Chapter 1100 Grayson’s Advice
“Why didn’t you talk to your grandfather and me before making any decisions?” The middle-aged man, known as Grayson Lore, kneaded his forehead in frustration. “Now, look at what you’ve done. Your plan failed and they’ve found out that it’s you! Everyone knows what you did! The whole internet is criticizing us!”
What? Lynette’s head exploded as color drained from her face. “B-But how? I already stayed as low-profile as possible. How did they know that it was me?”
Grayson lowered his hand from his forehead. “Low-profile? You contacted Squirrel’s main editor with your own phone number—is this what you call low-profile? You’ve literally dug your own grave! Do you think that you can do whatever you want as the young mistress of the Lore Family? It’s not like they’re afraid of you.”
She parted her lips, but words failed her because that was exactly what she had thought. Since she had her grandfather, who had Toby’s backing, she assumed that she could order Mitch to do anything she fancied even if her identity was exposed. With such a strong backing, she thought Mitch would not have the guts to expose her! However…
As fathers knew their daughters the best, Grayson knew what was going on in her mind, judging from her silence.
He sighed again. “You thought too highly of yourself, Lynette. The small fries are actually the scariest people because they have no one to back them up. They will do whatever they can to have a bargaining chip in their hands in order to save themselves. That way, they can turn the tables whenever they’re caught. That main editor is the same. You’ve contacted him with your contact number, so he will definitely leave some evidence of it after knowing who you are. When things go south, he can expose you immediately to extenuate his offenses.”
“So, you’re saying that Toby found out about me because that fatso sold me out?” Lynette’s eyes reddened as she gritted her teeth.
He nodded. “That should be it. Since you and that main editor planned it, and you’ve only contacted him, no one else knows that you’re behind it. Thus, there’s no other way to explain why you’re exposed aside from his betrayal.”
“That stupid fatso!” she yelped like a madwoman.
The squeaky scream jarred into Grayson’s ear, so he placed the phone farther from his ear. “If only you were extra careful. You could’ve used another phone to call him and tweaked your voice so that he wouldn’t know that it was you. And even if he was caught, he couldn’t have done anything. Then, Toby wouldn’t have known that it was you nor gone against our family. Lynette, you were being reckless this time. If you talked to me and your grandfather about it, we could’ve helped you and the main editor wouldn’t do anything to you either.”
“I just couldn’t wait any longer!” Lynette pursed her lips. “You guys kept saying that Toby and Sonia reconciled because she forced him! I thought that they would break up sooner or later since it’s a loveless relationship. That’s why I’ve been patient until I finished my studies without returning to the country. Now that I’ve finally graduated and I’m in the last stage of the travel procedures, there are a lot of articles reporting how close their relationship is. How am I supposed to tolerate that? So, I—”
It pained Grayson to hear his daughter’s grief. “Lynette, I understand how you feel, but you’ve put up with it for so long, so why couldn’t you behave for a few days? Look at the trouble you’ve caused. Your reputation is ruined and everyone is criticizing you. Even the Lore Family is involved in the whole turmoil. Our company’s stock price is falling too. The shareholders are super livid, and they’re requesting us to apologize to Toby and Sonia. However, we can’t contact Toby at all.”
His last sentence made her tense. “Dad, is Toby genuinely angry at us?”
Distress was clearly displayed on his visage. “Yeah. Otherwise, why won’t he pick up the call? I contacted his acquaintances, but they won’t help me. It’s obvious that they’re behaving this way as per his request. Think about it. Have we ever failed to contact him prior to this? It’s the first time this kind of situation has happened. He’s clearly mad at us!”
Darkness loomed Lynette’s vision as she recalled Mitch’s words when they talked over the phone, that her grandfather was not as important as Sonia to Toby and Toby would also not go easy on the Lore Family for Sonia’s sake.
Previously, Mitch’s words did raise doubts and surprised Lynette, but she did not believe in that all the while. However, it seemed like she had no choice but to face the truth right now.
“Lynette?” Grayson worriedly called out her name a few times due to the silence.
Then, she came to her senses and cleared her throat. “Dad, I heard that Toby is going to do something about us. Is that true?”
“Who told you that?” His face fell.
She was stunned. “You didn’t know?”
“I haven’t heard of it.” His expression turned serious. “Lynette, who told you that?”
“Mr. Adams,” she answered honestly.
He frowned. “It’s him?”
“Yeah. It’s him.”
“It might be a false alarm.”
How can a mere chief of editor know what Toby’s thinking? It could be only his wild guess.
As an afterthought, Grayson became slightly relieved and he tossed it to the back of his mind. “Regardless, it’s your fault, Lynette. It’s reasonable for Toby to be exasperated.”
“My fault?” A pouting Lynette was very displeased by her father’s statement.
He nodded. “Yeah, it’s your fault for being too careless and self-conceited. If you’ve hidden your identity while doing it, the whole family wouldn’t have ended up in this tough position. You didn’t speak to us before taking action. It’s not only that—you didn’t consider the possibility of someone fixing the malfunctioning surveillance cameras! If only you’ve completely destroyed the cameras, no one will trust anyone that attested Sonia’s innocence without evidence. Even though Toby believes in that for his pride, the seeds of suspicion would’ve grown in him and their relationship would not have lasted long. It’s your miscalculations, Lynette.”
She hung her head low. “I know, Dad. I was careless, but I promise you that there won’t be a next time. I will make sure to speak with you and Grandpa before making any decisions.”
Grayson was right about her impatience and excessive vanity; she acted rashly without considering the possible outcomes. Hence, the Lore Family had fallen into Toby’s bad books.
But I won’t repeat the same mistake. I must succeed next time without letting anyone know that I’m behind it.
A determined glint flickered in her eyes.
