Chapter 157 The Scheme Falled Through
At that moment, the door got kicked open with a bang.
Everyone in the room jumped.
Elaine whipped her head around and saw Stephen. She frowned. "Why are you back? Weren't you supposed to get the asset list from Gregory?"
Stephen, looking all serious, walked up and tossed the list in front of her. "Got it."
Elaine's eyes lit up, and she quickly opened it.
When George suddenly passed, he didn't leave a will.
But since Grace was still around and Gregory wasn't married, they hadn't split the estate yet.
George was a guy who knew how to live it up. He had a ton of valuable paintings, antiques, and a bunch of private properties.
Elaine was itching to get her hands on that cash.
But when she saw the list, she was floored. "What the hell?"
Seeing Elaine's pale face, Roman and Jessica exchanged a look and moved closer.
When they saw the list, their faces mirrored Elaine's.
Jessica couldn't hold back. "What the hell? How can there be so little? This can't be right!"
The list had just a few villas and properties, some small companies, and a bit of antiques and jewelry. Sure, they were worth something, but not much.
All of it together couldn't even buy half of the White Manor.
Elaine's hand shook as she held the list. She urgently looked at Stephen. "What's going on? Did they screw up, or is Gregory holding out on us?"
Stephen plopped down on the sofa and said calmly, "This is it. No mistake."
"This is impossible! George had so much. How could we only get this little? I'm going to find him!" Elaine stood up and stormed out.
Stephen barked, "Stop, come back! Don't you know why we only got this?"
Elaine froze. "What do you mean?"
Stephen sneered. "Over the years, without Mom's consent, you secretly gave away some of Dad's best properties to your relatives. Admit it."
Elaine's eyes flickered under Stephen's glare.
Stephen went on, "A lot of the antiques and artworks in White Manor have been sold by you over the years, and the money was used to support your family. Admit it."
Elaine bit her lip and looked down.
She said, "Honey, let me explain. They are my family. I couldn't just leave them hanging!"
Stephen said, "You wanted to help your family, fine. But you shouldn't have been greedy and taken my dad's stuff! From now on, I'm managing the family's assets. You won't get another cent!"
If the money stayed in Elaine's hands, it would be gone in no time.
Elaine wanted to argue, but seeing Stephen's cold eyes, she swallowed her words.
After all this, Elaine completely caved.
Even though she was still pissed, she didn't dare show it in front of Stephen.
She used to get mad at Stephen because she had something over him.
But Stephen was, after all, a White. If she pushed him too far, she wouldn't gain anything.
In the end, Elaine quietly packed her stuff and left.
As for her dream of getting shares from Gregory, it was toast. All the money she got from secretly selling the White family's stuff was used by Gregory to offset the shares.
So, not only did she get zilch from the estate split, but she also blew a ton of cash.
Elaine was so pissed she couldn't sleep for days.
Meanwhile, Abigail was busy as a bee.
After kicking the Martin family out of White Manor, she hit up a bunch of studios to plan a renovation.
She wanted to give White Manor a total makeover while keeping Michelle's touch.
The decor was all Michelle's style, and Abigail would drop by whenever she could.
After about two weeks, the renovation was finally done.
White Manor looked brand new.
Abigail strolled around, lost in memories of Michelle.
Those memories, even after all these years, were still crystal clear.
Michelle's beautiful face, gentle voice, and warm smile were etched in her mind.
She walked to the end of the corridor and noticed a storage room.
This storage room hadn't been opened in ages, and they couldn't even find the key. So, Abigail called a locksmith to bust it open.
As soon as the door opened, dust flew everywhere. Abigail coughed and waved her hand.
Gregory, who had come to pick up Abigail after work, saw the whole thing.
He walked in and chuckled. "Why'd you come here? I've been looking for you."
Abigail turned and smiled. "Just remembered playing hide and seek with Mom when I was little. I hid in here, and Mom couldn't find me and almost called the cops."
Gregory tapped her nose. "Only you could pull something like that. So mischievous."
Abigail raised her chin proudly. "How was I supposed to know the servant would lock the door? I waited forever, and when Mom didn't come, I fell asleep."
Gregory couldn't help but imagine the scene.
He pinched Abigail's soft, fair cheek.
Her skin was so delicate it turned red with a light pinch and quickly faded.
Abigail's bright eyes glared at him. "Mr. White, I've grown up."
Gregory pulled his hand back and coughed to hide his embarrassment. "There are still some of your mom's things here. Want to clean it up?"
Abigail followed his gaze, her eyes widening.
The shelves in the corner were filled with Michelle's stuff. The most eye-catching was a violin.
This was Michelle's violin, which she had used on many big stages.
Sadly, after all these years, those tapes were long gone.
Seeing Michelle's belongings again, Abigail's eyes teared up.
Kayla had lied, saying all of Michelle's things were thrown away. She didn't expect to find them here.
She didn't want anyone else to touch them, so she rolled up her sleeves and got to work.
Seeing this, Gregory knew how much she cared and decided to help.
He went downstairs, found two aprons and gloves, and brought them to Abigail.
After two hours of hard work, they finally cleaned up the storage room.
Abigail carefully packed Michelle's belongings into a box, ready to take them away.
Gregory reached out. "Let me take it. It's heavy. Don't drop it."
Knowing she wasn't strong enough, Abigail handed the box to him without a fuss.
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