Chapter 190 - 188: No One Dared to Move
It was nearly dawn by the time they landed in Lorcain.
After sending the other guys on their way, Duane drove Cecilia back to Hearthstone Villas himself.
"Thanks for all your hard work today. Here’s some cash for you guys to grab some cigarettes. You can split it with them later."
Before getting out of the car, Cecilia transferred 20 dollars to Duane. "I’m not sure what your usual arrangement is, so I hope this isn’t too little."
With five people, that came out to 4 dollars each.
"Cecilia, please, we can’t take this. Jeb would chew us out if we did," Duane quickly refused.
"You have to take it," Cecilia insisted. "I can’t have you guys going to all this trouble for nothing. Don’t worry, I won’t tell Jeb. Just split it secretly, and we’ll say I treated you all to a meal."
"But, Cecilia..."
"I’m not just being polite, so don’t you be either," Cecilia said, holding up her phone. "This way, I can call you again if I need something. Otherwise, there won’t be a next time."
At that, Duane smiled a little sheepishly and nodded. "Alright, then. In that case, I’ll thank you on behalf of the guys, Cecilia."
A smile touched Cecilia’s lips, and only then did she open the door and get out of the car.
Back at the villa, Cecilia kicked off her shoes, tossed her bag aside, and flopped straight onto the living room sofa. Grabbing a nearby blanket, she fell into a dead sleep without even taking off her makeup.
「The next time she opened her eyes, it was the following day.」
A message came from John Lawson: "The hearing is today. Are you coming?"
Cecilia shot up from the sofa. "Of course!"
But just after replying to Director Lawson, Cecilia saw that Rowe had also sent her a message: "Cecilia, the program integration test with the Goodman Group is today. You need to be there with the key."
Cecilia: "..."
She quickly switched back to her chat with Director Lawson, deleted her previous message, and sent a new one: "I have something else very important today. If there’s no time conflict, I’ll be there. If there is, I’ll do my best to rush over."
On the other end, John Lawson chuckled at his phone. He had seen her first message but hadn’t had a chance to reply yet. Seeing the new one, he leisurely typed back, "Alright. I’ll send you the address."
Cecilia: "I’ll have Estelle and Blair go over first. We’ve still got backup."
She got up and washed her face, but because she hadn’t taken off her makeup the night before, her eyes were a little red, as if she had been crying.
She dabbed on some light foundation, leaving just a faint redness that gave her a somewhat delicate, fragile charm. Cecilia studied her reflection, then chose a light-colored suit set to wear—a complete change from her usual sharp, sophisticated style, making her look a bit more playful and lively.
’A change of mood.’
When she arrived at the Goodman Group Headquarters, Timothy Rowe was already waiting in the first-floor lobby. With him were Maverick and Paige.
They were all a little taken aback by Cecilia’s outfit. The two men were too bashful to comment, but Paige smiled and said, "Cecilia, you look so pretty today."
Cecilia smiled, gracefully accepting the compliment, then looked at the group. "Is it just the few of us?"
Timothy Rowe nodded. "Everyone else is out working on other projects."
No one had been slacking off. After Cecilia convinced the Goodman Group to give them a chance, everyone saw a glimmer of hope, and their drive had been stronger than ever these past few days.
However, progress hadn’t been ideal. For a "ragtag team" of eight university students, their credibility was still sorely lacking.
That’s why today’s test with the Goodman Group was so crucial. If they succeeded, all the prior skepticism would evaporate.
Nine o’clock came quickly. Timothy Rowe glanced at the time, then at the people milling about the lobby, and frowned. "Our appointment was for nine. Why hasn’t anyone come down to get us?"
Maverick tried to placate him. "It’s fine. Let’s just wait a bit longer."
For now, Cecilia was able to remain patient. Director Lawson’s court hearing was at ten, and the courthouse wasn’t far from Goodman Tower.
But the minutes ticked by, and still no one appeared. By nine-thirty, Timothy Rowe had lost his patience and started calling their designated contact.
The phone rang and rang, but no one picked up. Timothy then went to the front desk, but he didn’t learn anything useful. They simply told him, "If you have an appointment, you just need to wait in the lobby."
Even the initially calm Maverick was growing impatient. "They’re doing this on purpose, aren’t they?"
Paige looked at him and sighed helplessly. "I’m used to it. We get treated like this all the time trying to drum up business. Some clients just stand us up and never show at all."
Watching them hold back their frustration, Cecilia felt a surge of anger. She glanced at the time and announced, "Fifteen more minutes. If no one has come by then, we’re leaving."
The others exchanged glances. They were angry too, but this opportunity was incredibly important.
Timothy Rowe hesitated before speaking up. "Maybe something important came up and they were delayed. We should wait a little longer."
"For a corporation this large, punctuality should be a fundamental sign of good faith," Cecilia stated. "If they can’t even manage that, there’s no point in working with them. Even if they were delayed by something else, they should have called to inform us or at least sent someone down with a message. That’s basic professional courtesy."
She wasn’t wrong, of course. But they were in a weak negotiating position, and the entire team had pinned their hopes on this test. Leaving now would be a major blow to morale.
At ten o’clock, after waiting for a full hour, there was still no word from the other party. It was as if they had vanished into thin air.
Without a moment’s hesitation, Cecilia grabbed her bag, stood up, and looked at the others. "Let’s go."
"We’re... not waiting any longer?" Maverick asked tentatively.
"Waiting an hour was more than enough of a courtesy. We’re leaving."
Cecilia’s tone was firm and resolute. Timothy Rowe didn’t dare argue; he just nodded and followed her toward the main entrance.
Maverick and Paige exchanged a glance and had no choice but to follow suit.
But just as they reached the doors, a voice suddenly called out from behind them. "Excuse me, are you Timothy Rowe?"
The call stopped all four of them in their tracks. They instinctively turned to see a man in a suit, wearing a company ID badge, hurrying toward them.
As he got closer, the man’s eyes scanned the four of them before finally settling on Timothy Rowe. "You’re Timothy Rowe, right?"
Someone had finally arrived. Timothy Rowe couldn’t hide the delight in his eyes as he nodded quickly. "Yes, that’s me. Hello. Are you Leader Hudson?"
"Oh, no, I’m not. Our leader is waiting for you upstairs. Come on up with me."
The man offered no apology, acting as if their appointment had been for ten o’clock all along. With that, he turned to lead the way, but after taking a few steps, he glanced back and realized that none of the four were following him.
Because Cecilia hadn’t moved, neither Timothy Rowe, Maverick, nor Paige had dared to take a step.