Chapter 40

A sharp jolt ran down Fred's spine. It felt like a cold gust had cut through him. He realized that the situation was spiraling out of control. Sweat began to gather across his back.

He tried to keep himself steady, though his voice betrayed him. "M-Mr. Cullen, what does Mr. Owen want to discuss with me? Maybe we could talk about this inside?"

Alistair, stone-faced and unreadable, unlocked his tablet and pulled up a file. "In line with the addendum under Article 7, the Owen Group has the right to immediately end ties with any party guilty of misconduct." He looked up, sharp and direct. His stare struck like a blade. "Mr. Dury, your comments about Miss Kirk already count as a breach."

Fred's legs gave way a little. He staggered, nearly falling. He grabbed hold of Casper's arm, clutching it with such desperation that his nails nearly broke skin "Mr. Kirk! W Rylie really... Is she really...?"

Casper's lips trembled. But no words came. Fred clung to a small thread of hope. "Couldn't there be some kind of mistake? Rylie really is... an Owen? My wife picked her up from some remote town. There's no way she's tied to that family."

Alistair's voice cut in, laced with scorn. "Are you questioning the Owen family's credibility? Miss Rylie Kirk was confirmed through DNA. Mr. Kendrick Owen personallyverifiedthat. she'shis missing granddaughter."

Casper stood frozen. His skin turned a pale shade of grey. "How is this even real..."

Not long ago, the Kirk family not only expelled Rylie but also publicly humiliated her over supposed conduct issues. All of this must have been seen by the Owen family.

Casper's knees buckled. He almost couldn't stay upright.

"This can't be true! She's nothing more than a fake the Kirk family has raised for two decades!" Fred shouted.His face twisted in panic.

He scrambled to find his phone. "I need to call Mr.Owen right now! This whole thing must be some kind of error!"

Alistair let out a low, humorless laugh and nodded at the nearby guards. "Mr. Owen wanted me to make this clear. The Dury family is fully accountable for the emotional damage his sister suffered after the broken engagement."

He tapped the tablet again. Fred's phone buzzed right away."The Owen Group is canceling the entire three -hundred-million deal. The forty million you invested upfront will now be seized as a penalty."

Fred's jaw dropped. "Forty million?!" The phone slipped from his hands and hit the floor.

He just stood there, stunned. That was half of Dury Group's working capital for the year. How could he possibly explain this to his family?

A thought struck him. He turned toward the elevator and slammed his palm against the button. "Rylie! Rylie!Come out here and explain yourself! Tell me who you really are! Say something-"

Before he could get another word out, two bodyguards yanked him back. They tossed him out the front door. Casper followed right behind, both men thrown out together like trash.

Alistair stepped out of the building and glanced down at the two men on the pavement. "Mr. Dury,your reputation as a womanizer is known all over Crolens.Do you actually believe that deal was yours because of merit? If Mr. Felix Owen hadn't held affection for his younger sister- who already had a childhood engagement with you- you wouldn't have gotten anywhere hear this project."

His lip curled as he kept going. "And yet, you had the nerve to cancel the engagement with Miss Kirk? You had everything handed to you, and you threw it away.That's not bold. That's just stupid."

Fred's vision began to blur. A wave of heat rose in his chest. He coughed, spit out blood, and collapsed on the ground.

Casper stood frozen. The blow had left him speechless.

Rylie stepped onto the tenth floor and followed the secretary down the hallway to Deandre's office.

Just then, a side door flew open. A striking woman with tight curls and a sharp outfit stepped into the hallway,her face clouded with irritation.

She took off her sunglasses, snatched the secretary by the arm, and snapped, "I've been sitting here for three hours. Where's Deandre? Why won't he see me?"

The secretary ducked her head. "Miss Johnson, please try not to make things difficult. Mr. Owen is still tied up. It might be better to return another day."

"I just talked to Paola. She told me Deandre isn't meeting with anyone important today," said Fiona Johnson, folding her arms."So should I believe you or his cousin"

"You can call Mr. Owen yourself if you like," the secretary answered politely

Fiona's stare darted to Rylie. She studied her face,her posture,her poise-and felt her stomach drop."Who is she? What is she doing here?"

"I'm sorry," said the secretary softly. "That's confidential."

Hearing that, Fiona jumped to conclusions, assuming that Deandre had found someone new just after breaking up with her, causing her eyes to redden.

Rylie caught the emotion on Fiona's face but didn't slow her pace. She walked right past and entered the CEO's office.

Shaken and uneasy, Fiona immediately called Paola."He's refusing to meet me. Could you please talk to him for me?"

Paola took a moment before answering, "That's not something I can do. If Deandre doesn't want to meet,no one can change his mind. If he's made up his mind,you'll just have to accept it."

"How am I supposed to accept this?" Fiona said, voice rising. "I just watched a young woman walk into his office!"

Paola sounded impatient now. "Fiona, Deandre is rarely home. He's been around beautiful women all year long. You should've known this would happen when you got involved with someone like him."