Free Web NovelChapter 288: Chapter 291: The Eve of Bankruptcy
"...What?"
Cecilia Quincy was so stunned by Yasmine Preston’s reply that the tears welling in her eyes forgot to fall.
"Heh heh..." Yasmine suddenly let out a dry laugh, a sound that sent a shiver down Cecilia and Fiona Dalton’s spines.
"Cecilia Quincy, tell me again. Who am I?"
Cecilia stared, dazed, and exchanged a bewildered look with Fiona Dalton. "You—you’re Mrs. Preston. Felix Preston’s mother."
"That’s right. I’m Felix Preston’s mother, and I’m also Charlotte Shaw’s mother," Yasmine Preston said softly. "Felix and Charlotte are both my children. But you, Cecilia Quincy, what did you do to them?"
Cecilia’s heart seized, her cheeks instantly burning red.
She didn’t answer Yasmine’s question, so Yasmine answered it herself. "To be with Ethan Lockwood, you first stole my Charlotte’s boyfriend, then you deliberately framed Felix for sexual harassment. After you successfully got involved with Ethan Lockwood, you joined forces with him to maliciously attack the Preston Group."
"You orchestrated the Preston Group’s plagiarism scandal. You turned Felix’s good friend, Robert Ford, against him. You and Ethan Lockwood conspired to bankrupt the Preston Group, dragging our Preston Family through the mud overnight! And now you have the nerve to come ask me to give you a chance?"
"I..." Cecilia bit her lip, unable to utter a single word in her defense.
"Sigh..." Fiona Dalton let out a heavy sigh. She knew there was no hope for Cecilia.
Yasmine Preston continued, "You want me to give you a chance? When did you ever give Charlotte and Felix a chance? Charlotte had nothing, yet you made her suffer so horribly! If she hadn’t found a way to clear her own name, she would have spent the rest of her life living in the shadow you cast!"
"Cecilia Quincy, you’ve done countless evil things, and you’re getting what you deserve! Why on earth should I plead your case? I couldn’t be happier if Felix sent you to prison right this second!"
"Mom, who are you talking to? It sounds like you’re fighting..."
Lynn Preston’s voice suddenly piped up on the other end of the line.
Cecilia Quincy heard Yasmine Preston say, "I’m on the phone with Cecilia Quincy. She’s crying and begging me to give her a chance, to ask Felix not to press charges."
"What?!" Lynn Preston’s voice shot up an octave. "That bitch has the gall to call you and ask for help?"
Yasmine Preston: "She does."
"Son of a bitch..." Lynn came charging over, swearing under her breath. Before Cecilia could even react, Lynn had snatched the phone from Yasmine and was screaming into it.
"Cecilia Quincy, have you no fucking shame? At a time like this, you still have the audacity to call my mom and beg for help! You must have a fucking death wish!"
"Your dumbass brother kidnapped my sister-in-law, and you, you fucking idiot, turned my sister-in-law into the most hated person in all of Aethelburg! After all the fucked-up shit you’ve pulled, you still dare ask my mom to give you a chance? How about my mom gives you a slap across the face instead? Would you like that?"
"..." Cecilia Quincy clutched her phone, her expression vacant. The verbal tirade had left her completely stunned.
Lynn Preston: "You Quincys are impossible to get rid of. When you’re on top, you show up to pull your schemes. When you’re at rock bottom, you show up to play the victim. You really want to have it all, playing both the hero and the villain, don’t you?"
"So fuck off, fuck off, fuck off! Get the hell away from me and don’t come back! If you ever dare pull this kind of shit in front of us again, I’ll take a cab to your house and slap you so hard your own mother won’t recognize you!"
"You future jailbird!!"
Having unleashed a cathartic torrent of curses and vented nearly all of her pent-up fury, Lynn Preston promptly hung up the phone.
Cecilia Quincy had been thoroughly lambasted, without a single opportunity to get a word in edgewise.
BEEP—
A short tone sounded from the earpiece. Lynn Preston’s voice was finally gone.
"..."
Cecilia Quincy turned and looked at Fiona Dalton, her face a blank mask.
"Sigh..." Fiona sighed again, taking the phone from Cecilia’s hand.
"Cecilia, let it go. The Preston Family is never going to help us. We’ll have to find another way."
"..." Cecilia pouted sullenly, saying nothing.
"There, there." Fiona opened her arms and hugged her, offering what little comfort she could. "If she won’t help, she won’t help. Mom will figure something out for you."
"Hmph..." Cecilia leaned on her mother’s shoulder, forcing out tears as she sobbed, "We already went and begged Yasmine Preston. What other options are there? Mom, I’m really done for this time. I’m really going to prison..."
"No, you’re not." Fiona patted the back of her head, her own nose beginning to sting with unshed tears. "Cecilia, dear, Mom won’t let you go to prison. You have to trust me."
Cecilia shook her head in despair. "I want to trust you, Mom, but..."
Her words trailed off as she suddenly thought of someone.
"But what?" Fiona asked, confused.
Cecilia pulled away from her mother. A flicker of hope slowly ignited in her dull, lifeless eyes. "Mom, there might be one person who can help me."
"Who?" Fiona’s eyes widened in excitement.
Cecilia gritted her teeth and spoke the name, slowly and deliberately:
"Ethan... Lockwood!"
「At ten o’clock at night.」
The Lockwood Group headquarters was still ablaze with light. Anxious employees scurried through the building, every conference room was packed, and the din of chaotic discussion was incessant.
The tower appeared bustling and prosperous, but in reality, it was saturated with a pervasive panic—exactly like the Preston Group had been just before its collapse.
Standing at the entrance of the Lockwood Group building, Cecilia Quincy was suddenly overcome with timidity. She stood outside for a long time, not daring to take a single step inside.
This atmosphere of quiet panic was all too familiar to her. In the past, as the aggressor, she had found such a scene exhilarating. But now, as the victim, she was terrified to her very core.
"Haaa..." She blew out a forceful breath, clenching her fists and muttering a silent pep talk. Just as she gathered a shred of courage and prepared to enter, a familiar male voice called out to her.
"Miss Cecilia Quincy?"
Cecilia Quincy turned at the voice and saw Silas Lawrence striding toward her.
"Lawrence." She tilted her chin up, deliberately affecting her usual air of superiority.
"Perfect timing. I was just about to head inside to find you."
Silas Lawrence stood before her and asked with a smile, "Is there something you need, Miss Cecilia?"
Cecilia gave a cold grunt. "I need to see Ethan Lockwood. Be a dear and let him know I’m here."
"...You want to see Mr. Lockwood?" Silas Lawrence’s brow furrowed.
"That’s right." Cecilia swept her gaze over him disdainfully. "I want to see Ethan Lockwood. I need you to go upstairs and announce me."
Silas Lawrence didn’t budge. "My apologies, Miss Cecilia. Mr. Lockwood is busy at the moment and likely doesn’t have time to see you. It would be best if you returned home."
