Jaime smiled calmly and said slowly, “Miss Wooten, there’s no need to be nervous. We are civilized people and will handle things in a civilized manner. You can rest assured.”
Aviana breathed a sigh of relief. Were these guys planning to kidnap her to threaten Devon? But judging by their expressions, it didn’t seem like it. She couldn’t figure out what they wanted, so she decided not to overthink it.
“Just tell me your purpose directly!”
“I like straightforward people like you, Miss Wooten,” Jaime said with a smile. “Here is one million dollars. Help us stage a scene to lure Devon here.”
He took out a bank card, placed it on the table, and flicked it over.
“One million dollars?!”
Aviana’s heart skipped a beat with joy. She picked up the bank card, examining it eagerly, her eyes filled with excitement and greed.
Her greedy and excited demeanor made the others look down on her even more.
“What do you want to do with Devon? And how do I know this bank card is real?”
“First, I don’t need to tell you why we want Devon here, but we guarantee we won’t harm him. As for the authenticity of the bank card…”
“You can check the balance.”
Aviana threw caution to the wind, quickly opened her phone, and checked the balance of the card through mobile banking.
Seeing the seven-figure number, her breathing became rapid!
A whole million dollars!
How long would it take her to earn this much money? But now, such a large sum was right in front of her. She couldn’t pass it up!
“Devon, you abandoned me first. Don’t blame me. All people are selfish. Since you were so heartless, don’t blame me for being ruthless!”
“Besides, they didn’t say they would kill you. I just need to act and lure you over, and I get a million dollars. You love me so much; you surely won’t blame me.” She comforted herself, feeling no guilt at all.
Then she turned to Jaime and the others and said, “I can help you with this.”
“Great!” Jaime said with a smile. “But Miss Wooten, we need to make this convincing. Come with us for a bit.”
Aviana happily put away the bank card and followed them out.
Jaime wasn’t surprised by this outcome because he had already figured out Aviana’s greedy nature. Even if she were still with Devon, she would sell him out without hesitation for money.
She only saw Devon as her meal ticket and ATM, with no real feelings involved. A million dollars was more than enough to tempt her.
Although he despised such women, Jaime was very satisfied with this result.
After all, if it weren’t for her greed and ingratitude, he wouldn’t have succeeded so easily.
—
The next day, Quentin was awakened by a ringing sound before he even got out of bed.
Charlotte urgently said, “Quentin, something happened to Riya!”
Quentin was stunned. “What happened?”
“I’m on my way to the hospital now. I’ll tell you when I get there.”
“Alright!”
Quentin quickly got ready and left the Howard family residence, heading straight to the hospital.
Although he barely knew Riya, Charlotte rarely had a friend she cared about so much. He couldn’t just stand by.
At the hospital, when he arrived in a hurry, Charlotte was already there comforting Riya, who was in poor spirits. When Riya saw Quentin, she forced a smile.
“Charlotte, Quentin, I know you are kind-hearted people and that Quentin is capable. Today, I have one request.”
Riya gave a pale smile. “Please take care of Aubree for me in the future. She is young and needs someone to look after her.”
“This is my token of appreciation.”
She took out an ancient book. “This is the Shannon family’s heirloom, the Heavenly Fragrance Collection.”
The two were taken aback upon hearing this. Heavenly Fragrance Collection? What was that?
Riya continued, “My Shannon family ancestors served as court physicians for generations, creating various beauty formulas for royal women to keep their looks forever youthful.”
“This Heavenly Fragrance Collection is the culmination of my family’s ancestors’ efforts!”
“It’s priceless!”
“In the beauty industry, my Shannon family’s Heavenly Fragrance Collection is considered invaluable!”
Upon hearing this, both Quentin and Charlotte were deeply shocked.