The Apple of My Eye

"Are you listening to me?" Leila asked while she gazed at Holley with a stern look.

"Yes, go ahead and shoot!" Holley answered reluctantly. She had her arms folded across her chest. No matter what, her mind was still restless for an explanation. The thought of listening to Leila's unnecessary prattle drained even more of her patience. Still, she wanted to know what it was that Leila was so desperate to tell her.

Leila didn't hurry to continue explaining; instead, she took out her phone and showed a picture to Holley.

"Take a look!" Leila held her phone and walked closer to Holley.

Holley had no idea what Leila intended to do, and she couldn't help but grow skeptical. Still, she shifted her eyes from Leila's face to the screen.

It was a contract from Shining Company for a price of 1.15 billion dollars. The price was the same as what Leila had told Holley. Finally, she proved to Holley that she didn't lie to her. This left Holley feeling startled. She wanted to know how the price had then changed to 1.21 billion.

"As you can see, I didn't lie to you. This contract speaks for itself. And as to why the price was replaced by 1.21 billion, I had nothing to do with it. It was all Melissa's idea..." Leila started to explain, as the frown on Holley's forehead smoothed out. That was Leila's master-plan, and she felt satisfied when she realized it was working effectively.

Holley couldn't ignore what she had seen. Now she was in a situation where she had no choice but to accept the truth. After finding out about this, Holley felt guilty about her earlier reaction. After all, Leila wasn't responsible for this. 'I shouldn't have blamed her for it. It was wrong of me to do that,' she thought with self-reproach.

"Holley, I swear to God that I didn't lie! You know, if I had any part in this, I would have pretended to know nothing. But that is not the case. You have to believe me. This contract is concrete proof of my innocence. But there is one thing that has been bothering me. I realized you had raised the original price to 1.2 billion. Why did you do that? I don't understand. Was it because you don't trust me?" Leila took control of the conversation. Now the tables had turned, and Holley was the offender.

As she had expected, Holley's face turned pale out of guilt. She couldn't utter a single word since she was caught off-guard. A couple of times she opened her mouth to explain, but instantly decided against it. Sensing that Holley had no intention of replying, Leila said, "Alright then. It turns out you don't trust me. Why is there a need for partnership when there is no trust? I think we should end it!" Finishing her words, Leila turned and left without looking back.

Watching Leila's receding figure, Holley was seething with frustration.

Her anxiety awoke when she recalled Ferry's intimidating words. The thought of it brought fear all over her body. She felt a chilly shiver creeping up her spine. For a second, she thought that Ferry was standing right behind her.

Back at the Shinning Company, Leila sighed with relief.

The fact that she had made Holley believe her lies made her feel consoled. Now she was closer to seeing the fruition of her hard work. 'My grand plan will finally work out,' she thought and relaxed. With Holley sorted, she had one less thing to worry about.

Still, while she was sitting at the desk in her office, her mind would constantly think about Holley. If Leila had been dumb enough to trust that bitch, her life would have turned miserable. She applauded herself for playing it safe. In spite of the facade, she was wise enough to see through Holley's pretentious words. If she hadn't added several million to the bid, Holley would undoubtedly have been the one who got the important contract.

As the victor, Leila felt so delighted. To her, getting such a big project would benefit Shining Company a lot. This would do her great credit across the board. And if Charles was never found, she would definitely earn her position as the new CEO of Shinning Company.

"Knock, knock..."

Having made sure that her office door was shut tightly, Leila had been about to burst into thunderous laughter. Before she could do that, though, her attention was drawn by a sudden burst of knocking. Instantly, she checked herself. Then she said in a professional voice, "Come in!"

"Mrs. Zhang, here is all the information about the bidding project. Please, take a look at it." The secretary cautiously walked into the office, carrying a bunch of files. She kept her voice gentle and lowered. Leila raised her head, and her stern eyes rested upon the files. Gesturing for the young secretary to hand over the files, she scanned through them quickly. Suddenly, she froze her gaze over the papers and furrowed her eyebrows. With a glare, she asked, "I can't find any financial transactions from these files. I am after the records! What is this? Are you trying to fool me?"

The young secretary tensed as she realized that her oversight seemed to have agitated Leila. With an awkward smile, she replied, "My apologies, Mrs. Zhang, I will rectify it as soon as possible!" "Hold on for a second!" Leila stopped her secretary from leaving as something else popped up into her mind.

"Mrs. Zhang, is there anything else that you want me to do?" The secretary turned back to face Leila. She kept a courteous smile, but in her heart, she was nervous.

Leila stood up from her chair and walked over to the secretary. Sizing her up in silence, she continued, "About David, do you have any new information for me?"

"What?"

"Really? 'What?' I didn't expect that would be your answer. Don't you remember the task I had assigned you? I asked you to keep an eye on David. Don't tell me that you completely forgot about it!"

Leila glanced at the secretary impatiently. This piercing look left the poor lady nervous. At this moment, Leila's eyes seemed more powerful than the sharpest dagger. Though the sectary had done what Leila had asked, she still felt afraid under this scrutiny.

"Mrs. Zhang, I would never forget to do a task that was assigned by you. Yes, I have kept an eye on David, and have observed nothing strange about him. If I ever detect anything odd from his side, I won't think twice before notifying you!" the secretary finally mustered up the courage and spoke.

"Very good. You can leave now. Go and finish this incomplete work. I am in a hurry, so get it done as soon as possible!"

Leila didn't want to pick on her staff as she was in a perfectly good mood today. Her intention was only to make sure that everything was under control.

In Malaysia, Franklin had just returned home from work.

It was a tiring day. Lazily, he slumped onto the sofa. Just as he was about to doze off, he heard someone knocking at the door. It was his friend, a middle-aged fat man.

"Well, what brings you here today, my old fellow?"

Franklin couldn't be more delighted. He showed his friend into his study and asked him to take a seat. Excusing himself for a moment, he went to the kitchen to make tea. When the tea was served, they started a long and relaxing conversation. Somehow the conversation turned in a different direction. His friend mentioned the recent scandal of a rich family.

"Well, I would never have imagined that you would become so interested in gossiping. Still, what is it?" Franklin teased.

"Have you ever heard of Shinning Company? It is quite a popular company. The star of the story, the CEO of Shinning Company, is missing..." The story seemed to hold Franklin's interest. He wanted to know

more.

"Well, brief me about it. I want to know everything." Franklin proposed, his eyes brimming with curiosity.

"That guy took a trip here in Malaysia. While on a yacht, he and his wife had a row. And the man was pushed into the sea by his wife! Can you believe it? His body has not been found yet. Nobody knows where he is or how he is!"

The middle-aged man related the story to Franklin as if he was one of the witnesses.

"I don't mean to gossip, but I wanted to share this with you. You must know the CEO of the Shining Company. His wife, Sheryl, is a hot topic as well. That woman is flirtatious. It is reported that she slept with plenty of other men behind Charles' back. And now, she has tried to kill him! Probably to get rid of him. Isn't this outrageous news? If her relationship with her husband had hit the rocks, she could just ask for a legal divorce! But no, she has to commit murder. What a wretched woman!"

Listening to this, Franklin felt something flash into his mind. He sank deep into contemplation. His mind muted his friend's words. Ignoring what his friend was continuing to say, his mind was busy connecting the dots. Suddenly, the frown on his forehead smoothed out. He realized he couldn't share this with his friend. With a smile, he abruptly suggested, "My old fellow, I am so sorry to tell you that I've just remembered something. How about we continue this topic another day? I am so sorry."

"Are you all right? What's the matter?"

Franklin's sudden change of demeanor struck his friend as being a little strange.

"I have an important issue to handle. I can't mention it to anyone right now. Sorry, but I almost forgot about it earlier. Let me show you out!" Franklin didn't leave his friend a chance to know the reason and bid him farewell with a goodbye. After that, he sat on the chair in front of his computer desk. Swiftly, he scanned through the latest news on the internet to find the story that his friend had just mentioned. Franklin had not been convinced until he came across Charles' picture posted by one of the local newsgroups.

In no time, a pleased smile crossed Franklin's face. After reading the content of the news, Franklin was certain that Charles and Sheryl's marriage was indeed at stake. In his view, it was just a matter of time before one of them would ask for a divorce.

The reason that Franklin felt so elated was because he knew it would be a great opportunity for his daughter, Angel. Realizing he had to seize the chance, he immediately called his daughter.