Chapter 76 Bring Five Million Dollars to Save Us!
Sophia fiddled with her earlobe, leaning in close to Catherine, whispering all secretive-like, her breath warm and cozy.
"This bug might look like a hot mess, but trust me, I've tested it. We can crank these out in bulk and send the data in," Catherine said.
The bugs from the Galactic Aurora Collective were cooked up with the Stellara Institute's top-notch labs, straight-up for military and their own use.
"Awesome work. This experiment's a win because of you," Catherine added.
Sophia, all giddy, hugged Catherine's arm, snuggling up and saying, "I don't want the credit; I wanna be in the action!"
"I'll back you. Shoot whatever you want."
Sophia's eyes sparkled!
Catherine was rolling in dough now!
Back in the day, they had to hustle with a bunch of startups just to fund their experiments. Some went into showbiz, some opened shops, and they were always strapped for cash.
Those experimental materials were crazy expensive!
Last time, they dropped tens of thousands dollars on a tiny piece of stone, and Catherine had to haul herself to Northern Myanterra to dig for more.
Total nightmare.
But now, with Catherine's loaded family, they could finally chill a bit!
"The King of Stone Gambling's hitting Imperia City next month. Come with me," Catherine said.
Sophia almost choked, stammering as she looked at Catherine.
"The King of Stone Gambling?" Sophia, feeling bummed, reluctantly agreed. "Okay, and I bumped into Clara and Esme at the audition. Damn sure they can't act."
'Clara and Esme? Why would they wanna jump into showbiz?' Catherine thought.
"Not my problem."
"Should I mess with them a bit? Esme even told me to quit. How ridiculous! Even if I bailed, she wouldn't get the part!" Sophia said.
Catherine frowned, eyeing Sophia with concern. "You good?"
"I'm fine. If Mr. Windsor hadn't shown up, there might've been some drama. You know I don't hold back." Sophia, a member of the Galactic Aurora Collective, was picked up by Catherine from the international battlefield. If it came to a fight, she had a million ways to shut Esme up.
In the audition hall, Esme was still bawling.
'Why is it always Catherine!' Esme thought.
"Richard, you gotta back me up! Sophia's been a total bully, no respect for the Windsor family at all," Esme whined.
Richard replied, all cold, "Just nail your supporting role and quit causing drama! You still got makeup exams at school, don't forget!"
"Richard, can I take a break from school? I wanna take care of Lila and also act to get better. I don't wanna be the only useless one in the Windsor family," Esme pleaded.
'The real useless one in the Windsor family isn't me; it's Catherine, who does jack all day. Why does she get all the luck!' Esme thought.
Richard frowned, looking at her with annoyance, "What are you scheming now? If you wanna take a break from school, talk to Marcus. If you wanna act, start with supporting roles. I started from the bottom too. Don't think you can hit the top in one go. Take it step by step."
Esme kept her mouth shut, nodding quickly.
She didn't want to play a supporting role, but she wasn't about to cross Richard, so she had to go along with it.
Once she got into the crew, she'd have plenty of chances to mess with Sophia and make sure she never acted again. Then the lead role would be hers.
Clara, seeing an opening, rushed over. "Mr. Windsor, can you hook me up with a role too? I'm Esme's friend."
Richard thought she looked kinda familiar. Since she said she was Esme's friend, he must've seen her around before.
He looked at Clara, clearly annoyed, and frowned. "Go audition yourself."
Clara hurried to catch up with Richard, who was about to leave, and whispered, "I'm Catherine's sister, the caretaker in your family."
She felt a bit embarrassed saying this, so only Richard heard it.
Richard narrowed his eyes, staring directly at Clara, and asked, "Are you from the Smith family?"
"Yeah, I used to be Catherine's sister. We're family. If she messed up, could you cut her some slack for my sake?" Clara said.
Richard almost laughed out of anger, thinking, 'How does the Smith family get the nerve? Talking smack about Catherine to me!'
"Alright, alright, you're really asking for it!" Richard called over a few confused security guards with a cold face. "Throw her out! From now on, blacklist the Smith family from all Windsor properties!"
Clara's eyes widened, and she tried to argue, but the security guards covered her mouth and tossed her out!
'This is all Catherine's fault!'
'Everything's fine until Richard hears Catherine's name and flips out, treating me like this!'
'If it weren't for Catherine, I'd have gotten the role I wanted today and be shining in the entertainment industry!'
Clara thought, feeling super bitter. She pulled out her phone to complain to Oliver, only to find it was off.
She quickly turned it on and called, but no one picked up after several tries.
'Where did Oliver and Celeste go?'
'Did they go back to find Catherine and ditch me?' The more Clara thought about it, the more it seemed possible. If Catherine returned to the Smith family, everything that belonged to her would be snatched away!
She had to prove she was the most valuable daughter to the Smith family.
The call finally connected, and Oliver's screams came through. "Clara! Hurry and bring money to save us! Or Celeste and I will be beaten to death!"
Clara's eyes widened, and she asked, "Oliver, what are you saying? Where are you now?"
"In the suburbs of Imperia City. They want five million dollars. Hurry and bring the money to save us!" Oliver said.
Clara didn't have that kind of cash!
Since returning to the Smith family, she'd been blowing money left and right, not even having five hundred bucks on her now.
"I don't have that much money," Clara said.
"Go find Lucas! Get the Johnson family to pay to save us! Stop hitting us! Clara, our lives are in your hands now!"
Oliver and Celeste's screams echoed through the phone, making Clara's heart race with fear.
Clara was so freaked out she was about to cry, quickly agreeing. "Okay, okay, I'll go find Lucas right away."