stellara region. If successful, it will be another tough battle."
"Snowflake II? Has Eli mastered the formula for refining Snowflake II?" she asked.
Catherine's eyebrows slightly furrowed, her slightly angry expression making her look like she had stepped out of a painting, her aura fully unleashed like a queen!
Snowflake II, known as the purest drug in the world today, a tiny amount of it could destroy an ordinary family, and it also symbolized absolute profit!
Three years ago, Catherine had promised someone that Snowflake II would never enter Stellara!
"Yes, but fortunately, Eli has been captured, and Snowflake II is currently in the hands of Interpol. Don't worry," he said.
"Okay. Did you change cars?"
Alexander asked a bit nervously, "Do you like it?"
Catherine was puzzled.
'What does it have to do with me?'
The driver chuckled, "Oh, Mr. Howard said the old car had been driven too long, worried you wouldn't be comfortable, so he quickly changed it."
Alexander's eyes carried a smile as bright as stars.
"After I read the newspaper, I was worried that if I drove, I might do something impulsive, so I can't be your driver today. Sorry."
'Impulsive?'
Catherine's mind flashed back to Alexander punching Lucas in the bar, his explosive and restrained anger making her heart inexplicably race.
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