Chapter 52
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Stanley rarely felt this good. He pulled out a few bank cards from his wallet. Tessa’s eyes lit up. She knew the drill. Rich folks loved to throw money around.
Kristina already had Trenton’s black card, so whatever Stanley gave her had to be decent. She wasn’t asking for much. Maybe 300 thousand dollars or so would be enough.
Stanley took out a yellow card and handed it to Tessa. “The password is six zeros. There are 3,000 dollars in there. You can start with that.”
Tessa couldn’t believe it. ‘3,000 dollars? Shouldn’t it be 300 thousand dollars?‘
Her heart sank. She thought, ‘Compared to Trenton, Stanley is nothing. Is this even a serious offer?‘ Even so, she pocketed the card and put on a grateful smile.
Meanwhile, Lisa was still holding Kristina’s hand, trying to get closer. “Kristina, you should get your medicine. We won’t disturb you anymore. Make sure you rest well.”
Kristina nodded, then remembered something. “Oh, Mom and Dad, Belinda’s birthday is coming up in a few days. I want to get her a gift to show my appreciation. She’s not in great health, so she loves collecting all kinds of rare herbs.”
John nodded smoothly. “Of course, you should get her a nice gift. It’s her birthday.”
“Dad, I…” As Kristina was talking to John, a middle–aged guy in a tailored suit appeared from around the corner.
It was Devin. Hearing Kristina speak, he didn’t think he’d been tricked. He was overjoyed. His daughter had called him Dad.
Just as he was about to respond, John cut in. “Kristína, what do you need help with?”
Devin felt a surge of anger, thinking, ‘Who does this guy think he is, trying to steal my daughter?‘
Kristina, who was out of sight, didn’t see Devin. She kept talking to John, “Dad, I need money to buy the gift. I don’t have that much on me.”
At the mention of money, Lisa perked up. “Don’t you have the black card with unlimited spending? You can afford anything.”
“Mom, that’s like robbing Peter to pay Paul. Using the McClain family’s money to buy a gift for them? If Belinda finds out, she’ll definitely be upset. And it might even affect Tessa,” said Kristina.
After some thought, John decided to cover the cost. It was just for some herbs–how much could it be? “Alright, I’ll pay for it. How much do you need?”
Kristina held up six fingers. John thought, ‘It’s just 6,000 dollars. He was about to transfer the money without hesitation when Kristina smiled sweetly and said, “Thanks, Dad. Just put 600 thousand dollars on my card.”
“What?” John looked shocked, almost unable to believe his ears.
He thought, ‘600 thousand dollars? It’s too coincidental. I just received a million in payments a few days ago, planning to stash it away. If I don’t know Kristina isn’t capable of such a scheme, I almost suspect I have a spy around me.‘
Seeing John reluctant to pay, Kristina couldn’t hide her disappointment. “Dad, you know the saying. No pain, no gain. Can you really stand by and let both your daughters be looked down upon by the McClain family?”
Devin, listening from behind, was turning red with anger. He’d been searching for his precious daughter for years, and now she was calling someone else Dad just to get a measly 600 thousand dollars.
His knuckles cracked from clenching his fists. He’d never been this furious in his life.
Kristina pretended to sigh, “Forget it, then. I know our family’s situation.”
She picked up her phone, pretending to call someone. “I remember Ms. Huffman from before. She offered to help me out. I never asked her for money, but maybe I’ll reach out to her this time.”
Hearing this, Lisa started to panic.
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