Chapter 524
Chapter 524
Sophia's words were so spine-chilling that the conceited Delilah could only tighten her grip on the gifts she brought, not daring to knock on Sophia's door anymore.
She knew that Sophia was not Zoey and that Sophia felt nothing toward her. Otherwise, Rupert would not be in jail.
If Sophia said that she was going to let Jasper rot in jail, then that was exactly what she would do.
Alas, Delilah did not know who else to seek help from besides Sophia.
In her seventy and more years of living, no one in the village had ever dared to cross her. Hence, she lived the life of a tyrant there, thoroughly enjoying her days. It was comfortable, anyway, and she did not mind living a simpler life.
However, Delilah also knew that Jasper's issue was not something she could solve but throwing a tantrum now that she was out of the village.
Jasper had hijacked and robbed Sophia and the others close to a hundred thousand. Moreover, the people he had robbed were retired soldiers. The situation was terrible. In fact, the officer told her that the police would not release Jasper even if she were to wait outside the station every day. However, Jasper might receive a lighter sentence if she were to get Sophia and the others' forgiveness and provide financial compensation.
Delilah knew that she would not get Sophia's forgiveness even before she came to the latter's house. Things were unsalvageable between them, after all, but Delilah still felt helpless when Sophia rejected her. She only recomposed herself enough to leave after a while of standing by the doorway.
She did not want to leave, but what Sophia told her before closing the door frightened her.
By the time the others were done packing, it was after ten. A moment of rest later, they went out of the house.
There was no one outside of the house, so Sophia thought that Delilah was gone.
However, when they walked out of the lobby, Sophia spotted Delilah eating eggs near the flowerbed.
Delilah had clearly spotted Sophia as well, for she raised her brows. However, something seemed to cross her mind, and she turned to the side guiltily, curling into herself as if she was afraid they would see her.
Sophia only gave her a brief glance before looking away and continuing to make her way to the car.
After bringing the suitcases into the car, the two cars slowly drove out of the residential area.
Delilah watched them leave, but she did not dare to follow them. It was only when she could no longer see the two cars did she curse and left the residential area with her gifts.
When Sophia and her group arrived at the hotel, it was eleven. They then sat in a private room and chatted for a while before ordering at half-past eleven. Before half-past twelve, they were done with lunch, and soon, they were on their way to the airport.
The flight was around three, and they landed at Jadeborough around five in the evening.
Jadeborough in August was as hot as it was back in July. A wave of heat was what greeted them when they stepped out of the airport.
It had been a tiring journey, so after dinner, Sophia sent Perrin and Kylie back to the hotel before going back to the mansion.
Although the trip at Coldbridge was not a busy one, Sophia was heading out every day in those five days, so she could not help but feel weary.
Now that she had returned to Jadeborough, it was time for Sophia to attend to the matters concerning Odyssey and Sunshine Group. Anticipating a busy day ahead, she made the decision to retire early and get some rest.
When the alarm rang the next morning, she opened her eyes. It was summer, so the sun rose earlier. By seven, the sun was already shining bright.
Yvonne had sent Sophia a reminder message the night before, telling her that she had a morning meeting at nine.
Sophia peeked at it and chuckled softly.
What a responsible secretary she is. I'll have to raise her salary when I get back to the office.
Sophia rarely intervened in Odyssey and Sunshine Group's matters nowadays—she was leaving them to Yvonne and Felix, and she was only generally concerned about the more important projects.
The reason behind her being summoned to today's morning meeting at Sunshine Group stemmed from an incident earlier in the year, specifically in March, when a company in which Sunshine Group had made an investment encountered certain challenges. The matter at hand revolved around deciding whether Sunshine Group should promptly withdraw from the investment or proceed with the investment, and it necessitated a discussion among the shareholders.
After all, Sunshine Group had invested a hefty sum in that company.
Having slept early the night before and woken up early in the morning, Sophia went out of the house by twenty minutes past eight and reached Sunshine Group's office by fifteen minutes to nine.
Yvonne had not yet arrived, but the thoughtful woman had already organized the documents according to their priority and neatly placed them on Sophia's desk.
Sophia picked up one and started reading. Just as she reached the middle, Yvonne arrived and greeted, “Good morning, Ms. Yarrow.”
Sophia lifted her head and smiled at her. “Good morning, Ms. Leighton.”
Then, she paused and continued, “That's a splendid necklace.”
Yvonne lowered her head to glance at her necklace before nervously answering, “Thank you, Ms. Yarrow.”
At her response, Sophia arched a brow and asked, “Why are you so anxious? Did your boyfriend gift you this?”
Yvonne Leighton, the considerate and competent secretary, was approaching her thirtieth birthday that year. It had been eight years since she started working for Sophia. Interestingly, throughout all those years, Sophia had never witnessed Yvonne being involved in a romantic relationship. Content is © 2024 NôvelDrama.Org.
Yvonne nodded, and a rare hint of sheepishness crept into her demeanor. “Mhm.”
“Congratulations!” Sophia chuckled. “To celebrate your relationship, let me raise your salary. Your initial monthly salary is eighty thousand, but I'm going to raise it to ninety-nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine.”
Yvonne never thought that she would be able to get a raise of close to twenty thousand just because she was in a relationship. A smile grew on her face despite herself, and she said, “Thank you, Ms. Yarrow.”
“You're welcome. It's what you deserve.”
Yvonne was still touched, however. Truth be told, her salary raises came quickly. When she first started working for Sophia, her monthly salary leaned on the side of meager. After all, she had just graduated. Still, it slowly grew from eight thousand to eight thousand, and now, she was getting a raise of close to twenty thousand. Furthermore, Sophia gave her stock options. Combining that with her year-end bonuses and dividends, her annual income now amounted to nearly three million.
The mere thought of it thrilled her.
Still, as a professional secretary, Yvonne only allowed herself to cheer inwardly for a second before recollecting herself to talk business with Sophia. “Ms. Yarrow, what you have in your hands is a merger proposal evaluated by the company last week.”
Sophia inclined her head and replied, “You can make the decision for this.”
As she said that, she flipped to the last page and signed the document.
If she was dubious of Yvonne, then she would have terminated her. If she were to keep Yvonne employed, then she was not going to doubt the latter's decision.
Yvonne was once again moved by the way Sophia had simply signed the document without hesitation. Most of the time, Yvonne would take Sophia's place in settling the company matters. There were people in the company who thought that Sophia was a fool to take a backseat in managing the company and that Yvonne was going to stage a coup eventually.
Despite having been employed by Sophia for the past eight years, Sophia harbored only trust in her. Whenever she assigned a task to Yvonne, she possessed unwavering faith in the latter's abilities. Sophia never questioned her, even when problems appeared.
When Sophia saw Yvonne still in her spot, she clicked her tongue and questioned, “What's the matter? Did the salary increment scare you?”
Upon hearing Sophia's words, Yvonne snapped back to her sense and quickly shook her head. Cautiously, she asked, “Ms. Yarrow, are you not going to take another look at it?”
Sophia instantly figured out what Yvonne was thinking with that question. She laughed and said, “What are you thinking about, Ms. Leighton? If you wanted to come after me, you wouldn't have waited until now.”
The best time would be when no one knew Suny was.
Realizing that she was overthinking the issue, Yvonne apologetically said, “Sorry, Ms. Yarrow.”
“What are you sorry about? It's not as if you've done anything to wrong me,” Sophia remarked, still smiling. She then glanced at her watch and continued, “All right, it's time for the meeting.”