Watching You Burn In Regret novel Chapter 56

He looked at Seren and let out a weary sigh. "You silly child. If something rightfully belongs to you, then it's yours. Why give it up?

If you just let it go, you're handing it over on a silver platter to those shameless enough to snatch things that aren't theirs."

Old Mr. Rutledge finished his words, his gaze sliding to Carla with unmistakable meaning in his eyes.

He was old, but far from senile. Situations like this never happened without cause—someone had clearly been stirring the pot behind the scenes.

And finding out who that was? Simple. Whoever stood to benefit most was the one pulling the strings.

Old Mr. Rutledge had never liked Carla, not even as a child. Her shifty eyes and calculating nature were nothing like Seren's straightforward honesty.

After decades in business, Old Mr. Rutledge had seen all kinds of people and had long since learned to tell right from wrong. In his view, scheming against outsiders was, at worst, dishonorable. But plotting against your own family? That was sheer moral bankruptcy.

People like that had no limits. They'd step on their own flesh and blood to climb higher, using any means necessary to get what they wanted. Maybe they'd even achieve great things, but only by trampling others along the way.

To them, friends and family were nothing but tools to use and discard. That, in his eyes, made Carla a true wolf in sheep's clothing.

For now, she still needed the Bradley family—she hadn't dared show her true colors. But he could see right through her.

Carla felt the weight of Old Mr. Rutledge's sharp gaze and involuntarily shrank away.

A jolt of panic shot through her: Had he figured something out?

At last, Old Mr. Rutledge spoke with finality, his words ringing in the room.

"As long as I'm here, not a single share of Rutledge Group's five percent will be taken from Seren."

With that, he gestured for Zena to join him in the study.

Seren, unwilling to remain in the same room as Carla, turned and left.

She'd barely reached the landing when Carla caught up, blocking her path.

They were alone in the corridor.

Verify captcha to read the contentVerify