Rachel had just received Serena''s taunting text when news of Bryan''s detainment popped up on her phone.


    Her vision went ck for a second.


    It had to be that wretched Serena. She had to have set Bryan up on purpose to


    send him to the police.


    "Rachel, what''s wrong?"


    Howard approached, noticing her pale expression from afar. He instinctively nced at her phone.


    Rachel quickly clenched her phone, forcing a calm demeanor.


    "N-Nothing. Howard, you haven''t eaten yet, right? You should hurry to the dining room."


    Howard frowned. "Are you sure everything''s okay?"


    "Yes, really!" she insisted.


    Although he was skeptical, he didn''t push further and walked away.


    The moment he left, Rachel''s phone rang again. This time, it was her mother, Carol Thomson.


    "Rachel, do you have no conscience? That''s your own brother. And you let Serena throw him in jail! Do you even care about your family? How could you just stand by while he suffers?


    "Get him out of there right now! Serena just wants money, doesn''t she? Go ask Howard for it! And if not, just let Howard deal with her once and for all. Whatever it takes, you must protect our family''s only son!"


    Carol''s furious voice sted through the phone before she abruptly hung up, not giving Rachel a chance to respond.


    Rachel''s scalp tingled with anxiety. She nced at the police notice again and mentally calcted her avable funds. Most of her money had already gone to Sarah, to help her get close to Cole.


    Where was she supposed toe up with the money for this fine?


    After much deliberation, she clenched her teeth and went to find Howard.


    "Howard, my family''s business hasn''t been doing welltely. We might need some


    extra funds to tide us over. Could you help us out?"


    Howard mmed his utensils on the table, ring at her.


    "The Lloyd family''s business has always run smoothly. You''ve made it this far without issues. Why are you suddenly short on money?"


    If it weren''t for Rachel giving birth to Serena, he would have looked down on Lloyd Corporation before.


    Compared to Amber, who could sell a single porcin piece for an astronomical price, the Lloyd family was insignificant.


    Theirpany had been run by Rachel''s aging father, who was already struggling to keep up. The business was deteriorating by the day.


    As for Bryan, he was just a good-for-nothing who knew nothing about running apany.


    Howard had washed his hands of their affairs years ago.


    Now, with Rachel asking for money, he was even less inclined to help. Why


    should he waste money on a business that was bound to fail?


    Rachel caught the disdain in his eyes. She felt utter grievance, but she forced a smile and continued pleading.


    "Howard, you know my father is old. He made a bad investment recently and lost a lot of money..."


    "A hundred thousand. That''s it."


    Howard cut her off, clearly unwilling to keep the conversation going. Without even finishing his meal, he left the dining room and locked himself in his study, shutting out the world.


    Rachel gritted her teeth.


    She knew Jansen Group had its own financial strugglestely. She doubted she could get more money from Howard.


    For now, she''d have to settle for a hundred thousand. But that was just enough to cover Serena''s car repairs. She still needed money to bail Bryan out.


    And if she didn''t pay back the six million dors, Serena would have leverage over her forever. She had to find a way to put an end to this once and for all.


    After a long while, Rachel returned to her room. Staring at her collection of luxury goods, she gritted her teeth and thought, "If I sell these, I can at least get some cash on hand..."