Chapter 764
When There Is Nothing Left But Love
âBefore you came, we had a fight with Rachel. Weâre all bruised and battered,â I explained, with an
automatic glance toward Ashton.
Noraâs eyes widened. âGod! Why didnât you include me for this?â
âDonât talk nonsense!â Linda chastised. âItâs already happened, and Rachel must be holding a grudge.
Itâs hard to tell how she would make things difficult for us in the future.â
I pursed my lips, deep in thought. Armond had a point.
Though I did not like Rachel, it was indisputable that she was a capable employee of the Corporation. If
it werenât so, Ashton wouldnât have gone through the trouble himself of hiring her all the way from
Ustrana.
Aside from the fact that Ashton had no romantic interest in her whatsoever, her skillset and
professionalism were second to none, and Ashton valued her for it.
If Rachel left in a rage, the only one at a loss would be Fuller Corporation.
âAlright then. Do you still have work to do?â Nora asked. âIf you donât, weâll head over to Grandpaâs for
dinner. Itâs harvest season for the fruits he had grown in his yard.â
âWhat a glutton!â Linda teased. âWe still have a meeting to attend. There still isnât a concrete plan to
deal with the situation at the base, and we canât afford to delay this any longer.â
I nodded in agreement. âThere are some pear trees outside the base,â I informed Nora. âTheyâre ripe
enough to be eaten. Go and amuse yourself. Weâll call you once the meeting ends.â
She nodded glumly. âWhat an awful life it is to have to amuse oneself.â
Linda and I laughed for the lack of anything else to say and headed to the meeting room.
Leedon saw us and, for some reason, smiled awkwardly to himself and went on his way.
Seeing that, Linda and I were startled. What was that about?
In the office, Linda heated up some water. While she searched for a paper cup, Leedon pushed some
freshly harvested fruit to her. âMs. Linda, could you help me peel these?â
She was busy, but I got up and volunteered on her behalf. âIâll do it!â
Leedon was startled at my enthusiasm. âOh, thereâs no need. Iâll do it myself!â
I frowned as I tried to recollect our interactions over the past couple of days. I donât think I had offended
him. Why was he behaving like this?
Nonetheless, I did not spare much thought for the matter after he brought his fruits out of the
conference room. Soon after, Ashton and Armond entered.
Then, Rachel entered after them. When everybody was seated, Joseph began. âIâm sure everybody
has their own suspicions regarding the situation of the base and are keeping a close eye on it. Weâre
here today to discuss our progress.â
âThis project was launched half a month ago. Right now, all of our tasks are bottlenecked, due to the
mistakes of some people. We have been unable to get started even until today. How are we supposed
to discuss progress?â Rachel cut across with an ugly look on the face.
Her words had truth to them, even if they were scathing. Linda did not retort, but she did not object
either.
Ashton and Armond remained silent as well. As leaders, they were just here to listen.
After that, Joseph briefs a little regarding the status of the project and opened the floor for each of us to
express our opinions.
âItâs my fault that the project is currently stagnated,â Linda voiced out. âI accept the blame fully. But the
most important thing right now is to think of a way to catch back up.â
âWhat a load of rubbish!â Rachel scoffed coldly.
Linda frowned but did not say anything.
Everybody present was well aware of the source of Rachelâs discontent.
After a brief pause, I said, âThe items stolen from the base are impossible to be recovered right now. I
wonder if Fuller Corporation has any comparable technology that can substitute the stolen goods for
the time being? For the project to continue, we need the equipment.â
Joseph nodded. âIt has already been arranged. Donât worry, Mrs. F-, I mean, Ms. Stovall!â
âNice save, Mr. Campbell.â Linda laughed.
Joseph grinned apologetically.
Rubbing my nose thoughtfully, I said, âBesides, Iâve been curious about whatâs been going on here at
the base. Itâs very unlikely for Linda to forget the operational steps. How was it so coincidental that the
thief would have been able to pick that up?â
âCoincidence? Sounds to me like we have a traitor in our midst. How easy it must have been to have
something worth billions at oneâs disposal. They get the goods, and they get the man as well. Hah!
What a breeze!â Rachel said bitterly, her tone dripping with sarcasm.
âRachel, you should clarify who it is that your filthy mouth was accusing.â Linda was losing her temper
by the second.
âWell, well⦠Who else could I be referring to? I mean, if the shoe fits.â Rachel laughed coldly.
âYouâ¦â Linda spluttered, her anger rising steadily.
I pulled her back into her seat. âWeâll deal with what we have to deal with,â I said hastily. âMs. Zimmer,
thereâs no need to bring your personal issues to a professional setting, and thereâs even less need for
you to use that tone with all of us. We will bear the price of our mistakes, but we are here to discuss
what we can do better moving forward, and we will do exactly that!â