Chapter 16

In the penthouse office of Apex Squad, Emery sat behind his desk, his hands crossed and resting against his forehead, his forehead pressed against the back of his hands. None of the tasks demanding his attention could stir any enthusiasm in him. It had been days since he sent his assistant to check on Aubree’s current situation, but there was still no news.

"No money, and as a girl, where could she go after leaving home?" he said inwardly. "Aubree has no money." Even the bodyguards he recently sent to block her at school haven’t seen her.

Just then, his phone rang. It was his mom.

"What have you been busy with these days? Carmen even came to ask if she had upset you. Find some time to come back, and let’s all get together at the hot spring resort for a family gathering," she said.

Emery’s heart gave a sudden lurch as he listened. With Aubree’s whereabouts unknown, his mom was actually in the mood to have the family accompany Carmen to relax at a hot spring resort. He felt both shocked and infinitely sad. ‘So this was how Aubree was treated at home.’

“No, I’m busy here,” Emery hung up and almost rushed to call the cops.

But just then, his assistant knocked on the door and entered. "Sir, we’ve got news. Miss Aubree Miller rented a room in the ghetto after leaving the Wilson family."

“However…” Before the assistant could tell Emery that Aubree had been kicked out by Bryan, Emery grabbed his car keys and rushed to the ghetto.

Upon reaching the ghetto, Emery was shocked that such a place existed in Rithol. The narrow, dirty streets were crowded with people, making parking difficult. His fancy car stood out like a monkey in a zoo, attracting stares. So, he had to park further away and then walk to the location his assistant mentioned.

As a rich heir born with a silver spoon, the biggest hardship Emery had faced was probably eating salad every day during a game in Koraland. Stepping into the ghetto, he felt dizzy, assaulted by an indescribable smell, with dirty garbage everywhere. Many middle-aged men strolled around. Groups of green-haired delinquents on the street were smoking and leering at passing young women.

Has Aubree been living in such an environment? With this thought, Emery’s face turned pale. He dared not imagine what Aubree might have gone through. As a pretty girl, how could she survive in such a place?

Stumbling, he ran to the residential building where Aubree once rented. After some inquiries, he found the landlord.

“Excuse me, has a pretty girl around sixteen rented a room here?” he asked.

The landlord immediately recognized Emery’s extraordinary background. Remembering the man in a suit who paid him to kick Aubree out, he guessed this guy was here for the girl.

“Yes, is her name Aubree Miller?” He sounded very enthusiastic.

Emery’s eyes lit up instantly. “Yes, where is she now?”

The landlord, thinking he was about to make another profit, simpered, “Since I kicked her out as you instructed last time, how would I know her whereabouts?”

“Kicked out?” Emery was stunned. Who instructed to kick her out? He panicked.

The landlord knew something was up when he saw Emery’s expression. He immediately started groaning and tried to avoid eye contact. “I don’t know. I don’t know.”

At that moment, the assistant, who hadn’t finished speaking, caught up with Emery. “Mr. Wilson, I wasn’t done talking. On Tuesday, during the exam at Rithol High School, Miss Miller was accused of cheating.”

“Your big brother went to handle it at the school, and there were some unpleasant incidents. Then your big brother told the assistant to negotiate with all nearby merchants to refuse service to Miss Miller."

Hearing this, Emery was so shocked that his body trembled, then came an overwhelming anger. He never expected his elder brother to be so ruthless.

“Cheating? Really funny. To think that someone who almost gets full marks every time cheats?” As he thought about it, tears welled up in Emery’s eyes. He couldn’t bear to think about what might have happened to Aubree.

“Go report it!” The three words seemed to drain all his strength as he shouted them out.

The assistant was startled and couldn’t help but think that their boss should’ve known better. Yet, as a mere employee, she could only follow orders.

Realizing something, Emery snapped back into action and hurried toward where he had parked his car. Then, he sped through the streets until he reached the building of the Wilson Group. Ignoring all greetings from the receptionist, he rushed at top speed to the top-floor office.

At that moment, Bryan was on a video conference when someone kicked open the door. Frowning and recognizing who it was, he got punched right in the face. Being grabbed by the collar, he was yanked up from the chair.

“Bryan! Are you even a man?” Emery roared.

The special assistant quickly cut off the meeting.

Coming to his senses, Bryan felt utterly bewildered. He shook Emery off, snapping, “Are you out of your mind?”

“Am I out of my mind? Your own sister is penniless and wandering outside! Not only do you not care but you break her last hope!”

Bryan immediately understood what Emery was talking about. Getting punched in the face really annoyed him, so without any thought, he kicked Emery back and asked, “Calm down yet?”

The pain from being hit calmed down Emery’s rage gradually.

“Aubree secretly switched to general education courses, was involved in cheating, bringing shame to the Wilson family, and what’s more, she dared to fight back against me."

“Isn’t it only right that I teach her a lesson? Once she’s suffered enough outside, won’t she come back obediently?” Facing Emery’s accusations, Bryan felt no remorse whatsoever.

“Lesson? Bryan even hit Aubree!" Emery found it absurd and felt his punch was too light.

“Suffer? Hasn’t Aubree suffered enough? She was supposed to be a pampered young lady, but from the start, it was you, the elder.”

“She was abducted by human traffickers. If not for a kind couple who helped her on the way, and she managed to escape and was later in an orphanage, who knows where she’d be now?”

“Your mistake has made her suffer for ten years, isn’t that enough?”

Bryan’s face darkened instantly. The issue of Aubree getting lost because of him was his sore spot. He refused to admit his mistake. He could use Carmen as a substitute to make up for it, but Aubree’s return constantly reminded him of what he had done. He was already making amends for her poor academic performance, paved the way for her to study art, hired tutors for her.

“What more does she want? Her repeated defiance is just to vent her grievances from back then, isn’t it? Teaching her a lesson to make her understand her place—what’s wrong with that!” Bryan retorted inwardly.

Emery wasn’t done yet. “You should take some time to read the reports your assistant sends you. Cheating? Shouldn’t she switch to general education?”

With a sneer, he added coldly, “Do you know Aubree scores nearly perfect in every exam after enrolling in Rithol High School?”

Seeing the shock on Bryan’s face, Emery felt even more contemptuous. His smile grew colder as he said inwardly, ‘This was the brother who claimed he would make up for Aubree. Now, he doesn’t even dare to face his own mistakes.’