Che was worried Helens would be concerned if she knew him her distress, so she quicklyposed herself and asked, "Has Auri Pinda and the rest not returned from their vacation yet? "Nope, they are having too much fun and said they''d be back a weekter came the reply


    "What about Uncle Vemon? Does he have another business dinner tonight?


    "Your Uncle Vernon heard you wereing home and canceled his engagements. He said he''d be back for dinner with us. Should be here any minute now "Good"


    No sooner had they finished speaking than Vernon Ross walked in


    Seeing Charlene, he said with a smile. "Charlene, you''re back. But then his expression turned to concem. "Why have you lost so much weight? Haven''t you been eating well?"


    Charleneughed it off. "I''ve been too busy. I''ll eat more tonight."


    Vemon sighed and kept adding roast beef to her te when dinner was ready.


    Vernon mentioned she had lost weight, but Charlene noticed that he looked worn out. Though she never worked at the Ross Group, she knew the difficult times it was facing. Vernon was busy with work daily, struggling to keep thepany afloat Over the years, the Ross Group wouldn''t have been in such dire straits if Thome had extended his support.


    Besides the two desperate asions when Irma intervened, Thorne had never helped her. Charlene thought that if it weren''t for Irma, Thorne, with his misunderstandings about her, would probably have been more inclined to destroy the Ross Group than help it. With those thoughts, the savory taste of the roast beef turned nd in her mouth.


    Knowing her predicament, Vernon never asked her to seek help from Thorne, even in times of need.


    After dinner, while Helena dozed off, Charlene handed Vernon a seventy-million check.


    "Charlene, I don''t need-"


    "I don''t have much use for it," Charlene insisted, pushing the check back toward him. "There''s not much else I can do to help. It is the only way."


    Browing up, she excelled academically and could contribute to research and development. But she was not cut out for business.


    Fortunately, a few years back, she had secured several patents in artificial intelligence. The techpany she co-founded with Stewart and others also paid dividends annually. Adding it all up, she could easily earn tens of millions without lifting a finger. Vernon was ashamed. "You''ve given me money several times, but thepany is still..."


    Barely surviving.


    "It''s myck of ability," Vernon admitted.


    "High investment in transitioning thepany is normal, uncle. Try not to stress over it."


    It reminded her of what Stewart had said during theirst meeting. "The Al field is growing rapidly. With your development skills and my operational expertise, ourpany could have been worth billions by now, leading the industry. Thankfully, the Al sector still offers vast opportunities, and I hope you can rejoin us soon."


    If she still possessed her former skills, her return to thepany could significantly improve its fortunes, eventually enabling her to provide even more financial support to her uncle.


    It was past ten o''clock when Thorne got home.


    Rubbing her eyes, Jasmine greeted him, "Dad, you''re back?"


    "Yes," he replied tersely. "Go to bed if you''re tired."


    "Okay. Good night, Dad."


    "Good night."


    After Jasmine went upstairs to sleep, Thorne took the ss of water the butler handed him, finished it, and headed upstairs. The bedroom was pitch ck, seemingly empty. Thorne paused before turning on the light. As expected, it was empty. rapter 19