Chapter 243 Acting

Chapter 243 Acting

After receiving the $100 million advance payment, I started pushing the workshop to ramp up production. Publicly, I said we were producing goods for Ivan's order, but secretly it was for another company's order.

To avoid any leaks, only Brandon from the production department knew about this. We kept Ivan completely in the dark - even when the goods were loaded onto the cargo ship, he still had no idea.

The cargo ship was real, but it was the Lancaster Group's ship, and the goods on it were real too. The ship just circled around at sea before delivering the cargo to its actual destination.

Everything was done flawlessly. Everyone was kept in the dark. After it was all over, I finally met up with Atlas to celebrate.

"Next, Ivan's definitely going to panic and do something desperate. You need to be really careful. How about I arrange a few more bodyguards for you? I'm not comfortable with you having just one."

Ivan might panic, but what could he really do to me? Would he actually try to hurt me?

If he did that, he'd spend the rest of his life in prison.

"I'm fine."

Seeing how casually I brushed it off, Atlas frowned disapprovingly. "Don't try to act tough. No matter what, your safety is the most important thing!"

"I know."

I reassured him gently, "I won't gamble with my life. Don't worry."

Seeing me say this, Atlas finally relaxed. Looking outside and seeing it was getting late, I said, "Take me home."

Atlas and I had been at odds for so long. Although Henry and Maria didn't say anything, I knew they'd been worried about us.

Fortunately, the crisis had passed, and I could finally go back and explain everything to them.

"I really hate to see you leave me."

Atlas pulled me into his arms and kissed me hard before buckling my seatbelt and stepping on the gas to drive me home.

When I got home, the living room was brightly lit. Henry and Maria were still up, clearly waiting for me to come back.

Sure enough, hearing footsteps, they both turned to look at me. "Helena, you're back?"

Maria even stood up with concern. "Have you eaten? If not, I'll have someone prepare something for you."

"I already ate with Atlas."

Hearing this, Maria and Henry exchanged glances. Henry put down his newspaper and looked at me seriously. "Helena, what's going on between you and Atlas? Were those entertainment reports from a few days ago true or false?"

"Yes, Helena. Did Atlas really get together with another woman? I saw you weren't in good spirits those days, so I didn't ask. But since you brought up Atlas, tell us - what's really going on between you two?"

I came clean. "Atlas and I have been hiding something from you."

Then I sat down and told them everything that had happened over the past few days, leaving nothing out.

After hearing it all, they were both stunned.

"What did you say? You mean Ivan set a trap for you, trying to steal money from the Lockwood Group?"

"That can't be. He doesn't seem like that kind of person."

Seeing they still didn't believe me, I told them about the fake contracts I'd found, Knox's overseas transfer records, and how that account's money was deposited into the company account as a down payment.

After hearing this, they finally believed me.

"That bastard! What is he trying to do? If the Lockwood Group really goes bankrupt, what good does it do him!"

"No way. I'm calling him right now to ask what he's trying to do!"

Seeing Henry about to make a call, I quickly reached out to stop him.

"Dad, don't panic. Since I didn't fall for his trap, Ivan's the one who should be worried now."

Hearing this, Henry slowly calmed down.

"The advance payment is already in the company account?"

I nodded. "Yes, according to the rules, a 30% advance payment is required. The money's arrived, and the goods have been shipped out, but this batch of goods won't reach Ivan's hands."

Henry sighed heavily and waved his hand. "Alright, I understand. Since you already have a plan for this, go ahead with it. I'll just pretend I don't know."

I knew Henry was leaving everything for me to handle.

But thinking about how this might cause a complete break between us and Ivan, I wanted to prepare Henry in advance.

"Dad, this is a fight to the death between Ivan and me. But right now it looks like I have the upper hand. When everything finally comes to light, Ivan will definitely become my enemy. You need to be mentally prepared."

Henry looked somewhat sad. He nodded slowly. "I understand."

After saying that, he sighed heavily.

"Whatever happens to Ivan in the end, he brought it on himself. I won't let you go easy on him, but I truly feel sorry for him."

I understood Henry's feelings. After all, Ivan was a member of the Lockwood family. None of us wanted to see family members become enemies, but the facts were right in front of us - I couldn't afford to be soft-hearted.

"So what's really going on between you and Atlas?"

Seeing Maria still worried about Atlas and me, I explained how we'd played along with the situation. I emphasized, "Atlas and I are fine. He's planning to come over in the next few days to apologize."

"Those trashy reporters wrote such terrible things about him. He must feel awful. Alright, I got it. Have him come over in the next couple days. I need to cook him something good to make him feel better."

"Thanks, Mom. If Atlas heard you say that, he'd be thrilled. I'll tell him tomorrow."

After saying that, I stood up. "I'm going upstairs to rest."

The next day, I returned to the company and had just entered my office when York carefully pushed open the door and immediately said, "Ms. Lockwood, what if Ivan notices something's wrong with the shipment?"

"That's exactly what we want - for him to notice. What's there to be afraid of?"

Seeing I wasn't worried about this at all, York sighed. "Ivan's really something. Why would he come up with such a crooked scheme?"

Then he asked, "Ms. Lockwood, what do I need to do next?"

I shook my head. "Nothing. Just do what you normally do. We just wait."

"Okay, I'll head out then."

As York was leaving, I looked up and happened to see Ivan glancing toward my office.

I sneered inwardly, my eyes coldly fixed on him. By this afternoon at the latest, Ivan would get the news. The feud between John's family and me might finally come to an end because of this shipment.