Filed To Story: Watch Out! She's a Mastermind Heiress (Isabella Patton) Book PDF Free
“Look, that young lady is here,” the police officer pointed.
The woman turned her gaze eagerly and saw Isabella walking in against the light. Isabella regarded her with a detached expression, while the woman was shocked to see her. Wasn’t this the woman who was with Andrew the other day? She seemed to be Andrew’s girlfriend—Isabella Patton.
“What is she doing here?”
Spotting Isabella, the police officer quickly inquired, “They’re the parents. Where’s the boy?”
“Really? But I need to understand why you lost your child,” Isabella said with a cold stare.
The woman felt a wave of guilt under Isabella’s gaze. How could she have assumed that Isabella was the one who rescued her child?
Gazing at the couple intently, Isabella declared, “If you don’t explain how you lost your son, I’ll assume you’re no different from human traffickers—trading your son for money!”
Panic washed over the woman. “That’s not true at all! We’ve waited years before finally getting pregnant and giving birth to him. He’s everything to us. How could we sell him? We left him with his aunt, and I never expected her to be so cruel as to sell him. I was shocked when I found out. Now she’s been arrested! Please, give me back my child!”
Isabella glanced at her coldly and said, “There’s no excuse in that story. You must have known about your aunt’s character. If you care so much about your child, why did you leave him with someone you knew was unreliable?”
Sweat trickled down the woman’s forehead as her guilty conscience made her fidget nervously with her fingers. Her husband also appeared visibly anxious.
The couple’s odd behavior caught the police officer’s attention, and he asked seriously, “What exactly is going on? Is this boy really your child? Why did you leave him in someone else’s care? We need a reasonable explanation!”
There were cases of parents selling their children these days. If such cases were discovered, the police would deal with the parents harshly. Children should not be returned to such parents.
The couple was visibly distressed by the police officer’s interrogation. The woman quickly explained, “Yes, he’s our child. We left him with his aunt because we’ve been extremely busy lately and needed her to look after him for a few days.”
“Haha!” Isabella laughed coldly. “You’ve known his aunt for years. You’re aware of her character, aren’t you? How can you expect us to believe you when you knew she was untrustworthy and still left your child in her care?”
The woman was left speechless.
Meanwhile, the board meeting at the Klein Group kicked off. With Damari in the hospital, the chairman’s seat remained unoccupied. Andrew took his place on the left side of the empty chair, while Corbett sat on the right. Though they merely occupied their seats, a palpable tension hung in the air, and the conference room was charged with an oppressive, confrontational atmosphere.
Bruno spoke up, “Andrew, you’re aware of why your grandfather ended up in the hospital, aren’t you? It’s because of your poor management. The company is being blasted all over the internet and is facing a level of crisis it hasn’t seen in years. This situation is directly due to your actions. Don’t you think you should say something about it?”
“Yes, I do need to say something,” Andrew responded in a low voice. Clad in a sharp black suit, he exuded an air of handsome authority. As he scanned the board directors, those who were considering opposing him quickly averted their gaze.
Andrew continued, “I’d like to thank my uncle and his family. Without them, we wouldn’t be facing this challenge.”
“Andrew!” Bruno exclaimed angrily. “Are you jealous because your brother is more capable and successful than you? What need is there for a successor who can’t actually manage the Klein Group, not someone who’s only good at feeling envious? If you can’t handle this responsibility, maybe it’s time for you to step down.”
Andrew narrowed his eyes and asked, “Uncle, are you saying you want Corbett to be the CEO?”
Bruno didn’t hesitate. “Yes, your grandfather also mentioned that whoever sold more phones this time would be the CEO. Since Corbett’s sales are higher than yours, he should be the CEO. What do you think about that, Andrew?”
Andrew responded with cool indifference, “What do the others think?”
Bruno smirked, recognizing Andrew’s attempt to put pressure on the others. However, Bruno had already built good relationships with many of the directors, which could work in his favor.
“Andrew, since this is your grandfather’s request, we should follow his wishes. After all, he is the chairman of the board,” one director chimed in.
“Yes, Andrew, we acknowledge your efforts over the years. But now, in this technology era, if you don’t step down, the company could be in jeopardy,” another added.
“Andrew, you could take the role of vice president for the sake of the company’s growth.”
These directors all acted as if they were doing this for the good of the company.
Andrew quietly observed those who spoke, making a mental note of each one. He never would have realized just how many traitors were within the company if this situation hadn’t unfolded. Andrew could only guess how much Corbett had privately paid them to speak on his behalf.
Corbett leaned back in his chair, eyeing Andrew with disdain. The tables had finally turned. Andrew had been on top for years, but now it was his turn to take the lead. “Andrew, if you don’t object, let’s proceed with the vote, shall we?”
Andrew’s handsome face remained calm and composed as he said, “Okay.”
Everyone was stunned by how quickly he agreed. The position of CEO of the Klein Group was highly coveted—how could Andrew be willing to give it up so easily? It didn’t seem possible that he would surrender without a fight.
The CEO’s assistant stood up and addressed the room. “We are now moving forward with the selection of the CEO for the Klein Group, who will also be the future chairman. Our candidates are Corbett and Andrew. I ask you now to raise your hand if you wish to cast your vote for Corbett. If the majority agrees, Corbett will be appointed as the CEO.”
After the assistant’s announcement, a few hands went up cautiously at first, and then, gaining momentum, more followed suit. A total of twenty-four members were present at this crucial meeting.
But only seven people had their hands raised in support of Corbett. Corbett scanned the room, his eyes narrowing as he noticed several directors quickly lowering their gazes, avoiding eye contact. He suddenly realized that the people he had secretly bribed and relied upon were not as trustworthy as he thought. They had promised to back him with their votes.
Corbett fumed silently.
“It seems there’s no need to drag this out any longer,” Andrew remarked, his tone dismissive and cool. His expression held a hint of contempt, and he carried himself with the commanding presence of someone who was born to lead.
Corbett shot back, “Maybe some have abstained. How can you be sure that more people are choosing you over me?”
Bruno chimed in, addressing the room, “We’ve all witnessed Corbett’s achievements. His performance has unquestionably outshone Andrew’s. What’s holding you back? Remember, it’s also my father’s wish that the more capable between them should inherit the company.” His words seemed to sway a few more in the room.
People had always feared Andrew, but if he was no longer the CEO of the Klein Group, what reason was there to be afraid of him?
Slowly, two more hands were raised. Now, a total of nine people were supporting Corbett.
Corbett curled his lips into a smirk. “Is that fear I see in your eyes?” he taunted.
“Fear? You think you inspire fear in me?” Andrew’s voice was cold, his demeanor utterly indifferent.
Suddenly, Corbett’s smugness faltered, replaced by a rush of humiliation. Damn that Andrew, always pretending to be so strong. Corbett couldn’t wait to see him knocked off his pedestal, to see if he could still keep up this charade once he was stripped of his power.
Just as Corbett was basking in his moment, someone abruptly grabbed his phone and announced, “Wait a moment. Things have changed.”
The entire room turned their attention toward him. The director holding the phone instructed, “Let’s project this directly onto the screen.”
The assistant approached and began projecting a video onto the large screen.
On the big screen, the victims of the phone explosion appeared, looking visibly uncomfortable. The woman addressed the camera with an apologetic tone, “I’m sorry, everyone. I must confess, I lied to you.”
Her husband gritted his teeth and added, “Our phone didn’t explode.”
Corbett’s frustration boiled over as he pounded the table and fixed Andrew with a glare. “So, that’s why you’re so unfazed. You bribed the couple, didn’t you?”
“Corbett, why are you so angry?” Andrew replied in a calm tone. “Even if I did bribe them, shouldn’t you be relieved that I’ve secured the company’s interests? Do you really want to see the stock price of the company continue to plummet?”
Corbett was left momentarily speechless. He knew that everyone here was relying on the company’s dividends.
Corbett retorted, “What happens if your bribe backfires and they turn against you? Can you handle that?”
“Can you please stop interrupting?” Andrew said, visibly irritated.
Realizing that everyone’s attention was on the live stream, Corbett grudgingly stopped speaking. Despite the setback, a smirk played at the corners of his mouth. Little did Andrew know, he had fallen right into Corbett’s trap!
Corbett had anticipated that Andrew would attempt to bribe the couple. So he had orchestrated a plan where they would feign cooperation only to expose Andrew’s bribery in the end due to their guilt.
In Corbett’s eyes, everything was going perfectly. This time, the Klein Group would definitely undergo a change in leadership.
Everyone’s eyes were still fixed on the big screen. The woman continued with tears in her eyes, “We deliberately created this farce because we were bribed. Someone gave us a lot of money, and we couldn’t resist such a temptation, so we agreed. But this time, we realize our mistakes. So, we want to apologize to the Klein Group and everyone for the troubles we have caused. We are very sorry. The truth is… the phone manufactured by the Klein Group is very good. In fact, I was really surprised when I got it. I can say that it is the best phone I have ever used so far. Actually, I also hoped domestic phones could take off. But we had to impede it. We were short of money and had to raise it, so we agreed to frame the Klein Group.”
After saying this, she lowered her head in shame. Her husband also lowered his head.
Corbett frowned, feeling something was wrong. The woman’s confession was supposed to follow a certain script, but she deviated from it. How could she end up admitting to being bribed to frame the Klein Group? At this moment, the reporter asked, “Do you know who bribed you to frame the Klein Group?”
The woman shook her head. “We don’t know. We only communicated through the phone. We have never met that person. Besides, we were paid in cash. We can’t track the bank account of the person who paid us.”
“Since you were already paid, why are you exposing everything now?” It seemed the reporter still had more questions to ask.
Corbett stared at the screen with undisguised madness in his eyes. He thought the woman would admit that the person who bribed them was Andrew. His goal was to make everyone think Andrew was a despicable man. Then, no one would support Andrew anymore. But it didn’t happen. Instead, the woman denied knowing the person.
“Because our child went missing. We didn’t want to leave our son alone at home, so we left him with his aunt. But we didn’t expect his aunt to be so vicious that she sold him.”
She paused and sobbed. “When we found out, we felt like we were squeezed between heaven and earth. We can’t afford to lose our son. We have been looking for him.”
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