Chapter 257

In the stillness of the night, Juan returned home and burst open the door. The commotion roused Melody from her sleep. With Hester's assistance, she made her way to the living room, where she saw a gloomy Juan. She wrinkled her brows and asked, “Is anything wrong?”

“You come over here!” Juan stepped forward and grabbed Hester roughly. His furious look caused her to gasp in fear. “Juan, what are you doing?”

“Don’t call me that!” Juan snapped. “How could you be so malicious? Did you replace that $10 billion?”

Hester desperately shook her head. “It has nothing to do with me. Please, you must believe me.”

“Believe you?” Juan narrowed his eyes. “Debra fell into the sea, and she’s still missing. If she’s dead, I’ll make your family pay.”

Hester’s face turned ashen, and Melody stepped in. “Enough!” Taking a deep breath, she continued, “This has nothing to do with Hester. She didn’t have the authority to change the money. It was my decision.”

Juan staggered back, as if struck by an unseen force. “Grandma, what are you saying?”

Melody’s expression was cold and unyielding. “You’re silly. Even if Debra is from the Frazier family and has helped us, she’s not worth $10 billion. You’re just blinded by love. As the president of Nichols Group, you must place the interests of the company above just one woman.”

Juan’s voice was hoarse with emotion. “Grandma, you don’t understand how important Debra is to me.”

“Of course, I do. You were once obsessed with Sheila, clashing with me repeatedly for her. And now?” Melody scoffed, sitting down on the sofa. “When your infatuation fades, you won’t care about Debra anymore. I’m only looking out for you.”

“Looking out for me?” Juan took a step back, his face shifting from despair to cold determination. He had always been calm and collected, but the thought of losing Debra sent him spiraling. The Nichols family had taught him to keep his emotions in check, and he had been practicing that for years. But now, he only wanted Debra.

“Grandma, if anything happens to Debra, I won’t live either,” he declared.

Melody’s frown deepened. “Are you threatening me?”

Juan’s voice turned colder still. “You should know I mean what I say.”

“You…” Melody was irritated.

Turning to Joe, Juan ordered, “Mobilize everyone to search for Debra, alive or dead.”

“Yes, sir.”

As Juan turned to leave, Melody called after him. “Juan! Stop right there. Come back!” But he didn’t look back.

Melody was furious. “This is outrageous! Debra is such a troublemaker. I shouldn’t have let her marry into the Nichols family.”