“If Caden is really that powerful and influential, why would he even bother to come back and fight for his share of the Yates family’s inheritance?” Lilliana retorted.

“Well, what if the Ward family is actually more powerful than we think?” Cedric countered.

“Like I said, why would he bother? If that’s the case, wouldn’t it make more sense for him to stay with the Ward family and bask in his current glory?” Lilliana huffed and seethed. “It even looks like he’s spent a fortune just to deal with Joshua this time around. What’s so special about Alicia, anyway? Why is Caden going to such lengths for her?”

Just then, a phone call interrupted their conversation.

It was Lilliana’s former agent.

“Lilliana!” a female voice cried out as soon as the call connected. “Something big just happened. The accounts we used to bash Alicia on social media have all been suspended, and we can’t reach the people using them. Word from the grapevine is that someone has taken control of them.”

Lilliana’s brows furrowed tightly. “Do you have any idea who it is?”

Every story starts at gⱯlnσν𝓮𝓁s﹒𝒸оm

“I’m afraid not,” the agent answered anxiously. “We’re still looking into it. Considering the uproar we caused on different online platforms, we’ll definitely be sued once we’re exposed. Also, someone posted records of your meetings with Joshua in various hotels, all while he was still married to Alicia. A bunch of netizens are already calling you his mistress. They’re stirring up a great deal of discourse as we speak.”

Lilliana was livid.

It must be Alicia again—there couldn’t have been anyone else! That bitch had gone after Joshua first, and now she was coming for Lilliana. Alicia was trying to ruin them one by one, that scheming wench!

Realizing the gravity of the situation, Cedric was even more furious than Lilliana. “What the hell did you do to that woman?” he demanded in a booming voice.

Lilliana hung up and angrily tossed her phone to the side. “That bitch, Alicia, had it coming! I just put her in her place; it’s what she deserves! How was I supposed to know everything would blow up one day?”

She turned to her father and quickly changed her tone. “You have to help me, Dad!”

Cedric let out a heavy sigh. So much was happening all at once. He was overwhelmed.

It took him a while to finally speak, and when he did, his tone was stern. “I will help you, but you must promise that once all this mess is resolved, you will leave the entertainment industry and behave yourself, once and for all. Do we have an understanding?”

Lilliana nodded vigorously, eager to agree to anything as long as it would fix the mess, as her father had called it.

Cedric stomped away, still fuming. Lilliana left soon after to go to Joshua. Despite their differences, it was clear that this issue needed immediate resolution.

“It doesn’t matter how much money we have, Joshua. We can’t afford a scandal of this magnitude! We need to shut this down before it gets worse.” Lilliana’s eyes gleamed with malice as she spoke. “We’ll have to get rid of Alicia for good. We can’t waste any more time.”

Countless cigarette butts littered the ground at Joshua’s feet. He exhaled another puff of smoke, his face contorting into an expression of pure, unbridled hatred. “I know what to do.”

Meanwhile, Caden had just arrived at Joy Mansion. He had promised Ciara he would join her for dinner that evening. As he walked out of the garage, his phone buzzed.

“I have an update on the suspect, Mr. Ward. It was all orchestrated by Jerald.”

Caden brushed the snow off his shoulders, his lips curling into a smirk.

So, the person trying to eliminate him was his own father. He wasn’t surprised, nor did he care much. “There’s no need to keep an eye on him. He won’t cause any real trouble.”

“Understood, Mr. Ward.”

Caden gave a few more instructions before hanging up.

The mansion was brightly lit, and Ciara sat gracefully in her chair, dignified and elegant, yet exuding a warmth that made the room feel cozy. When she saw Caden walk into the foyer by himself, she shifted in her seat.

“Why are you alone?” she asked calmly.

Caden took off his coat and handed it to a waiting servant. “I ended up working late, so I told Hank to head home first.”

Ciara gave him a dry look. The young man was becoming more glib these days—more cunning, too. But since Caden wasn’t keen on discussing his love life, she decided to let it go. Worried that he might be hungry, she quickly ordered the kitchen staff to serve dinner.

She had brought a trusted maid from her hometown, a woman with divine cooking skills. Every dish was tailored to Caden’s tastes.

However, Caden found the meal mediocre. The soup lacked flavor, and the stir-fried dishes were slightly undercooked.

“Have you had a check-up recently?” Ciara suddenly asked. “How were your results?”

Caden realized he hadn’t thought about his routine check-ups for a while. Since he started living with Alicia, his illness hadn’t been on his mind much. On the other hand, Ciara was constantly concerned about him.

Seeing that Caden hadn’t brought a woman home like she had hoped, Ciara figured the least he could do was ease her mind.

“I’ll go for a check-up tomorrow,” he said.

“Make sure to forward your results to me,” Ciara replied, without missing a beat. “I’d like to take a look at them myself.”

“All right.”

They ate in silence for a while. When Ciara realized Caden wasn’t going to volunteer any information, she decided to prod him.

“Have you heard from Yolanda? She mentioned she’ll be coming to Warrington in a few days.”

“Warrington is so cold this time of year,” Caden replied noncommittally. “What’s her rush?”

Ciara’s eyes narrowed meaningfully. “Are you saying that because you’re concerned for her, or is it because you don’t want her to come at all?”

Caden placed a piece of fish on her plate without saying anything. Ciara waited for a response, but he didn’t even acknowledge her question.

And Caden wasn’t going to. In the first place, he had only turned to the Moss family for help because Dorian Moss, the patriarch of the family, had once been involved in a secret project.

Despite its initial success, the project was forcibly shut down and erased because it threatened to disrupt the social order as the world knew it.

However, Caden desperately needed the knowledge and expertise that had been invested in the venture. After years of searching, he finally located Dorian, the only surviving member of the original team. With no other options, Caden had no choice but to propose a deal to the Moss family.

They claimed they wanted nothing in return and volunteered their help without any hesitation.

Caden was, therefore, taken aback when Dorian refused to meet in person. Instead, Dorian sent Yolanda, a woman he had trained for over a decade.

“Yolanda is smarter than I am, and she wants to explore the world. I entrust my daughter to you, Caden. Take good care of her,” Dorian had said.