Paulina Johnston’s face was covered in blood, her back smeared with footprints, and her hair a tangled mess resembling a bird’s nest.
The wound that had just been stitched up last time had split open again.
She had been beaten into a near-unconscious state by Matteo Kaur.
“Dad, stop! Stop! You’re going to kill Mom!” Madeline screamed hysterically, tears streaming uncontrollably down her face.
“Get out of my way! No one stops me today! I’ll-ah! My heart…”
Matteo Kaur was consumed with rage, so furious that his blood boiled, clouding his reason.
He shoved Madeline aside, ready to kick again, but a sudden sharp pain in his chest stopped him.
Staggering a few steps, he collapsed to the ground with a loud thud.
The commotion at the entrance of the Peninsula Hotel finally caught Scarlet and the others’ attention.
They quickly rushed to the scene.
“Uncle Matteo!” Flynn’s heart sank as he saw Matteo clutching his chest, sitting on the ground, pale and struggling to breathe.
He rushed over and propped Matteo up, pressing his fingers lightly on a pressure point to stabilize him.
Matteo’s chest heaved as his breathing gradually steadied. Looking at Flynn, he spoke weakly:
“Flynn, I’m sorry… The Kaur family has wronged you. Don’t blame me, your Uncle Matteo.”
“I didn’t know anything about this!”
And then, unexpectedly, tears began to fall.
Yes, Matteo Kaur cried.
A man in his fifties, crying, letting tears soak his clothes.
But his sorrow wasn’t about losing a wealthy son-in-law.
Matteo didn’t care whether Flynn had money.
As long as Flynn was ambitious and living his life well, Matteo wouldn’t have looked down on him, even if he remained ordinary forever.
What pained him was being kept in the dark about the divorce.
He was Madeline’s father.
Paulina Johnston’s husband.
Yet they had hidden Flynn’s expulsion from him.
And then, for more than twenty days afterward, they continued to deceive him like he was some fool-until someone else came knocking, and he finally found out!
“Uncle Matteo, your heart is still fragile; you mustn’t get worked up. Here, let me help you up,” Flynn said, attempting to lift Matteo by the shoulder.
But Matteo shook his head, his expression vacant. “No need. I can manage. All of you go back. I… I need to be alone for a while.”
He pushed Flynn’s hand away and struggled to his feet.
His eyes were hollow as he turned and slowly shuffled away, one faltering step at a time.
Flynn stood there, momentarily speechless.
So Uncle Matteo had finally learned about the divorce.
Fortunately, Flynn had performed acupuncture on him during the banquet-otherwise, with the level of anger Matteo displayed earlier, his heart might have given out completely, beyond any chance of rescue.
“What just happened?” Scarlet asked anxiously, helping to support Paulina Johnston.
Paulina, however, shoved Scarlet’s arm away and stared coldly at Flynn, a mocking smile on her face.
“You ordered Charlie Carlson to cancel the contracts, bankrupting the Kaur family. Feeling proud? Feeling smug?”
“Happy to watch me get beaten?”
“Enjoying seeing Madeline cry?”
“Flynn, you’re nothing but a clown! Don’t get too comfortable-what goes around comes around!”
“You and Rose are going down soon! Let’s see if you’ll still be laughing then!”
Flynn froze.
When had he laughed?
And what about the Kaur family’s contracts? He hadn’t been involved in any of that from start to finish.
How had it become his fault that Charlie Carlson came to terminate the agreements?
Rose’s expression turned cold. She said, “Ma’am, I can vouch that Flynn had no involvement in the cancellation of the contracts.”
“He didn’t instruct Charlie Carlson to do anything!”
“Didn’t instruct him?” Paulina scoffed heavily, spitting blood onto the ground. “Ms. Sharp, you and Flynn are in cahoots. Don’t bother defending him.”
“Flynn’s nothing but an ungrateful wretch, a petty and vindictive man! He didn’t come to repay kindness; he came for revenge!”
“He was upset about the divorce, so he orchestrated this to punish us!”
Rose couldn’t help but laugh at that.
The Kaur family’s current predicament was entirely their own doing, yet now they were blaming Flynn?
Wasn’t this just absurd?
Scarlet sighed softly and whispered to Flynn, “Maybe you should call Charlie Carlson and ask him to reconsider? Let’s not escalate things further.”
“Madeline, you were a bit harsh during the divorce. Apologize to Flynn, and I’m sure he’ll forgive you.”
Madeline’s heart sank at those words.
Only half an hour ago, she had claimed she’d never beg Flynn for anything.
And now?
The three contracts… Flynn was likely the only one who could resolve the issue.
In Flynn’s eyes, she must be nothing but a joke now.
He was probably mocking her downfall in his mind.
Scarlet must feel triumphant, overjoyed at finding a treasure.
She must think I’m blind for not recognizing Flynn’s value.
Madeline’s imagination ran wild, conjuring scenes of Flynn laughing hysterically at her, calling her a fool, while Scarlet pointed at her, laughing until tears streamed down her face.
“If he wants to help, fine. If not, I won’t force him!” Madeline turned her head defiantly, wiping away her tears.
Flynn glanced at her indifferently, then turned to Scarlet and said, “I’m leaving. You guys can keep talking.”
He had never intended to help. Hearing what Madeline said only made his decision easier. Without hesitation, he turned and walked away.
On the day of the divorce, he’d made it clear: he only cared about Matteo Kaur. The rest didn’t matter to him-live or die, it was none of his concern.
What?
He was really leaving?!
Madeline stared at Flynn’s retreating figure, stunned, her eyes wide with disbelief.
Her earlier words had been a roundabout way of asking for his help.
When Flynn saw her crying, wasn’t he supposed to soften and make the call to Charlie Carlson?
That’s how women operated-no matter how wrong they were, showing sadness almost always struck a man’s heart.
Especially since she was so beautiful. Flynn was an old pervert, wasn’t he? Wasn’t this the perfect opportunity for them to reconcile and save face?
Flynn’s reaction only proved one thing.
He had never liked her.
It had all been in her head.
She had never mattered to him at all.
“I’m leaving too,” Rose said with a faint smile, turning and walking away.
Scarlet was stunned. Even a fool could tell Madeline’s words had been out of anger!
And yet Flynn still left?
“Hey! Ms. Sharp, wait!” Scarlet hurried after Rose, pleading, “If Flynn won’t help, Ms. Sharp, could you step in for Madeline instead?”
“Charlie Carlson works with the Sharp Group. He’d surely listen to you.”
“Help Madeline?” Rose frowned, her tone frosty and detached.
“Madeline’s submission is temporary. Deep down, she still looks down on Flynn.”
“She believes that in the end, Flynn and I will lose to Layla.”
“She shows one face when asking for help, then another as soon as the crisis is over.”
“Why should I help someone like that?”
With that, Rose stood by the roadside, scrolling through her phone.
The banquet had ended, and Flynn would undoubtedly leave with Scarlet.
Rose planned to hitch a ride with Molly, but Molly had left early to prepare for tomorrow’s holiday, intending to deliver ingredients to Rocco Spencer.
Left with no choice, Rose called Harriet Hamilton to pick her up.
Scarlet hesitated for a moment, then forced a smile at Madeline, trying to comfort her. “Don’t worry, Madeline. I’ll try talking to Flynn again when we get back.”
As she spoke, Flynn’s Koenigsegg rolled out of the parking lot and stopped nearby.
Madeline’s eyes followed Scarlet as she climbed into the car, her lips curving into a bitter smile.
This car-worth over 40 million dollars, globally limited, unobtainable even with money.
She had once suspected Flynn had rented it.
Now, the truth was clear: it was his car.
And the passenger seat, once hers, now belonged to Scarlet.
“I know what you’re about to say. Don’t bother,” Flynn said flatly as he turned the steering wheel.
Scarlet nearly choked.
Flynn’s decisiveness left her with no choice but to stay silent. She knew his stubbornness-once he made a decision, it was nearly impossible to change his mind.
Just then, Flynn’s phone rang.
The caller was Arthur Gordon from Demon Island Prison.
“Mr. Clark, Kevin Sharp doesn’t have much time left!”