Chapter 67 How do you intend to help?
Tonia moved away from her parents and spoke in a low tone. “Look, I’m still at the library and will call you when I get out,” she lied, but was excited about the news.
Destroying Karen would be the best thing to happen to her. If she could get Karen out of the way, then Roger’s attention would return to her because she was his first love after all.
Her greatest joy would be seeing Karen completely ruined. “What is the plan?”
After getting a hint of Loretta’s plot, Tonia smiled with satisfaction. If this works out, then Roger would be hers once again.
Later that day, Tonia dressed up and was ready to leave the house when the housekeeper, Clara, pulled her to the side. Her father had to rush off to the office due to an emergency, and her mother was taking a nap, or so she thought.
“Miss Fletcher, things aren’t going so well, so I decided to tell you the truth,” Clara said seriously. Tonia frowned deeply and asked her, “What truth?”
Clara had been good to her, doing her every bidding, so it wouldn’t be right to be rude to the housekeeper who had helped her pull all the strings against Karen.
Their plans succeeded until things turned around for Karen. Perhaps Tonia should have found a way to make Karen stay back and not leave with Roger.
That was the beginning of the destruction she faced because she had no access to Karen to continue with the things she started before.
“Look, things aren’t looking good for the Fletchers. Their partners have abandoned them, and it’s just a matter of time before they lose everything,” Clara hinted. Tonia was confused, wondering how the housekeeper knew so much about their predicament.
For a while now, Tonia had been aware of how things were going down for the Fletchers. It was the reason they needed Karen’s connections.
“How do you know all this and how does it affect you? If you need money, just say it. The Fletchers might be broke now, but your salary is still nothing to them."
Clara inhaled deeply, contemplating how to explain and wondering how Tonia would react to the news. "It's not about my salary, Tonia."
Tonia was starting to get annoyed because this was the first time the housekeeper had addressed her so casually. Since her arrival, she had been used to being addressed as Miss Fletcher.
"Did you have a brain lapse to address me so casually just because I've been nice to you?" Tonia couldn't hide her irritation.
Being associated with poverty-stricken rats was the last thing she wanted, and though Clara was disheartened, she still tried her best to clarify. "No, no, no, Miss Fletcher, I'm only concerned about your future if the Fletchers go bankrupt."
The situation was becoming overwhelming, and Tonia struggled to process it. "Why are you so interested in my well-being anyway?" She asked curiously. Clara looked around before whispering something in her ear.
Tonia's eyes filled with uncertainty, but her voice dripped with disdain as she exclaimed, "There's no way you're my mother."
In the bedroom where Katherine was napping, Tonia's voice woke her, prompting her to check the security footage from her room. She felt too lazy to go downstairs but couldn't believe what she heard.
"Miss Fletcher, I didn't want you to suffer, so I came to the big city to work after having you. My sister and her husband had no children, so they chose to care for you while I worked to send them money for your upkeep," Clara explained tearfully, shaking her head.
Even if everything were true, Tonia didn't want to believe it. The thought that poverty ran so deep in her blood despite everything was a painful realization.
"No, you can't be my mother."
"If you can afford a maternity test, I wouldn't mind, but that's not the issue here. If the Fletchers go down, I don't mind finding another job in another wealthy household. But as for you, you'll be brought down into poverty."
Tonia's tear-filled gaze remained fixed as she continued to shake her head. What would her friends think of her mother being a lowly housekeeper?
Look, don’t ever talk to me again. You disgust me," she yelled and stormed out of the house. Upstairs, Katherine was devastated.
Clara had not only betrayed her but also destroyed her home. Both Clara and Tonia must pay for their actions.
At the RD Group, Roger entered with Karen and was not surprised to see another desk beside his. "You can use my desk from today onwards, boss," he said teasingly. Karen blushed but decided to cut the joke.
"Roger, I honestly don’t want this company. I only accepted it to have a platform to help."
Roger raised his eyebrows. She was just a student but proved to be intelligent. However, the cyber battle was a different challenge.
"How do you intend to help?" he asked. Karen logged into the software with her pen name and password, and Roger received a signal on his end. "DK-1?"