Laura’s POV 97
I pushed him away as hard as I could and ran out the door without him coming after me.
I think that might be the end of everything between Cameron and me. When I returned home, he and I would never cross paths again. We were just passing through each other’s lives. The only thing that remains are the memories, sweet or painful, thrown like stones in the memory and smashed in the heart.
In the evening, I had a video call with Sunny, Yasmin was holding her, the little one had just eaten her fill, with milk stains still hanging from the corners of her mouth, and with a pair of little pink hands open, she shouted at the camera for a cuddle. My eyes were a little moist, and I told her softly, “Mommy will be back in two days, so be good and wait for me!”
I’ve been out for so many days, and I miss her the most. The past few days have been like years without being with my daughter.
However, I realized that her silhouette was becoming more and more like Cameron.
My heart ached fiercely.
Hanging up the video, lying in bed, how can not sleep soundly, always easy to be awakened by one after another strange dream, until the dawn of the day before drifting off to sleep. I slept until almost noon, woke up with a jolt, and hurriedly opened the interview memo.
I took a deep breath and cheered myself up in the mirror.
No matter what, I had to get Edward’s interview today!
I called to make an appointment with him, but his phone was dead on arrival. I had to turn on my computer to do some more homework, but I didn’t realize that a hot New York news story popped up just as I got online.
Blonde host with a serious face reported that yesterday evening on Wall Street, a vicious incident occurred, the investment bank boss Edward was brutally beaten in the street, seriously injured, after resuscitation is not life-threatening, but so far is still lying in the intensive care unit.
And the person who beat him has not been investigated so far, and … the New York police did not intervene in this matter!
My heart hangs violently, a strong sixth sense tells me that this matter may be related to Cameron!
Can pry the New York police, this person is by no means idle, and Cameron’s power in New York can not be underestimated.
Yesterday, Edward was so aggressive in front of him, how could he not get some retribution?
Cameron is still Cameron, and even after leaving Jerez State, he’s still a wolf to be messed with.
Edward’s interview was not going anywhere, and I later learned that Edward was not a big deal in New York. His company was a shell company, and there were already a lot of people on Wall Street questioning him, suspecting that he was using the shell company to go public to make money and disrupt the market.
So I bought a plane ticket back home overnight.
I couldn’t wait to hug my daughter.
Since having Sunny, it seems like everything has become unimportant, only the child is real. When her small soft body circled in my arms, listening to her steady breathing, looking at her sleeping appearance, smelling the milk smell on her body … all my fatigue disappeared in a moment.
But sometimes, I still can’t help but think of her father.
A week after returning home, the assistant put a press release on my desk. I was a little amused to see her exasperated look, “What’s the big deal here?”
“Chief editor, just take a look!”
I took a look and it turned out to be an exclusive interview about Edward!
“Chief Editor!” The assistant was aggrieved, “This trip to New Avalon to interview Mr. Baker, weren’t you there personally? How could you possibly let Gnote Magazine send this piece out?”
I was puzzled and shocked at the same time, it was really strange for Gnote Magazine to send out this article, because Edward was still lying in the hospital, and it was doubtful whether he could take care of himself, and he still had time to do an exclusive interview for them?
I read the article carefully.
It wasn’t really a press release at all. Every word and every sentence was traceable. If you look up any previous financial reports published by the media, you can always find one or two familiar phrases. In other words, this article is not an exclusive interview, but an article copied and pieced together under the guise of Edward.
The author was Holly.
I smiled. Thinking about the feud with her, I entered this business, she is considered my leader, and we used to work side by side, but now we parted ways, and we went further and further down our respective paths.
“Chief editor!” Suddenly someone knocked on the door.
The assistant probed in, looking a little flustered, and whispered in my ear, “Editor-in-Chief Holly from Gnote Magazine wants to see you.”
“What?” She to herself came to the door first.
“To see? Or I’ll get back to her for you.”
“Send her in.” I think for a moment, “She might have something important to tell me.”
“Then I’ll have security guards outside.”
“Thanks.” I smile at her, it’s important to be on guard, after all, this woman wants me dead every time she shows up.
Holly pushes her way in, she’s become even more proud and untouchable, looking at me with a sting in her eye. I wondered how on earth I had become good friends with her in the first place.
She pulls her chair out and sits across from me, crossing her legs naturally, her red lips curling as she smiles at me.
“Didn’t expect that, did you?” She said, “Edward’s interview, I got it first.”
“Heh,” I grinned, “You went to New Avalon too? How come I didn’t see you those days?”
“It’s none of your business where I went, but this interview, I got it first!”
“You know better than anyone how this interview came out.” I looked at her, “Every word, even every punctuation mark, you copied it!”
“What proof do you have?” She blushed, “Laura, don’t think that Edward is interested in you and that this interview is yours. I’m here today to teach you four words: things happen!”
“Yes, the world is a hard place.” I replied calmly, “Those four words should be used for you. I’ve read this interview of yours, and from a professional point of view, the way you put it together is indeed seamless, and you should have put in some effort! But every word you said, it didn’t come from Edward’s mouth, because he was brutally beaten and hospitalized with serious injuries and couldn’t speak at all!”
“You …”
“This story of yours is fake news!” I sank my voice, “Hurry up and withdraw it back, don’t let the truth come out then, then you’ll be disgraced! Maybe even the magazine you founded will be ruined.”
“Laura!”
Holly snapped to her feet and glared at me through clenched teeth, her bright red lips pursed into a line as anger was unleashed in her eyes.
“Don’t even think about threatening me.” She said word for word, “No matter what tricks you pull, your company will never be able to surpass my magazine, ever!”
With that she turned and left, the door slamming.
I sat down in my chair, closed my eyes and took a deep breath. Then I picked up the phone and called my assistant in, “Help me check the information … for all the financial magazines in the last five years about investment banking related reports.”
“Chief editor, why do you want to check this?”
“Check against this article.” I gave her that manuscript, “Mark every sentence she plagiarized, all of them!”
A few days later, I called Holly’s article to the Media Association along with all the information I had found.
I reported to the Media Association that Holly was creating fake news and was suspected of plagiarism and copywashing. I also produced Edward’s hospitalization certificate from the New York hospital and contacted his subordinates to prove that Edward had not given any exclusive interviews to any national news agency so far.
This report caused quite a stir in the industry; Gnote Magazine was shut down and Holly was brought in for an investigation, which I heard took over a week before she was released. The investigation was not only limited to this fake news, but also brought up all the previous cases of her framing Cameron.
The day she was taken away, I was standing downstairs at Gnote magazine. Looking at the two elegant and imposing villas, which had been sealed, and all the staff members left holding a cardboard box one by one with a bereft look on their faces, I had mixed feelings in my heart.
There is a kind of indescribable flavor, after all, once upon a time, I also gave my all here.
Holly was wearing a white trench coat, no makeup, looking a little haggard. She was brought out, just about to get on the car, saw me standing on the opposite side. Her eyes suddenly turned cold, the corner of her mouth gently hooked, smiling at me, “Laura, don’t be complacent, sooner or later you’ll have to pay for it one day!”
I was already numb.
The price? From the day I entered The Lynch Family, every second of my life seemed to be dedicated to the word ‘price’.
“Whatever the cost, I can’t condone your behavior.” I looked at her, “If people like you can still be in the industry, it’s the biggest sadness in this business!”
“Yes Ms. Laura, thank you so much for giving us the lead.” A nearby official-looking person said to me, “This business does need to be straightened out, and we need more people like you who dare to speak the truth and fight against ugliness!”
“There’s no need to make me sound so great, I’m just doing what I’m supposed to do.” I laughed softly and turned to leave.
I didn’t want to make enemies, but I would never tolerate people bullying me either.
A week later, I gave the company a vacation, and I had a rare chance to stay home and spend some quality time with Sunny.
The weather was nice that day, Yasmin pushed her outside for a walk, and I had just made vegetable puree, ready to call them back for dinner, but Yasmin’s phone couldn’t get through. I had a bad feeling and rushed out of the yard.
I saw a lot of people gathered on the road not far away, and there were police lights flashing.
My heart immediately raised to my throat, rushed into the crowd to see that Yasmin fell on the ground, but there was no one in the stroller on the side.
“Yasmin, Yasmin!” I shouted.
She slowly opened her eyes and sat up with difficulty, then looked horrified, “… Sunny! Sunny!”
“What happened to Sunny?”
“Snatched!”
I was like five thunderbolts.
“Blame me, blame me!” Yasmin wiped her tears anxiously, “Holly snatched her! She brought a man with her and came up to hug Sunny! I couldn’t beat them and Sunny was snatched by them!”
I felt as if I had stepped on the ground, my ears were buzzing and my mind was blank.
A police officer came to take a statement and I couldn’t say anything. They asked me about my relationship with Holly, I just felt anger and despair together choked in my throat, I covered my face “wow” cry, body shaking, hands and feet cold.All content © N/.ôvel/Dr/ama.Org.
Sunny is my life, how can I let her fall into Holly’s hands!
I remembered Holly’s last words when she was taken to the Media Association for investigation, “Laura, you will pay for this.”
And I never thought that the price would be Sunny.
I began to regret what I had done. Why did I gamble on that? It’s better to offend a gentleman than a villain, and Holly is the villain of the vile villains! Why should I offend her?
“Ms. Laura, don’t just cry, please cooperate with us, okay?” A police officer said to me.
I was shaking so much that I couldn’t say a word.
At this moment, I suddenly felt a warmth, I raised my eyes and saw Patrick, he took my hand, draped his coat over me, and gently patted me on the back.
My whole body nestled in his arms as if I had grabbed the last straw.
“Don’t be afraid.” He said softly, “Don’t worry, I will help you save Sunny.”
“It’s Holly …” I trembled, “It’s Holly who kidnapped her!”
“I know.”
“I shouldn’t have called the police!” I suddenly reacted, “In case she knows I called the police, then Sunny …”
“Laura, be quiet!” He squeezed my shoulders, “I’ll make sure Sunny’s safe! I promise to bring her back in one piece! Will you trust me?”
I looked at him in a daze.
At this moment, only his gaze can give me firm strength.
He nodded at me, then turned back to discuss the case with his colleagues. I went with him to the police station, where I stayed for a whole night, I can not sleep, I can not eat, full of Sunny’s pink face, soft voice, the smell of …
I cried so much that I was about to have a nervous breakdown.
Patrick came over and gently embraced me in front of his body. I couldn’t hear what he said, but the warmth of his body reassured me a lot.
The ringing of a cell phone exploded like a bomb in the silent room.
My whole body almost jumped up and stared at the cell phone screen. It had Holly’s name on it.
“It’s okay, pick it up.” Patrick nods at me.
I pick up and Holly’s voice is slightly raspy. “Laura.”
“Where’s Sunny!” I get agitated, “Holly I’m warning you, don’t hurt my daughter! If you touch her …”
There was a sneer on the other side.
“If you knew that, why did you do it?” She said, “Why did you have to push me to the brink? You know full well that Gnote Magazine is what I care about the most, it’s my life’s work!”
“Laura,” she took a deep breath, “I don’t tell you this … My purpose is simple, the magazine is gone, but I still have to survive. I don’t want to hurt anyone’s life, and by kidnapping your daughter, I just want you to do something for me.”
“What is it?”
“I want money.”
My taut nerves loosened slightly.
Since she was only asking for money, it would be good to fulfill her conditions. She’s not so bad that she’ll turn into an outlaw.
“If you give me the money, I’ll give you back your daughter, and then I’ll leave Jerez State for good. You don’t lose on this deal!”
“Good.” I bit my lip, “I promise, how much do you want?”
“Fifty million dollars.”
“What?”
This figure is like a cold sharp knife stuck in my heart.
“I want fifty million dollars!” Holly gritted her teeth, “Don’t say you can’t come up with it, Laura! I know you have shares in The Lynch Group, and your yearly dividends are always in the tens of millions, right? Plus that company of yours … I don’t believe you can’t get this money out!”
“I can give it to you.” I want to stabilize her first, “But you have to give me time.”
“I don’t have much patience. Besides, I want cash!”