Chapter 456 The Opportunity to Completely Change One's Destiny
When Seb heard the news, he put down the file he was holding and said, "Looks like the Starlight Corporation project is just a setup for the Bridges Group."
Too bad Ayla and Garry didn't see it coming and walked right into the trap. But honestly, Seb couldn't care less. Whether the Bridges Group thrived or crashed didn't matter to him.
Seb went on, "I remember Starlight Corporation is a part of Vertex Innovations Group. Go find out who's really running the show at Vertex Innovations."
A project this big wouldn't happen without the green light from someone high up at Vertex Innovations. No way the general manager of Starlight would dare to pull this off on his own.
Paul responded, "Mr. Smith, the boss behind Vertex Innovations has never shown their face in public. It might take a bit to dig up who it is."
Seb raised an eyebrow. "Isn't Falcon free right now?"
After Falcon got caught snooping around Jesse in Stellaria, the whole team got called back and were on a break. If they knew their vacation was getting cut short, they'd probably curse Seb out behind his back.
Paul nodded. "Got it, I'll get in touch with them right away."
Paul left the office and immediately called Falcon's leader, "Mr. Smith wants you to find out who's behind Vertex Innovations."
As expected, the guy on the other end started cursing, "I've only been on vacation for a few days, chilling on the beach with a hottie, and now you tell me this?"
Paul felt for him but still said, "Do it ASAP."
The guy on the other end grumbled, "Fine, got it."
In the lab, Sharon had lost count of how many times she'd caught Ariana daydreaming. She frowned and said, a bit annoyed, "Ariana, if you can't focus, take a day off. If something goes wrong with the experiment, you can't handle the fallout."
Sharon had brought Ariana over from Aidamore and didn't want to be too hard on her. But today, Ariana had either added the wrong reagent or miscalculated the dosage. If Sharon hadn't been there, who knew what could've happened?
Seeing Sharon's angry eyes, Ariana quickly apologized, "Sharon, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to. I'll focus on the experiment from now on and won't mess up again."
Sharon said, "If you're really tired, take a break. If you damage the lab equipment or mess up an important reaction, it'll waste all our hard work."
Getting scolded by Sharon in front of everyone made Ariana's face go pale. She bit her lip and said, "Sharon, I'm sorry, I didn't sleep well last night... I promise it won't happen again."
Sharon nodded. "Alright, but if you mess up again, take a leave and come back when you're rested."
Ariana replied, "Okay."
Sharon turned away and started discussing the latest experimental data with Jake. Ariana lowered her eyes, wiping away a stray tear, and taking a deep breath. She steeled herself, forcing her mind back to the task at hand. Whatever turmoil was swirling inside her, she wouldn't let it interfere with her work.
After that, no more mistakes happened.
When evening came, Ariana packed up the lab equipment and clocked out right away. She didn't have much to do at home, but she couldn't stay calm enough to keep working in the lab.
She had cracked the password on the box Kirk left her yesterday. Inside, she found a key, a deed, and a letter from Kirk.
Reading the letter had left her shaken and unable to calm down. Kirk had somehow managed to buy a house in downtown Metropolis and put it in Ariana's name. She had no idea how he pulled it off, but the deed had her name on it.
In his letter, he wrote that if she decided to stay in Metropolis, the house could give her a sense of security. If she wanted to leave, she could sell the house and move to another city. He promised to support her no matter what she chose.
Ariana knew that a big chunk of the money Kirk used to buy the house was embezzled from the drug research fund at Silvercrest Group. She wasn't sure how he did it, but the money didn't come from his account, and he didn't handle the purchase himself. So, the house wasn't linked to him and hadn't been seized by the police.
With his salary, he could maybe afford a down payment, but buying a house outright in downtown Metropolis was out of the question.
Ariana initially thought about selling the house and returning the embezzled money. But after a night of thinking, she started to waver.
A house in downtown Metropolis was worth millions... If she sold it and went abroad, her family would never find her. She could completely escape her toxic family.
And with her skills, finding a job abroad wouldn't be too hard. She could at least support herself. She didn't sleep all night, and her mind was a mess during the day, leading to mistakes in the lab.
It felt like there were two voices in her head: one telling her to sell the house and leave, and the other reminding her that the money was stolen and she couldn't just take it.
Ariana felt awful, not knowing what to do, and had no one to talk to about it. A chance to completely change her life was right in front of her. Even if the money was dirty, she couldn't help but be tempted.
Back home, Ariana had dinner and kept thinking about what to do with the house. She thought about it until midnight and still couldn't sleep.
Just as she decided to stop thinking and try to sleep, she heard a strange noise from the living room. Her heart raced, and she quickly sat up, grabbing the stun gun she kept under her pillow.
After almost being kidnapped by people sent by Blanca, she stashed some self-defense items around her home.
The bedroom door creaked open, and soft footsteps approached the bed. Since she hadn't slept, her eyes had adjusted to the dark. She saw a shadow standing by her bed, holding a towel and moving it towards her face.
In that moment, Ariana's hand shot out from under the covers, and she zapped the guy with the stun gun, making him scream and fall to the side of the bed.
Afraid he'd get up, Ariana kept zapping him until he passed out. Then she grabbed her phone and ran out of the house to call the police.
The cops arrived quickly, but when they went back inside with her, the guy who had been knocked out was gone. They searched the house and confirmed no one was there, then took her statement in the living room.
In the end, the police said, "Ms. Stout, we'll check the nearby surveillance to see if we can find out where the suspect went. If we get any leads, we'll let you know right away. Don't worry too much; we'll increase patrols in this area."
Still shaken, Ariana didn't want to stay there for the night. She packed some clothes and work stuff and left with the police.
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