"But Ms. Silva wasn't that harsh. She just wanted Ms. Gale to face reality." "Reality?" Jethro closed his eyes. The knuckles of his hand gripping the porcelain cup turned white. After a long moment, he let out a scoff. "What reality? Just bullying someone from a position of power without even realizing it." Finally, he asked, "My mom wouldn't have suddenly noticed Darcy. Someone was gossiping in front of her, right?" His sharp gaze pinned Ivy down. She hurriedly distanced herself. "It wasn't me! It was Mrs. Vance. She complained to Ms. Silva, saying someone was seducing you. Ms. Silva was just being protective, so she..." Jethro nodded, relatively satisfied with her response. "Thank you for telling me. Don't worry. Our lunch today stays between us." Ivy immediately pledged, "You can rest assured, Mr. Blackwood. I won't say a word to Ms. Silva." Soon, only Jethro remained in the private room. He looked down at the pinned contact on his phone, his heart filled with guilt and pain. She was already wounded from her last relationship. He hadn't soothed her fears. He'd made them worse. She was so strong-willed. He couldn't imagine how awful she must have felt hearing his mother's humiliating words. She had every right to pull away from him. The fact that she hadn't come to curse him out already spoke volumes about her character. Sunlight streamed into the private room like gold foil, but not a single ray touched him. Jethro sat in the shadow, his heart feeling like it was being slowly carved by a blunt knife. After a long while, he finally left the room and drove back to the company.He didn't go to the top floor. He went straight to Stratagem Tech. The receptionist was slacking off, playing on her phone. Seeing the big boss enter suddenly, she hurriedly flipped her phone face down on the desk. "Mr. Blackwood!" Jethro looked inside. Seeing Darcy's office door closed, he frowned slightly. "Ms. Gale isn't in?" The receptionist replied, "Ms. Gale and the team are out. They went to Voyager for a pre-sales presentation." Jethro understood. He knew the whole company was busy with the Voyager tender recently. Thinking for a moment, he called his sister. Cindy was just arriving at Voyager with Darcy and the team. After parking, she answered Jethro's call. "Jethro, what's up?"Jethro said, "You're at Voyager?" "Yep, just got here, about to get out. Need something?" "Yeah. Just found out something. I'll need your help later." "Oh? What is it? How can I help?" "Cindy, let's go up." Jethro heard Darcy's voice come through the phone, calling Cindy. He suppressed the urge to explain everything to her immediately, taking a deep breath. "You go ahead. I'll tell you tonight when you're home." Cindy didn't think much of it and hung up. The group took the elevator to the lobby. Just as they reached the main lobby, they saw the SummitCore team approaching from the other side. Leading them were Zane, Zora, and Lucian. And—Darcy narrowed her eyes slightly, confused. Why was John with them? The SummitCore team saw them too. Although Darcy had no desire to interact, some people were naturally gifted with thicker skin than others. Zora, acting as if nothing had happened, waved at Darcy while clinging to Zane's arm. "Darcy! What a coincidence! You're here for the presentation too!" Darcy couldn't even be bothered to give her a glance, swiping her access card and walking straight into the elevator. Cindy frantically pressed the elevator button, praying it would come faster. She felt dirty just thinking about sharing the ride with that scumbag and that bitch! Breathing the same air as them made her nauseous. Soon, the elevator arrived. Once inside, Cindy furiously pressed the "close" button. Just as the doors were about to shut, a hand suddenly slipped through the gap. Zora pouted, "Darcy, we finally meet. Why do you always avoid me?" Her tone made Darcy want to vomit. She knew Zora said it to get under her skin. If she got angry, or showed the slightest hint of disgust or pain, she'd be playing right into Zora's hands. Too bad. Darcy wouldn't give her that satisfaction. Her tone, her provocations—Darcy would ignore them all. Zora gritted her teeth, her hands clenching in frustration. Suddenly, John frowned disapprovingly. "Darcy, you're being very rude. Zora genuinely sees you as a sister. She greets you warmly every time she sees you. And you? Treating her with such disdain. "I am your father. Since we were reunited, you've never smiled at me, never once called me 'Dad.' Tsk. I don't know how your mom raised you all these years, to make you so disrespectful and impudent!" John's words were like a bomb dropped into a pond, finally igniting the fire in Darcy's heart. They could criticize her, and she could listen with a calm face. But her mother was her bottom line. She could not tolerate anyone criticizing her mother! Especially not John, the scumbag who abandoned his wife and daughter!