Chapter 545

Chapter 545

"Dad."

Cecilia walked up to him and slammed a document onto the conference table.

"Before Mom died, she transferred all her shares in the Green Group to me."

Her fingers tapped lightly on the back of the chairman's leather chair.

"Now, this position is mine."

"Any objections from the board members?"

The company veterans who had been so indignant moments ago now sat in deathly silence, struck dumb.

Trent's lips trembled, unable to utter a single word.

The meeting continued in this eerie silence.

Cecilia's methods were swift and ruthless. She shot down several proposals from Trent's cronies one after another, and the atmosphere in the conference room became so oppressive—it was suffocating.

After the meeting adjourned, Drew lounged against the doorway, blocking her path.

"Cecilia, feeling pretty proud of yourself?" He stood with his hands in his pockets, radiating that spoilt rich kid arrogance. "A trashy woman dumped by some random guy, and you actually think you're somebody now? Mom just died and you're already here grabbing the family fortune. Shameless."

He moved closer step by step, his voice dropping low, malice seeping through his teeth.

"But good riddance she's dead! Should've died sooner! Saved me from her buzzing in my ear like a fly all day, driving me crazy!"

Cecilia said nothing, just quietly waited for him to finish.

Then she suddenly raised her hand and gently straightened his slightly crooked tie.

"That three million dollar gambling debt outside—the hole's getting bigger and bigger. Pretty urgent now, isn't it?"

Drew's body instantly froze.

"You... how do you know about that?"

Cecilia brushed off some non-existent dust from his shoulder, her voice so soft it was almost like sharing a secret.

"I'd advise you to be careful when you go out lately."

"Don't end up losing an arm or leg one day, dumped in the river."

"I won't have time to collect your body."

When Cecilia walked out of the Green Group Building, the midday sun was a bit blinding.

Her face showed no expression, and the icy aura that had dominated the conference room hadn't completely faded.

A black car sat quietly by the roadside. Harold leaned against the car door, looking like he'd been waiting for a while.

He didn't ask what happened in the conference room, just opened the passenger door for her.

The car was very quiet, only the faint sound of the air conditioning.

The car smoothly merged into traffic. Cecilia watched the retreating street scenes outside the window and finally spoke, her voice carrying a weariness she herself hadn't noticed.

"Am I ridiculous?"

"Taking over a place I once wanted most to escape from."

Harold kept his eyes on the road, his tone steady.

"Whatever you do, you have your reasons."

He paused, then added another sentence.

"Just don't forget you have me. You don't have to carry everything alone."

Cecilia said nothing more, just turned her head toward the window.

That phrase, "you don't have to carry everything alone," was like a stone dropped into a frozen lake, cracking open a tiny fissure in her heart.

The car didn't head to her villa, but turned at an intersection toward the suburbs.

Half an hour later, the car stopped in an amusement park parking lot.

Cecilia stared at the giant cartoon castle at the entrance, stunned.

"Get out."

Harold had already unbuckled his seatbelt and gotten out of the car.

"Today, you don't have to be anyone from the Green Group."

He bought two tickets, then picked up a headband with fluffy bunny ears from a nearby shop and put it on Cecilia's head without asking.

Cecilia instinctively wanted to take it off, but stopped halfway.

The two got into the Ferris wheel.

The cabin slowly rose, the city's outline growing smaller and smaller below, the amusement park's noisy music and laughter shut out.

"When I was little, she brought me here once too."

Cecilia looked out the window, her voice very soft.

"She planned out the route for me, from the carousel to the roller coaster. Each attraction, only fifteen minutes allowed, and when time was up, we had to move to the next one."

"I hated it."

"Only now do I realize, she just... didn't know how to be good to me."

Those defenses she'd disguised with coldness and toughness finally crumbled inch by inch in this small space suspended in mid-air.

She had never laid herself bare like this in front of anyone.

"She died, and I realized... I never really understood her."

"And now I'll never get the chance."

The grief and regret she'd suppressed for so long found an outlet in this moment.

She didn't wail, just pressed her head against the cold glass window as tears silently fell, drop by drop, hitting her black dress and quickly spreading into dark wet patches.

Her shoulders trembled uncontrollably.

Harold didn't speak, just took out a pack of tissues from his pocket, pulled one out, and placed it by her hand.

His silence was the most fitting comfort.

When they came down from the Ferris wheel, dusk was falling.

Cecilia's emotions had calmed considerably. Though her eyes were still a bit swollen, she no longer looked like she was wound so tight she might snap.

Just then, Harold's phone rang.

He looked at the caller ID—it was Aline.

"Harold!"

As soon as he answered, Aline's anxious and panicked voice burst through.

"Have you seen Elsie?"

"I haven't been able to reach her since last night. Her phone's been off!"

The warmth on Harold's face instantly vanished.

"Don't panic, tell me slowly. When was the last time she contacted you?"

"Last night! She said she was going to help Larry, and then... then Larry said Ronald took her away! That bastard! He must have hidden Elsie somewhere!"

Aline's voice was already breaking with tears.

Ronald.

Hearing Ronald's name, the pressure around Harold dropped sharply.

He hung up the phone, his eyes that usually held such warmth was now ice cold.

He turned to Cecilia, his voice heavy.

"I need to take you back first."

"Something's happened to Elsie. I have to find her right away."

The standalone villa by the sea was so quiet you could hear the waves crashing against the rocks.

Ronald brought the last dish to the table—fine tableware, warm food, everything showing care.

But the other end of the table remained empty.

Elsie sat by the grand piano near the floor-to-ceiling windows, her slender silhouette radiating an unapproachable coldness.

She didn't look at him or at the food. Her fingertips flowed across the black and white keys, playing a melody that was broken and mournful.

"Elsie."

Ronald walked over, his voice very soft, carrying a hint of pleading he himself hadn't noticed.

"Eat something first. You haven't eaten all day."

The piano music didn't stop.

She used music to build a wall he couldn't cross.

Ronald just stood behind her, watching that fragile figure as memories flooded his mind.

He remembered how she used to follow behind him, carefully calling out "Ronald."