?Chapter 1617:


    With the primary concern addressed, he shifted to more personal matters. “How’s your arm healing? Are you keeping up with regr dressing changes?”


    Ste replied softly, “Yes. It’s healing gradually. Please don’t waste energy worrying about me.”


    Jewell admired her resilience. Despite sustaining such severe injuries, she hadn’t uttered a singleint.


    That evening, while standing under the shower’s spray, Ste’s phone buzzed with a message from Steven: “Merrick’s associates are orchestrating a staged traffic ident. Carson will sustain injuries preventing him from attending the partnership meeting with William.”


    Ste’s heart plummeted as she absorbed the words. Carson’s injuries wouldn’t prove fatal, but the incident would spell disaster for William regardless. It would aplish more than merely disrupting the partnership — it would inflict severe damage on Briggs Group’s international standing. Carson had traveled internationally specifically to negotiate with William, only to suffer injury in an ident. Once news broke publicly, Briggs Group’s stock price would nosedive catastrophically.


    Ste hastily dried her hands and fired back a response. “We cannot allow Merrick to seed. We must intercept this n before it’s executed.”


    Steven’s reply came immediately. “Already notified Jewell. He’s en route to me now.” Secondster, a follow-up message appeared: “Ste, you need to inform William about this development. Can you secure his cooperation?”


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    Ste hesitated briefly, William’s hostile demeanor from theirst encounter shing vividly through her mind. She couldn’t predict his response. But there was no other choice — she had to try.


    “I’ll approach him, but I can’t guarantee his cooperation,” she replied.


    Even with William aware that Merrick was operating as Arlo’s agent, she had zero confidence he would ept her guidance. To Ste, William now seemed like a rebellious teenager, determined to contradict her at every possible opportunity.


    At ten in the evening, William returned to the vi, anger etched across his face. He went straight to the study and mmed the door. Crashes echoed from within as objects hit the floor.


    Ste sat on the sofa, trading worried looks with Tasha, whose brow creased with concern. After a moment’s hesitation, Ste stood. “I’ll see what’s wrong.”


    Her arm remained bandaged, and Tasha feared for her safety. “Ms. Russell, perhaps I should go?” William wouldn’tsh out at an elderly housekeeper, even now.


    Ste shook her head and moved to the study door, tapping on it softly. “William, are you all right?”


    The door swung open before she finished speaking. William stood in the doorway, his eyes burning with rage.


    “What’s going on?” she asked, keeping her voice as steady as she could. “Tell me, and we can work through it.”


    His eyes narrowed. “Work through it? What exactly can you do? The Carson project just copsed. How are you going to save that?”


    She blinked. “That can’t be right. Isn’t Carson arriving tomorrow?”


    “He came early.” William’s tone was cial. “The team Merrick sent to collect Carson from the airport was involved in a car ident. Carson was with them. Now he’s hospitalized and pulling out of the deal.”


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