Chapter 10

Winona rushed over when she heard that Jay and Zora had gone to the raw material warehouse and that Mr. Bydlon had been summoned. She was fearful that she would be exposed. She suppressed her nervousness and pretended she was not aware of what was happening. "What's going on?" "Jay, what are you doing here?" 'Damn it. Zora the bitch has been messing with me since she returned. How dare she come to the raw material warehouse!' Back then, Winona had given instructions to bring in a batch of semi-synthetic ores to cut costs. She had not expected Zora to deliberately cause her trouble as soon as she returned! Jay said to Winona indifferently, "What's up with these semi-synthetic ores?" Winona clenched her fists and acted innocent. "I have no idea. You know I'm clueless about ores and gemstones. Over the years, I've been in charge of procurement of the ores, but I always assumed it was the same as before." Indeed, she did not know a thing about ores, and that worked to her advantage. Zora chuckled. "Dad is quite trusting for handing the company over to someone who doesn't know shit. Isn't he afraid the company might actually go bankrupt?" "I... I really didn't know." Winona felt helpless, and she turned to Jay. "Jay, you have to believe me." 'Bitch! I must get rid of her one day!' Jay did not doubt Zora's suspicion. However, Winona had been with him for several years. Though she knew little about the jewelry, she had diligently sought his advice. He believed that she was not one to deceive. He turned to Mr. Bydlon and said, "You're fired." Mr. Bydlon was shocked, but he accepted it. After all, he knew he ought not to get on Jay's case. Winona watched as Mr. Bydlon got fired. She bit her lips. 'Thank goodness Jay believed in me.' Jay said to Zora, "From now on, you'll be in charge of the procurement of the ores." Then, he left. Back in the office, Winona followed Zora and grabbed her. "Zora, you did that on purpose, didn't you?" Zora turned and sneered. "What do you mean on purpose?" "You... You deliberately got close to Jay, and you led him to the raw material warehouse, right? Do you think he would have believed you?" Winona gloated. "You saw what happened. Jay believes in me. Stop trying so hard." "Oh, did you mean I brought him to the raw material warehouse to tell him that the ores are semi-synthetic, just so he would be suspicious of you and get in between you guys?" Looking at Winona's displeased expression, Zora crossed her arms and sneered, "Do you think I have the time to meddle in your affairs? He followed me to the warehouse on his own. What's it got to do with me?" "Do you think I'd believe in what you just said?" "Fine if you don't. Why waste your breath?" Zora had had enough. "The matter of the semi-synthetic ores isn't over between us. If it weren't for the fact that Vienna Jewels was founded by my mother, I wouldn't hesitate to expose everything. It has nothing to do with whether Jay is backing you up or not." Jay was a powerful man, but Zora was not a pushover either. When Zora was about to leave, Winona grabbed her again. "Zora, just because you're back doesn't mean you can do as you please. Don't forget about the videos of you..." Zora could no longer hold herself back and snatched Winona's phone. "What are you doing?" Winona tried to grab it back, but Zora dodged her. Zora chuckled, seeing the fear on Winona's face. "You just love to threaten me with the videos, don't you?" She walked to the corridor and held Winona's phone outside the window. Suddenly, she let go of the phone. Winona watched as her phone fell from the 19th floor, shattering into pieces. "You..." "Didn't you enjoy threatening me with the videos? Now that the video is gone, we'll see what you're gonna do next." Without looking back, Zora entered the office. Winona trembled with anger. However, the thought of the videos being deleted gave her hope. 'Forget about the video. Now, Jay will never find out who was the woman with him that night.' After the incident of the semi-synthetic ores, Winona thought Jay would be disappointed with her and that she could not wait any longer. The only rightful way for her to become Jay's woman was to sleep with him that night. The night fell. Jay was at the study in the Sullivan's mansion. "Mr. Sullivan, Zora Jacobs is the daughter Stephen Jacobs had with his ex-wife. She is the legitimate daughter of the Jacobs family. Her mother is a jewelry designer." "Vienna Jewels was founded by Zora's mother and Stephen Jacobs. After her mother's death, Stephen Jacobs held the shares. Six years ago, Zora went abroad for an unknown reason." Roger Barnes spoke over the phone. Jay looked through the documents containing Zora's information. After hearing what Roger said, his mood darkened. 'Is it because the company was handed over to Winona that Zora harbored such resentment and targeted her like this?' 'Since Zora is one of the Jacobs, why didn't Winona acknowledge her from the beginning?' It was getting late, so Jay shook his thoughts off. When he returned to his room, he noticed someone on his bed. When he turned on the light, he saw Winona in a thin nightgown sitting on the bed. His gaze turned cold, and he asked, "Why are you in my room?" He allowed her to stay at Sullivan's mansion but not in his room. Winona dressed up, making her intentions so obvious, but he did not seem pleased. She bit her lip, feeling aggrieved. "Jay, I'm just wondering, after that night six years ago, you never let me get close again. Did I do something wrong?" She pretended to look innocent and helpless. Jay was just like any other man. Deep down, he felt aroused. Seeing Jay remaining silent, Winona approached him, embracing him with both hands around his neck. She tiptoed, attempting to kiss him. As Winona's lips drew near, Zora's face flashed through Jay's mind. He then pushed Winona away abruptly and looked at her with disgust. "Jay..." Winona panicked. "Jay, do you… do you hate me that bad?" 'Why?' 'Why could he touch Zora that night six years ago, but not me now?' "What happened six years ago was an accident. I kept you by my side, and I can compensate you for anything you want. But, whatever happened must not happen again." As Jay turned around, he thought of something and looked at her from the corner of his eyes. "Is Zora related to the Jacobs?" Winona was taken aback. 'Why did he bring up Zora all of a sudden?' 'Did he find out about anything?' "She's my sister..." "Then why didn't you acknowledge her when she came to the company? And instead, you hit her!" At first, Jay thought that Zora had provoked Winona first, leading to Winona's actions. However, after finding out Zora's identity, he realized that she was one of the Jacobs. Vienna Jewels was named after Zora's mother, and Stephen was but just a shareholder. Winona bit her lip, her hands tightly clenched. However, she appeared innocent on the outside. "Actually, my sister and I had an argument." "What kind of conflicts?" Winona had an idea and started weeping. "That night six years ago, she drugged me. Zora has been targeting us since my mom and I came to the Jacobs just because I was born out of wedlock. Originally, she was supposed to take over Vienna Jewels, but because of that incident, my father got very angry and drove her away." Jay's heart sank. 'That night six years ago happened because she was drugged?' 'Did Zora really do that to Winona? Given her cocky personality, it doesn't seem impossible.' Jay felt disturbed about what he found out. "You should go to sleep." Jay left Winona outside his room. As the door closed, Winona's face changed. 'It's always about Zora. Her existence is a threat to me!' 'I must not let Zora stay in Vienna Jewels!'