Chapter 253

Theodore's immediate problem wasn't Jenny's villainy; it was the Edwards-Smith family collaboration implosion. Jenny, now imprisoned, had orchestrated the project, but the Smith family's new representative discovered she'd secretly diverted most of the profits to a company she and her mother, Dorothy, owned. Edwin, furious, learned Dorothy had quickly and cheaply sold the company. Finding her proved impossible.

Edwin immediately halted all collaborations, even involving the courts. This froze Edwards Group funds, halting projects, causing cash flow issues, and triggering a worker strike. Days later, unpaid workers stormed headquarters, demanding wages. Theodore, desperate, used his savings to avert a media disaster, but it was a temporary fix. The Edwards Group was drowning.

Then, salt in the wound: Michael and Gifford, his father and half-brother, arrived, mocking his predicament. Theodore raged, flipping a table, but the Edwards Group teetered on the brink of bankruptcy. Ian suggested seeking help from Rebecca—no, Stacey—the Carters. But how could Theodore face them?

He drank himself numb in a club, friendless and isolated, save for Ian's clandestine loyalty. A week later, the Edwards Group collapsed. Workers went public, and the company became a cautionary tale of exploitation on national television.

Theodore declared bankruptcy. His mansion was auctioned. He was 600 million dollars in debt. "Can I ever repay this?" he wondered, lost and alone, ending up at the airport, barred from even buying a ticket. Tears streamed down his face. He regretted his arrogance, his distrust of Rebecca, his blindness to Jenny's deceit. He’d been so self-righteous, so convinced of his own invincibility, even reveling in Rebecca’s refusal to remarry him.

“Where do you want to go?”

The voice startled him. Wyatt. Older, wearier.

“Where do you want to go?” Wyatt repeated.

Theodore laughed bitterly. “Nowhere.”

“I’ll take you,” Wyatt said.

Theodore stared, frozen. Wyatt’s silence spoke volumes. He knew he’d betrayed Theodore’s trust. After the Edwards Group’s downfall, Wyatt had avoided him, but the news had driven him to seek Theodore out. Seeing his friend’s tears, the weight of his past actions crashed down. He owed Theodore.

“Hivalis,” Theodore finally rasped, a thread of desperate hope in his voice.

“To find Rebecca?” Wyatt asked.

Theodore shook his head. A long silence. Then, “I’ll take you there.”