Chapter 257 Give Up

“Is she a good friend, though?” Madelyn suddenly let out a cold chuckle, her words dripping with sarcasm. “Jillian, surely you haven’t forgotten what Janessa did to me at school, have you? Although I don’t hold it against her, it’s difficult for me to open my heart to her again. Her attempts to secure her position at home now really don’t concern me anymore.”

With that, Madelyn deliberately put on an air of dejection. “Never mind. Let’s not dwell on these upsetting matters. Let’s have some coffee instead.”

And so, the three of them seriously settled down to drink their coffee.

However, on the other side, Cheryl had already recognized Madelyn. Isn’t this the good-for-nothing girl from the Thornton family, Madelyn? This woman seems to be quite close with that despicable Janessa. The words she has just spoken are probably true….

Madelyn, of course, noticed Cheryl’s gaze, but she simply smiled and chose not to continue speaking. Some things, when explained too explicitly, could be detrimental. It was better to leave things implied.

Just as expected, Cheryl could only sit for a short while before she clearly became restless. With a swift motion, she stood up. “You all carry on. I must leave now because I have other matters to attend to.”

After she finished speaking, she hastily left with her bag, leaving behind a group of her close friends exchanging puzzled glances, clueless about what had just transpired.

After watching Cheryl walk away, Madelyn couldn’t help but reveal a small, victorious smile upon realizing her goal had been achieved. Soon after, she also left, accompanied by Josiah and Jillian.

Twenty minutes later, at the Sherritt residence, Cheryl returned home in a huff, her mood thoroughly soured. Seeing her mother, Scarlet, sitting on the couch with a face mask on, her anger flared up even more. “Mom, forget about your face mask. We’ve got a serious problem!”

Scarlet was so put off by her tone that it ruined her mood. She immediately became a bit impatient. “What’s the matter? There’s no need for all this fuss. Just calmly tell me what’s going on."

“Janessa, the despicable woman, is at it again!” Cheryl fumed. After that, she went on to relay everything she heard from Madelyn at the cafe to Scarlet.

Upon hearing that, Scarlet instantly cursed, “That despicable woman! If left unchecked for a day, she starts stirring up trouble again!”

“Exactly! How dare she target our Sherritt family! Who gave her the audacity?” Cheryl also added angrily from the side.

Unexpectedly, Scarlet’s expression changed when she heard the last word.

In reality, Scarlet was not innocent, either. Back in the day, when Janessa’s mother seduced Regina, the subsequent illness that led to her demise, at least half of the credit went to Scarlet.

On this matter, not only did Scarlet not feel any regret, but she also believed it was the best decision she had ever made.

However, Scarlet had to admit that she had overlooked something all these years. Janessa’s maternal family was not of an ordinary background. It could even be described as incredibly complex.

Janessa had always swallowed her grievances in the Sherritt family, which led to Scarlet overlooking her.

Now, it seems like that despicable woman truly believes she has grown independent. Does she think she can disregard me completely! Dream on! The more Scarlet thought about it, the angrier she became. Finally, she said in a tone full of rage. “Cheryl, it seems that we have to be on guard against that b*tch recently. We can’t afford to give her any opportunity to turn things around!”

“Right!” Cheryl also agreed, nodding affirmatively.

Meanwhile, unbeknownst to Janessa, her plan had already been sabotaged by Madelyn behind the scenes. With her aunt’s full support, she had even gone to great lengths to win over a number of Sherritt Group’s shareholders and purchased a considerable amount of stock, all set to make a big turnover.

At first, everything went smoothly, and Janessa was quite pleased with herself. This time, I must seize the power from the Sherritt family in one fell swoop!

For all these years, she had been living under the mercy of others, in a state of utter humiliation. She was so oppressed by the Sherritt family that she couldn’t even hold her head up.

At times, even the housekeepers often treated her with disdain, completely regarding her as an outsider.

The mere thought of these matters sent a surge of fury coursing through Janessa’s veins, giving birth to a violent wave of resentment. How dare those despicable people treat me like that back then? Hmph! Just you wait! Once I seize power from the Sherritt family, I’ll settle the score with each and every one of them!

Naturally, the first two people she wanted to target were her stepmother, Scarlet, and her stepsister, Cheryl. She was determined to return all the grievances she had suffered over the years tenfold.

However, just at that moment, a phone call suddenly came through.

“Ms. Sherritt, we’ve got a problem!” The voice on the other end of the line was filled with panic.

Instantly, Janessa’s nerves were on edge. She asked anxiously, “What’s going on? What’s the problem?”

“It seems that Scarlet has gotten wind of our aggressive acquisition of the Sherritt family’s shares! Now, that woman is pulling out all the stops to prevent us. More and more shareholders who initially agreed to our terms are starting to back out!”

Janessa was seething with anger. She couldn’t help but curse out loud, “D*mn it! I knew it! That damned old woman is never content with just sitting back! Over the years, although she never seems to do anything on the surface, in reality, we have no idea how many people she has planted within Sherritt Group. Trying to reclaim our position in the Sherritt family is never going to be easy!”

The person on the other side gently consoled her, saying, “Ms. Sherritt, calm down.”

Upon hearing this, Janessa realized that her anger wouldn’t solve anything at the moment. She managed to calm herself down and asked, “What did Madam say?”

Upon hearing this, her subordinate seemed to let out a sigh. “Ms. Sherritt, Madam is undoubtedly supportive of you. However, since Scarlet is causing trouble, we probably can’t continue the acquisition now. Perhaps we should take a break for a while and wait for another opportunity?”

Unexpectedly, Janessa flatly refused, exclaiming, “No way!”

“We’ve already made it halfway through our plan. We’ve painstakingly acquired so many shareholders and exerted so much effort, and we’re on the brink of success. And now you’re telling me to give up? I won’t accept this!” Janessa was livid.

Her subordinate was momentarily speechless upon hearing her words, and it took him a while before he managed to ask, “So, what are your plans at the moment?”

Janessa gave it some thought. There’s no way I’m going to give up! However, establishing myself in the company isn’t as simple as it seems. From the looks of it, only by bringing in a business deal with massive profits for the company can I earn the respect of those sly foxes at Sherritt Group.

With that thought in mind, Janessa uttered resolutely, "I know it. Those old slickers at the company can’t be bought with money. Now, all I can do is prove my abilities to them and win their respect.”

“What do you plan to do, Ms. Sherritt?” asked the subordinate.

Janessa took a deep breath and said, “You don’t need to worry about this. I’ll figure it out myself.”

With that, she hung up the phone. At that moment, a face so strikingly handsome it could incite envy from both gods and men surfaced in her mind.

With a hard bite on her lip, Janessa realized it seemed that only Sebastian could lend her the help she needed.