Chapter 27 Agree to the Deal
When Jennifer found Marlowe, she was almost home. The two were spotted by reporters staking out nearby and barely managed to shake them off.
Once in the car, Marlowe asked Jennifer in a panic what had happened. Jennifer briefly explained the situation, and Marlowe said with a worried face, "How could we be so unlucky? Your dad's in the hospital, and now the company has this mess."
Jennifer could only hold her hand, hoping to offer comfort. But Marlowe suddenly cried out in pain and pulled her hand back. Jennifer noticed her hand seemed a bit red and swollen, and quickly asked what happened.
Marlowe hid her hand behind her back while forcing a bitter smile, "It's nothing, I just got burned a little while doing a trial shift at an employer's house today. I'll put some ointment on it tonight and it'll be fine."
Actually, Marlowe had been deliberately mistreated. She'd felt that family was looking at her strangely and whispering while pointing at their phones behind her back.
They must have seen the news and suspected she was the wife of the unethical businessman from the story. It looked like she wouldn't get this part-time job, but there was no need to tell Jennifer the details. It would only make her sad and serve no purpose.
Jennifer pulled her hand out and looked at the burn with concern, "Marlowe, don't go out looking for work these next few days. Wait until this thing dies down before making money."
Marlowe had been with David for over ten years and had never suffered such humiliation before. The pain was undeniable. She nodded helplessly.
The two stayed at Mia's place that night. When Jennifer finished washing up and was getting ready for bed, Mia came over to discuss with her, "This thing with your family is blowing up too fast. Someone must be stirring up public opinion behind the scenes."
As a host, Mia was no stranger to such tactics. The injured worker was from an ordinary family; normally, this shouldn't have caused such a big discussion or even brought people to their door.
Jennifer said worriedly, "I don't know if my dad has offended anyone in the media industry."
"Go ask him tomorrow. I'll also help you find out if someone is deliberately targeting you." Mia patted her shoulder, "Just get some sleep early tonight."
Jennifer hugged her gratefully, "Mia, thank you so much! You've been helping me all this time."
"Isn't that what good friends do? You don't need to thank me. When I ran away from home as a kid, you were the only one who helped me."
The next day Jennifer went to the hospital to visit David and ask if he knew anyone in the media. David said he couldn't think of anyone, and asked what happened at the company.
Jennifer didn't want him affected by the online abuse, so she lied and said she was asking for Mia.
After leaving the hospital, Jennifer looked troubled. Mia sent word that a friend of hers had seen Eugene having dinner with the editor-in-chief of Golden Harbor's local online news just a few days ago. It was normal for an investment manager to have good relations with media editors, but this particular media outlet was the first to report on the Brown Group incident, and with a strong emotional slant.
Mia guessed, "Maybe Eugene is pushing this behind the scenes. He cheated and wronged you; why would he be so ruthless to you? Is he trying to destroy you?"
"Mia, you've already helped me so much. Let me handle Eugene myself." Jennifer smiled bitterly. The reasons were complicated, and she couldn't explain them to Mia.
Jennifer went to Eugene's company to find him. Perhaps Eugene had expected this; he told the receptionist to let her in directly.
The secretary said Eugene was in a meeting and made Jennifer wait in his office for a long time.
As soon as Eugene came in, Jennifer stood up and glared at him, demanding, "Are you the one causing trouble behind the scenes again?"
Eugene shrugged, "I don't know what you're talking about." He had a smug smile on his face that made Jennifer want to throw her purse at him, but thinking of what was inside, she held back.
"Eugene, don't play dumb." Jennifer pulled out a photo of him chatting and laughing with that editor-in-chief. "You must have gotten news of the factory accident even faster than me, which is how you got reporters to take those photos. You also had people expose where Marlowe and I live and sent people to harass us. Eugene, you're so cruel."
Eugene still denied, "This photo is just a normal business dinner, it doesn't prove anything. Everything you just said is your guess, though it's pretty imaginative. Maybe you could write stories for tabloids too."
Unable to refute him, Jennifer got so angry she wanted to slap him, but he grabbed her hand and even kissed it. Jennifer quickly pulled her hand back and shook it hard, as if trying to shake off something dirty.
Eugene glanced at the purse she was clutching tightly and said with a smirk, "What's in the bag, a voice recorder?"
Jennifer stepped back warily. How had he guessed about the voice recorder in her bag? Her plan to extract his confession and stop his media attacks was unraveling. Her nervous expression had already raised his suspicion, and now the way she guarded her bag confirmed his guess.
Eugene backed her up against the desk step by step and reached for her bag, "If you want to negotiate with me and have me leave you alone, be nicer about it and hand over the recorder."
Jennifer had no choice but to let go, watching as he took out the running recorder from her bag and turned it off.
"Okay, now we can talk. Although I didn't plan this, I am on good terms with their editor-in-chief. If you beg me and make me happy, I can help you smooth this over." Eugene leaned casually on the sofa, looking at her with a smile.
Jennifer knew her little schemes were no match for him. She gritted her teeth and asked, "What do I have to do to make you happy? Do I need to beg you?"
Eugene reached out to touch her cheek, but Jennifer turned her face away. He laughed and said, "Jennifer, you know how I feel about you. As long as you agree to be my mistress, all your troubles will disappear." Without the recorder, he started speaking brazenly.
Jennifer's body trembled. So it was still this condition. He'd backed her into a corner because he knew she'd have no choice but to come beg him. But she didn't want to face this man. All she felt for Eugene now was hatred and disgust; how could she bear to be intimate with him in the same bed?
She bit her lip and said nothing. Eugene enjoyed watching her suffer, saying threatening words in a gentle tone, "You can refuse. I have plenty of other methods. Want to see them? Not just you, but that Marlowe too - I can make it so you can't stay in Golden Harbor."
Jennifer shook her head with tears in her eyes, "Stop talking! I agree."