Chapter 200
Celena was no one's fool. The sman who looked at her with barely concealed contempt yesterday was now offering apologies with a bowed head. Without someone's intervention, such a sudden shift in attitude seemed impossible.
And then there was last night. After waking from her sleep, she realized Liam slipped out secretly, which planted a seed of dread in her thoughts.
Could it be that Liam's nocturnal escapade was to seek out Mr. Adams?
Hayes's expression turned to stone when he heard her, momentarily caught off guard, but he quickly recovered, his smile returning as he hastily explained, "No, no one cto me! You're reading too much into it. I just had a change of heart. I realized Mr. Yafe Stone and his crew aren't exactly the best company. I figured I'd be better off throwing in my lot with you."
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtCelena could read between the lines, but Hayes was holding back. However, she didn't press him, instead following him into the factory.
Meanwhile, Cheryl made arrangements with a factory worker, offering a calm $10,000 to keep tabs on Celena and Hayes. As he watched the pair make their way into the factory, he stepped aside to update Cheryl with a quick phone call.
"Ms. Cheryl Stone, Celena, and Hayes just walked into the factory."
"What did you see? Anything out of the ordinary after their meeting?"
Cheryl leaned forward in her office chair, urgency lacing her voice.
"No, nothing out of the ordinary. It's just- Hayes is acting like a completely different person. He apologized to Celena in front of a crowd."
The employee's response was tinged with disbelief, his confusion evident. Was Hayes struck by sstrange epiphany?
Cheryl's eyes snapped wide open, her brows knitting together as she let out a grunt and ended the call. She sat back, lost in thought. What in the world happened to make Hayes do a complete one- eighty overnight? Just yesterday, he was hurling insults at Celena, vowing to teach her a lesson, and then he was publicly apologizing.
"Dad, Hayes apologized to Celena in front of everyone!"
"What?! How did that happen? That opportunistic weasel, Hayes, he's always dismissed Celena as a nobody. Why would he apologize?"
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmYafe's face was a picture of bewilderment as he sat on the couch, his features contorted in confusion.
Sherah's expression mirrored his shock, quickly turning to disdain. "No way. Celena couldn't pull that off on her own. There's got to be sheavy hitter backing her. Did she manage to charm sbigwig?"
Yafe pondered Sherah's suggestion, then spat out with conviction, "Absolutely. That little tramp, utterly shameless, dragging my nthrough the mud! Cheryl, you need to get close to Celena in the coming days. Find out if she's got a heavyweight in her corner. If you can dig up sproof, I'd love to see how this brazen woman thinks she can waltz into the company and take over as the head honcho!"
Cheryl grimaced, emitting a reluctant grunt.
"Understood!"
Meanwhile, Liam set out early with Jovie, making a beeline for the local car dealership.
Those days, Celena was always in a rush, dashing to catch the bus. The Stones had a car, and initially, Celena inquired about using it. However, she was always told it was either out for groceries or running errands. After a couple of rejections, Celena caught on that they were intentionally giving her a hard time. She stopped asking and resigned herself to the daily grind of commuting by bus.