At her mother''s urging, Bianca opened the country''srgest news media tform on her phone. The live broadcast was the top story. The first thing she heard was Ron Archer''s voice, clear and unequivocal.


    "The news report that circted this morning was false. I have no ns to partner with Ascendancy Group. Of course," he added, ever the diplomat, "Ascendancy is an excellentpany with mature technology and a strong market presence. They are a benchmark in the industry."


    The public rification was a direct p in the face. Anyone with a modicum of business sense would see that the morning''s news had been a calcted PR stunt. Bianca had orchestrated it, confident that Ron would see Ascendancy Group as his best and only option. She had thought of it as extending an olive branch. She never imagined he would not only refuse it but publicly set it on fire. Her face, already pale, turned ashen. She could already imagine the mockery online.


    Henry noticed her distress immediately. "Bianca, what''s wrong?"


    She couldn''t find the words. Her expression hardened. "I''m so sorry, Henry, but we''ll have to reschedule."


    "It''s fine. Go take care of what you need to," he said with gentle understanding. "I''ll get the check."


    Bianca gave him a grateful nod and hurried out, leaving Henry to stare after her, his eyes filled with worry.<fn6> N?w ?ovel chapt?rs are published on F?ndNovel</fn6>


    She and Yvonne arrived home at roughly the same time, both their social engagements having ended in disaster. Forrest was just sitting down to dinner. "I thought you two weren''t eating at home tonight?" he asked, confused. "The housekeeper only prepared enough for me."


    Yvonne threw her designer handbag onto a chair. "How can you eat at a time like this? I''m too furious to be hungry! A crisis is unfolding, and you can''t even be bothered to show a little concern for your daughter!"


    "What happened?" Forrest asked, his brow furrowed.


    Bianca quickly exined the situation, including how Mr. Prescott was now ignoring her calls.


    "You should be helping her!" Yvonne used her husband.


    "I just transferred to Rivercrest City," Forrest said, his voiceced with


    exasperation. "My feet aren''t even firmly on the ground yet. What can I do?"


    It was true, but Yvonne was too angry to be reasonable. "When you conducted that safety inspection for Noreen''s port project, why didn''t you find some problems? Make things a little more difficult for her?


    At this, Forrest looked even more weary. "I was as critical as I possibly could be. I gged every minor issue. But then the higher-ups changed their minds and called off the deep dive."


    "Does she have someone protecting her from above?" Yvonne demanded.


    Forrest couldn''t say.


    Bianca, however, was dismissive. "It was probably just a coincidence. It has nothing to do with Noreen. doesn''t have that kind of power."


    Bianca had done her r


    Noreen came from a broken Single-parent home with no connections to speak of


    But that wasn''t the immediate problem. "We need to find a way to reverse this situation, and quickly," Yvonne said, pacing the room. If this continued, the rumors of Bianca being a jinx would solidify into fact Then, forget about a top-tier family like the Harcourts; even lesser dynasties would shun her. Her engagement to Seth was not yet a marriage. It could fall apart at any moment.


    As Yvonne fretted, Bianca received a text message.