Chapter 69 Chapter 69: Returning the Shares
Chapter 69 Chapter 69: Returning the Shares
No matter how fierce Amelia was, she was still just a weak woman, no match for a strong man like William.
No one knew how long it lasted—inside the room echoed the sounds of screaming, cursing, and the crack of leather on flesh. Outside, Laura pressed her ear to the door, trembling with fear. She covered her mouth to stop herself from crying out in terror, tears streaming down her face.
How had it come to this? Had her family really met its karmic retribution?
In a rare moment of clarity, Laura suddenly regretted everything. If she hadn't encouraged William to divorce Selena so he could marry Amelia, and hadn't helped Amelia kidnap Selena and throw her into the sea, or hadn't hired gangsters to beat Selena's father to death, then perhaps her family wouldn't have fallen into such a chaotic and messy situation.
The next morning, William left the house early. He wanted to sell all his assets and leave the country. Staying here, Balthazar surely wouldn’t spare him. He was still young; he could rebuild his life. When that time came, all those who had humiliated him today would pay.
…
After pulling William down, Kelly replaced him as head of Sterling Group, and even Keith, who had previously shown no interest in the family business, began learning the ropes at the company.
There were rumors that the two would clash fiercely—the second wife and the husband’s illegitimate child—just looking at them made people think of countless dramatic scenarios.
But the reality was completely different. Kelly patiently guided Keith on how to adjust to the job, even to the point where she seemed ready to hold his hand and show him the way.
People outside said that now that she had seized power, she would disregard everyone or even harbor ambitions to control the Sterling family. But in truth, she had no such intentions. She had no interest in the CEO position at Sterling Group; she continued in the role because Selena had personally asked her.
Selena had said that at the moment, there was no one in the Sterling family capable of managing the company. Sterling Group was old Mr. Sterling’s lifelong pride.
The revenge had been taken, and Selena couldn’t leave old Mr. Sterling to deal with the aftermath alone. She wanted to wait until Keith was fully capable before stepping down.
Kelly didn’t refuse. Once her duty was done, she would leave this chaotic place for good. After all, she no longer felt worthy of enjoying Brutus’s love. No one understood better than her how despicable she had been as the third party who destroyed someone else’s happiness.
Even though Laura’s end was deserved, Kelly was by no means innocent.
Meanwhile, Selena brought a stack of documents to old Mr. Sterling. When he saw what she held, he was stunned for a long time before sighing deeply:
"This is a gift from me to you. There’s no need to return it."
To old Mr. Sterling, giving her thirty percent of the shares—or even the entire Sterling Group—couldn’t make up for the harm his family had caused Selena. But if he didn’t do anything, he feared he would have no face left when he crossed to the afterlife to meet his benefactor.
Selena lowered her gaze, a slight smile on her lips, and said:
"I don’t need these things. I’ve already done everything I wanted to do, so now I’m returning the shares to you. Thank you for helping me take my revenge."
She pushed the stack of documents toward him, then bowed her head and turned to leave the house.
"Wait, Selena." old Mr. Sterling called out to her.
She stopped, waiting for him to speak. After a moment, he finally asked: "Do you… do you hate me?"
Selena shook her head. She had once resented him for turning a blind eye to the actions of his family, but hate? No. She could feel that he had genuinely cared for her, and that was enough to keep her from hating him.
Old Mr. Sterling let out a long breath as if a weight had been lifted off his chest. Selena resumed walking away. It had been exactly one year since she returned to the human world, and now it was time to end her contract with Balthazar.
Selena had barely left when Keith rushed out of the house, grabbing her hand, his face full of tears and anxiety.
"Sister Selena, you're planning to leave, aren't you?"
Selena looked at Keith in surprise. She hadn’t expected him to guess her intention to leave. Was it just a wild guess?
Before Selena could respond, Keith continued:
"I heard Kelly say it. You don't love that Balthazar guy. You're only with him to use his power to bring down my brother. Kelly also said that you want to leave after you've exacted your revenge, but please, don’t go, okay? I'll do anything you want, just stay."
Looking at the boy pleading desperately for her to stay, Selena couldn’t help but feel sad. She didn’t want to leave her mother and younger brother, nor did she want to part with the people who had treated her well during this time. But if she didn’t go, how could she explain everything to them? Could she really tell them that she had once been an ugly woman who sold her body to the gods in exchange for beauty, only to return to the human world to take revenge on her ex-husband and his lover?
They would never accept her because she was already tainted.
Selena gently pulled her hand from Keith’s grasp and calmly replied:
"I don’t understand what you’re talking about. Right now, you should focus on learning how to manage Sterling Group properly instead of worrying about unnecessary things."
"No..."
Keith continued to hold her hand tightly, but when he saw the cold indifference in her eyes, he couldn’t help but loosen his grip.
"Sister Selena, I'm sorry. Back then, I was immature and followed Amelia’s lead in hurting you, but I regret it now. Please stay. You can hit me every day for revenge if you want, okay?"