Ch. 391..400

Chapter 391 Douglas’ Story

Bryan eventually gave in to Queenie, keeping his head down slightly. “Alright, if you could help me secure the deal with F&R Enterprise from Gardner Corporation, I’ll pay you the money you want!”

Queenie put on a malicious smirk before she stood up and looked at Bryan. “You’re too kind, Mr. Kohlberg. I’ll be sure to help you.” Colton! I’m not to blame for my decision to do this to you. In fact, you have no one else to blame but yourself for what’s coming to you. If you hadn’t treated me coldly in the past five years, the thought of betraying you wouldn’t even have crossed my mind. Thus, this is all your fault, Colton!

…

Meanwhile, Nicole returned home after she was done meeting Emily. When she headed upstairs, she found Whitney crying in her room. At that moment, the latter was seen curling up in the bed, apparently sobbing. In the meantime, Nicole stood in front of the bed and gazed at the tearful lady, not knowing how to comfort her, as she swallowed the words forming at the tip of her tongue.

Soon, Whitney seemingly sensed someone’s presence in her room and showed herself from beneath the blanket. As soon as she saw Nicole, she stopped crying, but her obvious sobbing voice still gave her away. “Miss Nicole…”

The next second, Nicole stepped forward and approached Whitney. While it was the afternoon at that moment, the curtains, which were not drawn, allowed the bright sunlight to shine through the window. Thus, she was able to see Whitney’s red and tearful eyes clearly.

She then hugged Whitney’s head and gently rubbed it, as if she was a poor child. “I’m not going to ask you what happened, but you can cry all you want. It should help you feel better that way.”

As Nicole’s words seemingly hit her in the soft spot, Whitney wrapped her arms around the former and broke into tears. On the other hand, Nicole did the same thing, placing her hand on the back of Whitney’s head without saying a single word. It wasn’t until a few moments later that Whitney finally looked up and revealed her red and swollen eyes as she looked like she had cried for a long time.

Nicole then let out a sigh and comforted Whitney with a gentle voice. “It’s alright, girl. Just let bygones be bygones.”

After crying in Nicole’s embrace for a few moments, Whitney eventually stopped shivering and sniffled, responding with a sobbing voice. “I’m fine, Miss Nicole.”

Soon, Nicole let out a sigh and sat on Whitney’s bed, leaning on the headboard. “Douglas hit rock bottom a few years back, but things took a turn for the worse when he suffered from a serious injury. He was later found by Em in the rain and sent to the hospital by her,” Nicole said while observing Whitney’s expression. “As time went by, the two of them spent a lot of moments together and eventually fell in love with each other.”

When Whitney heard Nicole mention Douglas’ name, her face turned pale, her lips shaking. Then, when she looked at Nicole again, she seemed as if she had lost her confidence. “You knew everything, Miss Nicole?”

Nicole smiled in embarrassment and nodded. “Come on! I was not so dumb that I failed to notice your strange reaction back in the restaurant. After running through a few possibilities in my mind, I figured it was probably because of Douglas.”

Meanwhile, Whitney decided not to hide her secret anymore when she realized Nicole could sense something wrong with her. After all, she had been suffocated by the secret for way too long and was relieved that she could finally confide in someone about it.

“Miss Nicole, Douglas and I…” She looked down a bit, pursing her lips before she managed to muster the courage and continued her story. “Douglas and I met each other in university before we became a couple…”

Judging from the expression on Whitney’s face, Nicole knew her suspicion was correct and continued to ask, “And? Did something happen subsequently?”

After all, when Nicole first saw Douglas, the man was in a terrible state. Even when he was admitted into the hospital by Emily, he still appeared to be dispirited, like he had no desire to live.

Not long after that, his condition worsened as he caught a high fever and even lacked the will to battle his illness. While the doctor told them that he would likely not make it, Douglas somehow recovered, having emerged victorious in the fight against his illness with Emily by his side.

 

Chapter 392 Aren’t I a B*tch?

Whitney looked down, feeling a lump in her throat before she went on and said, “I betrayed him, set him up, and ruined his reputation completely, Miss Nicole. The Lane Family later fell apart because I had to sacrifice it for the sake of my family.” Whitney clenched her teeth, describing herself as a sinful wrongdoer.

However, Nicole knew Whitney was not the kind of person she made herself sound like, having known her for quite a while. “Whitney, I know that’s not who you are.”

Surprised to hear how Nicole trusted her, Whitney was overwhelmed by her emotions as tears started to gush down from her eyes once again. Nevertheless, she only cried for a short while before she quickly pulled herself together. Upon a brief contemplation, she replied, “It was my father, Miss Nicole. He threatened me with my mother’s life. She was sick and bedridden at that time, and I was left with no choice.”

Whitney answered with a heavy heart but was still confused about how her father could bring himself to threaten her with her mother’s life, considering the fact that both of them were soulmates. While it had been five years since Whitney’s mother was bedridden, her father had already had an affair with another woman two months after she went out of action.

Besides that, when Whitney was still dating Douglas, her father wouldn’t stop threatening her to make her do his bidding, or he would undermine her mother’s life support. Because of that, she was forced to sacrifice her relationship with Douglas to save her mother despite her love for him.

In the meantime, Nicole was stunned after hearing about Whitney’s checkered past. Oh gosh! I didn’t know she’s been carrying so much weight on her shoulders. It looks like her outgoing attitude had been fooling me into thinking she was an optimistic person all along. “It wasn’t your fault, Whitney,” Nicole comforted the sad lady, thinking she would have done the same thing as well if she had been in Whitney’s position.

“B-But, it was me who ruined his life, Miss Nicole! I destroyed the future he could have had. He used to be so outgoing and kind. It was all my fault!” The emotional floodgates within Whitney opened once again, not long after she calmed herself down.

Meanwhile, Nicole sympathetically looked at Whitney and rubbed her head with her hand. “Whitney, Douglas is living a good life now, so you should probably put it behind you and move on.”

At the thought of the conversation between Nicole and Emily back in the restaurant, Whitney nodded understandably but could barely hide her bitter smile. Yeah, she is right. Douglas now has a good life with a happy family. He has a good wife and a lovely child. With a happy life like that, what more could he ask for? “I heard you, Miss Nicole. I just need more time to get over it, probably because my guilt is still playing tricks with me in my head. Maybe… I still have feelings for him… Oh gosh! I’m such a b*tch, aren’t I?” Whitney bitterly asked Nicole, having little respect for herself due to her love for Douglas even though she was the one who gave up on their relationship.

“You need to pull yourself together right now because you’re going to have to move on one way or another. Furthermore, I have faith that you’ll meet someone better in the future.” Nicole consoled Whitney but refused to give her false hope by telling her that she could still work things out with Douglas. After all, Douglas and Emily seemed to be living a happy life at the moment.

On the other hand, Whitney felt so much more relieved upon revealing the secret that she had been buried inside of her for so long. At the same time, she realized she should move on with her life happily since Douglas had already found happiness for himself. She then shed a drop of tear from her eyes and blinked, her eyelashes shaking for a second before she pulled herself together and hid the sad look on her face. “You’re right, Miss Nicole. I should move on with my life now. Douglas is now leading a happy life, which is all the more reason I should leave him and his family alone.”

Noticing the gloomy look on Whitney’s face, Nicole let out a sigh and comforted, “I can assure you that Douglas is living the best time of his life. Not only is he one of the shareholders of Aimee International, but he is also the president of F&R Enterprise.”

The president of F&R Enterprise? Whitney was stunned to hear Nicole’s words. Although F&R Enterprise was not known to be a huge corporation across the globe, it somehow managed to make a name for itself with its advanced technology.

 

Chapter 393 The Moment of Truth

But if my memory serves me right, F&R Enterprise is an established company with decades of history.

Nicole explained after noticing the surprised look on Whitney’s face. “Douglas is a capable man who proved his own worth to get where he is in F&R Enterprise today.” Although Douglas couldn’t have succeeded without Emily’s help, Nicole approved of the man’s talent and competence.

Whitney said nothing, thinking she shouldn’t continue the topic because she was afraid she would lose control over her emotions once again. Thus, she wiped her tears and looked at Nicole. “Miss Nicole, are you going back to Gardner Corporation once you take care of the problem with Aimee International?”

Nicole nodded in response. “I still have work to do for the brand, Ann, and I don’t like to leave my business unfinished. Besides, there are many other things I need to take care of here, so it’s a good excuse for me to stay here longer. Otherwise, they’re going to get suspicious.”

With everything else settled, Nicole reckoned it was time for her to do what she must. After all, she still hadn’t found the evidence about the death of her mentor, White, although she was sure Pierre was involved in it. While she was determined to have her revenge, she was also not going to give up on investigating her mother’s death.

When Nicole’s mother passed away, Lydia was seen around the hospital, which made her wonder if it had anything to do with Lydia. I’m going to get to the bottom of these two matters. I will find out the truth and seek justice, not just for myself but for my mentor and mother as well.

On the other hand, Whitney was relieved after revealing her secret to Nicole, as if a heavy boulder that had been pinning her chest had been removed. She then pulled herself together and said, “Thank you so much for the comforting words, Miss Nicole. I guess I feel a lot better and know what I should do now.” Whitney looked down and added, “I might have wronged Douglas in the past, but I’m happy that he is enjoying his life now.”

The next moment, Nicole responded with silence when she noticed Whitney’s upset expression. Not knowing what she could say anyway, she gave Whitney a pat on the shoulder. “I’m glad to hear that. If you want to know more about Douglas, feel free to ask me. For now, what you need the most is rest.” Upon hearing that, Whitney nodded just as Nicole walked away without saying a single word more.

It was only until Nicole was gone that Whitney snapped herself out of her trance. Upon staring at her laptop for a few moments, she eventually summoned the courage to type Douglas’ name in the search box. While news about Douglas’ past could barely be found on the internet, most of the articles were news about him as the shareholder of Aimee International and the president of F&R Enterprise. Over the years, Whitney had been held back by her fear of learning more about Douglas. Whenever she stumbled upon any news report about him, she would do nothing more than taking a glimpse of it before she moved on.

Soon, Whitney went on to search for more news about Douglas, eventually learning more about his stories in recent years. Even so, she failed to discover any news about the man when he seemingly went missing for almost a year.

When Douglas was wandering in the street amidst the rain three years ago, he caught a high fever and could barely hold on any longer until he met Emily, who sent him to hospital.

While that incident gave both of them an opportunity to meet each other, they subsequently got married and started a family with a child, whereupon Douglas became the president of F&R Enterprise later that year.

When Whitney read the news and discovered that Douglas was indeed a married man, her hope was crushed by the harsh truth, as if the universe had collapsed around her. Seeing the family of three in the picture, she could see Douglas carrying a little girl in his arms while Emily was seen wrapping her arms around the man’s waist.

At the same time, Douglas’ eyes were fixed on the child lovingly. They look like a happy family. Whitney continued to stare at her monitor screen in an absent-minded manner until she brought her wandering mind back to reality moments later.

 

Chapter 394 Termination of the Contract

It’s time to put the past behind me and move on. Douglas is living a happy life now, and I should stay out of his hair. I did what I did back then, so I should have thought that this would happen one day. Whitney turned off her computer and lay in bed with her eyes closed. No matter how she tried to convince herself to forget about Douglas, she couldn’t stop her tears from rolling down her cheeks.

…

The next morning, Nicole arrived at Gardner Corporation wearing a decent-looking formal suit, which was unlike her usual dressing style. In fact, she had a phone call with Jaxton the night before and arranged a meeting with him that day.

Since Aimee International hadn’t dropped the charge, those people could only rely on Nicole because she was the only one who could seemingly turn the tide for them. When Nicole got to the meeting room, she was greeted by the sight of Kylie, whom she raised her eyebrows and smiled at.

With a stern look on her face, Kylie turned her attention to Jaxton and asked, “Is this what you summoned me here for? I have no business with this lady.”

In the meantime, Jaxton knew the situation would be a little intense between Nicole and Kylie, considering their opposing positions as the former and current chief designers of F&M Apparel. Nonetheless, he had no choice but to go ahead and handle the matter with precaution because of his priority to make Aimee International drop the case.

“Director Kidman, I believe you must have made up your mind by now. So, what would be your answer then?” Nicole smiled and looked at Jaxton with a mischievous expression on her face.

Despite Jaxton’s hatred for Nicole, he hid his emotions well without showing them at all because there was nothing he could do besides putting up with the lady. He then stared at Nicole and asked, “Are you sure you took care of the matter with Aimee International’s president? Does that mean they’ve agreed to drop charges?”

Nicole smiled confidently in response. “It’s up to you to believe me. If you don’t, you’re always welcome to confront them for an explanation.”

Upon hearing the lady’s words, Jaxton appeared to be a little hesitant. After all, when Nicole confidently guaranteed that she could persuade Aimee International to drop the charge, he sent his men to secretly stalk her, only to be told that nothing was wrong during the negotiation between the lady and the company.

Thus, it seemed to him that the situation would likely go in his favor in spite of his doubts and disbelief. “I trust you, of course, Miss Anderson,” Jaxton said.

Meanwhile, Kylie knitted her eyebrows in confusion when she heard the conversation between the two of them. “Why did you tell me to come here when you both were only going to talk about the case with Aimee International?” Already unhappy with her powerlessness in Gardner Corporation, Kylie was even more annoyed when she realized she had been dragged here to hear something that had nothing to do with her. I wouldn’t have come here if I had known this was what this meeting was about.

Without saying a single word, Nicole shot a gaze at Jaxton, hinting to him about the wiser choice to make between Aimee International and F&M Apparel. Therefore, Jaxton turned his attention to Kylie and apologetically said, “I’m sorry, Miss Simmons. Gardner Corporation will terminate the contract with F&M Apparel, so please pack your stuff and leave the building right now.”

As soon as Kylie heard that, her face changed because she reckoned she had been patient and tolerant enough of her limited powers in Gardner Corporation, after all. Therefore, when she was told to leave the company, she was bitterly resentful and exasperated. In fact, she was counting on the deal to consolidate her position as the chief designer of F&M Apparel since she was still new.

However, she was now dismayed when her plan was thwarted. Oh, gosh! Not only did my plan fail, but I was also cast away from Gardner Corporation before I could see my plan succeed. If word about this gets to F&M Apparel, I’m going to become a laughingstock. “You can’t do this, Director Kidman.

The deal between F&M Apparel and Gardner Corporation is bound by a contract, and there is still a month more until it expires. So, your decision is going to constitute a violation of a legal contract.”

Despite Kylie’s warning, Jaxton couldn’t care less about that as he replied, “Gardner Corporation will pay the damages to F&M Apparel as per the terms and conditions stated in the contract. So, you can rest assured about that, Miss Simmons.”

Exasperated and unhappy, Kylie glared at Nicole and gritted her teeth. “Is this your doing, Nicole?!”

Chapter 395 I Hope Our Partnership Can Bring Us Success

“Yes, I did.” Nicole chuckled and nodded directly.

The next second, Kylie abruptly rose to her feet and charged at Nicole, raising her hand as she was ready to slap her in the face. However, Nicole was no pushover who was about to let others take advantage of her as she caught Kylie’s hand in the air just in time before it hit her face.

“Why are you doing this to me, Nicole?!” Kylie questioned Nicole.

Nicole looked Kylie in the eye with an indifferent expression and puckered her lips with a smile. “Why don’t you ask yourself what you did to me earlier, Kylie?”

An annoyed Kylie gritted her teeth in response. “You left F&M Apparel yourself. I didn’t make you do that, so you can’t blame that on me!”

Hearing the lady’s words made Nicole chuckle and react with a sweet smile on her face. “Kylie, get over yourself, would you? You only could be the chief designer of F&M Apparel because I left. If you had behaved yourself ever since you came to Gardner Corporation, I wouldn’t have done anything to you. So, you’re a fake hypocrite, and that’s what exactly causes your downfall.” She shook off Kylie’s hand as soon as she finished her words.

In the meantime, Kylie blanched in her face but didn’t seem to have a choice besides embracing her fate. At the same time, she could hear buzzing in her head, overwhelmed by a strong wave of dizziness. Deep down, she was picturing her pathetic ending when she returned to F&M Apparel after everyone knew she was cast away from Gardner Corporation. “No… You can’t do this to me…”

Nevertheless, Nicole took a step back and decided not to argue with Kylie any further. Instead, she turned her attention to Jaxton and said, “Alright. I suppose you won’t have any trouble handling the rest of the matters, will you, Director Kidman? I shall get going now. Once the contract with F&M Apparel has been terminated, you’ll receive some good news.” Nicole walked away upon finishing her sentence.

When Kylie saw Nicole leaving, she immediately caught up to Nicole and seized her hand, but the woman did not stop in her tracks. Instead, she ignored her and shook her hand in an unkind way.

Not long after that, Gardner Corporation paid a penalty sum to F&M Apparel as soon as it terminated the deal with the latter, whereupon Aimee International dropped the charge as promised. Then, Aimee International’s president even swung by Gardner Corporation to pay Colton a visit.

On the other hand, Colton was sitting in the president’s office and leaning on his chair in a casual manner while gazing at the gorgeous lady in front of him with a smile. “Thank you so much for your help, President Phoenix.”

Nevertheless, Emily didn’t react to the man in a friendly manner. Instead, she squinted and gave him a harsh reply. “The reason Aimee International has decided to work with your company is because we believe the potential ‘Ann’ has in penetrating the domestic market. Besides that, our company has chosen yours to work with because of one woman—Nicole Anderson.” She sized up Colton and added, “In fact, you have her to thank because it was her who persuaded me to drop the case against Gardner Corporation!”

However, Colton continued to smile without showing any signs of anger, although he didn’t seem to show any other types of emotions. Soon, he nodded and replied, “I know that. I heard Nicole is one of the shareholders of Aimee International, and I bet she must be someone who’s been through a lot with you.”

In response to his sweet-talking, Emily only grunted in a nonchalant manner. “It was obvious that someone tried to set her up this time.”

Placing his hand on the desk, he responded with a rather submissive attitude. “I’m aware of that, but you can be rest assured knowing that I took care of it, President Kidman.”

Meanwhile, Emily knew how little weight her every word carried in front of the handsome man as she kept her eyes on his good looks. Although Colton’s words sounded like a spoilsport that ruined her mood, she restrained herself from rubbing him the wrong way, knowing it wouldn’t do Nicole any good.

After all, Nicole was probably going to stay in the country, where she would likely continue working in Gardner Corporation.

At the thought of that, Emily stood up and shot a gaze at Colton before taking her eyes off him. “President Gardner, I’m going to pretend that this incident was a misunderstanding. Aimee International will continue its cooperation with Gardner Corporation. I hope our partnership can bring us success.”

Chapter 396 Kylie’s Grudge

On the other hand, Kylie left Gardner Corporation as soon as the company stopped its deal with F&M Apparel. Before leaving the building, she confronted Nicole, not thinking the latter would humiliate her so badly, even though she had already left F&M Apparel.

In fact, she insistently flew all the way from home to Gardner Corporation because she wanted to demonstrate her authority and took advantage of Nicole. However, she was dismayed because not only did her plan fail, but she also had to leave Gardner Corporation with no choice.

As F&M Apparel was considered one of the best few companies in the fashion industry, Kylie was embarrassed about the way she had to leave Gardner Corporation. At the thought of that, she felt so exasperated that she almost had a heart attack. “Nicole, why won’t you leave me alone even after you left F&M Apparel?!” Kylie gave Nicole an evil stare, glaring at her with a pair of eyes full of hatred.

However, Nicole only stared at Kylie in an amused manner, finding her words funny. How am I the one who won’t leave her alone? She then raised her voice with a sarcastic smile on her face. “Get off your high horse, Kylie! You and I both know why you came to Gardner Corporation.”

While Kylie and Joanna had been colluding with each other to secretly plot against Nicole all the time, she wasn’t so dumb that she didn’t realize what they were up to.

“Stop acting like a coward, Nicole! I dare you to face me fair and square!” Kylie gritted her teeth, denying what she had done before, as her hatred had blinded her from seeing her mistakes. Deep down, she still couldn’t get over the fact that she was about to become a laughingstock the moment she returned to F&M Apparel.

Thanks to this idiotic lady, I’m now out of Gardner Corporation before I even have the chance to reap the benefits during my time here. Damn it! I’m going to have a hard time living that down.

Nevertheless, Nicole was tired of arguing with Kylie since the latter would no longer be in Gardner Corporation anyway. Happy about the peace she was finally going to have in Kylie’s absence, she calmly replied, “Every word that comes out of your mouth right now doesn’t mean anything at all. So, the door is right there, and please leave the place as soon as possible.” She then walked away without even bothering to look at Kylie.

Damn you, Nicole! Kylie had her eyes glued to Nicole, who was disappearing from her sight, gritting her teeth in a mad manner, yet there was not a single thing she could do besides returning to F&M Apparel.

Not long after Kylie was gone, Aimee International dropped the charge against Gardner Corporation just as Nicole and Joanna returned to the company as usual.

Although Joanna thought Nicole would seize the opportunity to cast her away from the company too, she was surprised that she was allowed to stay. The moment she arrived in the office, she heard her colleagues discussing Kylie’s departure, as well as the end of the cooperation between Gardner Corporation and F&M Apparel. However, even without a single hint, she could tell that Nicole was behind the recent happenings.

…

After taking care of the matter with Aimee International, Nicole immediately got prepared for her next target—Pierre—although she hadn’t seemed to identify anything wrong with him thus far.

Earlier on, Nicole managed to make a name for herself following the successful surgery that she performed on Benedict. After all, no medical team that was hired had ever come close to finding a cure to the older man’s illness, but Nicole surpassed the adversities and rose to the occasion all by herself.

After the successful surgery, she was widely known as a skilled doctor, no longer living in White’s shadows. Little did she know that the fame that her surgery gave her, coupled with the fact that she was White’s disciple, would later help her earn a place in a medical research project team.

When Pierre learned about the news, he was angry and frustrated. After all, he had always wanted to be involved in the medical research project but failed to do so even though he had pulled many strings.

Therefore, he promised Bryan to orchestrate Benedict’s death, not just for money but also to do Bryan a favor so that he could help him join the medical research project team.

However, his plan was thwarted when Nicole was the one who got into the project team. Thinking about that, Pierre felt his heart beating like a jackhammer while cursing Nicole deep down.

If it hadn’t been for Nicole, I would have been White’s disciple long ago, and if that had happened, I would be the most famous doctor by now instead of being stuck in a state like that.

 

Chapter 397 The Hacker

While there was a horrible pandemic in Espad, the medical research team, which was tasked with inventing the vaccine, didn’t have to visit the country. Instead, they were only required to collect some samples to carry on with their studies.

Thus, it was only a matter of time before the vaccine could be successfully synthesized and created. For that, any new member who joined the research team would technically be entitled to the credit should the vaccine turn out to be a success, even without having to do anything.

What has she done to deserve a place on the research team?! What has she done?! Why did Nicole get to join the team while I didn’t?! This isn’t fair at all! I should have dragged Nicole down back when my reputation was ruined.

In fact, Pierre spent a huge amount of money to bribe those who were rescued by White in order to pressure the great doctor into accepting him as his disciple. He then visited White and made it clear to the old man that he could help him take care of his problem if he agreed to accept him as his disciple. However, White didn’t give in to him and gave him a harsh lecture instead.

While White was a dead man now, Nicole was the only person left standing in Pierre’s way. Thus, he swore to himself that he would get rid of the lady. Hmph! I smeared White’s name and caused his death back then, so I could do that again to bring you down, Nicole. Pierre curled his lips and smiled sinisterly at the thought of that. Soon, you’ll have a taste of a fate worse than death.

…

Meanwhile, Nicole had been traveling between her company, the medical research facility, and her home ever since she joined the medical research team. While she had already submitted her draft for ‘Ann’, there was nothing much she had to be busy with other than attending a few meetings about the project.

When Nicole was still under White’s tutelage, she had the privilege of studying many different medicines. Although she hadn’t been in this line of work for years, she was somehow able to pick it up fast as soon as she returned to the medical field.

While the medical research team was full of elites and talented people, Nicole was treated with respect instead of disdain since White was a highly revered figure in the medical world. Therefore, they respected Nicole just as much as they respected White.

As Nicole had been living her life at a faster pace recently, she unknowingly neglected her son, Hayden. Realizing that, she began to wonder if Hayden was acting strangely because she neglected him. Not only was her son seen around his laptop all the time, but he also didn’t show any response at all sometimes when she came back.

Eventually, Nicole grew increasingly worried about her son and decided to ask Whitney about it. “Why does Hayden always appear to be carrying his computer? What’s wrong with him? What did you teach him recently?”

Upon hearing Nicole’s question, Whitney knew what Hayden was probably doing but found it hard to explain it to Nicole. After all, she couldn’t tell Nicole that her son, Hayden, was actually the legendary hacker known as ‘Nick’, fearing she would blame her for that.

In fact, Whitney was merely just giving it a shot when she first started teaching Hayden about hacking, only to be surprised at how outstanding progress the boy showed in his learning.

Before she knew it, Hayden had already surpassed her level and become an extraordinary hacker who could even search for something that Whitney couldn’t.

Whitney soon responded with an awkward look on her face, pondering for a while before she replied, “Well, maybe Hayden just wants to play some games.” Deep down, she knew Hayden was probably handling some assignments, which were mostly international projects that involved many shady deals.

When Whitney first found that out, she was so shocked that she nearly screamed at the top of her lungs. Oh, dear! If this goes on, this boy is going to be a guy for hire in hacking for any crime lord. If it weren’t for his exceptional hacking skills, I bet the assassins would have discovered his whereabouts and shot him dead.

Knowing how complicated it was to be involved in those shady deals, Whitney was well aware that things could go awry with one wrong move.

After all, Hayden could easily make himself the target of his employer’s enemy by simply accepting the task. Therefore, she was convinced that no one was to be trusted in the underworld.

Nevertheless, Nicole stared at Whitney doubtfully, her eyes filled with distrust and skepticism.

Chapter 398 Caught Red-Handed

Soon, Whitney quickly realized that her feeble excuse wasn’t going to fool Nicole, but since she couldn’t think of anything else to say, she rubbed her nose and said, “Miss Nicole, perhaps it’s better for you to ask Hayden himself…”

Noticing Whitney’s hesitance, Nicole was starting to think there was something serious both of them were hiding from her. She then squinted and glared at Whitney, who felt goosebumps running all over her scalp. Since Nicole used to be a leader in her company, her gaze was so commanding and intimidating that Whitney began to feel panicky. She then spoke with a soft voice. “Miss Nicole…”

“Fine,” Nicole responded glacially as she continued to stare at Whitney.

“Miss Nicole, I think it’s better for you to ask Hayden yourself because I’m not really sure what he’s been doing either.” Whitney’s words gave away the guilt in her heart. If I had known this would happen, I wouldn’t even have thought of teaching Hayden how to hack. How gutsy of that guy to work for anyone from the underworld?! If anyone finds out about him, he could pay the price with his life.

Meanwhile, Nicole could tell from Whitney’s stammer that her son had something he was hiding from her. “Tell me what you know, and I’ll let you off, or we can do this the hard way until you talk. Think carefully before you choose.” Nicole glared at Whitney.

While Whitney was helpless upon hearing Nicole’s response, the reason she was hesitant to reveal what Hayden had been up to was not because of her reluctance but because she had no idea where to start. However, she soon made up her mind and answered, “Miss Nicole, I taught Hayden how to hack earlier, but he’s proven himself to be rather exceptional and talented in that line of work. A few months later, I ran out of things to teach him, and he now does everything by himself, much to my surprise.”

It was only when Nicole heard Whitney’s words that she realized how talented Hayden was in hacking. Although she had always known how exceptionally smart her son was, she didn’t know Hayden had a hidden talent for hacking. As soon as she heard Whitney’s words, she turned around and walked away.

In the meantime, Whitney was left behind, watching Nicole leave just as she was about to say something. Nevertheless, she swallowed the words that were forming at the tip of her tongue when she noticed how hasty her footsteps were. Fine, I guess I’d better stay out of their hair. After all, that’s a business between Miss Nicole and her son.

Not long after that, Nicole arrived at Hayden’s room and opened the door, whereupon she was greeted by the sight of the boy with his eyes glued to the computer screen. Besides that, Hayden appeared to be typing really fast on his keyboard, seemingly handling something pretty urgent. At the same time, Hayden was shocked when he heard the door open. At the sight of his mother, he frantically tried to switch off the computer, only to have his hand caught by Nicole, who squinted and looked at him bewilderedly. Seconds later, Hayden smiled and gazed at his own mother. “Mommy, why didn’t you knock before you came in?”

Staring at Hayden’s fake smile, Nicole was speechless as she shifted her gaze to the computer, only to see nothing but the wallpaper. With a glacial expression on her face, Nicole ordered her son with a soft voice to show her what had been keeping him so occupied until she came in. “Show me what you were doing.”

On the other hand, Hayden was seen with a stiffened look on his face, trying to play dumb in front of his mother. “Mommy, what are you talking about? How come I don’t understand a single word you’re saying?”

Noticing the innocent look of the boy, Nicole reckoned she would have been fooled by Hayden’s childish appearance if she hadn’t heard Whitney’s words. She then grunted and folded her arms. “Hayden, I didn’t know you’re such a good hacker. How come you didn’t tell me anything about it?”

When Hayden heard his mother, his face changed. Oh god! I’m so screwed up. I guess Mom knows everything. At the thought of that, he kept his head down without saying a single word. Nevertheless, Nicole continued to stare at Hayden for a short while before she reacted with a soft voice.

“Hayden, I don’t have a problem with what you’re doing. Do you know that? You could have told me about it instead of keeping me in the dark.”

 

Chapter 399 The Rich Boy

As Hayden heard Nicole’s words, he looked up and gazed at her for a while before he confessed, “I was afraid you wouldn’t like what I was doing.”

Nicole let out a sigh and slowly sat down beside Hayden. She then wrapped her arms around her son and caressed his head, explaining seriously, “Of course, I won’t interfere with what you like doing, Hayden, but at your age, I’m worried that you may not be careful enough to foresee the consequences that follow your actions. So, if you let me know ahead, I could at least do something to back you up should anything go wrong.”

Upon hearing his mother’s clarification, Hayden was overwhelmed by his guilt. In fact, the reason he had been keeping Nicole in the dark about his identity as a hacker was that the assignments that he had been working with involved confidential intel, which was enough to spark a gang war in the underworld. Therefore, one wrong move could invite disasters that cost a life.

Nonetheless, Hayden was confident with his own capability that he wouldn’t expose his whereabouts to his enemies. “I only accepted these assignments because I wanted to become a really, really rich boy and give you a good life. In that case, you won’t have to work anymore,” Hayden answered.

Nicole fixed her gaze on the child for a minute. “Are all these assignments complicated?” she asked, to which Hayden nodded in response. Helpless, Nicole pondered for a moment and added, “You must stay safe, Hayden. If you can promise me that while doing what you’re doing righteously, I will not interfere with your business.”

When Hayden heard Nicole’s reply, he suddenly felt a lump in his throat. Back when he was younger, Nicole always left home early and came back late. Thus, he knew his mother had sacrificed a lot for him, which was why he started making money as soon as he picked up his hacking skills from Whitney. After all, he wanted to make enough money to live a comfortable life with his mother. While he thought Nicole wouldn’t understand his situation, he was stunned to realize that Nicole didn’t mind what he was doing at all.

Therefore, he instantly felt guilty, thinking he shouldn’t have kept her in the dark about his secret. With his head kept down, he began to reveal everything to Nicole honestly. “Mommy, I’ve actually been accepting jobs since a year ago. The name that I go by is ‘Nick’, but no one else knows about that besides you and Miss Whitney.”

Nick?! Nicole couldn’t believe her ears. Although she was not familiar with the line of work in which her son was involved, she had heard about Nick’s name as the person behind the name was deemed to be the best hacker there was.Then, Nicole was reminded of the time that Zachary tried to search for more information about Hayden when she was still in F&M Apparel.

Oh, man! I wonder how old those elite hackers would be after all the time they spent learning to hack.

At the thought of that, Nicole was stunned when the person she had been wondering about was, in fact, her son. With her eyes wide open and her mouth largely agape, she couldn’t seem to calm herself down and asked, “Hayden, tell me how much you’ve made so far.”

Hayden looked down and roughly went through his balance, eventually calculating his revenue to be approximately ten billion. He then turned his attention to Nicole and answered, “About ten billion.”

Wait, what?! Nicole was left with her mouth wide agape when she heard the boy’s answer. After all, she had always thought she had a successful career that paid her well and was sure she could live comfortably for the rest of her life with her son, but when Hayden revealed how much money he had been making, she realized her son was better at making money than she was.

It’s only been a year, but he’s already made so much money. Nicole sat on the bed for a few moments before she could accept the truth. She then covered her forehead helplessly and let out a sigh, finding it ironic the fact that her son was richer than she was.

With a brittle smile on her face, Nicole wasn’t sure whether she should be happy or sad about that.

Chapter 400 Surprise

“T-That’s awesome, Hayden.” Nicole eventually spoke the words that were forming at the tip of her tongue, complimenting her son begrudgingly.

In the meantime, Hayden seized his mother’s arm and scrutinized her reaction for a while before he asked, “Are you sure you’re not going to be mad, Mommy?”

Nicole reacted by hugging Hayden, speaking in a serious manner, “Of course not.” While Hayden had always been a mature child to her since he was younger, Nicole didn’t come by her success overnight. Instead, she went through a lot before she got this far, sailing through many hardships even when she had to raise Hayden all by herself.

Despite all the challenging adversities, Nicole was proud of herself for having surpassed every single one of them to create a better life for herself and her son. “Why would I be, Hayden?

I’m happy to have such a brilliant son like you, on the other hand,” Nicole smiled and said, finally understanding why Hayden was seen to be around his laptop all the time. So he’s been accepting jobs lately. No wonder he was always with his laptop.

“I’m glad that you’re not mad, Mommy. Actually, the reason I didn’t tell you that was because I was afraid that you would get worried. I didn’t hide it from you intentionally.”

Hayden acted like a kid who had just been caught red-handed for misbehaving, speaking carefully with every word that came out of his mouth while looking at Nicole.

Nevertheless, Nicole didn’t berate her son but was instead calm upon learning about Hayden’s secret. “I’m happy that my son is such a genius.” After knowing her son was a talented hacker, Nicole went ahead and asked Hayden to search for the patients White got in touch with when he was being framed.

Meanwhile, Hayden’s face turned sour when he heard about the assignment his mother gave him. While it wasn’t a tough job, it was troublesome for the child to search for the information Nicole wanted, which could complicate the searching process. However, Hayden agreed to help his mother, who rewarded him with candy. Thus, Hayden put the candy in his mouth and proceeded to start typing on his keyboard.

…

For the next few days, Nicole was busy doing her work in the medical research facility. When she was previously under White’s tutelage, she had many experiences studying various types of drugs and medicines. Therefore, her presence in the research team largely contributed to the progress. After all, she was able to offer a lot of insights and advice to the team as the members struggled to keep up with their schedules.

While the vaccine was expected to be created in three months, they hadn’t even reached 10% of the progress after a month. Nevertheless, Nicole’s contribution helped the team speed up their progress by prompting them to run tests in the direction she suggested.

To everyone’s surprise, the result they obtained was positive. Impressed with how Nicole’s opinion could benefit them so much, the research team members were even happier to have her on board. Because of the huge breakthrough, the atmosphere in the research facility was lightened up as everyone was permitted to take a day off.

When Nicole returned home, she spent her time going through the information Hayden found and compiled for her. In fact, Hayden had managed to identify the person whom White’s patients met before the protest with the help of some data surveys.

While the person was not Pierre, it was instead a man who was tall and skinny. Hayden then found a video of the man and showed it to Nicole, whose face turned pale when she made out his face.

This man! He is my mentor’s junior—Norman Clancy! Unable to believe her eyes, Nicole struggled to convince herself that Norman would do something like that because he was close to White back then.

No way! How can this be?! As her lips shook, she squinted and pondered for a second, whereupon she shivered and speculated about why Norman was seen there. “Perhaps he was there to do an interview or something…”

Upon noticing the pale look on his mother’s face, Hayden quickly went through the other videos until he found a few shots that could seem to give her some useful clues. In the video, Norman was seen holding a huge paper bag in which the content was unidentified before he gave it to the patients’.