Amber choked on her words.
"What? Scared now? Afraid that little secretary's son will steal everything that belongs to you?"
"What do you really have to fear? None of this ever truly belonged to you. Things that aren't yours can't be held onto."
With that, Janelle headed straight to the Project Department.
She needed to meet with Mr. Aleen today; there were still details to align between the two companies.
Amber had been having a rough few days. Westin hadn't come home; he was constantly guarding that little tramp. After all these years of affection, it meant less to him than the lump of flesh in that bitch's belly. Thankfully, Lillie was striving hard. Once Lillie got into the Research Institute, Westin would surely come crawling back to them, begging.
The Project Department was buzzing with positive energy. Linda, Kevin, and the others, having rested fully over the weekend, were completely revitalized. Those two days of genuine downtime felt incredibly refreshing. Seeing Janelle arrive, Kevin immediately went to make her a coffee.
Janelle gathered everyone. "The project is secured. But next, we have a lot more work ahead. I hope none of you slack off!"
"Yes, Miss Rovella!" Their morale was high.
"Also, I've decided to give you all a raise. Linda, liaise with Finance shortly." Helping her secure this project deserved a direct reward.
"We're getting a raise before even being here a month? That's amazing!" Kevin couldn't contain his excitement. They'd definitely made the right choice. The group hugged, jumping and cheering. Seeing their genuine joy, a faint smile touched Janelle's lips.
Janelle entered her office, Linda following. "Miss Rovella, giving them raises this quickly... Finance might object..." Linda knew the team deserved it, but Mr. Rovella and Mrs. Evans were likely to oppose.
"It's fine. Go liaise. It won't be a problem."
"Okay, I'll try."
Indeed, Linda went straight to Finance. The Finance Manager greeted her with a broad smile, a stark contrast to before.
"Linda, I know why you're here! Don't worry, I'll handle it perfectly." Linda was surprised by the smoothness, but then again, they had secured a major project. Raises were justified. The Finance Manager adjusted their salaries right in front of her.
"Thank you for your trouble."
"Not at all! It's my duty!" the Finance Manager said cheerfully. "In the future, I hope you might put in a good word for me with Miss Rovella." The future was uncertain, but he preferred not to offend anyone. Linda gave a non-committal response and left.
Meanwhile, Westin had been supremely confident. If Janelle could win the Aleens Group project, surely his team – comprised of Blue Whale Co., Ltd.'s elite – couldn't lose. His project manager had guaranteed it.
But when the results were announced, Blue Whale Co., Ltd. had lost... to an obscure little company.
Westin slammed the table in protest. He refused to believe it. How could he lose?
"Impossible! Absolutely impossible! There must be something fishy going on here!" he yelled.
The head of the bidding company frowned. "Mr. Rovella, we're all adults here. Making a scene like this is rather undignified, don't you think?"
Westin tried to argue further but was ultimately escorted out by security, stripped of all dignity.
Sitting in his car, Westin was at a loss. Tomorrow was the board meeting. How could he explain this? He had truly lost to Janelle. He drove aimlessly, unwilling to return to the office. Amber called; she must have heard the news of his failure. Westin, frustrated and overwhelmed, threw his phone aside. He just wanted silence.
With Westin's phone continuously going unanswered, Amber angrily flung her own phone away. Lillie, seeing her mother like this, brought her a glass of water.
"Mom, what do we do now?" Could they even hold onto Blue Whale Co., Ltd.?
Amber's hands trembled with rage. She had never taken Janelle's threats seriously, but now, fear began to creep in. Was everything she had fought so hard for really going to be snatched away by Madalyn's daughter? It might have been different if she'd never had it, but she had possessed it for so long!
"What about The Hills?" Amber asked desperately.
Lillie shook her head. The Hills was also in turmoil, besieged by lawsuits and unable to spare them any attention. Nelson had contacted Elora, who claimed Larry Lorenz had agreed to help, but days had passed with no sign of progress. Both The Hills and Westin were like ants on a hot griddle.
Janelle, however, still left work at five. She met Sara for dinner. Seeing Janelle come to be with her again, Sara wrapped her arms around her neck.
"Janelle, I'm really okay now. It was just a crush. You don't need to worry about me." She felt guilty that Janelle, with her busy schedule, kept making time for her.
"I just wanted to see you and have a meal. There's always time for that."
"Yeah." Sara was deeply touched. Thank goodness Janelle was back; she truly didn't know what she'd do without her.
Just then, Janelle's phone rang. It was the nursing home. After listening to the nurse, Janelle immediately stood to leave. Sara grabbed her arm.
"What's wrong?" Sara had never seen this look on Janelle's face. Something terrible must have happened.
"My mother... she's gone." The nursing home had top security, but if Madalyn had managed to slip out on her own... the consequences were unthinkable.
"What?! Wait, I'll come with you!" Sara rushed to grab her phone.
"No. You don't have a passport; you can't go to the border. I have to go. I'll call you." The border region required a passport; Sara couldn't go. Frantic, Sara suddenly thought of Erik. Wasn't Erik from the border? If she couldn't go, Erik should be able to!
Sara immediately called Erik. "Erik! Answer the phone!" He didn't pick up. Sara paced back and forth, consumed by anxiety.
Erik had just finished dealing with the people responsible for sabotaging Bryan's race car. Coming out, he saw the barrage of missed calls from Sara. A terrible premonition gripped him. He called back instantly.
"Erik! Do you have a border passport?! Janelle's mother is missing! She's going alone, I'm worried! Can you please go with her?!" Madalyn was Janelle's anchor, her sole support. She couldn't be allowed to come to harm!
"Okay. I understand." Erik got straight into his car. Bryan, seeing his expression, immediately followed.
"Erik, what's wrong? What happened?" It was the first time he'd seen Erik look like this.