Chapter 48
“From now on, if someone bullies you, don’t just take it. Fight back, just like you did this time!” Anne firmly held Cassie’s hand. “But don’t take risks like this again. You need to tell your father, Grandpa, and me, understood?”
“Yes,” Cassie nodded.
“What should we do about the gardener?” Lucas asked.
They had let Julia, the mastermind, go, and now handling the gardener had become an issue.
Cassie raised an eyebrow slightly. “Let him go.”
“Letting him go just like that seems too lenient. Heston clearly disagreed
“Evil people will get their comeuppance eventually, Cassie said meaningfully.
The three adults of the Murphy family exchanged puzzled looks.
In the end, they decided to follow Cassie’s advice and let the gardener go.
Julia was thrown out of the Murphy residence. It was broad daylight, and people were passing by.
-Holding back her rage, Julia stopped cursing and muttered, “Cassie, just you wait!”
She shot a fierce glare at the Murphy residence and turned to leave.NôvelDrama.Org (C) content.
“Ms. Cortez!” At this moment, the gardener suddenly appeared from somewhere.
Julia got angrier at the sight of him.
She yelled, “Why are you even coming near me? You fool, wasn’t I clear that you should flee after finishing the job? How could you get caught!”
“I did exactly as you
d-finished i
completed the job, and according job and fled!” The gardener said, extending his hand toward Julia. “Ms. Cortez, I’ve
to our agreement, you still have to pay me 160 thousand dollars.”
“After messing up the job, you still want the final payment?” Julia sneered. ‘Are you dreaming in broad daylight?”
“Whether your scheme succeeded or not is none of my concern Pay up now!” The gardener, being a scoundrel, was scared stiff at the Murphy family just now, and he blamed Julia for it all
“I have no money!” said Julia impatiently. “Not only am I not paying the final amount, but you also need to return the money I gave you earlier since you messed up my plans.”
“Are you trying to back out on the payment now?” The gardener’s face was full of rage as he slapped Julia. “Because of you, I lost the high-paying job I worked so hard to get and almost ended up in jail. And now you’re trying to avoid paying? You huh?” even want me to return the money, With his anger at a boiling point and nowhere to vent, the gardener, furious with Julia’s arrogance, started hitting her.
Julia, delicate and small, was easily knocked to the ground. The gardener showed no sign of stopping and kicked her several thes on the back and stomach.
Then he warned, “**h! You better be careful. If I don’t get the 160 thousand dollars within three days, I’ll go report myself to the police and drag you down with me!” He had been planning to use the 160 thousand dollars for a better life.
Now that Julia refused to pay up, his dreams of a better future were shattered.
After kicking Julia a few more times to vent his rage, he spat on her and cursed loudly, “You’ve already been screwed by others, and you still dare to act tough with me!”
After hurling another vile curse, the gardener left Julia and stormed off.
Julia, greatly frightened, lay on the ground, unable to move.
The Murphy family’s bodyguards stood by, pretending to see nothing.
“Son of a b**h!” Julia clenched her fists and s***ed to her fert
She glared furiously at the direction the gardener had left, her eyes filled with murderous intent. “Want money, huh? I’ll see if you live to spend it!’ she thought.
Soon, the Murphy family issued the announcement.
It was simple and straightforward. It stated that, effective immediately, the Murphy family was terminating their adoption relationship with their adopted daughter, Julia Cortez.
Given that Julia had been in the spotlight recently, by evening, the announcement had made it to the trending topics.
After learning about these events, Heston was somewhat shaken. Cassie had stayed by his side all day.
She knew that her parents and grandpa had always been sincere towards Julia.
They had treated her like one of their own children, nurturing and caring for her.
As night approached, Julia responded to the Murphy family’s announcement on Twitter.
“She still dares to respond? Is she making false claims about my sweetheart again?” Heston asked angrily.
Cassie glanced at the tweet with a hint of mockery in her eyes. “She doesn’t dare.”
Then she handed the phone to Heston.
Heston took a look at it, his brows furrowing even more.
Julia Cortez: [I’m sorry for bringing my personal issues to Twitter recently. I am very grateful for the education and support from Grandpa Heston and Uncle Lucas over the years. This year as I turn eighteen, after much consideration, 1 have decided to step out from under their protection and try to live independently, rather than being a parasite in a wealthy family. Please don’t read too much into this. I wish everyone a happy life.]
“What does she mean by this?” Heston asked in a deep voice.
“It’s probably a last resort. Cassie took back the phone. “With my warning, she doesn’t dare to make any moves against the Murphy family for now. But now that the announcement about ending the adoption relationship has been released, there were many opinions online-some targeting us, others questioning whether she is to blame for this. She didn’t want to appear as if she was kicked out, and she also didn’t dare to offend us, so she posted this. I bet she was fuming while typing.”
“Instead of enjoying a good life, she just had to stir up trouble!” Heston said angrily.
“It’s all in the past. Cassie comforted him softly.
She thought, ‘Yes, it was all in the past. No matter how powerful Julia thinks she is, she will never rise to the top again in this lifetime. She won’t even have any connections with powerful people again, let alone be able to harm my family, who is far above her.’
Then she said, “Grandpa, there is one more thing I want to discuss with you.”
“What is it?” Heston immediately became alert. “Is there something else you’re hiding from us!”
Cassie smiled helplessly and said, “Relax. It’s just that the SATs are coming up. I’m wasting too much time commuting every day, and recently, there have been people blocking my car at the door from time to time. So, I’m thinking of staying in the school dormitory before the exam and just going home on weekends.”
“School dormitory?” Heston frowned. “No, that’s too dangerous, not living at home.”
“Grandpa, after what happened today, do you still think your granddaughter is someone others can bully easily!” Cassie held Heston’s hand and said, “I’m the granddaughter of a savvy business veteran like you. No one can harm me.”
After a long silence, Heston said. “I’ll discuss it with your parents.
She was in danger even while at home. How much more dangerous would it be for her to stay in a dormitory alone? Heston imagined a horrible scene with poisonous snakes and fierce beasts lurking outside Cassie’s dormitory door.
The adults started discussing whether to let Cassie stay in the school dormitory.
Cassie returned to her room, preparing to take a shower and read a book when her phone buzzed with a notification.
She picked it up and saw a friend request. [I’m Kevin Hopkins.]