Chapter 208: Julie's Death
Amelia deliberately had someone call Max, and cut out the middle section - where Lucas entered the room, got knocked unconscious by Paxton who was hiding inside, then she climbed through the window and took Lucas away.
By cutting out the beginning and end, she created the current surveillance video.
Her editing skills were excellent, leaving no trace of tampering.
Max spoke expressionlessly at this point, "Ms. Crawford, however you two want to handle this matter, settle it privately. It has nothing to do with me. But you must compensate for today's losses."
Julie glared fiercely at Max.
"How much compensation do you want?"
"Today's charity reception definitely can't continue. My lawyer will contact you later to discuss the specific compensation amount."
"Whatever!" After all, she had plenty of money.
She just hated missing such a good opportunity to get Lucas.
Julie glared fiercely at Amelia in the crowd again.
It was all Amelia's fault for ruining her plan!
But she saw Amelia looking at her with a beaming smile.
Julie felt a chill run down her back, adding a sense of horror.
What else was this bitch Amelia planning?
But Amelia just turned and left.
She did have other plans.
Just making Julie lose a little face?
That was too easy on her.
But she didn't need to do it herself, because others would handle what came next.
She went to the lounge where she'd been earlier.
Inside, Uma was helping her look after Lucas.
Lucas hadn't woken up yet.
Seeing her enter, Uma quickly asked, "Ms. Richardson, how's the situation outside?"
"Everything went smoothly."
Only then did Uma relax a bit, then said, "Why hasn't Lucas woken up yet?"
"Let me."
Amelia stepped forward, took out a silver needle from her small bag, and slowly inserted it into Lucas's palm.
Lucas quickly frowned and slowly came to.
His neck hurt. He reached to rub it, but Amelia stopped him.
"It's okay, Lucas. When you get back, I'll give you two medicated patches. You'll be fine in two days."
Only then did Lucas notice Amelia and Uma in the room.
He asked in surprise, "How are you guys here? Wait, how am I here? There was a man, I just walked in the door, and he ambushed me."
"I know everything, Lucas."
Amelia interrupted him and roughly explained Julie's plan.
She also explained how she broke the situation and turned it against her.
"I got someone to persuade Orval."
That person was Max.
The person who answered that phone call to Orval was Max.
Max promised Orval he would return the contract to him and help him establish his own studio.
After the studio was established, he wouldn't be bound by anyone.
Of course, he'd also lose Aurora Media's support.
But with his current popularity, he didn't need that anymore. He just needed to not make the same mistakes as before - hitting and scolding people under him. If he kept himself clean, things wouldn't be difficult.
"Orval told me Julie's specific arrangements, so after you were knocked out, I went to your room and brought you here. And Orval climbed in through the window to take your place lying there."
"Julie is absolutely hopeless!" Lucas said bitterly, "I made things clear to her."
"She's obsessed. Because her life has been too smooth, she thinks everything she wants should belong to her. Maybe if you'd agreed to be with her back then, she would have gotten bored of you already."
Lucas fell silent.
To lighten the mood, Amelia deliberately said, "Julie's not bad looking either. Why didn't you consider her back then?"
Lucas brought up an incident.
Back when he'd just started out, he played a supporting role in a production.
"That production was funded by Aurora Media itself. They needed a dog for the show, so the director found a stray dog."
"Julie happened to be the producer then. She thought the dog was cute and wanted to hold it, but the dog wouldn't let her touch it and dodged her."
"The next day, everyone found that stray dog poisoned to death."
"My assistant at the time told me she saw with her own eyes that Julie poisoned the dog."
Amelia understood.
Lucas was a kind and upright person who cared more about a person's character than their appearance or family background.
Of course he wouldn't accept Julie's advances.
"No wonder," Amelia said.
Lucas nodded and asked her, "What about her now? Did she confess?"
"She's already left. She won't admit it."
"What?"
"Don't worry, Lucas. Whether she admits it or not doesn't matter anymore."
Lucas didn't understand, but he soon would.
Julie did successfully leave Luminance Art Gallery, but the incident leaked out soon after she left.
The person who leaked it wasn't someone else, but Paxton.
Julie's own subordinate.
After Faith lured Paxton out, Byron quickly took control of him.
The Shadow Operations Division people were experienced. In just one day, they made Paxton switch sides.
He went to the police station to turn himself in, clearly explaining how he became Julie's "accomplice."
Of course, the male lead was changed to Orval.
At the same time, reporters spread what happened at the reception all over the internet.
For a while, everyone wanted Julie's head.
Especially Orval's fans, who wanted to tear Julie apart.
Julie wanted to leave Goldenvale and return to Thornfield, but was stopped by York.
"Ms. Crawford, I told you - if you don't leave within a week, you won't be able to leave after that."
She was soon taken away by the police.
When the news reached Julie's father, Jonah Crawford, Jonah immediately came to Goldenvale.
He met with Samuel, taking a very humble stance.
No matter the cost, he just wanted Julie released.
Jonah wasn't stupid. How could he not guess that Samuel was pushing things behind the scenes for the police to take Julie away?
Otherwise, they wouldn't dare take Julie away even with a hundred times the courage.
The two talked for a long time at Rosevale Manor. When he came out, he seemed to have aged ten years in an instant.
He'd lost his wife early and only had this one daughter, whom he'd spoiled rotten. Now he was facing the consequences.
Samuel said with a half-smile, "Uncle Jonah, don't worry. Even if you leave the Crawford Group, I'll still make sure you're comfortable."
The price for Jonah to save Julie was leaving the Crawford Group from now on.
Before this, he was the biggest obstacle to Samuel's complete control of the Crawford Group.
But people have weaknesses, and his weakness was Julie.
For Julie, he was willing to give up everything.
Jonah looked deeply at Samuel.
"I really underestimated you. Even before guessing Julie would make a mistake, you'd already planned for this day, hadn't you?"
Samuel smiled slightly, "Uncle Jonah, what are you saying? I don't understand. You didn't discipline your daughter properly - how is that my fault?"
Jonah clenched his fists, but finally released them and turned to leave.
A few days later, Jonah formally resigned from the Crawford Group.
Stanley learned this news a week later.
He yelled at Samuel over the phone.
"No matter what, she's family. Why did you have to make things like this?"
But after venting, he didn't mention restoring Jonah's position.
He had feelings for Jonah, but he also knew Jonah was the biggest obstacle to Samuel taking over the entire Crawford Group.
So although he was angry, he didn't do anything.
Jonah soon took Julie abroad.
Once they left, they could never come back.
Faith was still somewhat unsatisfied with this outcome for Julie.
"If you ask me, she should have spent a few years in prison!"
Amelia smiled, "What good would a few years in prison do? When she got out, she'd still be a member of the Crawford family. Better like this - becoming a 'nobody,' expelled from the center of power."
"That's true too."
Amelia nodded, "With her personality, she won't be able to stay out of trouble. She'll cause problems abroad sooner or later. We don't need to lift a finger - she'll destroy herself."
And indeed, things went as Amelia said. After going abroad, Julie remained arrogant and overbearing, and soon provoked the wrong people.
But this time, no one could be back her.
She soon shot herself in the foot again.
One morning, she was found frozen to death on a street abroad.
But whether she actually froze to death or was tortured to death, no one knew.
Amelia didn't care either.
People who do evil, sooner or later, will face the consequences of their wickedness.
...
This day, when Amelia returned home from Shadow Operations Division, she learned some good news.
Liam had participated in the hacking competition he mentioned and won first place.
Amelia's eyes lit up with surprise.
"Liam, I knew you could do it!"
Liam's legs could now walk normally.
He smiled and said, "It's thanks to you. But this hasn't been announced publicly yet. It'll be officially announced in a week, so don't tell anyone for now."
Amelia nodded, "I know."
She asked, "So you'll be working for the government now?"
"Yes. I'll be transferred to the Phoenicia Cybersecurity Bureau."
"That's great."
"There's one more thing. Mark also participated in this competition."
"Who's Mark?"
Amelia felt the name was familiar but couldn't remember for a moment.
Liam reminded her, "My ex-fiancée's current fiancé."
Simply put, Tessa's current fiancé.
Amelia remembered. She asked, "The Young family's engagement party is next week, right?"
"Yes. It happens to be the day the winner is announced. Before I registered, Mark was the most likely to win."
"Looks like the Young family and the Rodriguez family are going to celebrate for nothing."
"Exactly." Liam nodded, but his eyes showed no schadenfreude, only indifference.
For Tessa, whom he once loved with his life, now he only saw her as a stranger.
Not even hatred, let alone love.
Dealing with the Young family was only for Amelia's sake.
During the week waiting for the engagement party, Amelia learned another piece of news.
Leo had been released from prison.
"Who picked him up?" Amelia asked Byron.
Byron immediately answered, "Francis. They didn't return to Thornfield, but bought a house in Goldenvale. Amelia, you need to be careful."
Byron already knew that the two times Amelia nearly had accidents, Francis was behind it.
"I'll be careful."
But the next day, however, Amelia ran into Francis and Leo.