Chapter 614 +25 BONUS

William had been losing at cards all night. From the other room, Debra could hear the occasional bickering between William and Randy.

In her room, Debra turned on the TV. The late-night news was plastered with scandalous headlines about her and Juan’s rumored divorce. In the corner of the screen, a blurred image of Marion appeared, alongside the caption “Gigolo.”

The situation was serious, but the moment she saw the caption, she burst out laughing.

Marion raised an eyebrow. “What’s so funny?”

“Gigolo?” Debra managed between giggles. “You’re one of the most feared men in the city, right alongside Juan, and now they’re calling you a gigolo.”

Marion lightly tapped her forehead. “Ungrateful little thing.”

“Ungrateful?” Debra shot back. “I should be asking you. Who told you to come to this island? And you were the one who stuffed crabs and lobsters into the nets, right?”

She had thought it odd at the time but had brushed it off as a trick by the production team. Now, it was obvious that Marion had been behind it all, not wanting her and Juan to be together.

“I was worried you weren’t eating enough.”

“Or you didn’t want me to film the show with Juan?”

“Both.”

Marion didn’t even bother to deny it. Instead, he pulled out a new phone from his pocket, handing it to her.

“You came all this way just to give me a new phone?”

“Your old one broke. I had Randy pick this up for you.”

“Well, that’s convenient. I just threw away an old SIM card.”

She knew how capable internet users were these days. Though it wasn’t likely someone would dig up her number, rumors about her phone number were already spreading online. It was obvious someone had leaked it on purpose.

Debra didn’t want to be too hard on Melody, given her age, but Melody had pushed things too far. If she didn’t fight back, they’d think she was a pushover.

“Right now, Juan isn’t at the company,” Debra said thoughtfully. “Melody has full control. Joe mentioned seeing Sheila getting close to Melody recently. There must be more to this than meets the eye.”

“I’ve already started looking into it,” Marion said.

Debra nodded. “I’ve had some partners cozy up to Edgar, throwing him a few profitable projects. By now, he should have trusted them. I’m sure he’ll make a move against Oscar and the McKinney Group soon.”

“Good instincts,” Marion remarked.

“So, should we reel him in?” Debra asked.

“Everything’s already set up in Booton. Just give the word, and Edgar will lose everything.”

From outside the room came William’s booming voice. “You’re cheating.”

Debra and Marion exchanged an amused glance.

Back at the Nichols family’s house, Violet was massaging Melody’s shoulders, trying to placate her. “This is not my fault. Blame Debra, that vixen. I don’t know what kind of spell she’s cast on Juan, but he’s on her side now. Even if he doesn’t care about me, he should respect your decisions.”