"Why didn't you discuss it with me and your grandfather before taking action?" The middle-aged man rubbed his temple on the other end of the phone. "Now look at what's happened. Not only did it fail, but you were exposed too quickly. Everyone now knows that you were behind it, and they are criticizing our family online."
The news was a bolt from the blue, and Erin's face turned bloodless. "How can I be exposed? I was so discreet. How could anyone know it was me?"
She found it hard to believe.
Her father, Clay McDaniel, put his hand off his temple. "Discreet? Is that what you call it? You left a trace by contacting Mr. Guzman of the Squirrel Team with your private number. Do you think that you can rely on your identity as the daughter of the McDaniel family to act recklessly and that it doesn't matter if others know who you are because they dare not bite you back?"
Erin opened her mouth, but no words came out.
That was exactly what she had thought.
In her mind, her grandfather was backed by Julien, and her grandfather would back her up.
That was why she had contacted Mr. Guzman regardless of whether her identity would be exposed or not.
With such a powerful background, she hadn't thought that Mr. Guzman would dare betray her.
But now...
Erin fell silent, but Clay knew what she was thinking.
He knew his daughter too well.
Clay sighed again. "You are just too arrogant. Little do you know that even a worm will turn. They have no background. To save themselves and turn the tables when they are arrested, they will do whatever it takes to grab hold of others' weaknesses. Mr. Guzman is no exception. After tracking you down through your phone number, he must have kept evidence of your communication with him. Once the truth was revealed, he would immediately expose you to extenuate his crime."
"Do you mean Julien found out the truth because Mr. Guzman betrayed me?" Erin's eyes turned red, and she gritted her teeth.
Clay nodded. "That's probably the case. Mr. Guzman and you drew up the plan, and you only contacted him, so there shouldn't be a third person who knows. The only explanation is that he has ratted you out."
"That damned fatso!" Erin screamed like a crazy person.
Her cry was ear-piercing, and Clay put the phone away from his ear. "If you had been more cautious, contacting him with another number or disguising your voice, he wouldn't have known it was you. Even if he was caught, he wouldn't be able to sell you out, and Julien wouldn't have known or been angry with us. Unfortunately, you were too impulsive. If you had told your grandfather and me beforehand, we would have helped you and stopped Mr. Guzman from exposing you."
"I couldn't wait!" Erin bit her lips. "You guys kept saying that Sydney forced Julien to get back together with her and that they would break up sooner or later because they had no feelings for each other. I believed it and restrained myself from rushing back until I finished school. When I was handling my visa, I read stories about them being affectionate and loving. I couldn't bear it, so..."
Clay was distressed by his daughter's painful words, and he sighed. "I know how you feel, but you held on for so long. Couldn't you wait for more days? Look at the mess now. Your reputation is ruined, and people are criticizing you and our family online. Many netizens accuse us of deceiving and using them. As public opinion turns against us, the stocks of our company have plummeted. The shareholders are dissatisfied, and they want us to contact Julien and Sydney and apologize to them as soon as possible. Unfortunately, we can't even reach Julien."
Erin panicked. "Is Julien really mad at us?"
Clay looked worried. "Yes, he didn't even answer my calls. I tried to contact those around him, but they fobbed me off. Obviously, it was at his order. After all, we could always reach him in the past, and this is the first time such a thing has happened. It goes without saying that he is mad at us."
Erin felt dizzy.
She remembered what Mr. Guzman had said to her on the phone.
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: Sir, Madam Dispeared Again After Divorce!