Chapter 77: Sabotaging the Gil

At exactly six in the evening, Elliott dropped Zarah and Lena off at the function held by Gil Corporation at a five-star hotel nearby.

Compared to Zarah, Lena was wearing a knee-length mocha halter dress with a blazer.

Zarah and Lena walked to the entrance and showed the invitation.

"Welcome to Gil Corporation's private function, representatives from Stevens's Group." The receptionist welcomed them.

"Thank you," Zarah replied.

Lena was afraid that Zarah might be out of place because she thought that the latter had not met these people.

Well, Zarah could recognize quite a few since Xavier had brought her to a few dinner meetings.

"Miss Jansen, right?" A middle-aged man approached Zarah and Lena.

"Mr. Lamar! It's a great honor to be recognized by you," Zarah said with a genuine smile.

Mr. Lamar was a foreign client. The Lamar Corporation had a newly started joint venture with the Stevens Group.

Zarah accompanied Xavier when they signed the contract. Therefore she didn't expect that he would remember her.

"No! It's a great honor on my part to converse with the second largest shareholder of Stevens Group."

"You're flattering me, Mr. Lamar. I still have a lot to learn about the industry. I hope to learn from the experts like you, Mr. Lamar," Zarah sincerely said.

Mr. Lamar of Lamar Corporation chuckled as he listened. He liked how Zarah talked to him.

"Well, learning is a cycle. And besides, the new generation like you has a lot of bold ideas that we, seniors should learn from."

"Then, let's learn from each other!"

"I like that suggestion."

Then Mr. Lamar looked around and then behind Zarah. When he didn't see who he was looking for, he finally asked, "Where's Chairman Lockhart?"

"Chairman Lockhart is on a business trip. And so Miss James and I came as his proxy," Zarah explained.

"That brat. He's always busy. Well as expected for someone who owns two other companies to his name. Anyways, try to persuade him to work slower. Our generation could not keep up with him."

Zarah was stunned to hear that Xavier had two other companies overseas. And the way Mr. Lamar talked about Xavier, they seemed pretty close.

"I hope you don't mind me asking this Mr. Lamar."

Mr. Lamar seemed to be in a good mood and so he said, "Go on!"

"Are you and Chairman Lockhart very close?"

"Well, we met three years ago at Country C. I was there attending a function too when he approached me with a proposal. I could see that he was desperate and so I gave him a chance to discuss his proposal with me over dinner. And that young man did not disappoint. His ideas were brilliant!"

Zarah could see the sparkle in his eyes when he talked about the past. Zarah felt proud of her husband.

"I became his first investor and investing in his company was the best decision of my life. Three years after, he had two successful companies under his belt that are worth close to a trillion in total."

Mr. Lamar seemed to have misspoken as his eyes widened and he cleared his throat and then leaned forward to whisper to her.

"Please don't tell that brat that I told you this. He didn't like to reveal this trump card. I heard that he has an overbearing family."

Zarah chuckled as she realized her husband had a sneaky side. She was even more proud of Xavier.

While Zarah and Mr. Lamar were happily chatting, Mr. and Mrs. Gil were looking at them from a distance.

"Isn't that Crystal's classmate?", Mrs. Gil told her husband.

Mr. Gil snorted and said, "Indeed! Just look at her seducing older men at our function!"

"Honey, I've heard the rumor about her at school, too. I wonder what the late Chairman Stevens had seen in her that he gave her a huge inheritance." Mrs. Gil gossiped.

"I would not be surprised if she was not only his adopted daughter but also his mistress."

"Honey! That's too much, don't you think so?", Mrs. Gil tried to reprimand her husband.

"You didn't see how arrogant she was and even tried to seduce Chairman Lockhart in front of me and our daughter," he said angrily.

"Oh my! Is she the reason why our daughter was not accepted as an intern by Chairman Lockhart?"

"Yes!" Mr. Gil didn't hold back.

"Oh my! She's too much!"

Meanwhile, Zarah and Mr. Lamar's conversation was close to an end.

He grabbed a glass of champagne from the waiter and Zarah did the same.

"I know the night is still young but, cheers for our successful cooperation, Miss Jansen!"

"Cheers!"

Then, Mr. Lamar excused himself and Mr. and Mrs. Gil approached him immediately.

"Mr. Lamar! It's an honor to have you with us." Mr. Gil said with a huge smile on his face.

This function was for this man.

They wanted to win his heart and as much as possible, convince him to invest in their company.

"Of course! I won't refuse any free food and drinks. Especially when the food being served are my favorite," Mr. Lamar replied meaningfully.

Since he was in a good mood after talking to Zarah, he did not leave immediately. He wanted to know what this couple was up to.

"Of course! Well, I hope you enjoy the party. I also hope that we can build good connections with you, Mr. Lamar." Since they were busted, they didn't hide their intentions from this man.

"Well, let's see how the party goes."

He was not an unreasonable man. However, he also chose the people whom he would build connections with based on their morals and values as an individual.

He was not all about money.

The couple's eyes lit up when they heard it.

"Thank you, Mr. Lamar."

"Don't let me down." Mr. Lamar said with a smile.

Zarah observed the three people and sighed.

Of course, she knew what the purpose of this function was.

The Gil Corporation wanted to expand internationally which was why they were so eager to get Mr. Lamar to invest in them.

Then, she should spoil their plan to win the future battle.

Lena who had excused herself mid-way through their conversation came back.

"Misu- Miss Jansen, the Burton Technologies CEO wants to talk to you."

"Oh! Then, lead the way."

Although Stevens Group was focused on the banking industry, they had subsidiaries in other industries too.

Burton Technologies were known in the semi-conductors industry and Stevens Group had a subsidiary that sold smartphones.

Zarah heard that Burton Technologies had recently developed the newest chipset which was faster and the best quality in the market so far.

However, she frowned when she recalled that surname.

'Burton? Are they related to Thomas?', she asked herself.

Perhaps it was only a coincidence since Thomas never told her anything about his biological family back when he was still alive.

Lena brought Zarah to their table. Two men in their late fifties were happily chatting with each other when they arrived.

The other man had his back facing Zarah.

"CEO Burton, Miss Jansen is here," Lena said and the two men stopped their conversation immediately.

The man whose back was facing Zarah had finally turned around and she was surprised when she saw his face.

He looked like the older version of Thomas.

The resemblance was uncanny.

"We've finally met, Miss Jansen," Mr. Burton said.

"Do you know her, Freddie?", his companion asked with a frown.

"No I do not but my son sure did," he said with a meaningful smile.

Zarah's heart skipped a beat when she heard Mr. Burton.

"You are Thomas' father?"

"Yes," he decided to not hide this from her.

"I wondered what type of friends my son have when he was still alive."

Being reminded of Thomas, Zarah felt a pang of guilt.

He would not die should she not ask him to be Isaiah's private nurse. He got stuck in between Isaiah and his two vicious sons.

"I'm sorry Mr. Burton. I failed Thomas as a friend," she sincerely said and she could see Mr. Burton's complicated expression. However, the latter was quick to hide it away.

"Let's not talk about it now. Let's talk about business, shall we?" Mr. Burton changed the topic as the topic about his dead son upset him.

He was still mourning his loss.

It was already too late when he knew that his son was alive. When he confirmed that it was Thomas, he died that afternoon.

Therefore, they didn't get the chance to be together.

"Sure!"

"Are you sure Freddie? She seemed to be so young to know anything."

"Well, the Stevens Group's Chairman will not send her here should she know nothing." Mr. Burton chastised his companion.

His companion shut his mouth immediately.

It was true that she knew less about semiconductors as it was not her forte. However, she was more concerned about the performance of the said chipset compared to their current provider's chipset.

Then, they talked about business. Zarah listened to him attentively as he talked.

Zarah became interested in their topic. She did not hesitate to ask some questions and she was glad that Mr. Burton was generous to answer them.

"So, since our chip is newly designed and invented and we're looking for a good partner whom we thought is suitable to use our product."

Zarah thought that this was a good opportunity for them to have an edge over their competitors.

"Your proposal is very tempting. However, I don't have a direct say on this Mr. Burton. I have to discuss this with my superior. Of course, we are hoping to see a copy of your proposal in our office to be approved by my boss."

Mr. Burton chuckled and smiled, "Of course! My team will have it delivered to your office by Monday."

"Then, I'll look forward to that."

Then, they shared a toast afterward.

After their conversation, Zarah and Lena decided to stay in one place.

"Miss, are you hungry?"

"I'm fine. I'll leave at seven and have dinner with the girls. You can join too if you want."

Lena suddenly felt shy after hearing Zarah's invitation. She felt that she didn't deserve it.

She wanted to decline but then someone yelled behind them.

"What are you doing here?!" Crystal who had just arrived at the party was furious when she saw Zarah attending their event.

She wanted her to be thrown out immediately.

Zarah turned around to face Crystal.

"Your company invited us. I'm here as the Stevens Group's representative on behalf of our Chairman/CEO," Zarah patiently explained.

However, she inwardly smiled as she thought luck was on her side.

She was looking for an opportunity to ruin Gil Corporation's plan to get Mr. Lamar to invest in their company. And that opportunity had come.

"That's nonsense! Leave before I call security and throw you out!"

"Miss Gil, we're no longer in the university where I allowed you to bully me," Zarah tried to remind her however, she didn't forget for others to know the nature of their relationship. The bully and the bullied.

"Who cares?! You are in my territory therefore I can do what I want!" Crystal said overbearingly.

Zarah didn't have to say anything to provoke her as her presence was enough to provoke Crystal.

Crystal was so loud that the guest's attention was on them.

Mr. and Mrs. Gil rushed to their side.

They were worried that Crystal's overbearing and spoiled attitude would hinder their plans.

"Crystal, what are you doing?" Mr. Gil reprimanded her.

"Dad! Why did you let this sl*t enter? Aren't you afraid that she would seduce every man that she would meet here?!" she asked and everyone gasped in disbelief.

Zarah did not stop Crystal from slandering her.

Her lack of self-control angered her father.

"That's enough!"

"Stop it, Crystal. You're embarrassing us!" Mr. Gil said to stop her however Crystal had misunderstood him.

"Dad?! Don't tell me you got seduced by her, too?!" Mr. Gil had enough and a crispy slap landed on her face.

*Pah!*

"Honey!" Even Mrs. Gil was shocked to see her husband slapping their daughter.

They had never laid their hands on her while growing up. They had spoiled her to the bone and that was why she ended up like this.

"Go and bring our daughter away before she ruins everything!" he urged his wife.

Should Crystal and Zarah stay in one room, it would be a disaster.

He could not drive Zarah away as she's the Stevens Group's representative. So, he could only ask his daughter to leave.

"There's no need. I'll leave." Zarah said.

It was almost seven and she promised the girls that she would have dinner with them.

"Thank you for inviting us, CEO Gil. Have a good night."

She then looked at Lena who looked calm despite everything and said, "Let's go Miss James."

Before Crystal could even react, Zarah had already left.

She looked at Zarah's back and then at her father.

Tears started streaming down her eyes and she ran away. She felt disappointed and extremely humiliated by that slap.

She could not believe that her father had slapped her because of Zarah.

"Crystal!" Mrs. Gil called behind her back yet she ignored it.

Meanwhile, Mr. Lamar saw what happened and he made his decision.

He placed the empty glass on the empty tray and decided to leave.

"Mr. Lamar!" the couple called.

Mr. Lamar ignored the couple and followed Zarah.

He had seen enough and so he didn't want to be associated with them anymore.

"Forget about collaborating with me. I'm not going to invest in your company." He finally said.

What he said was the final nail in the coffin.

He already heard from other people what kind of people they were. He wanted to give them a chance by attending yet the function but he ended up being disappointed.

When they gossipped about Zarah, one of his men whom he instructed to follow the couple secretly had reported everything to him.

Thus, he decided to not bother investing his money in them.

As the couple heard this, they were devastated.

They could not believe that he was easily dissuaded over trivial things.

Zarah and Lena were standing outside as they waited for their car.

"Are you waiting for the ride, ladies?" Mr. Lamar asked and both Zarah and Lena turned around.

"Yes."

"Where are you both heading? I'll send you both there."

Zarah shook her head to decline Mr. Lamar's invitation.

She didn't want other people to misunderstand her further.

"It's fine Mr. Lamar, my best friend will be here to pick us up," she reasoned.

Being rejected, Mr. Lamar chuckled.

"Come on ladies, I'm not going to bite. I don't want the wife of my junior to be out here in the cold waiting for her ride."

Zarah was surprised to hear this.

"How did you know?"

"The ring." Mr. Lamar pointed at the ring on her right ring finger.

"That ring is special Mrs. Lockhart. You should not lose it. However, I suggest that you also keep it away for your safety."

Mr. Lamar's words had gotten Zarah's interest. However, as she saw that Mr. Lamar had no intention to continue, Zarah felt disappointed.

And so, she decided to not ask further.

"So, can I drive you home?"

Sensing that Mr. Lamar had pure intentions, Zarah looked at Lena, and then she nodded.

A Bentley then pulled over beside them and Mr. Lamar said, "Ladies first," at the same time, he opened the car door for them which shocked his driver and assistant.

Before she entered the car, she turned her phone's GPS and secretly took a photo of the car's plate number, and then she sent it to Olivia.

[This is my ride for tonight.]

Mr. Lamar saw everything yet he did not make any comment.

***