Chapter 226 A Simple Helping Hand

Chapter 226 A Simple Helping Hand

Eleanor sat beside her, having held back the entire ride, but finally couldn't contain herself anymore.

She kept her voice very low: "Maggie, tell me, what is Mr. Miller really thinking? That gemstone, over 800 million dollars, did he really just give it to Evelyn?"

As she spoke, her fingers gripped the bag strap tightly.

Maggie didn't look at her. Her gaze fell on the street scenes flying past the window, her voice indifferent.

"I don't know. He never mentioned it to me."

Eleanor bit her lip, getting angrier the more she thought about it, her voice rising.

"It must be Evelyn! She definitely said something to Mr. Miller again, forcing him to give her the thing. That woman is the best at playing pitiful to gain sympathy. Who knows what methods she used."

As she spoke, she slapped the armrest hard, as if trying to vent all her anger.

But Maggie shook her head at this moment, "Evelyn probably isn't that kind of person."

Eleanor froze, looking at Maggie's profile. The streetlights flickered across her features, revealing no expression.

Eleanor felt confused, her voice dropping, "Then why is Mr. Miller doing this? Does he... does he want to remarry Evelyn?"

Hearing this, Maggie's lips moved slightly.

It wasn't a smile, but an indescribable curve.

Like self-mockery, yet also like a kind of understanding she didn't want to admit even to herself.

Her voice was very soft, but each word was clear, "Even if he has that idea, Evelyn might not agree."

Eleanor's eyes widened, and the way she looked at Maggie changed.

She opened her mouth, her voice somewhat hoarse, "Maggie, you... you think so too?"

Maggie didn't answer.

She looked at her, her gaze calm: "Don't talk nonsense after we get back. I'll handle this matter."

Eleanor nodded and stopped talking.

The car fell quiet, with only the low hum of the engine and the rustling sound of tires rolling over the road.

For several days in a row, Maggie didn't see Luke.

She called several times, but no one answered.

She had no choice but to go to the Miller Group to find him in person.

The receptionist at the Miller Group saw her and greeted her with a smile.

Maggie nodded, walked into the elevator, and pressed the button for the top floor.

When the elevator doors opened, the secretary saw her, a flash of surprise crossing his face before quickly recovering his professional smile.

"Ms. Smith, Mr. Miller isn't here."

Maggie asked: "Where did he go?"

The secretary said: "Mr. Miller has been busy lately meeting with people from overseas. The specific details are confidential."

Maggie looked at the secretary expressionlessly.

The secretary felt uncomfortable under her gaze and lowered his head, pretending to organize documents.

Maggie didn't make things difficult for him and turned to walk into the elevator.

The moment the elevator doors closed, her expression completely darkened.

Back at BlueSky Biotech, her assistant was already waiting at the office door, holding several documents with a serious expression.

"Ms. Smith, something's happened."

Maggie took the documents and flipped through a few pages, her expression gradually darkening.

The assistant stood beside her, "Three business partners sent notices at the same time, saying they won't renew their contracts. They'd rather pay the penalty fees than continue the cooperation. I asked around and heard that... they all switched to working with OmniFront Labs."

Maggie's fingers gripping the documents suddenly tightened, the paper creasing deeply.

She took a deep breath, closed the documents, her tone still relatively calm, "Got it, you can go now."

The assistant nodded and turned to leave.

The office fell quiet. Maggie rubbed her temples.

She secured those business partners using the Miller Group and Luke's influence. Now the opportunistic allies switched sides abruptly without a word.

She leaned back in her office chair and closed her eyes for a moment.

She picked up her phone, found Luke's number, and dialed again.

Still no answer.

She tossed the phone on the desk. The screen was lit, showing a densely packed string of red missed-call indicators in the call log.

She stared at those missed call indicators for a long time.

Then she picked up her phone and dialed Frank's number.

The call connected quickly.

"Mr. Hernandez, this is Maggie. Are you free tonight? I'd like to invite you to dinner. There are some things I want to talk to you about."

That evening, Frank and Maggie met at a restaurant for dinner.

Maggie arrived first. She sat by the window, holding a glass of water, head lowered, seemingly lost in thought.

When Frank pushed the door open and saw her like this, his steps paused.

He walked over and sat across from her, his brow slightly furrowed.

"Ms. Smith, what's wrong? You don't look well. Did something happen?"

Maggie put down her water glass, looked up, and forced a smile.

She didn't hide anything and spoke frankly: "The company has some problems."

"Several business partners suddenly backed out, willing to pay penalty fees just to leave. I asked around and found they all switched to working with OmniFront Labs."

As she spoke, her voice lowered, "BlueSky Biotech's supply chain is already in chaos. I'm in a very passive position right now."

Hearing this, Frank's frown deepened.

He didn't ask about specific reasons or who was responsible, but directly jumped to a conclusion, his tone carrying some indignation.

"Evelyn must be behind this. That woman is deeply scheming. She appears harmonious on the surface, but who knows how much trouble she causes behind the scenes. Those business partners of yours were probably poached by her."

As he spoke, he picked up his coffee cup and took a big gulp, as if trying to extinguish the fire in his heart.

Maggie lowered her head and said nothing.

Frank put down his coffee cup, looked at her, his tone softening a bit, "Have you tried to find Mr. Miller? With something this big, he can't just ignore it, right?"

"Besides, BlueSky Biotech was his gift to you in the first place. If there's a problem, he definitely has to take responsibility."

Maggie's fingers lightly traced across the tabletop, "I called several times, but no one answered. I went to the company to find him, but they said he wasn't there, that he's busy meeting with people from overseas, and the specific details are confidential."

She looked up at Frank, "I don't know what's going on either. Maybe... he's just been really busy lately."

Frank looked at her, the sympathy in his eyes deepening.

"He..." He thought of something and wanted to say it, but afraid of hurting Maggie, he changed the subject.

"Don't worry, I'll figure something out. You can't carry this burden alone."

Frank's voice was very low, as if comforting her, yet also as if talking to himself.

Maggie looked at him, genuine gratitude in her eyes, "Thank you, Frank. Without you, I really wouldn't know what to do."

Frank waved his hand, "It's nothing, really. You don't need to be so polite."

They chatted for a while longer before leaving.

They walked out of the restaurant, and the night breeze blew over, carrying the coolness of late autumn.

Maggie pulled her coat tighter and stood at the entrance, watching the traffic on the street.

Frank stood beside her. They were silent for a moment.

Maggie suddenly smiled: "OmniFront Labs is really hot in the business world right now. Even the government is backing Evelyn. It looks like in the future, OmniFront Labs won't be something a small company like mine can compete with."

Frank snorted, his tone full of disdain: "So what if Evelyn is capable? Her character is flawed, and she can't develop the company's business in the long run."

"Look at what she's done—stealing projects. Which of those things was done fairly and squarely?"

He looked at Maggie, his tone very serious: "Don't feel inferior. Take your time. You're much better than her, you just need a little more time. One day, you'll do better than her."

Maggie looked at him, her expression somewhat complex, and said thank you.

The two said goodbye at the restaurant entrance, and Frank personally saw Maggie to her car.

A few days later, Frank brought good news.

He found a partnership for Maggie.

Although it wasn't a big deal like before, it was enough to help her through her immediate crisis.

Maggie thanked him repeatedly over the phone, her voice carrying barely suppressed excitement.

Frank chuckled: "I already said it's nothing. Don't take it to heart. If you have any more trouble in the future, just come to me directly. No need to be polite."

"Okay." The corners of Maggie's mouth curved slightly.