Chapter 169

Chapter 169

"Whatever you need to say, say it over the phone. I'm busy." Wendy said coldly.

She had no desire to have anything more to do with the Moore family.

John was technically the head of the family, but he always sent Shirley to deal with her instead. He had no sense of responsibility whatsoever.

When problems arose with the projects she used to oversee, he would just drag his feet until the clients had no choice but to come to her directly for help.

At first it didn't happen that often, so Wendy was willing to help. But as it kept happening, John realized he could always count on her to bail him out.

So he stopped worrying. Nothing would go wrong anyway.

Wendy had seen right through John. Once all the projects tied to her were wrapped up, she was done with his family for good.

Shirley sounded like she was on the verge of tears. "Wendy, just come down for a bit. I really need to talk to you in person."

"Please. I'm begging you."

Wendy gave in. She handed off her work and headed downstairs.

She spotted Shirley sitting by the window of a coffee shop, mindlessly stirring her cup.

"What did you want to see me about? Go ahead." Wendy got straight to the point.

"Wendy, do you think you could help me find a job?"

Shirley had become completely useless at home. She had no clue about the collaboration with Ford Group. And after being locked up that one time, John had started to look down on her and flat-out refused to let her learn the ropes at the company.

Her allowance had been cut off too. She was truly out of options.

"You want me to find you a job? Are you serious?" Wendy was speechless.

No matter how bad things got, John wouldn't let her starve. And even if John really washed his hands of her, there was still Lisa.

Shirley tearfully told her everything that had been going on lately. Both her and Lisa's spending money depended entirely on John's mood, and even their monthly allowance had been cut in half — nowhere near enough to get by.

John had also been staying out all night. Lisa had followed him once and found out he had a mistress.

Lisa went straight home and caused a huge scene, which only made John furious.

They had a massive fight, and John even said that his company would be passed down to his son one day.

Shirley was no longer of any use to him. For all they knew, John's illegitimate child might already have been born.

Shirley was sobbing uncontrollably, barely able to catch her breath.

Wendy hadn't expected things to turn out this way. In the past, no matter how many women John fooled around with, he would never have had an illegitimate child. He cared too much about his reputation to ever let something like that tarnish it.

But now it seemed like he had truly given up on both Lisa and Shirley.

Wendy wasn't completely heartless. She let out a sigh. "I'll keep an eye out."

"Thank you, Wendy. I know I did wrong before. I know that now. Can you forgive me?" Shirley's eyes were wet, her whole face red and puffy.

Wendy pressed her lips together. "It's all in the past. Just focus on living well from here on out. No need to bring up old things."

She had found her birth parents, had a real home, had everything she needed. The past didn't matter to her anymore.

A new life was waiting for her. It would be foolish to stay stuck in what was behind her.

Shirley looked at Wendy with gratitude. Only now did she realize how stupid she had been to go against her.

They were family. There was no reason to fight over who came out on top.

They could have gotten along just fine, worked together to run the company well — a win for both of them. Instead, she had gone out of her way to make Wendy's life difficult.

And now that Wendy was gone, Shirley hadn't gained anything from it. All she had done was make way for some illegitimate child.

Yet Wendy could still set aside the past and help her. Shirley felt like she had been completely out of her mind.

She grabbed Wendy's hand and thanked her from the bottom of her heart. "Thank you, Wendy."

She had never meant anything more sincerely than she did in that moment.

"Alright, go home and wait to hear from me. And stop crying." Wendy smiled and gave her a reassuring look.

Shirley nodded. "Okay. I'll get going then."

On her way out, Shirley accidentally knocked over her coffee cup. The coffee splashed onto her white pants, leaving a pretty noticeable stain.

Wendy saw what happened and handed Shirley her shawl. "Here, cover it up."

"Thank you." Shirley took it gratefully.

She knew the shawl wasn't cheap, so she added, "I'll wash it and give it back to you."

Wendy nodded.

Outside the coffee shop, Shirley stood at the curb trying to hail a cab. It was lunchtime, and taxis were hard to come by.

She pulled out her phone to book a ride. Before the car even arrived, a dark-colored van screeched to a stop right in front of her.

Shirley had barely looked up when someone jumped out and pressed something over her nose and mouth. She blacked out.

Her shawl slipped off and fell to the ground.

The van sped away. It was over so fast it was almost like nothing had happened at all.

Wendy finished paying inside and came out to find the shawl lying not far away. She walked over and picked it up, puzzled as to why Shirley had just left it there.

She almost thought Shirley's apology earlier had all been an act — until she noticed the phone that had fallen out from under the shawl.

Her stomach dropped. If Shirley had just tossed the shawl, that was one thing.

But why would she leave her phone behind?

That made no sense.

Wendy's heart sank. Something had gone wrong.

She quickly reached out to William to pull up the security footage. Hannah and Edward's connections were all in Bay City, so it would take them longer. William was the faster option.

Wendy didn't waste a second. She called him right away.

William picked up, listened to what had happened, and didn't hesitate for a moment. He immediately moved to get people on it.

Wendy's mind was racing. She couldn't figure out who would want to kidnap Shirley.

Could it be one of John's old rivals? But that seemed unlikely — nobody had that kind of reach. And using Shirley as leverage against John made even less sense.

She couldn't come up with anything.

William tried to calm her down. "Don't worry too much. People are already on it. We should have answers soon. Just hang tight."

"I trust you." Wendy wasn't doubting his ability.

Hannah rushed home too. "What happened?"

After hearing the whole story, Hannah finally relaxed a little. Then she noticed the shawl. "Your shawl is such a mess. I'll have Marlowe clean it for you."

The shawl.

A thought suddenly flashed through Wendy's mind. What if she had been the target all along?

What if the kidnappers had grabbed Shirley by mistake — because Shirley was wearing her shawl?

Meanwhile, on the other side of town, Shirley was jolted awake by the bumpy ride inside the van.

She forced her eyes open and looked around. Nothing but darkness.

"Who are you people? Why did you kidnap me?" Shirley's voice came out hoarse. She clenched her fists, her heart pounding with fear.

One of the men in the front seat let out a mocking laugh. "None of your business. Go back to sleep. We're not there yet."

Shirley struggled to sit up. "Where are you taking me? What do you want?"

She had only ever seen kidnappings in TV dramas. Facing it in real life — who wouldn't be terrified?