Chapter 81 Good News
"Good thing it's not broken," Rachel said, keeping her cool.
James glanced at her, then turned to Michael. "Michael, you don't seem too shocked about her foot. Did you already know she was hurt?"
Michael ignored him, still staring at Rachel. After a beat, he said, "I'll send someone over with some supplements later."
"No need," Rachel shot back, flat as ever.
Michael's face tightened. "Rachel, can you stop being so stubborn?"
"Stubborn? Seriously?" Rachel laughed, clearly annoyed. "Not wanting your supplements is stubborn? What kind of logic is that?"
"I've told you a million times, your foot got hurt at my hotel. I have a responsibility," Michael insisted.
Rachel waved him off. "I don't need you to take responsibility. I just want to stay away from you. Aren't you worried Miss Brown will flip out if she finds out? I don't want to be her punching bag again."
"She won't," Michael frowned, sounding a bit irritated. Mandy had promised to cut it out.
Rachel chuckled. "If you're so sure, then fine. Guys, it's late. I need to rest. Please leave." She motioned for them to go.
Michael stared at her for a moment, then got ready to leave with James. Suddenly, Rachel called out, "Wait a minute."
Michael felt a weird sense of hope but didn't show it. He turned back. "What is it?"
Rachel pointed at James. "Mr. Smith, keep James in check. Stop letting him come over and cause me trouble."
James protested, "I haven't caused you any trouble."
"Really?" Rachel tilted her head, smirking. "If you call your mom right now and tell her you're here, won't she rush over and accuse me of seducing her son?"
James went silent, his face turning red. He couldn't deny it; Emily would totally do that.
Rachel insisted, "So don't come again. I've helped you twice already, and that's enough. I want to cut ties with your family, got it?"
Her cold gaze swept over James and finally landed on Michael. After a brief pause, she looked away and shut the door.
Michael stared at the closed door, her eyes flashing in his mind. Those eyes once held deep feelings for him, but now they were just cold. She had really moved on.
Realizing this, Michael's heart tightened, feeling both bitter and painful. Logically, he should feel relieved that Rachel had moved on, freeing him from the emotional burden. But instead of feeling relieved, his heart ached, and there was an empty feeling as if he had lost something precious.
James looked at Michael's clenched fists, swallowed, and cautiously asked, "Michael, what are you thinking?" Michael wouldn't vent his anger because of Rachel's attitude just now, would he? That would be unacceptable!
James quickly tried to dissuade him, "Michael, let me tell you..."
"Let's go!" Michael cut him off, heading toward the elevator.
James hesitated for a moment, glanced back at Rachel's door, picked up his basketball, and followed.
Behind the door, Rachel watched them leave through the peephole, finally letting out a sigh of relief. She returned to her bedroom.
The next day, Rachel was woken up by her phone ringing. She grabbed it from her bedside table and, without looking, put it to her ear. "Hello, who is this?"
"Ms. Williams, it's me!" Lily's clear voice came through the phone.
Rachel opened her eyes and sat up, her expression shifting from groggy to alert. "What's up?" she asked, curious.
"Good news!" Lily exclaimed, excitement in her voice. "Several major banks just called, saying they can continue to lend to us, and the loans already issued can be renewed on schedule."
Rachel's eyes lit up, and a smile spread across her face. "That's awesome," she said, sounding relieved.
"Yeah," Lily continued, practically bursting with excitement. "And to make up for the hassle they caused us yesterday, they've decided to drop the interest rate by 0.5%. They're already at the office. Ms. Williams, when can you get here?"
Rachel quickly replied, "I'll be there ASAP. Make sure to keep them entertained until I arrive."
"Got it," Lily nodded, still buzzing with excitement. "I'll handle everything."
After hanging up, Rachel put down the phone and let out a long breath. The crisis at Skyline Corporation was finally over. Chloe would have to pay for her actions, right?
Thinking this, Rachel immediately went online to check the news. Sure enough, there were tons of articles about the Garcia family scandal.
Chloe's dad had been demoted, and other relatives had been dismissed. The Garcia family's power had been cut in half, and they were no longer the top aristocratic family in the Unity Republic. This was the best outcome, thanks to the handling by their elder head, Alexander Garcia.
Otherwise, Chloe's dad would have been dismissed, and the Garcia family would have completely fallen from grace, becoming ordinary people.
The instigator of all this was Chloe. From now on, Chloe would surely hate Mandy to the core. Rachel couldn't help but laugh, feeling great.
And things just went as Rachel expected. At this moment, Chloe stood in front of the Jones family mansion, her face twisted, phone to her ear, dialing Mandy's number.
There was no trace of the once noble aristocrat in her; her once beautiful face was now marred by a look of resentment and ferocity.
The call was quickly answered, and Mandy's gentle voice came through, "Ms. Garcia, what is it?"
"Mandy!" Chloe gritted her teeth as she called her name.
Mandy was stunned for a moment, forcing a smile, "Ms. Garcia, what's wrong?"
"Mandy, how dare you ask me what's wrong!" Chloe screamed, disregarding her image, "It's all because of you! If I hadn't helped you teach Rachel a lesson, I wouldn't have been caught and used against my family. Now my family is in trouble, my whole family blames me, and Nathan wants to divorce me. I've become the target of everyone's anger. Are you satisfied?"
Mandy's eyes lowered, hiding a trace of disappointment, but she urgently defended herself, "I didn't, Ms. Garcia. You misunderstood, I..."
"Enough!" Chloe snorted coldly, cutting her off. "Mandy, remember what I said today. We're done. I won't let this go. Just wait!"
With that, Chloe hung up without mercy.
Mandy stared at the darkened phone screen, her pale lips pressed tightly together. She had already seen the sensational news about the Garcia family that morning and had anticipated Chloe's anger. But she hadn't expected the hatred to be so deep, severing their friendship and vowing to cause her trouble.
Feeling uneasy, Mandy's palms were sweaty, and a sense of foreboding rose in her heart. Although the Garcia family was no longer as powerful, they still had influence in politics. If they really wanted to go after her or the Brown family, it would be easy. She had to take action.
Thinking of this, Mandy bit her lip hard, squeezed her arm, and tears fell. She then grabbed her bag and instructed the driver to head to Smith Corporation.
The employees at Smith Corporation were very familiar with her and didn't stop her. Mandy made her way to the top floor without any hindrance and pushed open Michael's office door.
Mandy entered the room with tearful eyes, choking as she called his name. "Michael."
At that moment, Michael was discussing business with Joseph, and her sudden appearance interrupted them at a critical moment.
"Oh dear, Miss Brown, what's wrong?" Joseph teased, looking at Mandy.
Mandy ignored him, only staring at Michael with tear-filled eyes.
Michael put down the document in his hand, stood up, and frowned, "Mandy, what happened?"
Log in with Google Account
Chapters
Favorite
Settings
